Frump to Fab 2016 - Lets make it AWESOME!!!

chanie

Hi fabbers,

Nothing to report from me - other than popping to the shops, I haven't been out, so no fanning going on here.

Back to work for me on Monday and I'm kind of looking forward to getting back to normality. We took the tree down today, so Christmas is well and truly over in this household.

chanie

Morning fabbers,

The children are up and playing nicely together, so I'm lying on the sofa, while I can!!!

I'm going to use today for some fabbing before I go back to work. I'm going to use this list so I don't forget what I need to do;
Face steam
Face mask
Body brush
De fuzz
Pedicure
Deep condition hair

dorothy52

Ok well bit the bullet and weighed myself. It's not as bad as I thought, I kind of look bigger than I weigh iykwim. I am in a rut with everything tbh re my image. Need a real overhaul. I also suffer from middle aged mega boobs. I look like dolly patrons granny. I love the way you ladies describe what you are wearing. I am going to shift some pounds and ask you to help me make myself over. Looking forward to being fab!

lessonlearned

Good morning lovely ladies.

What a difference a day makes.

Yesterday I felt grim, today I feel human again. I slept for 10 hours straight last night.....

Today I have restarted taking probiotics and vitamins d and c. I think I need a boost......I did get plenty of vitamin d on the cruise of course, but it's a long haul from now until April and any chance of decent warm sunshine.

Yesterday I managed a bit of a wardrobe sort out and today I shall take down the Christmas decorations, weeding them out a bit in readiness for my trip to the Chazzer tomorrow.

My wardrobe is pretty good although I have a few gaps - some grey or black jeans, a couple of sweaters and some black everyday shoes. I will try and buy those next week.

After that I will just concentrate on Spring and Summer wear, keeping an eye out in the chazzers first. The early bird and all that.........

My Goals for January

Use it up and save money......food, toiletries etc. The cupboards are groaning. the freezer is full. I have enough food, cleaning materials and toiletries to keep an army going.


Spanish - 30 minutes a day, one lesson per week.

Exercise - daily walk weather permitting, plus elliptical trainer, yoga or Pilates.I Am disgustingly unfit and will need to start slowly and build up. My goAl is to work up to 30 mins daily exercise, not counting walking.

Go out at least twice a week, so cinema, lunch or Similar.

Contact at least two friends per week. Make arrangements to see them.

I have neglected my real life friends most shamefully. They have been very understanding but I'm ready now to start socialising again. It's time to get out there.......

Today I shall phone my SIL and At least one friend. It starts today.;)

Start viewing houses.

Right. Now time for the newbies..........

I mentioned the Mirror Test, this is where it all starts.

But first let me tell you how this thread came about.

It all started with a photo that my son took. I was horrified. I burst into tears. Next day I stood in front on a full mirror and assessed the damage. I could scarcely recognise myself and what I had allowed myself to become. I looked little better than a bag lady. I resolved to do something about it. Frump to Fab was born.

Rummer

Everyone sounds very focussed on their individual goals, long may it last!

I did a massive shop yesterday and the house is groaning under the weight of endless healthy food. The meal plan is written and I am feeling better after only a couple of days healthy eating so I am looking forward to even more energy

The fabbing has been going well. I have been following a loose beauty routine which is working well for me. Also been spending quality time with family each day and ensuring I have a bit of me time to enjoy my hobbies too.

One big focus has been our home which we are spending a lot of time decluttering and decorating so that it is a calm and beautiful place to spend our time.

What I need to work on now is starting my new exercise routine!

lessonlearned

The Mirror Test

You need a full length mirror. Don't undress. Stand in front of the mirror and take a good hard look. Be objective. Start from the top and work your way down. What do you see.......

1. Hair - crowing glory or...............
2. sKin - glowing and healthy or ..........
3. Clothes - do they flatter you, do they actually fit you, have they seen better days.........
4. Shoes - are you well healed, shoes clean and polished or if wearing slippers are they falling apart.....

You get the gist.

It's not about how fat or slim you are at this stage, it's about making the best of yourself.

I am going to use a word that you will hear a lot on this thread. Grooming.

The plainest, ugliest, fattest person can still look good if they pay attention to grooming. It's quite simple really.

Hair should be shiny and clean, preferably with no Grey roots. If you want to allow yourself to go back to grey then there are ways to manage the transition without looking as if you have forgotten to do your roots.

Your skin should be clear and it should glow with health and vitality. Ok you might need to cheat a bit here, but hey, that's what blusher is for.....;).but yes a good routine of cleansing and moisturising will work wonders.

Don't worry if you don't like make up, plenty of people look just fine without it. I don't wear it everyday. And even when I do I only use a little. Personally I don't like to see people wearing heavy make up.

As we age, less is definitely more. It's not how much you use, but choosing the most flattering colours and applying it well. The aims to look good not "made up". Mature skin needs a light touch.

Clothes - This is what makes a huge difference. I'm not talking high fashion here. In fact forget fashion, think about style. But if you are new to all this, for now just think about looking clean and presentable, no more stained faded clothing that is well beyond its sell by date. No more saving stufff "for best". Isn't best what you are aIming for.

Hands and nails. You don't have to go for expensive gel nails and posh manicures. Don't wear nail polish if you don't like it. But do keep your nails clean healthy and nicely shaped. Do protect our hands by wearing rubber gloves - detergents contain chemicals which are very bad for the skin. Do use hand cream regularly.

Finally feet. Our poor old tootsies do take some punishment - look after them - you only get one pair and they have to last a lifetime. Poorly feet will impair your mobility as you age. Take care of them and they will repay you. Visit a chiropodist if you have to. Don't wear shoes that cripple you. Take care of your shoes. Polish them now and again. Polish feeds the leather and makes your shoes last longer.

Now some of you might think all this is unnecessary vanity. You might feel guilty about spending time on your appearance. You might think that personal maintenance is only for shallow airheads.

But think about this for a minute.

Would you let you partners go to work each day looking like a tramp. Of course not. You probably look after his clothes, buy his toiletries, encourage him to look good.

Would you let your children or grandchildren run around looking like orphans. No you wouldn't. You bathe them, get their hair cut, trim their nails for them. You make sure their clothes are nice and that they have properly fitting shoes.

Why should you treat yourself any differently. You deserve the same.

So from now on treat yourselves with a bit of TLC and start spending a little bit of time on yourself.

Start with grooming. Make the best of what you have. Don't wait until you get slim, start right now.

Start fabbing today........

Sufur

Hi
Lurker here, please an I join? I have a big holiday coming up at the end of May and would like to feel better about myself by then.
I hope to say more later but you all seem like a friendly bunch so hope I can join you in fabbing
I have 140 days to make a start and then continue.

indiepanda

sofarbehind wrote: »

I wonder how Indie is getting on?

Hello! Happy New Year fabbers.

Am finally home alone in London, feels like I haven't stopped the last couple of weeks. I think I last posted on the 28th when I was back from the boyfriend's. I went out for a drink with a friend that night, then off first thing the following morning for lunch with a friend and a spot of shopping at the outlet village (skinny jeans, small handbag, little purse for evenings), then dinner at the hotel with fellow walkers.

The first day of walking the forecast was foul so I gave myself the day off and went to Bath, had a really lovely day - went from coffee shop to Assembly Rooms and Costume Museum then onto a restaurant for lunch, a bit of shopping (some very cute ballet pumps in Hobbs) and back to a cafe before heading back for dinner at the hotel. I think I was ready for a bit of time alone after the previous days were so busy, and I enjoyed reading a nice chick lit novel on my kindle over my drink and lunch-stops.

The forecast for the following day was better, so did a hike of about 8-9 miles from Avebury. Had a brief shower while we were out but the serious rain held off till just as we were changing into our trainers back at the car so that was perfect timing.

The boyfriend came down that evening and joined us for the NYE party. He's quite happy getting on the dancefloor which is great - would never have got the ex to the party in the first place much less dancing.

Went hiking the next day, not a long one as we started a bit late because we'd all been up rather late compared to usual, but probably around 6-7 miles around the Cotswold water parks.

Came back to mine from there, was feeling shattered as a cold that had been threatening for days was starting to come out. The boyfriend was lovely, made me hot lemon and lime with honey and sorted out dinner. Got up late yesterday and went to Greenwich to mooch around the craft market and have lunch / buy food for dinner. Was great, he's much more interested in art/design than anyone I've been out with since a guy I dated about 21 years ago, so we can enjoy that sort of thing together, whereas other guys would at best humour me doing it, but at worst would just spoil in.

We had a quiet night in, watched Amelie on DVD and got an early night. He's gone home to sort out his books for his accountant this morning so I have a day at home, which in theory is for chores, but I suspect I will take it quite easy as I am still feeling below par. Poor boyfriend was scared to go to sleep for a while as I was struggling for breath as I was so bunged up.

Anyway: goals for 2016:

I read in a book by Marisa Peer that one of the reasons most efforts to lose weight fail because we are programmed to avoid "loss" - it's very hard to think of any other sense in which the word "loss" is positive. (Maybe virginity... but that's far from universally positive!). So the plan is to make my goals positive ones. I need to sharpen these up into "how" - build some successful strategies to implement. Going to re-read "Better than before" by Gretchen Ruben which is all about how to successfully build new habits. Here's what I want to do.

- Eat and drink healthily: More home and healthy cooking, more packed lunches, more planning of snacks, more water, more herbal and green tea.

- Move more: Run, walk, hike, train, dance. If anyone fancies having a bit a competition on daily steps and has a fitbit, drop me a PM and I can give you my details to find me and add me as a friend.

- Relax: do more yoga, use headspace app, use aromatherapy, have more baths, go to bed earlier, go for massages.

- Polish: wear perfume and jewellery every day. Use make up more often, look after hands and feet (regular home mani/peds and occasional salon treats), exfoliate all over, use body lotion daily, do regular home facials, regrow my hair, look after my scalp, dress well.

- Use my resources wisely (i.e. time and money). More conscious use of both to support me in achieving my goals.

Good luck to everyone with your goals, let's make 2016 a truly fab year xxx

greenbee

indie - will PM you re. fitbit... but you might also want to have a look at the 'You vs the Year' 1000km challenge on Map My Run

I started yesterday with 7km of mud

Diet is going well so far ... the odd bad thing has sneaked in, but I'm finding I'm not particularly hungry at the moment, so the eating is boredom/mindless eating while watching DVDs etc. I clearly need to do more with my hands so I can't eat ... Maybe I should take up knitting or embroidery again?

Plans for this year:

Continue with regular classes when I'm at home (Pilates twice a week, old ladies' keep fit once a week, old ladies' dance class one a week, running group once a week, swimming lesson once a week)

Run 3 times a week and work up to at least one regular 10km run per week

Cut out sugar. I've got a breast clinic appointment on Wednesday which has focussed my mind on the need to cut inflammatory foods. Sugar is top of the list. I've got a copy of 'Deliciously Ella', have got the juicer out and am alternating juices on non-running days with smoothies on running days.

Reduce alcohol - I'm not going to cut it out completely. And I'm not doing Dryathlon (my birthday meal is on Saturday... my friends always put off their dry January until after that!). But I do need to cut down.

Keep up the diet and exercise regime when travelling - so taking herbal teabags, nuts, dried fruit and vegan protein bars with me to help avoid the vast amounts of coffee (I'd rather have one decent coffee a day than lots of crap stuff) and carbs that I'm usually presented with.

I've booked into Westins for almost all of the next trip as they have a focus on light, healthy food for business travellers, a variety of juices and also lend workout gear so I can get mine washed while borrowing theirs! I've also made sure that there is a pool at every hotel for this trip as it will be WAY too cold to run outside in Canada in January! Although by the time I get to the end of the trip I'll probably be too tired to swim as well!

sofarbehind

LL thanks for posting the mirror test, I missed that last year somehow - I'm currently failing on grey roots..
Indie - Sorry you've got a miserable cold. Your new year sounds lovely though and the new man very decent and caring. Keep us all informed!
Greenbee your exercise plan sounds brilliant, very varied and interesting. I would like to work my way up to a similar level.


Well ladies I made it to the gym. Only did 50 mins of slow cardio but feel better for it. I've become very unfit unsurprisingly...I want to work on this.