Two Weeks After Bouri Weight Loss - Holding Steady

Some of you may have followed my weight loss with the Bouari Advantage Spray and support from the Bellevue Clinic. Well, it was a 30 days programme and ended around February 25. Since then, I have tried to make sure that I did not gain back the 14 or so pounds I lost during that period. So far so good, I have actually lost a couple more pounds in the last two weeks. This is what I have been doing that seems to help;

1. I eat a lot more fruits, vegetables, whole grains and lean sources of protein. I only went back to bananas last week and even then, I don't eat as much as I used to, maybe like one a day instead of three. Also having never been a fan, I now eat a lot more apples, like two a day. I discovered that what I didn't like was the tarty taste of Atala's favorite Granny Smiths. After trying a few other types, I think I'm in love with Fuji Apples, they are sweet and crunchy.

I have also mostly cut out milk - going instead for low fat cheese and yoghurt. Also, where I would have a sandwich and a glass of milk as breakfast before, now I have a boiled egg and a tomato or two. I am also eating more meat, chicken, beef, sausages, and fish, and drastically cutting back on starch including bread, rice, poundo, eba, potatoes, etc.

2. I eat more times than I used to. I have always been a eat when you're hungry type and would eat a large breakfast and then a large dinner - basically twice a day. Now I eat at least four times a day, trying to graze on the main meals so they go on for longer. For example, that breakfast of egg and tomato will go on for an hour where I'll have half the egg and a tomato, then the rest half and our later. The in-between are made up of snacking on fruits and vegetables. Cucumbers make a great snack, I tell you.

3. I eat smaller portions. This follows from the previous points. After cutting out most of the starch, I definitely have smaller portions on my plate, and I'm still filled at the end of the day because I have been snacking and may have just had an apple a couple of hours before. I realized that one reason I love bananas is because they're so easy to eat - just peel and pop in your mouth. What I do now is first thing in the morning, wash up the fruits and vegs I intend to eat that day, and cut them up. Remove the core in the apples and pears, cut up the cantaloupe and cucumbers, peel the oranges - that sort of thing. I put them in bowls in the fridge and then pull them out whenever I want.

4. I try to avoid temptation. i mentioned that I have a sweet tooth and that is still there. We used to buy a couple tubs of ice cream as a treat like once a month and have it last a week or two. Since february, we haven't bought that and maybe we won't anymore. What I think we'll do is go out for a cone or bowl of ice cream once in a while as a one-off treat. What has replaced that is more healthy foods - almond nuts, sunflower seeds, peanuts, and of course, fruits and vegs.

5. I have started exercising. Yeah, I used to exercise before the weight loss programme but it wasn't encouraged during the Bouari protocol so I concentrated on the meal plan. Now, I have learnt a lot from the food samples but I believe that without the advantage spray, the best way to support my metabolism is by exercise. I have been using the elliptical for about 20mins three times a week for the past couple of weeks. We may also resume our exercise DVD soon.

Thanks to all those who left a comment on the last post on my weight loss, your tips are really coming in useful. I hope others who are trying to lose weight too will find my tips useful.

Hope everyone's week has started off well so far. All the best for the rest of it.