Day 48 - Bloating

Dukan Day: 48
Weight Lost: 5.5kg
Weight To Go: 3.3kg

This morning I woke up feeling quite bloated. It is the time of the month, but I hadn't noticed any water retention in the earlier days of my period and my weight has stayed the same. I don't know if that means I'm due for a loss and I'm retaining water, or if the water my body naturally has has shifted to my belly. Either way, nothing I can do about it. Just got to wait it out and continue the diet!

Today is PV... I cooked up some Amberjack with soy sauce and served it with some raw cabbage. Cooked cabbage tastes like it was sent from hell but raw cabbage is sooo yummy. It's great to nibble on when you want something quick to eat, too.

Day 46 - Constipation?

Dukan Day: 46
Weight Lost: 5.5kg
Weight To Go: 3.3kg

You knew there was going to be this entry at some point!

I'm shitting you! This isn't about poop! I just don't have time to write a longer blog today. 
My attempt at humour... I'm not a comic (and judging from this I don't have a career in comedy awaiting me...)

But, FYI, I'm not constipated. I won't upload a picture for this entry! :)

Day 45 - うまい

Dukan Day: 45
Weight Lost: 5.5kg
Weight To Go: 3.3kg

I've seen a steady progression in weight-loss since I've been back on 1-1 ratio PP-PV plan. I'm now back to my pre-off-plan weekend (and pre-water retention) weight!


I could view this as two weeks lost due to 3 days of weakness... but I choose to look at it as a lesson: don't go off-plan!

Today I took chicken for lunch. I was eating with my students and they said my chicken looked good. Being in a good mood and with some students I'd known for a while I offered 3 of the boys some. They all said it was "うまい (umai)" (which is a really good word for expressing something is delicious) and they weren't faking (unless they were very good actors)! They then had a short discussion on it, including the flavours they could taste (which was soy sauce and parsley) and my ability to cook. 

I was really surprised that people found something I cooked delicious... I really can't cook all that well, but to hear someone say that something I cooked was good, I felt really proud! 
My tastes usually tend to be different to other people's because I can't smell, so what is good to me might not be to someone else (especially if I've cooked it to how I want).  

Maybe I can cook well after all? 

Today was return of the flounder!! I mentioned before how soft it was... it fell to pieces as I lifted it onto the plate :)

This time cooked in soy sauce (yes, I love soy sauce - its quick, its easy, its yummy - and you only need to use a small amount and still get a lot of flavour from it!). Flounder is faaarrr better in soy sauce than lemon juice.

Day 44 - 4.30am

Dukan Day: 44
Weight Lost: 5kg
Weight To Go: 3.8kg

This morning I woke up at about 4.30am... an hour later and it was clear that sleep wasn't going to happen.

Living in an apartment sometimes sucks, it would of been perfect to fit in some trampoline time but I didn't want to wake the lady who lives below. (Naturally in Japan, I have a Japanese style apartment... which means the living room also doubles as the bedroom... my trampoline happens to be in my living room/bedroom... which means it is directly over the living room/bedroom below...). I did however do a little bit of weight and abs work.

When the weather gets better... and by better I mean not 2°C rain... I can start running again. Last summer I did a 5km route - but that route takes me down a street that had a robbery at knife-point a few months ago... so I think I will go the other way...

I wonder sometimes if I am doing enough intensity on my trampoline. I tend to put on a DVD while I bounce so I tend to bounce at the same pace as the DVD... action = faster... conversation = slower. I recently bought some new DVDs... mostly sci-fi action... so when they arrive I hope I can step up the intensity a little. I've tried music but I really need something for my eyes to focus on.

Today is a PV day... broccoli with chicken. I wanted to play with the flavour of broccoli a little without using salt so I added a sprinkle of mixed herbs, some pepper and a little bit of lemon juice. Not bad!

Day 43 - Goal Dates

Dukan Day: 43
Weight Lost: 4.5kg
Weight To Go: 4.3kg

Remaining Days: Sayonara!!
Clearly I will not reach the goal date set out for me on the Dukan website... but I'm sticking with the diet! I was on target until my weekend of off-plan food... but I've been set back because of it.

My advice to anyone contemplating off-plan foods: don't do it!!! It messed up my body for a week in terms of loss and I'm still 1.5kg above what I was before and I know I didn't eat that many calories for that type of gain (plus anything I would of lost on-plan the following week).

I can't go back and undo that weekend, nor would I, so I just have to keep battling on. I haven't posted over the last few days... I was on-plan but too busy to sit and write an entry. 

I mentioned Amberjack in a previous entry. Last time I tried it with lemon juice and I finally got around to using soy sauce. Amberjack in soy sauce is delicious! I really enjoyed this meal! 

Day 39 - Valentine's Day

Dukan Day: 39
Remaining Days: 25 (113 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 3kg
Weight To Go: 5.8kg

Happy Valentine's Day! I got some chocolate from a teacher but I won't eat it yet...

I'm rather annoyed my weight went up by 2kgs because of 3 days of bad choices and hasn't come down at all (not even a little) after 3 days of good choices... my body is CRAZY!

I'm feeling rather unmotivated by this whole diet thing now. I'm going to stick with it until I decide what I'm going to do about it... lol

Day 38 - Staffroom Snacks!

Dukan Day: 38
Remaining Days: 26 (114 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 3kg
Weight To Go: 5.8kg

I'm back on the Dukan Wagon... but no one else is! I'm finding it hard to keep on the wagon and not offend people. The people I work with at my schools are sooo sweet and are always giving me snacks and sweets... In Japan it seems as if you don't want something and try rejecting it that they assume you hate it... I don't hate it, I just don't want it right at this exact moment in time. (If I try explaining that I'm on a diet they just reply 「ダイエットしなくてもいいですよ」 - "you don't have to diet!")

The people in my office are nice, so I'm nice back and take the food - I don't want to cause drama or offend them. Sometimes I try and put the food back when no one is looking. Someone else can enjoy it that way. But sometimes it's unavoidable to eat the food in front of people at that exact moment.
 

Today's offender was Onigiri Sembei... Sembei are rice cracker thingies. When I first came to Japan I absolutely hated the taste of sembei but they grew on me over time and I quite like them now. Of course they are carb central... >_<

Day 37 - Well off the Wagon!

Dukan Day: 37
Remaining Days: 27 (115 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 3kg
Weight To Go: 5.8kg

In my last entry I said something about blips and new day... well.... I failed! It was a 3-day weekend here in Japan and I did eat whatever I wanted... including carbs and chocolate. It has resulted in an unpleasant number on the scale... so I'm going PP for 3 days to clear my system then I'm going to do the 1-1 ratio religiously.

I saw this article today. So I'm pretty much exactly on point at the five week mark. Chocolate is the diet killer! But I'm going back on the wagon and I will do this!!

Today was a success! I ate all Dukan friendly foods! This week I have also increased my time on the trampoline to 40 minutes! 

Day 34 - Biryani

Dukan Day: 34
Remaining Days: 30 (118 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 5kg
Weight To Go: 3.8kg

I stopped marking water weight in red... a) it was getting too confusing and b) water makes up 60%ish of the body so technically my water weight is around 40kgs. 

The diet was well and truly blown today!! Carbs and chocolate galore!!
I met up with a friend who was in town that I hadn't seen for about 2 years. We had lunch at an Indian restaurant - I had a vegetable biryani. Rice is a big big no no on Dukan!!
But... I'm trying to lose weight to improve my life - not stop myself from having a life.

The diet damage didn't stop there...

During the week I had my birthday! (Happy Birthday Me). I kept to my diet on that day but I did receive some chocolately presents... I ate some today!

I'm guessing I ate around 3000 calories today... but I still managed to get 60 minutes of walking and 30 minutes on the trampoline in so not a total loss.

Today is a blip. Tomorrow is a brand new day. Cheating will cause a slight gain, but I'll get back on Dukan tomorrow and lose it. It'll take longer, but I'll get there!

Day 33 - Up, Down, Up, Down, Throw Up

Dukan Day: 33
Remaining Days: 31 (119 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 5.75kg - 0.75
Weight To Go: 3.05kg + 0.75

I am now over half way through my Dukan Diet weight loss stage.

My weight has been going up and down like crazy the last few days. Last night I woke up at about 2am feeling a little sick and my throat felt really strange. My saliva was really sticky and thick. I'm not sure if it was something I ate... but either way I think I may not be getting enough water.

I still felt a little sick this morning - this was not helped with my bus ride to school either. I felt quite ready to throw up by the time I got out of the bus. A bit of 2°C air later and I was feeling much better. I battled through the day but now, at 6pm, I'm feeling normal again.

Today I was really forcing liquid down my throat... I taught 4 classes back-to-back so I had to use the 10 minutes between class to down water. Hopefully today I can really flush out my system and whatever it was that was making me feel ill.

I received a nice little package in the mail today... 2400 Sweetex tablets from England!!
2400 tablets = 800 cups of tea! I think I can manage that before I leave Japan...

I hope I never have to resort to Japanese sweetener again! I can really taste the difference - Sweetex is far nicer!

Day 32 - Chewing Gum

Dukan Day: 32
Remaining Days: 32 (120 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 5.75kg - 0.25
Weight To Go: 3.05kg + 0.25

Water weight is going down slightly - yay!
(Or... the water weight is staying and I'm losing fat weight...)

My new product of the week is sugar free chewing gum!

I picked up a pack of Lotte Xylitol last week and I'm really happy with it. I have Lime Mint flavour at the moment - its really yummy!

Apparently, not only is this gum sugar free but it also decreases acid in your mouth which helps decrease the risk of tooth decay. This is especially useful in Japan as neither the water nor toothpaste contains fluoride.

It's not calorie free nor carb free... but the entire pack has 42 calories and about 14 pieces of gum in it (so 3 calories per piece).

There are 2 other flavours: Fresh Mint (blue) and a new flavour in a light blue packet (I don't know what this flavour is). My supermarket has only Lime Mint and Fresh Mint at the moment. I believe you can get this in other countries too (and in different flavours), I recommend it.

Day 31 - Relax!

Dukan Day: 31
Remaining Days: 33 (121 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 5.75kg - 1
Weight To Go: 3.05kg + 1

Water weight continues... >_<
1kg equates to 3850 calories... when you see the little needle hovering 1kg above what you weighed in 2 days ago you start thinking... that's 3850 calories of chocolate I could of eaten!! But... the water weight will go... the chocolate weight won't! :)

I'm expecting the water weight to continue... today was STRESSFUL! There is this one class in my school... I hate them! Horrendous little children that makes you ask "What has the world done to you at such a young age to give you that bad of an attitude?"... every time I go they get worse and today I was very prepared to walk out of the class. There is this idea floating around that Japanese children are all nice and polite... but this little class are bad! Japanese schools just aren't trained to deal with "bad children" so they pretty much get away with anything and they just keep getting worse.

Anyways, this blog isn't about me bitching about my job - but weightloss!! Stress causes water retention (or so Jillian Michaels says on The Biggest Loser)... so I'll be keeping that 1kg for another day.

I was in a pissy mood when I got home so I did some bouncing on my trampoline. Feeling better now :) and I have a strong cup of brown rice tea.

Day 30 - Water Weight

Dukan Day: 30
Remaining Days: 34 (122 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 5.75kg - 0.75
Weight To Go: 3.05kg + 0.75

What are those strange little red numbers at the top of this post?! It's water weight gain time!!
Its not the first time, I didn't post it before because I knew it was just water weight (unless I'd unconsciously binged on a few thousand calories without realising) - but it went as quickly as it came.

PV days seem to cause many a Dukaner to maintain an extra bit of water. I am defiantly not the exception.

I came across this very interesting piece of reading: Why the Scale Can Lie.

It's probably the best thing I've read that explains water retention in relation to fat loss!


In other news, I'm getting really into crab. Love it!

Day 29 - Broccoli

Dukan Day: 29
Remaining Days: 35 (123 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 5.75kg
Weight To Go: 3.05kg

I've now done an entire month on the Dukan Diet and have lost 5.75kg... which is pretty damn good I think!

The best thing about this diet is that it doesn't feel like a diet sometimes... I'm rarely hungry and even if I do feel hungry - I can eat! No calorie counting is great! (Especially as often calories aren't even printed on some packaging her in Japan).

Today was a PV day... which means I have some carrots and broccoli for lunch. It tastes sooo good. I do add salt to my vegetables, so I do expect to retain more water than without - but I can't stand the taste of cooked broccoli without salt. The health benefits of eating broccoli of course out weigh a minor temporary water weight gain.

It's day 4 of my February Trampolining Challenge and I haven't missed a day. I'm realising at days at my far away school I have less time to fit it in... I'm going to try and do it the moment I get in. I live in an apartment building so I feel a bit guilty about disturbing the lady who lives below me - I figure before 9pm is alright. I do use my trampoline on a very thick futon (folded up) as to lessen the noise.

Day 28 - White Eggs

Dukan Day: 28
Remaining Days: 36 (124 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 5.5kg
Weight To Go: 3.3kg

Eggs... that handy little snack loved by Dukaners! You can use them in so many ways and for so many things. I usually take some boiled eggs with me to work and snack on them when I'm feeling hungry. But, what colour should they be and why are they that way?

When I was in England I was used to seeing eggs that were brown. That is the way it was. Bananas were yellow, carrots were orange, and eggs were brown.

 

It wasn't until I visited Canada that I first saw white eggs. I was told that was because the eggs were bleached. I didn't question it because I didn't really care that much to be honest.

Now, In Japan there is a mixture of both brown and white eggs (but white eggs seem to be more abundant). So whats the difference?

Turns out... white eggs come from white chickens and brown eggs come from brown chickens... LOL. I feel so dumb not to know that! It makes so much sense! The Internet tells me that the colour doesn't affect the quality/nutrition of the egg at all... eggs are like people... no matter the colour of your skin we all taste the same!  :)

Day 27 - Amberjack?

Dukan Day: 27
Remaining Days: 37 (125 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 5kg
Weight To Go: 3.8kg

My weight loss has stalled somewhat this week... I noticed the needle on the scale was bobbing a little under 66kgs... but not enough for me to warrant classing it as a loss yet.

I'm eating my way through the oceans of the world...
By doing Dukan I'm eating fish I've never even heard of before! Yesterday I picked up some buri (ブリ - 鰤） at the supermarket. If you've never heard of buri, maybe you know amberjack or five-ray yellowtail? No? Me, neither!

This is what it looks like sat in the supermarket...

This is what it looks like with some lemon juice and parsley...

I quite liked it. It had a really nice texture. It's flavour wasn't so strong so I could really taste the lemon juice I cooked it in. I want to try it with soy sauce next time!

Side note: although I cook fish with the skin on, I never eat it. Most of the fat on fish can be found here and most of the toxins/chemicals the fish may of come in contact with, too.
I do however make an exception for sushi, because it tastes good and the amount of skin is usually very small.

Day 26 - February Challenge!

Dukan Day: 26
Remaining Days:  38 (126 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 5kg
Weight To Go: 3.8kg

It's February!!! That means we survived January... the longest month of the year!! February is cool for some very important reasons...

• it is very short and that means March is coming soon (yay Spring!!)
• there is a public holiday in Japan on the 11th! (yay free day off!)
• my birthday is in February!!! Although I don't really celebrate it, more of an inner "yay me" celebration.
• Valentine's Day! A day to be hated anywhere in the world, except Japan when its only the girls that give presents - and its quite natural to receive and give presents to fellow female friends. (I've received more presents from women on Valentines Day in the 3 years I have been in Japan than my entire life living in England from men - I don't think I'm that bad looking, but I guess British guys do).

Anyways, February! This month I am going to make a "mini challenge" to myself. I want to do 30 minutes of exercise on my trampoline a day... increasing each week by 10 minutes... until I reach 1 hour a day... can I do it? Probably not... but I'll try my best!!

I'm going to write down all the times I do it in my fabulous (105円) Disney Princesses diary...

February is Belle month! 

I will reward myself with a little sticker too, so it looks all bling bling! How sad will I be if I can't put a little sticker in my diary to show I rocked out my trampoline that day?

Why don't you set yourself a mini-challenge this month?

Day 25 - Greek Yogurt

Dukan Day: 25
Remaining Days:  39 (127 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 5kg
Weight To Go: 3.8kg

Walk into a supermarket in Japan and ask for "Greek Yogurt" and I'm sure you'll get a blank stare. Ask for Gurishayoguruto (ギリシャヨーグルト) and you might get lucky... but the more wide spread readily-available Greek yogurt (although technically I guess it's strained yogurt) is known as Caspian Sea Yogurt (カスピ海ヨーグルト).

You might be forgiven for thinking that Greece borders the Caspian Sea... it doesn't.

Caspian Sea Yogurt isn't 100% fat free... but 2.8g of fat for every 100g is not terrible at all.

As you'd expect from Greek yogurt, Caspian Sea Yogurt its thicker and not as sweet as other types of yogurt. I did like it and I will continue to buy it.

Day 24 - Quality Cheat

Dukan Day: 24
Remaining Days:  40 (128 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 5kg
Weight To Go: 3.8kg

I'm sure anyone from the UK, unless you've been living under a fairly giant rock*, is familiar with Quality Street... aka Shetlandsgodt if you're from Western Norway or Mackintosh if you're from Iceland... or any of the above if you're country imports them... and if you have no idea what I am talking about: yummy delicious chocolaty goodness!

*I would like to state for the record that I do not have anything against people who live under rocks. It is a very valid life style choice - one I have considered many times myself.

When I returned to Japan from England I bought each of my schools a big tin of Quality Street! This morning I was feeling a bit blah, it was cold in the staff room and I was alone... the box of Quality Street was calling my name...

 "I'm the Green Triangle, and I'm the best!!! Love me! Eat me!"

Well, there was no Green Triangles in the box (because they are the best!!) but one pink Vanilla Fudge was left... my second favourite!!!

"Eat me, Bitch!!"

So, I ate the little Vanilla Fudge! It was yummy and I felt a little buzz afterwards :)
I'm sure one chocolate won't derail my diet and I don't regret it for one minute! One chocolate was enough for me - I didn't feel like I had to have another. (Yay to changing eating habits!)

Although I cheated... it was a Quality Cheat (lol... did you see what I did there!! Quality street... cheat...).

"I'm still the best!!!"

Day 23 - Pulled Muscle

Dukan Day: 23
Remaining Days:  41 (129 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 5kg
Weight To Go: 3.8kg

Almost 2 weeks ago I was doing the 30 Day Shred and although I didn't feel pain at the time, the following few days I noticed my upper back on the right side felt very uncomfortable. It was similar to a sore muscle (the kinda nice feeling you get when you've worked out hard) but lasted for longer than it should... a few days later and I was sure I'd pulled a muscle. I've pulled muscles before but usually felt the exact moment I pulled them. The last time I pulled a muscle in my shoulder blade it HURT and I couldn't sleep well for a few days but the pain went within a week. This time my pain wasn't going and nearly 2 weeks into the pain hadn't gotten better (nor worse). I was a little bit worried, especially since it was on my back (the bank kinda an important part of the body)

So today I went to the doctor about my pulled muscle. The doctor said it was a bad pull but should start getting better within two weeks (or I have to go back). He did offer me some meds but I turned them down (some over the counter pills have been doing the trick).
He recommended a small amount of exercise so I'm going to do some stretches later and some cardio.

Sorry, readers... that was the most pointless story!! I thought I had a pulled muscle... I did... it'll heal... the end! :)

I was hungry again today... got back home and cooked dinner straight away. Mackerel in soy sauce and lemon juice!! It looks like I used lots of soy sauce but I rinsed the fish and I didn't dry it off before I added the soy sauce and lemon juice - that's why the soy sauce looks so pasty!

Day 22 - Konnyaku

Dukan Day: 22
Remaining Days:  42 (130 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 5kg
Weight To Go: 3.8kg

I have now finished 3 weeks on the Dukan Diet! I'm back on my 1-1 ratio of PP to PV. Today was the first day I felt really hungry... but I think its because I had only 1 class today so I spent a lot of time sat in the office studying.

So, I've posted a few times about shirataki noodles (the amazing high fibre, no cal, no carb, no fat, no taste noodles). Today I bring you konnyaku!! It is basically the block version of shirataki noodles and not as slimey. It is made from Konjac... what on earth is Konjac you ask!? Maybe you know the term Devil's Tongue better? It's a fairly pretty plant native to Asia but I've seen it in England before in garden centres. Anyways, I sliced/diced/got knife-happy with the konnyaku and boiled it with a flavour sachet. The first few cubes were delicious but I didn't really need to cook up the entire packet... I think it would go nicer in a stew with some other vegetables (as I've previously eaten it).

Day 21 - English Sweeteners vs. Japanese Sweeteners

Dukan Day: 21
Remaining Days:  43 (131 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 5kg
Weight To Go: 3.8kg

5kg lost so far!!! Yay!!! I'm back to my pre-England holiday weight!!!


My pulled muscle was quite painful last night. I aggravated it yesterday evening while doing some cleaning. I ended up going to bed about 9pm and I woke up this morning at 7.30! I slept straight through - which is surprising for a Saturday night. I live in the downtown of my city and I'm about a 3 minute walk from the main nightlife area. Saturday night more often than not involves a drunken party walking by my apartment building and/or a police car/ambulance riding by in the small hours. I guess I needed a long deep sleep.

I have a super sweet tooth, so naturally I use sweeteners in my tea. I have very weak teeth (because I don't like milk and so never drank it and I eat sweet things) so I have to avoid sugar in my tea. I bought some Sweetex from England with me and I love it. Not the most healthiest thing in the world, but I'm sure it's much healthier than munching on some chocolate to get a sweet-fix.

This week I ran out! D:


So, I was on the hunt for a replacement here in Japan. My local supermarket does not have the best choice of food. But, I did find a temporary replacement.


I say temporary replacement as I have asked my mother to send me some Sweetex from England!

The Japanese sweetener I found was Pal Sweet (パルスイート). It comes in both a sugar granule type packet or a liquid. I got the granule type. You use a third the amount you would of sugar - but I still use a tea spoon of Pal Sweet in my tea just to make it sweet enough.

The big problem I have with this is the price... its 900円 for a bag of 140g that doesn't even last a week. It really annoys me in Japan that so much emphasis is made on being skinny (and I do stress skinny, not thin, not healthy, SKINNY) that diet products are extremely over priced, more so than in England.

Sweetex costs the equivalent of 600円 (plus the postage from England) and will last me a few months.

I think Sweetex tastes better too. It seems to disperse better in tea, unlike Pal Sweet which, despite frantic stirring, gets sweeter towards the bottom. I wonder if the density of Pal Sweet causes the sweeter water to sink to the bottom? Look at me trying to be all sciency and stuff! I don't have a clue lol.

Day 20 - Flounder!

Dukan Day: 20
Remaining Days:  44 (132 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 4.75kg
Weight To Go: 4.05kg

Yay down a little bit today! I'm about a third of the way through the Cruise Phrase and over half way to my goal.

The Little Mermaid won't be happy... I ate flounder!!!

It wasn't the first time. I had it about 3 years ago in Tokyo raw. I didn't like nor dislike it when I ate it raw. We had a bunch of different fish so I didn't really note flounder as something I'd have to eat again. But, I saw it in the supermarket and I thought I'd give it a try again!
 
I wasn't so keen with the taste of flounder cooked, but it was super soft! I cooked it with some lemon juice, but I think next time I will try soy sauce.

Day 19 - Lunch Attack

Dukan Day: 19
Remaining Days:  45 (133 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 4.5kg
Weight To Go: 4.3kg

No change on the scales after yesterday's brutal doughnut assault...maybe that means I was due for a drop but the doughnut pushed it back up... or the doughnutwas too small a change to notice on my scales...

I'm back on attack right now! I'll continue until Monday maybe and then go back to my 1-1 ratio. I want to get the sugar and carbs out of my system quickly so I can get back on track.

On PP/Attack school days, my lunch is this:

Shirataki noodles, cod, and a yogurt. (How cute is my lunchbox?! It was a present from a teacher at a previous school I taught at - I love it!)
The noodles actually keep my stomach pretty full. I snack on boiled eggs during the day (one in the morning, and one in the afternoon). Of course breakfast and dinner vary every day.

I was invited to a drinking party tonight. I would of liked to go but it was 2 hours of all you can drink (and some food) for 4500円 and I'll only be able to drink oolong tea (which I don't actually like all that much) :/ A waste of money. We will have a similar party in March and, according to my Dukan prediction, I should be at goal by then, so I shall reward myself with a few glasses of wine at that party! :)

Day 18 - Misudo

Dukan Day: 18
Remaining Days:  46 (134 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 4.5kg
Weight To Go: 4.3kg

The time of the month is really not a friend of the diet. Since this time last week I lost 0.75kg... for the third week on the Dukan Diet it is pretty lame. But it is in the right direction... and, as someone pointed out, that is actually 1% of my body weight - which sounds pretty good actually to me!

Of course, I'm going to put all that back on again by consuming some donuty goodness!! One of my lovely fellow teachers bought some Mister Donut (Misudo) donuts!! In Japan, Misudo releases seasonal donuts. Me and another teacher were drooling over the flyer yesterday of the new Valentine donuts that were just released. So my teacher bought some (so kind!). It'll be rude not to eat them, and it was a really sweet thing for her to do, so I am going to eat and enjoy!!!

Hopefully, in an attempt to limit the damage, I'm going to do a 3 day attack phase tomorrow and over the weekend. I've pulled a muscle in my upper back so I haven't done the 30 day shred this week, but I can still walk and do some trampolining - so I want to increase my exercising time this weekend, too.  

Day 17 - Lemon Salmon

Dukan Day: 17
Remaining Days:  47 (135 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 4.5kg
Weight To Go: 4.3kg

Back to my 4.5kg loss! Bye bye water!

I started a new twitter account last night! Doing Dukan in Japan on Twitter!
Just another outlet for my Dukan Diet ramblings.

Today is SALMON!!!!! So much for cutting down on my fish intake... but when in Japan...
I used a fair amount of lemon juice with a sprinkle of herbs. I love sprinkling herbs on things... I like the colour green on my plate. Salmon is my favourite fish - and I think it goes really well with lemon. These cuts of salmon are 100円 each and often come packaged in packs of 2 for 200円 or 3 for 300円 - so I treated myself to a 2 pack. They have a spine bone thingy that is easy to remove after its cooked and there are a few stray bones in there, and the skin peels away easily after its cooked. 

I am planning on leaving Japan in August to return to the UK and I'm quite sure I'm going to finish my goodbye speech with "So long and thanks for all the fish!"

Day 16 - Nooooo!!

Dukan Day: 16
Remaining Days:  48 (136 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 4.25kg
Weight To Go: 4.55kg

Nooooo! My first gain this morning!! D:
Yesterday was a PV day but I stuck to plan so it must just be water retention. (I did use salt when I boiled my vegetables... maybe I used too much... or it's still that time of the month... ). I hope it is gone tomorrow... shoo extra 0.5kg... away!

I bough some mackerel! I have eaten it before as sashimi (raw) but I tried cooking it for the first time. I cooked it with some lemon juice and some herbs. It was quite tasty but I think I prefer mackerel raw (I think I've been in Japan too long...).

Day 15 - Half Way There

Dukan Day: 15
Remaining Days:  49 (137 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 4.5kg
Weight To Go: 4.3kg


I'm over half way to my goal!!!!!!!!!! Is that not insane? 2 weeks on the Dukan Diet and I lost 4.5kgs! I'd love to lose at least 1kg a week from here on in - then in a month I'll be at target!! :D

I'm fairly certain my sore throat is becoming a cough... I had a few splutterings of cough earlier and I have a wee headache. I'm going to keep my fluids up and hope it doesn't get worse. Hopefully some bacteria yogurt will help too!

Day 14 - Ramen, or is it?

Dukan Day: 14
Remaining Days:  50 (138 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 4kg
Weight To Go: 4.8kg

Last night I was getting some rather inconvenient chocolate cravings, but, I'm finding that the restriction of this diet is helping me from caving into cravings. In the past if I was on a diet I'd cave and just work them into my calories (of course 2 pieces of chocolate are not enough... who would ever just eat 2 pieces of chocolate? they come in BARS for a reason!!!! and thus the diet would be broken). Anyway, chocolate is a NO on Dukan... so I don't even entertain the idea that I can have it. Seems I cope with "NO" a lot better than "just a little...". 

This morning I work up with a slight sore throat. I hope I am not getting a cold/cough. Lemons have vitamin C in them, so I'm going to keep adding the lemon juice to meals where I can.

Today I tried cooking shirataki noodles in a ramen sauce. I had some shio (salt flavour) packets in my cupboard for ramen so I tried mixing one into my noodles. They tasted pretty good - close to the real deal ramen actually. I don't know how Dukan-friendly it was, but it was a good snack for a cold day.

Day 13 - Hello, Beastie!

Dukan Day: 13
Remaining Days:  51 (139 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 4kg
Weight To Go: 4.8kg

I actually showed a loss today of 0.25kg. I'm surprised! I'm on my period now and I usually retain water. So I'm not sure if I'm not retaining water or I'm losing on top of the water weight. Either way the scales are going in the right direction. I'm not experiencing super bad cravings... I did fancy some chocolate earlier but the moment soon passed as I was on my way out.
 
Today I attempted squid! It was cheap at the supermarket so I thought I'd give it a try. It was a rather scary looking beastie. (ha ha, I called it a beastie... did you see what I did there?!). I bought this baby kraken* pre-sliced because, as expected, it was super rubbery.

*This squid was from Nagasaki... I choose to believe this is a baby kraken and there is indeed a very large kraken floating around the sea off Nagasaki (caused by the atomic bombing mutating a normal squid).

I cooked it in the microwave (submerged in some water). If you do this you have to be careful you don't overcook it. I served it with a few dashes of soy sauce and lemon juice, and sprinkled with a little parsley.

This is not one of the best things I've made. I'm happy that I didn't overcook it and it wasn't very rubbery. But it lost its heat very quickly, which made it less fun to eat.

Day 12 - Lunch

Dukan Day: 12
Remaining Days:  52 (140 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 3.75kg
Weight To Go: 5.05kg

As expected my weight-loss has levelled off this week. I am also approaching my period, so each time I step on the scale I'm expecting the little needle to show an increase (water retention). I just need to remember that I'm not eating enough to gain and that the water weight will come off when my period has finished (or so the internet tells me).

Today was the first time I've had a PP (pure protein) day when I've had to eat with my students. I was a little bit nervous because they really don't understand different eating habits... everyone at school eats the exact same meal. I always take my own lunch and it just blows their mind that someone could eat something that wasn't the school-lunch. I used to be a vegetarian and sooo many times I tried to explain it: but Japan just doesn't do vegetarianism. (There is a restaurant in my city that serves vegetarian salad: complete with small pieces of bacon!)

Anyway, I cooked up some cod, some shirataki noodles, and had a yogurt. No one really noticed that it was very protein heavy (yay). One of the students even complimented me on my fish, telling me it looked delicious (it was actually a bit tasteless and dry by the time lunchtime came around - but oh, well).

Day 11 - Brown Rice Tea

Dukan Day: 11
Remaining Days:  53 (141 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 3.75kg
Weight To Go: 5.05kg

Today was sooo crazy! Fun, but crazy. I usually teach at junior high school, but today I visited an elementary school. The elementary school children are like tiny little balls of energy, and totally cute! I taught all morning and by the time recess was over, I was exhausted - running around and jumping ropes... how do these kids do it?!

Now I'm happily relaxing with my new favourite drink, brown rice tea (genmaicha, 玄米茶). You can read more about brown rice tea, and its benefits, here. Quiet interestingly brown rice tea is a source of manganese, which apparently "helps produce energy from protein". With such a high protein content in the Dukan Diet, I'm curious as to how the brown rice tea, if at all, is effecting my body's ability to make energy from the protein. Whether there is anything in it or not, I don't know, but I one thing is for sure is that it is helping me to get enough water every day! On these cold winter days its difficult to drink cold water... but hot tea is certainly not difficult at all. I find it also takes away any sweet cravings I have as I put sweeteners in it.

This is the brown rice tea I use. Naturally, I buy mine in Japan, and most supermarkets in Japan will probably stock this (or something similar). I also assume you can pick this up in Asian supermarkets outside Japan. I recommend giving brown rice tea a go!

Day 10 - Fishies

Dukan Day: 10
Remaining Days:  54 (142 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 3.5kg
Weight To Go: 5.3kg

Today was one of those days that lasted longer than it was... it was rather boring (which makes a change from yesterday's pace).

I had been trying to avoid drinking Diet Coke and all fizzy drinks (sodas), but today I just really wanted a Diet Coke and decided to treat myself since I'd been good for the last 10 days. Plus, diet fizzy drinks are allowed on Dukan so I wasn't breaking my diet. I figure I cheated with the right option (instead of reaching for chocolate), although I don't consider it a cheat... just a reward(?)

Today I went out for lunch to my favourite sushi restaurant! Since rice is strictly NO NO on this diet I had some gorgeous sashimi!

I wonder if I'm eating too much fish lately... I think you are only supposed to have it twice a week... I'm going to try and cut it down a little and stick with more chicken and other protein rich foods.

Day 9 - Stress!!!!!

Dukan Day: 9
Remaining Days:  55 (143 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 3kg
Weight To Go: 5.8kg


The latter half of yesterday and this morning were very stressful. I won't go into why it was (not diet related)... but there was at one point I was prepared to hit the chocolate or a glass of wine... but I didn't cave. I think eating in that type of circumstance for me is a control thing... I was in a situation where I had very little control... but I can control what I eat. Of course, on the flip side of that, is controlling what I don't eat.

I didn't get around to doing the 30 Day Shred yesterday either... and I've run out of time to do it today, too. (I live in an apartment and I feel sorry for making exercise noises on the woman-below-me's ceiling after 9pm.) But I will do some weight work and crunches after this post.

Return of the Chicken in Soy Sauce today... complete with tomatoes and raw cabbage. I can't stand cooked cabbage but I love it raw.

I don't know why I'm photographing my food every day... I think it might because I'm proud to show that I'm eating good, delicious food whilst on this diet... or I'm being egotistical: look I can cook now! (kinda).

Day 8 - First Week Over

Dukan Day: 8
Remaining Days:  56 (144 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 3kg
Weight To Go: 5.8kg

So, I've been on the Dukan Diet for a whole week and I've lost a grand total of 3kgs. Which to me is mind blowing! I've never had this type of weight loss so quickly on a weight loss plan before (and I've tried my fair share, including Atkins and Weight Watchers). I'm already a third through of my way to my goal after one week so that's a great start!

I'm expecting my weight loss to start easing off drastically this week as per other blogs I have read. I'm trying to mentally prepare myself for it.  It took me a few months to put the weight on... its going to take a while and some effort to get it off again.

Today is a national holiday (Coming of Age Day) so I've done pretty much nothing all day. I did all my washing from last week and emptied my suitcase from when I visited the UK. I've been tempted a few times to break my diet (having chocolate from England sat in my apartment is not the best idea I've ever head)... but I just did things to take my mind of it... including watching some Lost and playing Lego Indiana Jones. I have to clean my apartment... but I really hate cleaning.

Today I had lemon salmon... it's actually the best thing I can cook. (Did I mention I'm really bad at cooking?)

Day 7 - Shopping

Dukan Day: 7
Remaining Days:  57 (145 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 2.75kg
Weight To Go: 6.05kg

I'm down 0.25kg today!I wasn't expecting a loss at all... yesterday was a lazy day and I ate a lot (all Dukan-friendly though). I have noticed weight loss on my body too.... (sorry, readers... too much detail warning...) I had to readjust my bra this morning because of shrinkage. Typical... I would prefer to lose weight from my thighs! 

Some of my upper arm muscles ached this morning from yesterday's 30 Day Shred workout. Good signs! I'm going to do the DVD again today - every day for 30 days!


Something new I'm experiencing on the Dukan Diet: I'm starting to enjoy shopping!

I noticed I'm a lot less stressed in the supermarket. Before Dukan I HATED shopping for food in Japan...the supermarkets are sooo small (the isle is barely big enough to pass another person), and it is usually full of old people who walk extremely slow, and the options, especially in my tiny local supermarket, are incredibly limited (unless you are after rice and then there is an entire isle dedicated to different types of rice - an isle I can thankfully stay clear of).

I used to begrudge going to the supermarket, and would never go out purely for shopping (I would do it on my way home from work or a social meeting). I used to enter the supermarket and rush for the usual things I bought every time and dash out again - hating every second I was in there. But now, I take my time... I look closely at the food and even venture for things I haven't tried before but are Dukan friendly (different types of fish, herbs etc).

This morning I went to the supermarket, purely went out to go there unlike before, 20 minutes after it opened and stocked up on goodies. I picked up some more crab (following yesterday's success), yogurt, chicken, and several pieces of fish (salmon, mackerel and some mystery fish: 赤魚 - which my dictionary tells me is any edible red saltwater fish, or red rockfish, or pacific ocean perch - its times like these in Japan that you give up trying to guess what it is and just eat it!).

Today's lunch was yummy! Chicken in soy sauce with brocolli, green beans and a few mushrooms. I did go a bit OTT with the greens... used up the last of the packet of brocolli. 

Day 6 - Crab!

Dukan Day: 6
Remaining Days:  58 (146 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 2.5kg
Weight To Go: 6.3kg

No loss today (no gain either - hurrah!)

I'm fairly impressed with my lunch creation today... Crab with lemon juice, a splash of Soy Sauce and a sprinkle of mixed herbs for colour.

I started the 30 Day Shred as planned today. The cardio was a breeze but my upper arm strength is laughable. Must work on that at some point...

Day 5 - Vegetables

Dukan Day: 5
Remaining Days:  59 (147 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 2.5kg
Weight To Go: 6.3kg

I lost another 0.5kg!!

Today I went into the Cruise Phase of the Dukan Diet... I had a brief moment of what if the vegetables put all the weight back on? paranoia... but then I realised that vegetables are good so any weight gain would be my body's way of saying: Hey, I needed those veggies!!

I eased my way back in with some broccoli at lunch, and have been snacking on tomatoes. I have some carrots waiting in my fridge for me to gobble up later.

I'm finding that I'm not craving other foods - if I feel a little peckish there are plenty of Dukan-friendly options and I'm drinking soooo much tea! I haven't felt actual hunger since being on the diet which is certainly a plus for the Dukan method.

Tomorrow I plan on starting Jillian Michaels' 30 Day Shred (workout DVD). I tried the 30 Day Shred a year and a half ago and I certainly noticed my body getting stronger.

Day 4 - Shirataki Noodles with Flavour!

Dukan Day: 4
Remaining Days:  60 (148 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 2kg
Weight To Go: 6.8kg

I lost 1kg since yesterday!!! I believe a lot of this is probably water weight (if the amount of times I go to the toilet are any indication)... but a loss is still a loss!

Today is my last day on the Attack Phase... I will happily be munching my way through some vegetables tomorrow!

I thought I'd take a picture of my breakfast this morning... Chicken Strips with Shirataki Noodles. I have found a way to make Shirataki Noodles taste good! I use a flavour powder sachet designed for Spaghetti - it has a few carbs but I'd rather face a few carbs than dropping the tasteless noodles out of my diet.















(These are small plates... I prefer to eat off smaller plates to control portion sizes).

Day 3 - Starting Out

Dukan Day: 3
Remaining Days:  61 (149 until consolidation)
Weight Lost: 1kg
Weight To Go: 7.8kg



I'm sure I'm not the first expat to experience this: go to your home country for the holidays, eat all those foods (and drink all those drinks) you missed, gain weight, return and realise that you've gained 5kg!
Which wouldn't be too bad if I hadn't also gained 5kg living it up in the months prior. So, I don't have an amazing amount of weight to lose, but my body doesn't lose weight easily. 

I've read that keeping a diary or writing a blog can help you to stick to a diet... so here is my attempt. And if you're here and reading it, whatever country you're in, I hope I've given you a little insight into doing the Dukan Diet (in Japan).


If you've made it here, I'm quite sure you are familiar with the Dukan Diet basics and are aware of finding your "true weight". According to this I will hit my true weight on the 12th March (about 61 days from now) and I would have consolidated this on the 8th June (149 days from now).
My "true weight" is actually higher than I would like it to be... so I might continue the cruise phase for longer, but in the mean time I'll aim for my "true weight" and think about losing more if when I get there.

One thing that should be noted: I can't cook. (I can boil eggs and vegetables, microwave fish and make a sandwich).
I also have no sense of smell, so my taste is a bit off.

The Diet So Far:

Day 1 was haaaaarrrrddd.... or rather Night 1 was. I was doing quite well during the day at work (even went out with friends for a delicious lunch of sashimi (raw fish)). At night I found I was craving some chocolate. I resisted. Yay me.

Day 2 was a little better. I had shirataki noodles for the first time - aka no carb, no calorie, no taste noodles - but they were filling. In the evening, I cooked a pretty decent salmon fillet (with basil and lemon juice) which was satisfying. I went out for a movie which helped me to stop thinking about food.

Day 3 went better. I find tea (with 3 sweeteners) is helping me to avoid missing sweet foods.

Let's see what Day 4 brings...