How I lost weight and fitted into old clothes : Dress of the day 244: Swimsuit with diagonal stripes, diet

 

Angela Lansbury, May 2021. Photo by Trevor Sharot.

Swimsuit

Jantzen (vintage), made in the USA.

I love the way the bar across the A looks like a swimmer.


I guessed the name Jantzen might be related to sen meaning son and Jan or Jon or John.  I looked it up. The first result I found was Danish, from Jehovah, Hebrew, for God. (Remember the two names for God in biblical times were Ja or Jo letter used in Joseph and Jehovah's witnesses, and El or al, later morphed into Allah. The name Joel combines the two. 

The Jantzen company started in the USA in 1916, making knitted garments. The company owners were members of a rowing club. Like levis, the manufacturers were approached by customers. Customers wanted lighter bathing suits so the wearer could swim. 

The success of their product, light enough for swimming unimpeded, changed clothing from heavy, loose, all-covering bathing suits to light form-fitting swimsuits.

The diving girl became their symbol which changed slightly but remained through the century.

Sandals

Yellow Crocs







This is what I looked like about a year ago.

How I saw myself. Pretty but plump. Plump but pretty.

Angela at a Harrovian Toastmasters meeting in London. How others saw me. A large lady, short but wide. 

People used to ask, "Why do you wear so many layers of clothes?" 

To hide my figure. 

My husband said to me: "You are so overweight, it's like walking around carrying a large suitcase."

My first step was to check my weight.

For years I had been putting on weight. I had meals out at restaurants and hotels. I had pizza for lunch at Toastmasters meetings. I had samosas and buns for supper at evening Toastmasters meetings. Sometimes chocolates.

I kept putting on weight. Although I ran downhill to the station, and walked around shopping malls. I needed energy to stand up and speak. To run back uphill going home. 

What changed?


Covid-19 - Changed Our Priorities

Dangers were being older or overweight. I could not get younger. I could lose weight.

I had been eating at meetings: buns, pizzas, and chocolates.

After Covid-19 my diet  was helped by more meetings online.

Wonderful Wedding - Whenever

Another incentive was to be slimmer for our son's wedding. The wedding kept being postponed, giving me extra time to slim.

Angela at the wedding in September 2020

Some progress. 

But still not reaching my ideal weight, my BMI, body mass, or shape related to height.

We kept adding more things to reduce weight. First I cut out sugar in coffee. And cheesecakes. Then we shared a piece of cake.  Then we cut down to low fat, semi skimmed milk. Then low fat yogurt. Cut out seeds in the breakfast yogurt and fruit salad. Cut out seconds. Cut out desserts at restaurants. Cut out meals at buffets.

My rules

Breakfast

Fruit

Seeds

Yogurt

Oats or Weetabix


What I cut out

1 Sugar 

None in coffee.  (None added to anything such as fruit, cereals.

No alcohol 

No sweetened drinks

No Seconds (Later only half portions)

No seconds at meal times. No second piece of pizza. No second piece of cake. No second coffee. No second piece of chocolate.

No chocolates

No cakes

No biscuits

Switch from sweetened biscuits to small crackers with cheese at afternoon tea

Angela in a swimsuit. Weight May 20th 2021, was 49.1 kilos. & stone 10 lbs. As a teenager I weighed 7 stone 7.

People look at my face and ask, 'Have you lost weight?'

Exercise

Swimming/walking/exercising in bed

Keep moving - when waiting for the lift, walk backwards and forwards

When sitting waiting, repeatedly lift feet off the floor, click heels together

Exercise two limbs rather than one, four rather than two

Start exercise slowly so it is easy, and increase a little every day

Don't consider whether or not to swim or go for a walk; always start with at least the minimum. Often, despite feeling tired, bored, stressed, you find that, after starting, you end up finishing.

If you don't finish the exercise routine, never mind. Anything is better than nothing.

Keep a record of weight loss. In your diary. 

You might not lose every day. Food takes a long journey around your intestines before it gets out.

Swimming

Up from two widths to four, then six, then eight, then nine, then ten, then eight. Never miss one session. Go early in the day before it rains or the pool is cordoned off.


Late Night Snack

Fruit

No dessert after dinner. But a late evening snack.Three grapes and a slice of orange. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

Current weight, just under eight stone.

Useful Websites

WEIGHT

https://www.thecalculatorsite.com/conversions/common/kg-to-stones-pounds.php

CLOTHES & SANDALS

JANTZEN

https://jantzen.com/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jantzen

https://www.sheknows.com/baby-names/name/jantzen/#:~:text=Danish%20Baby%20Names%20Meaning%3A,been%20gracious%3B%20has%20shown%20favor.

https://nameberry.com/babyname/Jantzen

CROCS

Vhttps://www.crocs.com/c/coupon-promo-codes

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crocs

About Angela The Author
The Author - Quick Quotations

Angela Lansbury B A Hons  is the author of ten books by regular publishers plus another ten self-published books. 

About Angela The Speaker & Trainer

Angela Lansbury is a teacher of English and other languages to Toastmasters clubs and businesses.

Braddell Heights Advanced Toastmasters Speakers Vice President  Public Relations, Immediate Past President.
Former Area Director S3. Club Coach for Nee Soon South Toastmasters Club.
Also Member of: TCA Toastmasters Club; Singapore Online Dynamic; Harrovians UK
Garen Tee on using story telling in business, on bha.learncool.sg . 
Recent meetings of BHA included an educational session on using Powerpoint for posters.
Next BHA meetings, always first Wednesday evening, 7 pm Singapore time. Next meetings 1st Wednesday evening is Wednesday June 2nd at 7pm; and third Saturday afternoon, June 19th 2pm Singapore time.  

Angela The Blogger 

Angela has several blogs speeches, comedy and song writing and organizing, writing intermittently, but writes almost daily on these three:

See next post on sculptor Tom Harvey.

Please share links to your favourite posts. 

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