My Slmming Notes

After giving birth 9 months ago, I am still struggling with my post baby belly.  Slimming is one of the top to-do-list or wish-list of most modern mums.

I have tried various means to get back my prebaby body shape, and I shall share it below:

Binder & Girdle
I started using binder on the 3rd month after delivery. Had I known about it's benefits, I would have worn it earlier. I used 3 types - the highwaist binder, corset and girdle.  The waist binder is worn when I am wearing spaghetti stripe top. It is worth to invest in a good brand. I got mine from Wacoal.  The corset is about $149, waist binder about $89 and girdle is about $59.  A good material girdle and corset can last for years. I plan to buy a smaller size waist binder since the one I bought is not tight enough now.  When I first got it, my hips and waist have not reduced size after delivery. Yes, after many months, sizes have dropped naturally.

Herbalife Meal Replacement Shake 
Before buying this, I researched its benefits thoroughly on the net. For the first two cans, I diligently replaced two meals, breakfast and lunch with the shake for around two months.  While continuing with the third can, I began to feel sick of the taste and texture of the shake.  Hence, I only replaced my lunch with it.  When the fourth can came, I literally hold my breath and swallow the shake.  Now I am done with it.  I tried to mix it with fresh milk or soy milk or fruits.  I also bought chocolate flavour. But as days and weeks went by, the same hard-to-swallow feeling creeped in.  I love drinking milk, but the vanilla taste of the shake is very artificial.  Not forgetting to mention that it is super sweet!  I have to use unsweetened soy milk or just plain water to make it drinkable.  It does make me feel full for a few hours, but I still miss salty food.  And I continue to eat two slices of bread every morning, and occasionally take a normal lunch with colleagues. I noticed that, if I want to skip my lunch, I can also do so by eating two bananas and drink lots of water.  To make it more healthy, I will eat salad.  Perhaps, I did not purchase the complete range of Herbalife weight loss supplements, so the weight loss is not significant.  To me, replacing meal with shake alone is not sustainable.
If you want to try it out, you can get it at half the retail price from Q0010.  The shakes and supplements are from Korea.

2B Into Arms and Body Slimming Gel
After reading many positive review about this gel, I decided to buy one to try.  I applied it for the first time after shower, the buring effect only last about 15 - 20 minutes.  Not sure if it is because I applied a thin layer.  Later at night, I applied it again. But this time, there is no burning sensation at all. I wonder why?  Is it because the pores are not opened as in after shower?  The price for a 100ml tube is $42+.  It is not cheap.

Apple Cider
A search on the net will show you the benefits of drinking apple cider daily.  It helps in weight loss too.  So I will make it a point to put two table spoon into my drink a day.  Recommended brand is Bragg, it is cheap and can easily get from NTUC, Gaint and Cold Storage.  I would prefer this to the expensive Herbalife shake.

Green Tea & Water
Yes green tea can help to loss weight. Some studies show that substances in green tea may offer several weight-loss-promoting effects, such as speeding up your metabolism and suppressing your appetite. Although the antioxidant-rich brew won't help you shed pounds on its own, there's some evidence that drinking green tea may support your weight loss efforts. Green tea contains caffeine, which is known to increase thermogenesis (a biological process involved in burning calories). In a 2007 report from the American Journal of Physiology: Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, scientists state that green tea may fight the decrease in metabolism that typically accompanies weight loss. According to the report's authors, green tea may also inhibit the effects of catechol-O-methyltransferase (an enzyme known to trigger the breakdown of brain chemicals involved in regulating appetite).

Drinking lots of water will also help to keep you full and good for digestion.

Raspberry Keton
Initially, I thought that raspberry keton can aids in weight lost, and I almost bought the new slimming product 'Glow'. But after reading a medical report online, there is no solid evidence to prove that it helps in weight lost.  See http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/775741

Many of the commerical products use synthetic raspberry keton, which is cheap and easy to produce. So I will not jump into the bandwagon to waste money on it.
          

Below are my weight taken during and after pregnancy:

During pregnancy: 
Weight taken on 23 May (wk 5): 53.1 Kg
Weight taken on 17 Jul (wk 13): 55.8 Kg
Weight taken on 10 Aug (wk 16): 56.3 Kg
Weight taken on 17 Sept (wk 21): 59.7 Kg
Weight taken on 18 Oct (wk 26): 63.1 Kg
Weight taken on 22 Nov (wk 31): 65.7 Kg
Weight taken on 11 Dec (wk 34): 67.6 Kg
Weight taken on 2 Jan (wk 36): 69.1 Kg

After delivery:
Weight taken on 20 Mar: 59.0 Kg
Weight taken on 29 Apr: 58.6 Kg
Weight taken on 14 May: 57.8 Kg
Weight taken on 27 July: 56.5 Kg
Weight taken on 9 Sep: 55.1 Kg
Weight taken on 6 Oct: 54.7 Kg
Weight taken on 22 Dec: 53.8 Kg
Weight taken on 5 Feb: 52.9 Kg

My target weight is 50Kg.  My height is 1.68m.  I will return to update my slimming experience with apple cider and green tea. 

A Slow Day

Today is another slow day for me.  A heatup in work has caused me to loose my cool head.  Although the incident happened yesterday, I still find it hard to let go.  Before I can pack up the little stones, I am tasked with a new and clueless research report.  I could have clarified the required information with my superior, but I decided not to send the email.  Perhaps, I can guess what response he would give.  More words will cause more misunderstanding when tension is tight.  I decided to let time reveals things little by little to me.  Sometimes my anxiousness to get the required information has soured the relationship with colleagues.

I started this blog some time ago.  But I do not know what to write.  Fashion, food, travel etc these are too commonly blogged, and I am not a trend watcher.  So I begin with simple thing. 

I refer to the blog by SuperMama, and I like the quote "Here today, gone tomorrow".  It can be applied to many scenarios, be it a place, a person or an incident.  It can be applied to work place too.  I used to think that top management people cannot be easily replaced, and they would be there for a long time.  The management of my previous workplace was not well liked.  After being retrenched immediately on the spot by my boss, he experienced the same by his boss a year later.  And his boss has too been fired and replaced two years later.  Once a big European MNC, now only left with skeleton.  Management people can be nice to look upon, with frequent business traveling, nice accomodation and sumptous meals.  But they can be easily replaced if they do not have solid skill and knowledge to lead.

I tell myself that the Directors that I am unhappy with will one day be gone too.  Either they or I will leave the company one day.  It is a matter of time.  So why should I be so mad over business issue, that too will be forgotten some day.  Learn to let go of resentment is a skill that I have not mastered till today.

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