The primary reason I started doing long walks was to lose weight and I did lose a lot, more than four and a half stone. Unfortunately being at home for three months in 2014 along with Christmas meant I’d put on mumble, mumble, mumble despite masses of walking when I was unemployed. This just went to show walking alone is not the magic cure for weight loss. It is a great big tool in the weight loss bag of tricks though and I was on the case of getting those extra pounds back off again.
21 April 2014
Slowly but surely I’m losing the weight I put on when I was unemployed. The rhythm of a working day does help. There are set breaks at set times to eat and decisions about what food I take have to be made first thing in the morning. This means, as long as I make good choices then I can’t fail. Well, at least not until the evening, which has always been a problem time. Cutting back on the starchy carbs and upping the protein in the evenings helped before and I’m working on that again. The big thing is to remember it is a slow process and not get disheartened or impatient. Not to mention reminding myself it’s just a blip and I’d have been more than happy to weigh what I do now a few years ago.
The other big thing is to stay motivated with the exercise and, for me, that means walking in the main. The virtual coastal walk and the hundred miles a month are helping with that. Today for instance, there was quite a temptation to lounge around at home and do nothing much because it was a Bank Holiday. Then I remembered I’m coming up short on my hundred miles for this month so I got out there pounding the pavements.
I told you all about East Park, the rock garden and the pergola and I left you just as I had crossed the road towards my favourite park of all, the Enchanted Park. In actual fact I’m the only one who calls it the Enchanted Park, it is actually called Palmerston Park after the big statue of Viscount Palmerston standing on his seven foot marble and granite plinth. Palmerston was MP for Southampton for many years which is why he stands there. For me it seems enchanted because the little area behind Above Bar is so sheltered things seem to bloom there when they shouldn’t really, like the rhododendron that flowered all through last winter.
The main theme is ericaceous plants, those that like acidic soil. This means rhododendrons, and right now they are glorious. I make no apologies for all the pictures of rhododendrons, they just had to be taken. They came in all colours, pale pink, deep pink, cerise, red (although those are very hard to photograph), white with pink speckles at the throat, cream with a pink blush, white with a pink blush and even yellow. Some had hairy buds, some had bees buzzing round them, bees are a bit thin on the ground this year so I was pleased about them.
My favourite are the yellow rhododendrons because they smell so spicy. It wasn’t all about rhododendrons though, there were other flowers. Being the enchanted park the bluebells were more pink than blue and the tulips a deep, purplish pink. Sadly the magnolia have mostly finished now, just a few flowers high on the trees and petals scattered on the ground. The handkerchief tree seems to be taking over where they left off though, white flowers fluttering in the breeze like the corners of handkerchiefs.
Reluctantly I said goodbye to the enchanted park, knowing it will be a while before I get the chance to come back. Oh how I miss the days when I could visit every lunchtime if I wanted. The Schuropody shop were having a sale so, as Commando hadn’t yet phoned me, I popped in for a look. Sadly, everything I liked was sold out in my size. How annoying. Maybe I need to have a look online because there were some real bargains and they’re comfortable walking shoes.
Just as I was weaving my way through the crowds in WestQuay, my phone rang. It was Commando, he was outside so I had to weave my way back through the crowds to meet him without even a sniff at a shop. Still we wandered down to Costa for a skinny latte and a toasted sandwich for our lunch so I suppose I shouldn’t complain. In hindsight maybe the toasted sandwich wasn’t the best of plans seeing as I’m still trying to get these extra pounds off. This losing weight business isn’t really such a walk in the park after all.
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