Day two of the gym course done. I'm starting to realise that I have some really good skills. I'm very comfortable with one to one teaching, and more and more people are telling me that I have a really good manner with people and a way of making them feel good.

Why oh why did I ever waste the first part of my working career as an accountant? I feel like I'm discovering a new vocation.

The whole course went a bit better today. The ringleader of the meathead gang didn't show this morning. The course started at 9.30 and by 11.30 still no word from him. Then about 11.45 his mum rang the gym (awww bless) to say that he was having problems with the trains and he wouldn't be able to make the day, but that he would be coming tomorrow.

The tutor thought it was hilarious. Did he really thnk he could just no-show for one day of a three day, very intensive hands-on course and expect to breeze in the following day and pass it? Dream on, arrogant fool! So thankfully she sent a message back (via mummy)that he shouldn't bother coming tomorrow either and will have to rebook the whole course (he failed the theory paper too!)

And without the ringleader, the three other meatheads chilled out a bit and became almost human. The silly bad behaviour calmed down a bit and we were all able to learn a lot.

There's only one tricky bit for me so far. In the afternoon we stepped out of my comfort zone and set foot in the turf of the meatheads, as we have to teach free weights as part of the gym instructor assessment. Now I have been known to swing a few small dumbells around a bit when I can't get on weight machines, but up till now, I've always left the barbells to the big boys (and girls).

But in the space of an afternoon, I've had to learn how to do a clean and heave lift (like you see weightlifters do on telly) and also how to teach the same lift to someone who has never done it before. I found out pretty quick that I am utterly crap at this - it requires a considerable amount of co-ordination and concentration which I just don't possess. I know that my friend who I'm taking for the assessment has never done such a thing before either so I can imagine we are going to have great giggles in front of the mirrors in the four weeks leading up to the assessment.

I'm absolutely great at teaching the machines - at the end of the day I've had enough instructors putting me right in my time that the teaching points just spill out of my mouth without thinking. But how to teach someone to do something, when you can hardly do it yourself without falling over or collapsing laughing - this is going to test my acting abilities to the limit.

Apart from that though I've come home absolutely pumped up with enthusiasm and raring to go. My husband (also an accountant) is amazed at the change in me. He said that he can really see in my eyes that I think I'm on to something. And I think I am too.

First day of the gym instructor course over. Sat the dreaded anatomy and physiology exam and passed with flying colours - thank heavens.

There are twelve of us on the course this weekend. We did a bit about respecting client confidentiality as a gym instructor and I suppose I'd better not get too personal about my fellow participants in case one of them reads this.

However, I think the safest thing I can say is that if they represent a cross section of people who want to work in the fitness industry, then my preferred niche of older, less fit, beginners is seriously underrepresented.

Four of the lads were what I would call meat-heads - very toned, fit and into their weights. One was a lifeguard - very , very young - or certainly looked it. A couple of the girls were clearly very sporty - already coaching sports and just wanting to get qualified to justify their current existence. Most participants were between tenty to twentyfive I'd say - again as expected.

I'd only reckon one of the other participants to be a similar age to me with anything like similar aims - he said he'd already had a heart attack, so I can only imagine that like me he's rebuilding his fitness from the ground up.

The one thing that gave me great confidence is that the instructor herself was clearly older than me - probably in her 50s I'd say. And she wasn't stick thin at all - not fat you understand, but nicely padded - just the way I want to look.

And I must admit that throughout the day I did not feel in any way inferior to the other participants. I have a lot of knowledge and the course is definitely on my level. In fact, as I expected I have an advantage over many of the others. The aim of this course is to get us to be able to instruct a complete beginner in gym techniques. This is bread and butter to me, because I have been that beginner in more exercise classes and gyms than I care to think about.

But I think some of the other participants are having trouble imagining a person who can't run on a treadmill and doesn't know how to use a rowing machine. To get them to break down what they take for granted into little babysteps is frying some of their brains. And some of them have no notion of stretching or good posture, and have clearly learnt very bad habits then taken no further instruction, whereas I have been shepherded every step of the way.

When we were introducing ourselves, we had to say one thing that we did not like about the fitness industry, and one of the meatheads said he did not like people who didn't train properly, who didn't make a full commitment, or who dropped out of their programmes, or people who only exercised half-heartedly. So I guess he and I would have come to blows at many of my previous excursions to the gym as I have started and given up this fitness lark more times than I care to think about.

Still, it's each to their own. The fitness industry is vast, and I'm now even more convinced that there's a little place for me. The meatheads can teach bodybuilding to would be meatheads, the sporty girls can train people to participate in their own sports. Some of the others can leave their grotty office jobs and go and work in gyms.

And I will reach out to all the unfit overweight people out there who are scared of fitness instructors and will show them that we are not all perfect specimens, but can be human beings too

My three-year-old told her nursery teacher today that mummy had been to school yesterday, which is how we'd explained my absence for the first aid course.

So when I came to pick her up the nursery teacher asked me what I was studying. I told her I was going to be a Personal Trainer. Suppressed giggles from her and one of my other new mummy friends. "Oh really" she said with raised eyebrows.

That's all it was. But I could tell what they both were thinking. Sometimes it's hard to go on when I get that kind of reaction. It would be all too easy to give up this germ of a dream before it has had any chance to be born, never mind grow and flourish.

I know I don't look like a Personal Trainer. Not like any you've met before. Not yet, anyway. And I think most of my new friends at the school gates (who have only known me for six months and don't really have any clue about the inner me) think that Personal Trainer is not the sort of job that a 40-something mum of two who used to be a Finance Director should do. That's a job for ditzy young skinny fit-bits. And I am none of those things.

And I must admit, there are days (quite a few) when I look in the mirror and think that I have gone barking mad and dreamed an impossible dream, and that perhaps I should stop before I make a fool of myself.

But my oldest and dearest friends (who know me best of all, and who were rather taken aback when I chose accountancy as a career), plus my dear husband, who knows me better than anyone, are right behind me. They know I can do it - I can do anything when I put my mind to it. I need to get fit, for my health and for my sanity. So why shouldn't I set out to discover the path to health and fitness for middle-aged busy people, and once I have found it, share my knowledge with others?

And when I do a really cracking gym session like this morning and the various machines are whirring away merrily underneath me while I listen to my favourite music in the whole world I can still believe in myself that I've got what it takes.

Tomorrow I'm going to get in there and sock it to them. I wonder if there will be any other course participants who are not young enough to be my children?

I'm feeling a bit nervous today. Tomorrow morning is the first day of my fitness course. It starts with an exam, which I really have to pass. The pass mark is 80% which is quite scary.

So what am I doing today? Studying? That would be sensible and I'm sure I will once the children are in bed. No I'm sitting around the house, watching TV and blogging.

Went out to pick my daughter up from nursery and when I got back my organic vegbox had arrived. This is something else which I am trying in my quest for health and fitness.

Normally I'm not a great fan of vegetables. I buy them and cook them because I know they are good for me, but if someone invented a diet where you could be healthy and not have to eat a single vegetable I would shout for joy.

What I tend to do is always buy the same sort - carrots, broccoli, potatoes, occasional sweetcorn and sometimes some spinach. It's no wonder I get bored really.

So I decided to order one of these weekly organic vegboxes, where you get a selection each week of what's in season. Yoiu never know exactly what you're going to get.

And I've set myself the challenge of trying each veg in the box, over the course of the week (some of which I don't even know the names of when I first see them). Hopefully I'll get a it more variety of nutrients, and I may even find some more types that I enjoy.

So this week I've got fennel, and a squash with a bright red skin, which are new veg to me. There's also potatoes, broccoli and carrots so I can eat some of my old favourites. And a lot of nice looking salad leaves, which will go down a treat.

If someone knows what you do with fennel, I'd appreciate some advice. I don't even know which bit I'm supposed to eat. But I've got a week to find out, and convert it into some culinary delicacy before the next lot of stuff arrives next Thursday.

So this is it, I have now started on my quest to become a fitness professional with the obligatory first aid course.

I did mine with the Red Cross, and although I can't really say I was looking forward to it, I actually found it really interesting and almost fun. There were only four of us and it was quite friendly.

So I now know what to do if anyone is less than fit in my classes. The only thing I need to learn is how to get them fit - starting of course with myself.

Roll on Friday - I'm ready for it!

No, I spoke too soon. The lurgy has had me too, although I do seem to be the least seriously affected in our family.

I've been searching on the net to try to find something that will help get my tummy into some kind of order so I don't fall for every stomach bug that's going and keep making embarrassing farts in my exercise classes.

Came across this press release

http://www.presseditor.co.uk/Natren%20Website/Solo_Lloyd.pdf

for a probiotic, which sounds really good so I have ordered some and posted a link for it on my website

http://www.healthworx.co.uk/page4.html

I'm trying to kid myself that some of my weight loss issues are due to bloating. But I am trying to tackle the problem from all angles.

I went to the gym again today. Did almost half an hour of cardio stuff and some quite serious weight lifting. I felt really smug when I had finished. Shame I'll only be able to make it twice this week, could become a habit.

Tomorrow the serious stuff really begins. The first stage of my transformation from fat and frumpy housewife to trim and toned fitness professional. I have to start off by doing a first aid ceritficate, which is tomorrow, prior to the start of my gym instructor class on Friday. Here we go!

Is it too soon for me to say that I seem to have been miraculously spared?

Certainly if the progress of the bug through my family was anything to go by I should have had it by now. And yet, miraculously.... nothing.

There have been a few ominous rumblings in my tummy, but no bad tummy ache, and thankfully no runs either.

I'll probably be on tomorrow saying that I spoke too soon, but for the mooment, Hallelujah, and a big thank you to whoever it is up there watching over me!

Yuk, the children are back at school and nursery and the bugs are coming out thick and fast already. Several of my children's friends have colds and we've had our first stomach bug of the new season.

My little boy had it on Saturday, a very severe attack of the runs that saw him write off several outfits. My daughter took the baton yesterday, with the runs all day and some spectacular vomiting last night and this morning.

And my husband started up with the runs last night as well, and has gone off to work with his tail between his legs today, feeling very sorry for himself. I told him to stay at home, but his sense of duty is just too strong. And in any case, if he's going to be ill, I'd honestly rather he was elsewhere.

So I'm sitting here now feeling like a condmned woman. The chances of me escaping this are very slight I think. At the moment, I have to say I feel fine. But I hardly dare eat anything for fear of what it'll do to me.

Still I suppose a break from food will do me good. Weigh in this morning was 12 st 11. Another pound lost, which I suppose I should be happy about. But I have to confess I feel a bit disappointed after all the exercise I did last week.

Maybe I need a good dose of something icky to send me on my way!¬

Went shopping with my friend a few weeks ago. We fancied treating ourselves to some new decadent beauty product that we'd never heard of before. So we went for lunch together (with wine) then wandered into a big department store, and soon found ourselves admiring the wares of a company selling chinese herbal beauty products.

The assistant was lovely. Just the right balance of hanging back to let the giggling girls try everything out and offering advice. We smelled everything - it was all divine. I was particularly taken with the smell of the mood lifting essence, and oddly enough the weight loss, cellulite reducing cream.

Now I don't honestly buy into the notion that anything you rub on your skin can make you thinner or burn cellulite - I wasn't born yesterday and I do know that there is no substitute for diet and exercise. But we were looking for something new. And the smell is just out of this world. So I figured - if it smells good and helps me shed even one micro-millimetre of fat, then it's worth a go.

The assistant assured us that she used the product herself (and she was as thin as one of my legs so it must be good!) then produced the magic flourish of four products for the price of three and me and my friend were both hooked, coming away with both the mood lifting spray and the anti-cellulite body butter.

I've used the mood-lifting spray a lot - I just love the smell - mind you anything based around green tea will normally do it for me. And tonight I decided to try the body butter.

I rubbed it liberally all over when I came out of the shower - well I've got spare flesh everywhere so I figured it was worth a shot. I soon became aware of a warming sensation all over - a little bit odd to be honest. I looked at the active ingredients to see that one of them is capsicum, or chili powder. And that's what it is - my whole body feels like your mouth does after a good curry - slightly tingly. For the most part this feels really good, although I can't get the residue off my fingers no matter houw hard I wash, and I have rubbed my eyes several times, which is quite painful.

I'm definitely going to persevere with it, although I think I will restrict it to my more robust areas - hips, thighs and tummy. The smell is absolutely divine and my skin feels lovely. If I do mysteriously waste away, I'll let you know, although to be honest I'm not holding my breath.

Can somebody tell me what do slim people eat when they are out and about with their children?

I started out with the best of intentions today. We took out two toddlers up to London to see the Natural History museum.

And I have to say that my diet plans just went completely out of the window.

I ate:-
Coffee and toast for breakfast (before leaving)

A cookie and a bottle of lemonade (at the train station)

An extremely large sandwich with lots of mayo, a bag of crisps and some orange juice (at the museum)

A coffee, some juice and a chocolate ice cream (at Covent Garden afterwards, because we needed to sit down)

A cup of tea and a biscuit (when I got in)

Now I'm no expert (yet), but I think I know enough to say that this wasn't exactly diet-friendly. I don't expect to find vast quantities of poundage miraculously melted from my hips on Monday morning.

But these snack choices just seem to be normal to me - they are what I automatically reach for at certain times of the day. And I'm sure that's why I've ended up the size I am.

So if any slim, fit people are passing by here - please tell me - what should I do differently?

Went round to my friend's house for lunch today.

she cooked up the most wonderful tuna pasta salad, with olives, pickled peppers, sundried tomatoes and some olive oil. It was totally Nigella and absolutely delicious.

Tonight I did another salad for my DH and I to eat. On the top we had some Swedish meatballs with Tomato and Barbecue sauce bought from Windsor Farm shop. If anyone reading this lives anywwhere near Windsor Farm shop I would say - BUY THIS SAUCE! It is absolutely yummy!

So all in all a pretty good diet day. Conspicuous lack of exercise, but oh well, you can't have everything.

So there it is - once more I have been initiated into the sacred mysteries of the gym.

My instructor was very sweet - very young, skinny and enthusiastic. And she duly had me fill in the forms, took my blood pressure and showed me a series of exercises that I could do as a programme. I can't really fault her, she did nothing wrong.

And yet - I still feel that there is something missing. I feel like by the end of it, she still knew absolutely nothing about me and who I am and why I was there. She spoke to me like I was a complete beginner, even though I told her I'd been to several gyms before and that I owned an elliptical trainer at home.

Admittedly I didn't let on a lot about the fitness knowledge I have, or the additional knowledge I hope to gain on my course next week (I suspect that after my exam at the end of October, I will be as highly qualified as she is). But she didn't ask - and that's my point!

I guess I just don't look like the 'fit' type. I'd love to be a fly on the wall and see how she behaves when someone who is obviously an 'athlete' comes in for a program. Maybe I'll get the chance to observe her in action while I'm working out.

She did her very best at the end of the session to book me in for a follow up. Very commendable. But I'm afraid I was ready for her and remained elusive. I've done the induction, because I know that most gyms expect you to. But from now on, I fly solo.

I've got to the end of one whole day without breaking any major dieting and fitness rules. I've eaten what I planned to eat, I've drunk my water and I've done my exercise. Go me!

One small step on the path. And just in time. My gym course is just over a week away. I think I will still feel like a bit of a fat and frumpy wally, but at least I feel like I am on the path to fitness now.

Besides which, I think the one thing that is wrong with most gym instructors is that they are by definition fit people and most of them have always been fit. A lot of them have no concept of what its like to be overweight and unmotivated to exercise. At least in that respect I will have one advantage that most of them will lack - the ability to empathise with my victims, sorry clients.

Also the fact that as I expect the average age to be about 20 or less, I can honestly say that I set foot in my first gym long before they were born. Which has to count for something, surely.

Today has got off to a good start.

My vitamins arrived from G&G - very prompt service I have to say. So I will try their Body Health pack for 28 days and see if it makes any difference at all. I'll confess to being sceptical but curious. If I have a radcal transformation, you'll be the first to know.

But I duly ate my muesli for breakfast and drank one litre of water over the course of the morning. I walked to and from toddler group with my son, and have vowed to do some exercise tonight once they are in bed

I had a lovely mixed salad at lunchtime with some avocado, cheese and some lovely Tabasco spiced olives. I find that if I have to eat a lot of salad when I'm dieting, it goes down an awful lot better if I add some spicy bits, and those are my favourites.

So all in all today is shaping up to be a good one so far. My mood is good and I'm up for it.

Wow, i am a star! I just walked into Thorntons and bought chocolate for my children and did not buy anything for myself!

For many people this will not seem a particular challenge. I know there are some of you out there who don't even like chocolate all that much.

But for me, this is living proof that I must be on the turnaround. Up until now, chocolate has been one of those must-have substances, part of my necessary daily fuel. But today I am able to withstand the craving for a sweet treat in the afternoon. I have walked and done my exercises. I am fit I am healthy I am fantastic!

OK, I realise that I am also ranting. Maybe I'm just delirious. Maybe I'm slowly losing my marbles on this quest for fitness. But you know what - it feels good!

So off to the gym full of good intentions. An appointment with two fit, hunky (well I can dream) gym instructors, to show us the way to our new lifestyle.

When we got there, they'd shut the creche! Some kind of Ofsted requirement. Can't say I understood it myself but there it was. My little lad was most upset - he loves the creche ladies and has lots of fun there. And no chance of going to the gym with him in tow - too chaotic to even think about.

Let's do lunch, said my friend. And it seemed the obvious choice.

And I'm sure in our previous incarnations that is as far as it would have got. Probably something fattening and consoling, with pudding on the side. But no, we looked out the window and it was a lovely day. So we had a healthy lunch and then went for an hour long walk along the river. My son had a lovely time running around the cafe, then fell asleep in his buggy for the whole of the walk. So we all had fun.

Which just goes to prove, as my friend said to me afterwards, that even though the pounds are not shifting yet, my attitude is subtly altered, and I feel sure that I am really going to do it this time.

I've decided to take some supplements to help with the weight loss. I don't trust the fat-burning types that you see advertised in the fitness magazines - they sound a bit too scary.

But I'm going to try a supplement called Craze away, see the link on my website www.healthworx.co.uk. It's based around chromium, with other herbal ingredients. The idea is that it reduces the cravings for chocolate and sweet stuff, which is one of my downfalls.

I've also read that chromium appears to help insulin to work more effectively in your body to prevent fat gain. That sounds like a good idea to me.

So I'll give it a try. And if it doesn't work, I'll try something else.

It's weigh in time again. 12 stone 12. 1 pound lost from last week. Not quite as much as I'd hoped but at least I didn't gain any. Oh well, back to the grind and try again.

Got my induction at the new gym tomorrow. Then I can seriously get on with the fitness programme.

Today I did a fair bit of walking and got my errands done. And had another portion of my vegetable soup.

For those of you that asked there isn't really a set recipe for this, I just cobble together whatever I have. This last batch was as follows

1 carrot, 1 turnip, 1 onion, 1 bunch celery, 2 courgettes all chopped up and boiled until soft.

Then I poured off some of the water and added one tin of Marks & Sparks tomato and basil soup and one can of chick peas.

Simmered it for a bit longer and added some garlic and a dash of Thai fish sauce (which is the magic ingredient that I use to flavour everything these days).

Then I separted off half the soup and whizzed int inthe liquidiser then put it back in with the soup.

Et voila! A mixture of chunky veg and protein rich beans in a yummy thick tomato, herb and garlicky sauce. Tastes different every time!

This weekend I took my little girl (aged 3 1/2) to visit Nanny and Granddad. They are really into Gilbert & Sullivan and were starring in a performance of Pirates of Penzance. I thought Anne-Sophie might enjoy it so we went to see them, leaving my husband and son (aged 21 months - definitely too small to like theatre!)at home.

We had a lovely time. But I will freely confess I ate far too much junk. I have a very nasty habit of eating while I'm driving - I can't resist buying scooby snacks at motorway service stations. And while we were there we didn't eat proper meals either, just lots and lots of junk.

So tonight I feel disgusting and absolutely shattered. One of these days I will maybe grasp the cause and effect and stop doing these nasty things to my body. And then again, maybe I won't.....

I've stuck to my diet plan for a couple of days. I've made some lovely vegetable soup and enjoyed it. I've done exercise at the required intensity and on schedule. And nobody seems to have done anything idiotic around me for over 48 hours.

Before I was a blogger, this would have been a recipe for one de-stressed, happy me. But now I have blogger's block! What on earth can I rant on about? No-one just wants to hear about everyday life chez moi I'm sure.

So unless anything momentous happens over the weekend, I'll be back on Monday for the dreaded weigh-in.

Is it just me or is the fitness industry staffed entirely by airheads?

This is one of the reasons I have decided to set out on this crusade in the first place. I want to be the thinking woman's personal trainer. I don't want to deal any more with these dandelion-headed, whippet-slim blonde creatures, who seem to have the fitness industry wrapped up in their evil clutches at the moment.

But until I get myself fit and get my business launched I'm afraid I will just have to put up with the fitness industry as it currently is. And I'm afraid that yesterday did nothing to dispel my stereotype.

I went with my friend to join up at the local gym. We've chosen quite a smart private gym - not part of a chain, as we thought we might get better service there.

Our first impressions were very good. 'Daisy' (not her real name), the membership adviser we spoke to on Monday, took our details and gave us a free pass for the first day to try the facilities. So far so good. She listened to our stories - we want a joint membership, but my friend wants to take several months off in the middle to go travelling. "Oh that's OK, if you guys take an annual membership its cheaper and one of you will be able to take breaks anytime you want to. We're much more flexible with our annual members".

So we trotted in merrily on Wednesday, forms filled in, waving our credit cards, eager to part with a substantial sum of money. "Right", said Poppy (also a pseudonym) " that will be £xxxx (a sum quite a lot higher than Daisy had told us). When we queried this, she explained it. We were a bit dubious then and started talking about Daisy's 'flexibility' element.

" Oh no, you'll have to get monthly memberships for that. Even then we can only give breaks for whole calendar months and you have to give us a whole months notice. The annual membership is cheaper but the only problem with it is its not at all flexible."

I'm glad we brought it up now as we very nearly paid for something which was not at all what we wanted. We couldn't believe how two employees for the same company could have such completely opposite views on what the service was they were trying to sell.

They eventually got us sorted out with some sort of compromise. I've paid for an annual membership and my friend has paid for three months. But I've lost all the cost benefits of having a joint membership and we both feel sour about the way the two membership girls couldn't get their stories right.

We didn't even get our swim yesterday as it took so long to sort out.

It has to get easier from here. Let's just hope the fitness staff have a few more brain cells between them.

Ok, I promised you guys the good, the bad and the ugly, and what I saw on the scales today was definitely the ugly.

I really don't want to have to admit to this. But I must, because that is what this blog is for - to shame me so I never never do it again.

12 stone 13 - 181 pounds. A gain of four pounds for the week. And despite what I said at the beginning of this blog that puts me back into obese territory. I DO NOT WANT TO GO THERE.

I knew I was being a bit naughty at the weekend. I had lunch with a friend on Saturday and had some relatives over for a big roast meal (with dessert) on Sunday. But I am flabbergasted at the four pound gain.

Still it has functioned as a wake up call. My friend and I went down the local gym this morning and got hold of a guest pass for the day, to try it out before we join. We were going to start with a leisurely swim to set us off on our way, but there was an Aqua fit class going on so we joined that. Quite energetic too, especially the bit at the end with the arm floats.

A healthy lunch then I spent a few hours tidying up the garden, which was thirsty work with the temperature way up in the 80s.

I'm going to get on the scales again tomorrow morning. I'm sure that was just a blip today. And if it wasn't well, I promise I'm going to be good this week.

Ok, I'll admit I've bottled it.

I'm supposed to be starting the detox tomorrow and I haven't bought in any of the stuff yet. Not only that but my fridge is full of other stuff which needs to be eaten first. Something tells me I'm trying to avoid the issue.

And I haven't lost any weight this week - may indeed have put some on when I weigh myself in officially tomorrow.

So all in all, the first week of the new plan has been a bit of a flop, and the second week seems doomed before it even begins.

So what have I learned.

1. In order to lose weight I'm going to have to do a bit more than just write a blog about losing weight. I need to be a bit more organised and think ahead so I don't fall off the wagon at the first obstacle. "I forgot to go shopping" is not a good anough excuse for why I'm putting my health at risk with this extra poundage.

2. For me, ready meals are not the answer - even the 'Healthy' ones. Admittedly they do sort out portion control for you, and provide a meal so unappetising that sometimes you can't even finish it, but I ate four last week and in every case I was starving only one hour later. So I ended up putting away more calories than I would have done if I had eaten real food instead of the prepackaged pulpy nonsense.

So since it looks like I am not going to detox next week after all, what am I going to do to avoid repeating this weeks disastrous weigh in?

First of all, my exercise programme can kick off big time. This was always planned for week 2 as my daughter will be back at nursery all days so I'll have some time finally. I never seriously expected to lose weight without it.

Secondly I'll ditch the ready meals and just try to eat sensibly, with as much healthy unprocessed food as possible. I may detox next week- and then again I may not - let's see how we go.

Thirdly I'm going to drink much more water and somewhat less coffee. Not 'none' as I don't think I can give up my only major vice, but if I can cut down to two cups a day and replace others with water I will be doing just fine.

Let's start with those as promises and tweak it further after that. Appointment at the gym, set for 9.30am tomorrow morning. Early night, drink some water and off I go.

Last night wasn't looking too good. DH was lying sprawled on the floor in monosyllabic mood, which is the way he sometimes gets after a heavy day at work. I was feeling very stressed myself after a hectic day with children that did not want to go to sleep. I could have done with a nice friendly chat after I finally put the kids to bed but I could see the black clouds emanating from the living room floor and decided not to bother trying.

So despite myself I put on my exercise gear and decided to vent my frustration on the elliptical trainer. And after 20 minutes of that, some great pilates and a nice hot refreshing shower, I felt absoulutely fantastic. So good in fact that I went through to the living room and managed to lift DH out of his funk too so that we could both have a very pleasant evening.

Maybe there is something in this exercise lark after all?

Next week I hope to beging the proper exercise program - join the gym and do some serious stuff. But for this week while my DD is still on holiday I will have to just find exercise when and where I can.

So today we walked to toddler group instead of getting the car. Probably about a mile each way. Not much really, especially at Anne-Sophie's speed, and her hanging onto the buggy and complaining bitterly all the way. But at least it's something.

My definition of exercise is anything physical that you do over and above your usual habits. So that was definitely exercise no matter how slow.

Eating habits have been a bit patchy this week, but I'm still looking forward to the 7-day blitz.

Day 2 has started with a bit more enthusiasm than Day 1. I have had my healthy breakfast and lunch, drunk some water and taken my vitamins.

I have also done a beginners Pilates class today. Beginners is definitely what I need at this stage - even that was enough to kill me. I ache in a kind of nice way though. While I'm not sure if I will ever truly be able to love exercise and enjoy going, I have to admit despite myself that I do feel slightly better for it - and smug as well.

I don't really expect to lose weight this week. This is just the introduction, the getting used to the idea that i am going to change the way I live. I like to start a plan slowly like this - just take small steps one at a time.

Next week, starting Monday is the tough 7-day blitz. I am psyched, I can do it, and by the end of it I will definitely feel better, with reduced sugar cravings. Bring it on!

Day 1 of the new diet plan and I've gone off the rails already. Derailed by an absolutely huge, but totally delicious slice of chocolate cake.

I can make any number of excuses as to why I ate it (helping a friend in a comfort eating moment) but the fact is, if I'm going to be serious about weight loss I must learn to say no to that cake and its relatives, the naughty sweet and fatty treats that conspire against us.

The rest of the day was not too bad, and I am going to do some exercise tonight so I guess it was a 50/50 day.

I need to plan a bit more carefully going forward I think.

So here I am right at the beginnning. Journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step. Aaargh!! I hate this bit.

I know that once I've started the new regime for a while it will soon start to feel natural but the beginning is always so hard.

I've started as always with a weigh in. 12 stone 9. 177 pounds. There, I've said it it's out there. I've also measured every bit on my body that can be measured. I'm not sharing the beginning measurements, but I'll sure as heck be crowing about every centimetre that comes off.

I took a certain amount of satisfaction from seeing that the BMI was only 29.9 - so I am not obese I am merely overweight (by a hairsbreadth anyway). And I promise myself that I am never going to be obese again! So I'd better start doing something quickly as the merest sniff of chocolate might tip me back to BMI 30 the way things currently stand!

My goal is to reach 10 stone. Or even 9 stone 12 which used to be my regular weight when I was in my early twenties.

And what exactly am I going to do?

Well next week (starting Monday) I am going to do the Food Doctor 7 day detox diet. I've done it twice before and I know that it makes a good start to a weight loss programme despite being quite hard for the week that you are on it.

I can't face starting this week as I can feel PMT and I'm expecting Aunt Flo anytime soon. I don't think I can face combining the tiredness and crankiness of a detox diet with my normal monthly cycle - my husband would kill me!

So I'm going to start gently this week. Start drinking lots of water, start thinking before I eat and cutting down the junk I pile away. Start eating more fresh fruit and veg. And start a gentle exercise programme - some gentle aerobics and Pilates exercises every evening.

This blog is going to be important to my progress. I want to be able to post success stories here every night. But I promise I will tell it how it is - the good the bad and the ugly. Hopefully there will be more of the first than the other two.

I've also set up my own website where I will keep most of my photos and some of the other resources that I have used - www.healthworx.co.uk. I'm pretty new to website design so it's very basic, but I figure if I'm going to run a business inthe next few years it's something I'm going to have to get the hang of pretty soon.

Good luck to anyone who reads this and is setting off on their own weight loss journey. There's still time to lose a dress size or two by Christmas. Who's with me?