Another goal reached.

3rdOctober

Not as depressed as I was last week. I still had a couple of ‘weepy’ episodes but nothing more than that.I had a great start to Thursday though when I stepped on the scales to find that I’d lost 2.2 kilograms this week, but even better I’d reached another mini goal, that of having lost 75 kilograms…….75.3kgs to be exact. Today I weigh probably the lightest I have for 10 years or more. That’s the good news. To put it in perspective, my son weighed 74 kilograms when he marched out of Kapooka in July 2015. (for those overseas readers Kapooka is where new enlistments to the Australian Army first go to learn all about being a soldier and do basic training.) It’s 3 months of hell pretty much and most of them lose a lot of weight. At the end of their 3 months there they have a big march out parade. Now I couldn’t imagine lifting up my son when he was at that weight, let alone carrying him around all day long. I couldn’t do it. And yet that’s exactly what I was doing. So I’ve lost the equivalent of young man. That’s enough to make me feel really proud of what I’ve accomplished.

The bad news is that my mobility is so bad compared to how I was then. I may have weighed just over 150kg but I was much more mobile. With my slightly ‘numb’ left foot and the feeling like I’m walking on a sponge at times I just am not confident in walking unless I have my stick in my hand and something to steady myself with eg a wall, chairs etc. That’s something I mentioned last week when I posted. Other things that were bothering me that I didn’t post on here (because I knew that seeing my doctor was what had to be done first and foremost) was the slight dizziness I’ve been experiencing from time to time when standing. Not the type that occurs when you suddenly stand up after lying down or sitting, this was even after standing for a couple of minutes, or if I bent my head down to look at something lower down, then put my head back up again. The other issue was my lower legs, particularly the left one, feeling ‘hot’ in the evenings. I could set my clock by it. I’m usually in bed around 7pm or so watching my reality TV shows or a DVD but it’s not till about 9pm that my leg starts heating up. I reckon it feels like I could fry an egg on it. (well that’s how it feels to me.) Come midnight or so it settles down again. Really weird.

So today I saw my doctor who was absolutely thrilled to bits about my weight loss. It was in late October last year that I saw her with concerns about my health and there was a concern on her part that I could have early cardiac failure. (I had to sleep sitting up on 4 pillows, couldn’t do anything without puffing and panting, swollen feet and ankles, dry constant coughing, especially at night.) Thankfully further tests showed that I was not in cardiac failure but it sure scared the crap out of me, and so come November 12th 2018 I started on Optifast. And I’ve not looked back since.After her congratulations about my weight loss I mentioned my worrying symptoms and she did a thorough check, testing my sensation in my legs, comparing the 2 (definitely some difference between the left and right, especially with the feet), asked about any back injuries I may have had (none), etc etc. I also mentioned my mobility issues to her, lack of confidence when walking etc. So she’s ordered my usual blood tests and specified that certain vitamin levels be checked, Vit B being one of them, plus my iron levels. I’ve also been referred onto a Primary Care Network agency who are sending someone out next Thursday to check on my mobility issues, and to determine what type of assistance I could benefit with having. eg Exercise Physiologist. Hopefully that is a start in the right direction.

So yesterday I had my 4th ‘day off’ the program, and it was most enjoyable. I made sure I didn’t go crazy and I’m now strictly back on track again. I won’t go too much into what I’ve eaten but suffice to say some fish and chips was very much enjoyed for lunch, and a muffin for morning tea. Every mouthful was savoured. I did find though that I felt rather bloated in the evening. I guess I am not used to eating so much food now, after having 2 shakes a day, plus my dinner of allowed veges and protein. This morning I was actually looking forward to a day of shakes and salad veges etc.

I’ve included a photo of me taken on my daughters wedding day in March 2016. That dress had sleeves so tight I had to get a dressmaker to add extra fabric to make them looser. The dress itself clung to my belly and boobs. I put it on today and the sleeves hang down past my elbows and although you can’t really tell in the photo it’s super loose on my body. So loose that it hangs down to my ankles instead of ending at my lower calves. And to finish off I am now officially halfway to reaching my goal of weighing 80 kilograms. I’m going to be happy to get to that weight. (and the cardiologist I saw was happy with me getting to that weight as well.)

Thank you again for putting up with my ramblings. 💖💖

!!!!!!!!!3rdoctober19

3rdocttt

Weeks 44 & 45. Christmas came early! (well, so it seemed.)

Not so much walking this week, my left foot is still worrying me with the slight numbness and feeling like I’m going to overbalance at times. (and this is with no alcohol consumed, heaven only knows how bad I’d be with a few drinks under my belt!) Even when I have walked I’m constantly grabbing onto the wooden fence to support me (and getting the odd splinter) and on the return lap I’m grabbing the brick windowsills or wall if I feel myself going off balance. I know the circulation in my left leg isn’t the best compared to the right however I thought that shedding over 70 kilograms might have helped. It’s not all the time, sometimes I can walk well with my stick as support, but other times I feel as though my left foot is just not right. I’ve made an appointment to see my doctor in a couple of weeks as she’s currently away overseas. If it was urgent I’d certainly just see a locum but it’s not really urgent in my opinion. I still have sensation and movement in that foot/leg and my toes are pink and warm. (Ex RN here.) I’m suspecting a neuropathy of some sort, either as a result of the stasis dermatitis I’ve had, or the result of my being so overweight for so long and limited mobility over the years. I still walk around outside a little bit but am focusing more on pedaling on my gizmo and using my Revitative circulation booster twice a day.

I had a sort out through my clothes recently and while some are destined for the bin (too worn out to be of much use to anyone else) others are good for regifting to someone in need. I’ll be glad to say goodbye to my size 34/36 dresses and pants. Maybe I could donate them to a parachute factory? I fancy the thought of a hunky SAS soldier floating down to earth being supported by my size 36 bloomers. Or the Royal Australian Army/Air Force using one of my bras to slingshot a missile into enemy territory.

I’ve been well and truly blessed by some of the forum members from my Facebook support group since I joined last November. The kindness and generosity shown has really touched both myself, and my partner.

I’ve had a pantry load of herbs and spices, Optifast friendly sauces, food items and a vege spiraliser donated by one wonderful lady, who has also sent me her unwanted old recipe Optifast chocolate bars. The old recipe was far better than the new recipe that’s out now, so to have more stock of the old chocolate bars was a great addition to my stash! I have one every night, it’s like having a block of chocolate, and the best part is that it’s a part of my diet!

Another lady sent me a gorgeous scarf and a hand made (by her) mini calendar for 2020 a couple of weeks ago along with a hand made card. All the way from New Zealand I might add.

And just this week I received 2 parcel bags filled to the brim with size 24/26 clothes from another forum member. The poor parcel guy had quite a workout carrying them to the door. It was like Christmas for me, going through the bags and trying things on. And the fact that I actually fit into some of those clothes (tops and 3/4 length shorts) was the icing on the Christmas cake! Or should that be the oil on the salad vegetables? No more tent dresses for me this summer. I now have enough clothes to wear a new outfit every day of the week. Some of the items were like new, and in colours that ordinarily I wouldn’t buy for myself, but when I tried the clothing on I loved!

So a huge THANK YOU goes to each one of those ladies. I’m unsure if any of them read this blog, but just in case they do I wanted to acknowledge them here, as well as on the Facebook group page.

And another huge THANK YOU from me to all of you on this page who comment on my posts, encouraging me, congratulating me and generally being just bloody awesome!! I have said it before and I’ll say it again, but if not for the support, encouragement and good wishes from the people on this page, the battle would be so much harder.

My weight loss last week was a respectable 1.8 kilograms and this week was a slightly smaller 0.9kg. That brings my total to a respectable 73.1kg. Only 1.9 more kilograms and I get to have another ‘day off’ to celebrate losing 75kg. I was going to make it 80kg but with Christmas coming up I didn’t want to have 2 days ‘off’ too close together. Again, it’s not an excuse for me to gorge myself on chocolates, ice cream, pizza and fast food, just a day to have a few of the things that I’ve most missed, without going over the top. It is what is working for me this time around, a lot better than how I used to be which was having a day off every week. Needless to say that did not work out well. Looking at my BMI it’s now come down from a shocking 92.5 to 63. Yes, still very high because I am still morbidly obese, but it’s a heck of a lot better than it was, and it is satisfying to see.

My monthly weight loss for September is 5kg. Lifting up a bag of potatoes weighing that much makes me appreciate that number, even if it’s not the highest amount I’ve lost in a month.

This week hasn’t been the best one for me as far as moods go. I’ve been a bit of a weepy mess at times. Last weekend my partner had hot chips and the smell of them was enough to start off the waterworks. I so wanted to have some. It’s been over 10 months of steamed veges and salads and I have so missed potatoes. I didn’t weaken though and eat any, I just kept drinking my water. And there’s been a couple of other times that the smell and sight of my partners food has really got to me. Today when I was driving to the shops with him, we stopped to refuel and as he’d not eaten much in the way of breakfast and he’d had pain medication he bought a crumbed sausage to eat. No, he didn’t eat it in front of me, he stood by the back of the car, but I saw him and just burst into tears……..and I don’t even LIKE crumbed sausages!!! Crazy! I’m not about to throw in the towel though, not after losing over 70 kilos, but it’s been tough. I don’t know how I would go if we actually had a social life and went to parties, lunches with friends or anything like that. I think I would really be struggling. What I did do for myself, to remind me of how far I’ve come, was to try on my mother of the bride dress that I wore in March 2016. I’ve mentioned in a previous entry about how it clung to me, especially the sleeves, even after I’d had the sleeves made bigger by a local dressmaker. Last time I tried it on was back in June and it was loose then, but this week it really swam on me, and the sleeves had a lot of empty space that was previously occupied by my fat upper arms. It really reinforced to me how far I’d come. I think I will keep that dress as my ‘fat dress’, to show to people what I have achieved. Once I get to my 75 kg loss milestone I’ll put it on again and get a couple of photos. I look back at the photos of me taken back in March 2016 and cringe.

I’m still having those issues that I mentioned earlier in this blog entry (which was actually written last week hence me repeating myself about it this week as well.) My left foot is still feeling ‘numb’ at times, and there is definitely a difference between my left and right legs. A friend of mine was saying that her mum had similar issues and described the feeling in one of her feet just like walking on marbles at times, a sensation like her foot was going to slide and she’d fall. My doctors appointment is next Friday morning so I’m definitely going to mention it to her. I have a feeling nerve conduction studies on my left leg might be on the agenda. That’s another reason why I’m so down this week, out of sheer frustration that my mobility isn’t as good as I’d hoped after losing as much weight as I have. I’m still able to walk around the house and do short walks outside but my dreams of chucking away my stick and being able to stroll around the shopping centre with it’s polished floors seems out of reach for me now. (unless I use a trolley to support myself, but that’s not always possible with some stores, for example my local chemist.) It’s located in a complex that has polished floors and the last time I went there I was basically just taking single steps at a time because I felt like I would slip and fall. I’d never even attempt it if it had been raining because any moisture on it would be a disaster waiting to happen for me.

Sorry to end this entry on a downer. Hopefully next time, I will have more of an idea of what the issue is with my foot, or at least be in the process of getting it looked at.

And fingers crossed my next entry will be me celebrating losing 75 kilos.

Thanks for reading.

Weight Loss Trackers

LinkI’ve been playing around with Pizap and Photoscape (both free photo editing programs), and made up a few weight loss trackers that I’ve decided to post here. I’ll also include the link to the photo hosting site I’ve set up so if there’s anyone out there that would like to use any of the trackers feel free to click on the link to download that image to your device.

This first one is here: 2020 Monthly Weight Loss Tracker !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!2020Monthlytemplate(1)

This one: More for those starting out. Weeks 1 to 12 tracker

Rose gold marble background with luxury pattern texture and high

This is the same as the above one, but I’ve deliberately left the weeks as a blank so you can use a text option to add in the weeks and results. Weekly weigh in blank weeks.

Rose gold marble background with luxury pattern texture and high

Another blank weekly weight one: Weekly blank blue marbled

Blueweightlosstrackerblankweeks

Weeks 1 to 12: Weeks 1 to 12 blue marbled

Blueweightlosstemplateweeks1_12

Weeks 1 to 12 purple: Purple Weeks 1 to 12

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!aaaaaaaweightlosstracker

Weekly: Purple blank weekly

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!aaaaaaaweightlosstrackeranyweeks

Last one, another for 2020. Purple 2020 Monthly

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!aaaaaaaweightlosstrackerany2020Month(1)

Another one: Weekly tracker Weeks 1 to 12

GoldTracker1_12

Weekly tracker blank

GoldTrackerBlankweeks

Metallic green. Metallic green blank weeks

greentrackerblank

Last one I promise.

greentrackerweeks1_12

Yet another couple I did this weekend. Monthly tracker 2020

2020Monthlytracker

And one more that is left blank for the weeks so you can just edit using text to add the required info. Blank weekly tracker pearl blue

aaaaweeklytracker

A few more added today, 2nd October.

https://imgur.com/l7Yayjt

https://imgur.com/W5Y3ATm

OctoberDateTracker

https://imgur.com/T0GZAMT

OctoberDateTracker2020

https://imgur.com/j4Xipna

OctoberWeeklyTracker

I hope you like them, and can find use of them. Feel free to share, I don’t mind. I enjoyed making them, keeps my hands and mind busy, so not inclined to think about food.

A haircut and some progress photos.

Starting off with my results for this week, only a 100 gram loss but I am not letting it get me down, I have had a few good weeks, and the main thing is that it was a loss. To have lost a total of 70.4 kilograms is a massive achievement.

I had my hair cut on Tuesday, my reward for having lost 70kgs . I remember back to last December when I had my hair cut and sitting on a chair for the 50 odd minutes it took left me with a completely numb left leg. I remember standing up that day and my leg completely giving way under me and as a result I fell to the floor. My partner had to grab a step stool and help me use it to try to get myself up, which took a couple of attempts. So embarrassing. This time I had no such issues.

I found some photos taken back in March 2016 at my daughter’s wedding. I cringe when I look at what photos there were of me. I remember that I avoided having my photo taken as much as possible. So sad when you consider the occasion. The difference in my face is really noticeable. Yes I now have a turkey neck of loose skin but those double and triple chins are practically gone. I’m still walking up and down at the side of the house every day. I’ve progressed from 4/5 laps to 10 laps now. I have also dug out my REVITIVE circulation booster machine to use and try and increase the circulation etc to my lower legs. Years ago I was hospitalised with a rather nasty bout of cellulitis in my left leg, and was diagnosed with stasis dermatitis. It’s not severe, I’m not getting cellulitis outbreaks, my last one was around 2013, however it does mean that my circulation isn’t the best in my legs, my left one more so.

I am a bit concerned about my mobility, that I sometimes feel unsteady on my feet despite having lost so much weight. My left foot seems a bit ‘numb’ underneath. Something that I am going to mention to my doctor. I am not a diabetic, my blood sugars have all been normal. I dislike smooth floors such as tiles or the smooth concrete found in shops. Even with my non slip shoes on I constantly fear that I’m going to slip over. I’m hoping this is something that will improve in time. Unfortunately I don’t qualify for the 5 free physiotherapy visits through Medicare, but I’m thinking whether a couple of sessions with a physio might at least help kick start a more secure footing for myself.

This week I’ve posted a couple of progress photos. One from March 2016, the others from December last year and more recent ones taken on Tuesday this week.

My partner says I no longer take up as much room when walking up the hallway as I used to, lol, and that my arms (while still big) are not as bad as how they were. (with my recent pics you don’t really see my arms). The top I’m wearing in my most recent pics was rather tight a few months ago, and the sleeves were rather snug as well.

Once more I have to thank you all for your continued support, encouragement and kindness. 💕 Without all of these I don’t think I would have come as far as I have.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Me7thDec18Sept19-horz

Another milestone reached today!

5thseptt

I wasn’t going to post this week, but today I reached another milestone and just had to share my news. Not going to muck around with ramblings, but getting right to it, right now. Here goes…………………………..drum roll please……………………………….

5thsepttttt

Yep, I’ve now lost 70.3 kilograms, that’s 154.3 pounds, since 12th November last year. (My weight loss for this week was 2.2 kilograms.)

That’s the equivalent of three 20 kilo bags of cement mix, and one 10 kilo bag of cement mix. I wouldn’t even be able to lift all of that off the ground, let alone carry it around on me 24 hours a day. Yet I did. No wonder I was so miserable all the time, and housebound.

5thsept

!!!!!!!!!!!TrackerNo4Aug1st19

My clothes are swimming on me, so this weekend I’m going to go rummaging through my clothes in the spare room to see what I have that might fit me for this upcoming summer.
Too expensive to go out and buy new stuff just yet as I have a load of clothes that I’ve kept aside as I grew out of them.
I’m going to have a cull of some of my tent dresses that I can no longer wear, the ones that look like a marquee on me now. (not getting them taken in as I can’t sew for nuts, and it would cost too much to get a dressmaker to take them in etc). Some of my clothing items have only been worn once or twice which is sad.

Getting a haircut as a reward as soon as funds become available. Already have a new summer nightie to wear thanks to my wonderful man.

I know a lot of people don’t think diet shakes/bars are the way to go, but believe me I have tried everything, and this is the one program that I’ve managed to stick to for such a long time.
Yes, there are times I’ve found the going tough, bloody tough in fact. Sometimes I’ve been in tears because I so want to scoff down bread, or biscuits and because they are in the house they are just there, ready for me to eat. But I’ve remained strong, chewed my sugar free gum, had my water or diet cordial drink etc and focused on the big picture. Improved health and longer life. I’ve had 3 ‘days off’ the program where I have had some of what I really crave, but been back on track the very next day.
Optifast has worked for me. Yes it’s expensive but in a way there’s a positive to be said for the higher price of that product. After spending all that money you don’t want to cheat and ruin the process.
Still have a long ‘weigh’ to go, but getting there.

5thsept19

Earlier last week I took part in a national research study conducted by a nutrition research company. The purpose of their research was to determine how people engage with the Optifast program in Australia. They wanted to know how people access the program, whether they have support from health carers, and whether these factors contribute towards success with the program. It involved a questionnaire and a online interview. Questions asked included: how long I’d been on Optifast, why I chose Optifast, did I have support from a doctor or dietician and was that support helpful with my success, and pros and cons of the being on Optifast among other things. I scored a $30 store gift card out of it which was pretty good just for answering a few questions. I’m keen to find out the results of their study as they have interviewed a large number of Optifast users from the sounds of it.

I received some blessings in the post this week from 2 ladies from the Facebook support group I belong to. One lady sent me 3 boxes of the old recipe Optifast chocolate bars. Recently Optifast changed the recipe on their bars and to be honest, I’m not real keen on the new style of chocolate bars. This lady wasn’t a fan of the bars at all, so had 3 boxes of them that she very kindly posted to me. Optifast bars are not cheap, so her kindness was very much appreciated.

Another lady, this one living in New Zealand, sent me a gorgeous scarf, calendar for next year and a cute little card. She has been following my posts since I started in that Facebook group and just wanted to send me a gift. Here’s a photo of what she sent to me. I was really touched by her gesture. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!thankyou

Last week I mentioned that I’d be taking a walk to the local park on the days my partner is home to walk with me, so I could get my legs moving a bit more. Well, I didn’t end up doing that, instead I decided to walk up and down the side of our house. The previous owner very conveniently concreted that whole area, so there’s no holes to trip over, no uneven footpath, close to the toilet (when you drink 2 and a half litres before 2pm every day trust me, being close to a toilet is vital!!), and it’s something that I can do even when my partner isn’t at home. So every day I’ve been walking up and down the side of the house, which thankfully is in the shade by the time I get out there. If I get puffed, then I can stop and sit on one of the chairs that we have under the covered area at the back of the house, and throw a few balls for Ollie the Golden Retriever, before getting up again and doing some more walking. I don’t know if that’s had anything to do with my 2.2 kilo loss this week, but I’m sure happy about it.

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I found this post about NSV or non scale victories that is often mentioned when dealing with weight loss. I thought it worth while sharing here.

Let’s talk non-scale victories” – Mia

This is the link to Mia’s blog from where the post came from. https://newmenewmia.home.blog

Tip 1: Measure Yourself! Dig out that tape measure and measure your hips, waist, thighs and neck and keep a record in a diary or notepad when you see those numbers changing it can be a great motivator.

Tip 2: How do your clothes feel? Do they fit better? Are they feeling baggier? This can be a sure fire way tell that you are making good progress. As I said in a post earlier this week I now own a pair of MC Hammer looking trousers! They look ridiculous but it made me feel great.

Tip 3: Endurance! Are you finding your cardio workouts easier? Can you manage a few extra minutes without feeling exhausted? If so this is a great indicator of progress.

Tip 4: Face Gains and Definition! As your journey continues you might start to notice more muscle definition in your body. Your double chins might disappear, your legs leaner and firmer in appearance.

Tip 5: Gut Health! Might seem a strange one when talking about progress but a lot of people notice a big improvement in their gut health. People with IBS for example.

So when the scales don’t seem to be budging just look at the bigger picture and keep going!

A couple of people have asked about my routine, what I eat etc when on this program, so I thought I would post it here.

My favourite shakes are the coffee and mocha flavours and my favourite Optifast bar is the chocolate one.

Tips: *Prepare, prepare, prepare. Have allowed snacks ready. Example: allowed vegetables such as tomatoes/sliced cucumber/carrots. Make up some diet jelly and have a serve if you are peckish. Sugar free chewing gum is good. A wonderful page for Optifast friendly meal ideas using allowed veges etc is Opticook. Opticook

The lady who developed the recipes is an Aussie and lost weight on Optifast. All her recipes were run by Optifast staff first to make sure they were suitable.

*Make sure you drink at least 2 litres of water per day, in addition to what you have in your shakes or soups or desserts. If having Optifast bars it’s advised to increase your water intake to over 2 litres a day to prevent constipation. You can have sugar free soft drinks or diet cordial or sugar free water drops to add flavour to the water.

*When making shakes use 200mls of water and add ice and use a blender to blitz it. Makes it nice and frothy. With the coffee shakes I also add a teaspoon of Nescafe coffee granules for a bit of extra coffee flavour to the shake mix.

*Make sure you remember to have your 5mls of oil each day, this is very important. *Your vegetable intake is 2 cups minimum, you can have 4, or even more if you like, as long as the vegetables are from the approved list on the leaflet that is found in every box of your Optifast product, as well as on this website.

*You can have coffee or tea as long as you don’t add sugar and only have 30 mls maximum of skim milk per day.

*The first 3 days or so are the toughest, and you may feel a bit unwell, cranky, hungry, have bad breathe, diarrhoea, achy. It’s all perfectly normal and will settle down once you go into the mild ketosis that occurs when on Optifast.

*If you have the soups don’t heat them up beyond 60 degrees celcius as this destroys the nutrients. I have read of people heating up a chocolate shake to make a hot chocolate. Again, be very careful if doing this, use a food thermometer.

*I keep my Optifast chocolate bars in the fridge, and stick one in the freezer a few hours prior to eating it. Makes it nice and chewy, plus you just break off a little bit at a time so the bar lasts longer. Because evenings are the time of day where I used to pig out on unhealthy snacks I save my 3rd Optifast product to have around 7.30 -8pm at night while watching TV in bed. I can nibble away at my chocolate bar and it satisfies my sweet tooth.

*If you like desserts I can highly recommend the Optifast lemon creme dessert. I make mine in the morning and also make up a sachet of diet jelly. Instead of having a Optifast chocolate bar I might have the lemon creme dessert and add one serve of diet jelly to it and mix them both together. Delicious!!

*If you find yourself wanting to eat the wrong foods, just focus on why it is so important for you to lose weight and let that spur you on. Snack on your allowed vegetables, have a drink of water, do something that keeps your hands busy, go for a walk if you can. Think about just getting through one meal at a time, one day at a time.

*Resist the urge to weigh in every day as weight can fluctuate from one day to the next. Weigh yourself once a week at the same time. Best time is first thing in the morning after going to the bathroom, without clothes on. My weigh in is on a Thursday morning.

My routine is generally this:

Wake up around 8.30 or 9am. I don’t work, and tend to be up really late reading hence the sleep in. I have a 600ml bottle of water by my bed that I’ve taken out of the freezer the night before and wrapped a tea towel around, so by morning it’s thawed but still nice and cold. I drink all of that after I go to the bathroom, while taking my morning tablets before getting out of bed and getting dressed.
Drink another 500mls of water around 9.30-10am when in the kitchen, putting dishes in dishwasher, feeding the dog and pottering around.
Morning shake at 10.30am.
11.30am another 500/600mls of water with some diet cordial added.
12.30pm/1pm I have another 500/600mls while I’m making my partners sandwiches for work the next day.
2.30pm another 500mls of either water or sugar free soft drink. Either sugar free lemonade or Pepsi Max.
3pm my second Optifast shake.
4pm I’ll have another drink of water, but only around 250mls as by this stage I’ve worn a path to the toilet and I’m up a couple of times through the night as it is.
5.30/6pm is dinner time where I have my allowed vegetables or a salad along with the added protein that has been recommended to me by my dietician to help prevent loss of lean muscle.
7.30/8pm I have my 3rd Optifast product, a chocolate bar while I’m chilling out in front of the TV. As evenings are the time that I most want to nibble on something I will also have sugar free gum, and some diet jelly lollies that I’ve made from the recipe on the Opticook site.
A small amount of water with my evening pills around 8.30pm finishes my day.

In the beginning I would have some vegetables in the middle of the day, just to snack on to curb any hunger pangs. Nowadays though I don’t really get hungry as such during the day, it’s more around 5pm or so. I tried having my protein at lunchtime to see if that made any difference to my weight loss, but it didn’t really make any change, plus I still felt hungry by 5pm, so decided to stick to my old routine.

Enough rambling. It’s getting late in the day and I need to get this posted. Thanks for reading.

5thsepttt

I’ve lost a adult female!

WEEK 40 WEIGH IN DAY 22ND AUGUST

Seeing as it’s been 2 weeks since I last posted anything on here, I’ve divided up this weeks blog into 2 separate sections. This one for Week 40 was what I posted on the Facebook group I belong to.

Wow, 40 weeks! 280 days. That’s the length of a full term pregnancy. 280 days since I last ate chocolate, ice cream or fried foods. Who would have thunk it? 🙂 Not me that’s for sure. And I’m still living with biscuits in the pantry, frozen chips and party snacks in the freezer and have ignored their presence, even though sometimes I think of how nice it would be to have them. If you had said to me a year ago that I’d be looking forward to having a weight loss shake every morning, or enjoy a Optifast chocolate bar every night for months on end I would have thought you crazy. Or been happy to munch on a few jubes made out of diet jelly instead of my favourite licorice. Not me. The person who practically would pack a picnic to take to bed with her, to snack on while watching TV. (this being barely an hour after finishing dinner mind you!!) No wonder our bed had crumbs in it all the time, or ants would find the top of my bedside table so interesting. Let’s not forget my ‘secret stash’ of chocolate bars or family sized bags of potato chips that I’d have stowed away inside my tallboy in our walk in wardrobe. Yep, my addiction for snacking meant I practically had a whole supermarket aisle stashed away.

While I could still drive (before I got so overweight that I couldn’t fit behind the steering wheel of the car), I’d often head to the local Woolworths during the day while my partner was at work, to stock up my supplies of junk food. Not just that, but I’d buy a couple of creamy cakes or pastries and scoff them before my partner would come home. Of course I wouldn’t forget him, I’d buy a 4 pack if I could and eat 2 before he got home, saving 1 for him, and the other for me to have after dinner. As far as he was concerned I’d only bought 2 as I’d put them into another container. And on the way home from the the supermarket I’d swing by Maccas to grab a burger, fries and a thickshake, or ice cream sundae. Or my favourite, a large mocha frappe. (I look at the nutritional info on that now and cringe. 412 calories. 19.7 grams of fat. 50.4 grams of carbs. 48.1 grams of sugar!! And then there was the calories/carbs etc in the rest of my meal!! I’m not even going to think about the total amount I was consuming.) I’d sit in the car and devour them as though I’d been on a famine. Well, as far as I was concerned if I hadn’t eaten for over an hour that was a famine!

Not just my clothes that got too tight for me to wear, but as a result of my excess weight my feet were swollen, even in winter, and consequently most of my shoes no longer fit. If I couldn’t slide my feet into my shoes, well forget it. Straps and laces were impossible for me to manage, simply because I couldn’t reach my feet to do them up. Even socks were beyond me. I’d have to ask my long suffering partner to help with putting them on. I had to buy clothes specially made to fit from a dressmaker in Brisbane who catered to larger women. Or buy expensive clothes online from places like Dale and Waters etc where a decent bra could cost just under $100! I still have a wardrobe of clothes in various sizes that I’ve accumulated over the years. I guess the smaller sizes will come in handy now that my size 34’s are swimming on me. Come summer I’ll be able to fit into some items that I’ve not been able to wear for years now.

Every day I thank myself for choosing to go on Optifast. Yes I wish I’d done it sooner, but at least I started. Even if it took me to age 60 to do it. Taking that first step is the hardest I think. It’s nearly like stepping into the unknown. You don’t know how you are going to react, whether you are strong enough to stick to it…… at least 99 percent of the time even. I think half the key to weight loss success no matter how you choose to lose your weight is to be prepared. Do the research beforehand. Get help from a health care professional, my dietician has been wealth of information. I have cut down the frequency of my visits to her now that I’ve been on this program for so long, but I still see her every couple of months, and contact her via email if I have any concerns or questions.

But enough of my ramblings. Weigh in time. Another 1.5 kilograms gone. A total loss now of 66.4 kilograms. I’m guessing that I now weigh about the same as I did back in 2008/2009. Admittedly I was more mobile then too. My mobility issues now are the result of years and of inactivity. But that’s a work in progress, like my weight.

So that’s it for this week. Week 40. 280 days. That’s the length of a full term pregnancy. For me instead of giving birth and losing approx 3 and a bit kilos of baby it’s the equivalent of me giving birth to a fully grown adult woman weighing 66 kilograms. Thank goodness shedding that 66 kilos didn’t involve passing that size person out of my nether regions.

WEEK 41 WEIGH IN DAY 29TH AUGUST

Another week down, and so are my pants! The ones I have been wearing are so much looser now that I am constantly having to pull them up so that the crotch of them isn’t hanging around my knees making me look like a teenage boy but without the baseball cap and mobile phone permanently welded to my hands.

Then there’s my summer nightgowns. The ones I wore last summer were always on the loose side as I hate tight nightwear, especially in summer. I had to have them especially made by a dressmaker here in Brisbane a couple of years ago, in a size 7XL, about a size 34/36. Tried it on yesterday only to find that I was drowning in it, it was swimming on me. I could have fit my partner in it with me, there was so much space. Or rented it out as a marquee. So now I need new nighties, but my size 24/26’s that I have shoved in a drawer, while fitting me, are not loose enough for comfort. I need a size up. But all the usual stores like Best and Less, K Mart, Big W and Target etc had nothing in the size I want, or the style. I don’t like sleeveless clothing, and prefer a long length in my sleepwear. I looked online at a few sites catering for above size 26 but they either had nothing I liked or none in my size. eBay had loads of raunchy naughty nightwear in big sizes but when I pictured me wearing a transparent bit of chiffon and lace coming down to just past my hips, and a almost g string pair of frilly knickers I nearly gagged. Having a narrow strip of fabric wedged between my butt cheeks is not for me thank you very much. A g string type pantie would end up wedged so far between my butt cheeks that I’d need a proctologist to extricate it! I had visions of my poor partner’s eyes being permanently damaged by the sight of my flabby thighs and overhanging apron of a tummy revealed by those skimpy undies, and my sagging boobs hanging down, almost needing to be tucked into those knickers. Let alone thinking about me seeing myself in the bathroom mirror when getting up in the middle of the night to visit the bathroom. The reflected image would be giving me nightmares. I mean, look at this stock image from eBay, the model is nowhere near being obese. That is NOT what I would look like wearing said garment that’s for sure.

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No, definitely no naughty negligees for me. The world ain’t ready for that. So Dale and Waters it had to be. The prices there are way above what I’d be paying for a nightie from a department store. But what more could I do? So I’ve ordered a nightgown from them after my dear partner jiggled the funds again to make it possible………..thank you sweetheart! I’ve also managed to track down another Brisbane based dressmaker who has a line of clothing for larger ladies, and she’s given me a quote to have one made. Still more than what I’d pay for from the stores, but definitely a much better price than Dale and Waters.

I’ve just returned from a visit to the dietician and she was thrilled with my progress over the past couple of months since I last saw her. I noticed that I was able to walk much more confidently and at a faster pace than I had the last visit. Having the concrete in the carpark, and the carpet in the doctors surgery where she has her rooms is so much easier for me to walk on. I usually get dropped off by my partner and he goes and parks the car across the other side of the car park, and when I’m finished he drives it to just out the front of the doctors surgery door. Not today though. I walked right out that door and right across to the other side of the car park to where he was parked. It was like I had a fire cracker up my bum I walked that fast. (well in comparison to how I have been walking over the past few years.) It’s just tiled/polished concrete type floors that I am slower on. Maybe it’s time for me to actually leave the house and walk along the footpath out the front. When my partner is on his days off, sometimes he takes the dog to the local park which is just down the street a bit from where we live. This is during the middle of the day, an extra walk to the normal one our dog gets in the early morning and evenings. I think I might try walking with him tomorrow. Even if I only do it 3 times a week, it’s a start. I can’t wait till I can toss away my walking stick.

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Weighing in today gave me a smile. Not a huge loss, but 1.7 kilos is good for a week. As one of the ladies in the group says, that’s three 500 gram tubs of butter (and a bit). I’m well on track to reaching my goal of 80/85 kilograms by this time next year. (with luck.) Although no doubt I’m going to start having more and more weeks of smaller losses, and even a plateau at some stage. That’s going to be tough as so far I’ve usually lost weight, aside from a couple of occasions where I’d gained small amounts. My monthly loss is better than it’s been for a while, but then there were 5 weeks in this month, so that would account for all but 1.7 kilograms of the month’s total.

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I found this post about weight plateaus on this blog: The New Mia

Plateau? Don’t reach for the Gateau!

Posted on 21st Aug 2019

We have all been there. You are doing great with your weight loss and then suddenly you feel like no matter what you do the scales just won’t budge any more and you question everything you do. Or you start doing things that are too extreme and that ultimately will not work. You feel like giving up. I have felt this way many a time but really these are the times we should look back and see just how far we have come. I found some great advice that I would like to share with you and hopefully give you a little pick me up to keep going.

Change up your thinking.

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The above pictures are certainly ones that I will have to look back on when I start having those weight loss plateaus.

Well, that’s a wrap for this fortnight. As always, thank you for reading and for supporting me.

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Weeks 38 and 39.

Wow, 39 weeks. Or in other words 9 months since I picked up my first Optifast shake and took my first mouthfuls towards a lighter, healthier me. No way would I have imagined that I would still be on track with only 3 days ‘off’ my program. I have never before managed to stick to a diet for so long, even after having my stomach stapled years ago I was eating ice cream and chocolate within a couple of months of my surgery. That type of food still slid down easily, my staples didn’t stop it. No wonder I ended up gaining weight again. I still look at the Woolworth’s catalogue each week and sigh at the sight of all those calorie laden foods, and wish I could grab that tub of Streets Blue Ribbon ice cream and have a heaped bowl full. Or buy a family block of chocolate and big bag of potato chips. I doubt very much that part of me will change, but I’m hoping that at the end of this, that I will acknowledge that I have that addiction to certain foods and that keeping a tub of ice cream or a big block of chocolate in the fridge is the same as a alcoholic having a full bottle of booze, or a smoker having a carton of cigarettes in the house.

Another 2 weeks down. I must admit I was a bit down last time I posted on here as my weight loss had slowed down over the month of July, and my still needing a stick to help me with walking any distance was causing me frustration. Especially when I have been using my mini cycle twice a day for 30 minutes each time and just started walking around the backyard. (Trying to avoid any landmines left by our Golden Retriever Ollie, not to mention any holes he may have dug.) Visions of slipping on doggy doo doo and falling into an excavated hole left by Ollie were foremost in my mind.

I also ordered some resistance bands off an eBay seller and have started using them doing exercises for my legs while seated in my chair. By using them maybe I will build up some more muscle strength in my legs and become more confident when walking.

I’m still rapt in my weight loss so far. My tracksuit pants are so loose now, I have to keep hitching them up, and I’m not far off being able to fit 2 legs into one pant leg. I can’t wait for that day, because I definitely want a photograph taken to show how far I’ve come. I’m overdue for some progress photos, but I’m putting it off till I get my hair cut as I look like a sheep in need of shearing at present. Plus I might make it something to do when I’ve hit 75 kilos gone.

I switched having my protein intake from my evening meal to lunchtime for 5 of the 7 days. Admittedly I still had a tiny bit of protein at dinnertime but the bulk of it was the middle of the day. I’m unsure if that had anything to do with this weeks results or not, but for once I wasn’t as keen as I usually am to get on the scales. I was psyching myself up for another loss of just a few hundred grams. Yes, still a loss, but as I’m still morbidly obese I’d hoped for bigger numbers.

I did weigh myself last week, but didn’t make a blog entry, and so the amount I am mentioning for my weight loss is the combination of the 2 weeks. Last week I lost 2.6 kilos, and this week 1 kilo. So a total loss over 2 weeks of 3.6 kilos which I’m happy about. I’m almost at 65 kilos gone now. Another 10 kilos to go till I reach my next mini goal.

I’m thrilled that my BMI has gone down as much as it has. From approximately 92.5 to the current level of 66.3. Still really high yes, but a heck of a lot better. The cardiologist telling me my BMI was the highest of all his patients (back in November last year when I saw him) will forever be etched in my memory. I’d like to be remembered for many things, but not for that. My body fat composition is still way up there, but that’s a work in progress, like me.

So the past couple of weeks haven’t been too bad. I have to remember that not all weeks are going to be good, and that any loss is a good one, and that I’m going to have to endure many more weeks of 100 grams or so.

I have found another weight loss blog that I’ve just started reading. It is called ‘Trying to Lose’ and the writer has some interesting entries. weight loss, easy exercise, healthy food – Trying to lose!

I love one of her entries in particular and will copy and paste some of what she’s written as I think the advice is helpful. Her words are in italics to make it clear that they are not my own. So thanks Jo! The link to this particular entry of hers is here: Tips to help with Weight Loss

MOTIVATIONAL QUOTE: The Road may be bumpy, but stay committed to the process!

We’ve all been there, we’ve braved the scales, we’ve crawled off in self disgust and decided with steely determination that this time, this time right now, will be the time we will change our lives for good.

And it’s hard in that moment to think we will run out of motivation, and we’ll discover will power just isn’t enough. And before we know it, we say to ourselves, ‘I’ve been really good this week, surely this cake, or that pack of crisps, or in my case, that FULL pack of biscuits or full chippy supper won’t do any harm, just this once!’ and we fool ourselves with, ‘I’ll start again tomorrow’ and go on to eat those things. And tomorrow never comes.

We’ve been doing fabulously well, we jump excitedly on the scales, and then could cry – ‘how?’ we ask ourselves, our minds goes crazy wondering what we’ve possibly done to deserve this unfair number flashing back at us.

So, here are a few tips to help us on our journey:

Find a regime you will be happy with

There’s absolutely no point in choosing a plan you are going to be bored with or sick of. For me, I couldn’t do a regime where a food group is removed – I personally don’t think they’re the best way forward, and I would constantly miss the thing I wasn’t allowed. Neither could I do a meal replacement plan with shakes or the like – I need the feel of food!

This is where I will say that I’ve tried eating sensibly and failed. For me the shakes/bars in Optifast are easy to grab, saves me a lot of thinking. And the allowed vegetables etc that I can have suit my taste and lifestyle. Yes I know that I will have to go back to ‘normal’ eating again but that’s in the future. For me right now, the Optifast program is working fine.

Don’t worry if the scales don’t match your efforts

It’s so disheartening when the scales don’t move, or go up, when you’ve dieted well, but don’t let it ruin things for you – our bodies are a living, breathing organism, with loads of chemical and biological actions going on. Think about the weight loss you’ve worked hard for up to that point, including the bad week, is it still an overall loss? if so, then you’re doing everything right. Keep on the ball, battle through, the results will start showing again.

Don’t berate yourself if you’ve slipped

For instance my day yesterday – it wasn’t a good day. What good does it do for our self belief and self confidence if we beat ourselves up over this, we are human, there could be plenty of other people just waiting to have a pop at us, we sure as hell don’t need to do it to ourselves! Draw a line under the day/days, we can’t change it, all we can do is change the future. And as per the previous paragraph – think of the overall weight loss you’ve already achieved so far, and give yourself a clap on the back.

If you’re constantly ‘falling off the wagon?’…

Maybe you’re on the wrong kind of regime, have a rethink about your choice, if you still believe it’s the best for you, see if there is anyway you can give yourself a ‘naughty’ treat, maybe that will help keep you on track.

Keep a food diary

I know, I know – it’s sooooo boring! but I have found in the past that if I use this as a tool to help me understand what my intake actually is, it really can differ to what I believe I’ve taken in. Remember to include your drinks – even if it’s water!

Preparation

For me this is the biggest and most important thing! I try to prepare my lunches on a Sunday – that way I have a few days worth of salad and eggs ready to take from fridge to work. And to try and combat the evening meals I used to have a clear plan of each meal for each night, along with recipe instructions if it was a new recipe, this way there was no excuse for me to think ‘don’t know what to do…. TAKEAWAY!’

If you’re not a natural kitchen dweller?…

Be brave! start searching online for recipes – there’s thousands, probably millions! Sometimes there can be a whole load of ingredients, and that alone will scare you off the recipe, don’t be fooled – the instructions are usually easy! Explore, experiment, enjoy!

For myself being on Optifast, I always suggest the Opticook site which was developed by a lady who has been successful on Optifast and who enjoys experimenting in the kitchen. She has some awesome recipes on her page. Opticook

Support!

If groups aren’t you’re thing, look for support from loved ones or friends, you are probably not the only person you know trying to shift the poundage – why do this journey in isolation when it’s much more fun and confidence building doing it with someone, and gives you each other perspectives.

Also, it can be really hard if you’re not getting support from those closest to you, sometimes it can feel like you’re fighting an uphill battle, here is where you must learn to put your needs first, find someone who you can trust to vent to, but keep you in mind at all times, you first, you first, you first…

Small steps

I know, I need to lose around 80lb (36 kilos), this will just get me into the healthy weight range, and I could think to myself ‘if I lose 1.5lb (700 grams) each week, I’ll be close to my goal by this time next year!’ This isn’t really practical – a year is a long time and 80lbs (36 kilos) is a lot of weight, instead think to yourself, ‘Ok, I do have a lot to lose, but I’m going to aim to lose 12lbs (5kgs) in the next two months.’ – that’s much more doable, and not such a scary prospect. You might lose more, you might lose less, but realistically all that matters is that you do lose.

Only 1kg you say?

Now what I’ve done here is change the weights to grams/kilograms to reflect how we measure weight here in Australia. Jo is from England so obviously uses the imperial measurements. There is no such thing as ‘only 1kg’ If you’ve lost 3kg or even half a kilo, celebrate! And if you don’t believe me, walk yourself round to a shop, go to the meat section, pick up a couple of packs of 500 grams of mince, look at them, balance them in your hands, and think to yourself – yep! I’m actually really pleased with 500 grams of pure lard no longer in my body! BTW – it’s recommended that we aim to lose between just under 500 grams and a kilogram per week for healthy weight loss.

Hour by Hour, Day by Day

On the days where it all just seems too much, take each hour as it comes, if you’ve stuck to your plan after hour 1, give yourself a clap on the back, the same after hour 2, keep going, you can do it. Let those hours roll into days, keep doing it, don’t cheat yourself, keep in mind the dress/trousers you want to be able to wear, or the number you want to see on the scales.

Remember – you are doing something amazing

By starting and continuing with your journey you are doing something incredible for all aspects of you – your confidence, your health, your mental health. You may be doing it for the first time, or the umpteenth time, doesn’t matter, you have this within your grasp, your power to change, there isn’t a single person stronger than you when it comes to your own willingness for your own sake – Whether it’s 3kg or over 100kgs, you have the ability to make this happen, Believe in yourself, take courage, get ready for it and go with the flow!

You are going to be BANGING it this time!

MOTIVATIONAL QUOTE: The Road may be bumpy, but stay committed to the process!

Thanks again to Jo for allowing me to use her post in my blog.

So that’s it for me till next time.

Another day, another weigh in.

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Yep, I’m back again. I’ve been sitting here with this page opened on my laptop and just waiting for inspirational and humorous words to come to mind so that I could provide something entertaining for this week’s blog, but my mind is blank. I guess after 37 weeks it gets harder to put down something different to hold peoples attention other than my usual weigh in results etc. Probably shows what a quiet life I live. Don’t really go anywhere, except driving to the local shops/the doctors/chemist etc. I’m not complaining about that mind you, being able to drive again is one of the best things about losing the amount of weight I have so far. In fact yesterday I took myself to the local pharmacy where Optifast was on special as it was the last day of that sale. Managed to stock up on a few boxes of my favourite products. Saving $5 a box on average for shakes and bars is a lot when you are on a limited budget. Paul worked out that over the past 37 weeks we have probably spent a little over $2,000 on diet products. That’s not counting the sugar free food items such as diet jelly, pickled onions, salad dressing etc that I have as well as the Optifast products themselves. Or my blender that I use for the shakes. To include all those would bring that figure much higher. Still, the results are worth it.

I’m still working on my leg exercises, but it’s a very slow process. I’m quite frustrated with it actually. I’m lighter than I have been in years, and yet my mobility hasn’t improved as much as I had hoped. Obviously those years of sitting around the house have impacted on my legs. I’m thinking that instead of walking around the house I might start walking around the yard when it’s a fine day. At least Ollie can walk around with me to keep me company and if I did stumble and fall at least the ground would be softer than the tiled floor. There’s that woman who used to walk around her clothesline every day to help her lose weight, she wrote a book called The Clothesline Diet years ago. We don’t have a clothes line but we have a yard and I could walk up and down a few times and not have to worry about the neighbours seeing me and thinking I was going crazy, wandering up and down like a person who was losing her marbles and pacing back and forth. The last thing I want is a visit from the local mental health team.

As I said last week my weight loss seems to have been slowing down somewhat, and I know it’s to be expected after such a long time, but it’s still frustrating to me. I’m still morbidly obese and one always expects bigger people to lose more weight per week, especially when on very low calorie diets. I shouldn’t be frustrated because I know my dietician says that a half to one kilo loss a week is great and she actually prefers that result to losing 2 or more kilos a week. And I repeatedly tell myself that any loss is good. I was doing some Googling and found that apparently muscle mass has a role to play in weight loss as well. One article I read said this:

A person with more muscle mass and less body fat will have an easier time losing weight than someone who has a higher body fat percentage. Muscle mass is closely related to metabolism. The more muscle you have, the more calories you burn, even when your body is at rest. To lose the largest number of calories possible, focus on strength training to increase your muscle. This will ensure that when you do lose weight, you are losing it from your body fat rather than your muscles.

Then there was this:

While weight loss doesn’t come with a magic pill and it can certainly take a lot longer than expected, staying positive and focused will play a huge role in whether or not you succeed. Be honest with yourself and pat yourself on the back for how diligent and focused you have been.

So I’ll keep on with my walking and pedaling on my mini cycle gizmo, and I’ll keep patting myself on my back for doing as well as I have and for sticking to this for such a long time. I am having to battle temptation bigtime of late. I keep thinking of how much I’d love to have a coffee and some biscuits with it, or toast in the morning with butter and jam. Even veges like corn and potato are things I crave as a change. However despite those tempting thoughts I am still strong enough to say a big NO and instead reach for something else that I can have. I only have to think back to last year, and struggling to breathe at night, having to sleep propped up on pillows. I do not want to go through that again. So I woke up this morning and stepped on the scales. A loss of 800 grams. Yes it’s a loss, but after upping my walking and pedaling I had hoped for more. I’d even changed my meals to having my allowed protein at lunchtime rather than 6pm for dinner in case the calories consumed later in the day had slowed down my weight loss. Still I know it’s just over a tub and a half of butter, so I need to be happy with that.

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I found an interesting article on weight loss plateaus today. Rather than copy and paste bits and pieces from it I’ll just post the link. Some of the things mentioned don’t apply to me, but other parts make sense and bear thinking about. Why Plateaus Happen

That’s it for this week. My mind is still pretty much a blank. I just can’t seem to get into the ‘zone’ for blogging. In fact I’ve decided that unless something really good happens (like a huge weight loss or something exciting) I’m going to change my posts from weekly to 2 weekly. So my next blog entry will be on August 15th. Thanks again for reading.

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Week 36 Weigh in

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Well last week I enjoyed some yummy goodies that were definitely not part of Optifast intensive, my celebration of losing 60kg. I certainly relished every mouthful, after 4 months it was so worth it.

Come the next day though, that was all behind me as I refocused on getting back on track. Friday morning was my appointment with my GP for a check up and to get bloods taken to ensure all is well as I am heading into my fourth round of intensive. For those not familiar with the Optifast program the intensive level, which is 3 Optifast products a day plus allowed veges etc is twelve weeks. What the company advise is that after that twelve weeks you go to the next stage which is called Active 2, and comprises of 2 Optifast products a day plus a meal of approximately 350 calories. Fruit and dairy can be included providing you keep to a certain amount. However many people, and I am one of them, choose to remain on intensive because they may have a lot of weight to lose, or just find it an easier program to follow. I choose to stay with it for both reasons but very low energy diets can affect the body, hence blood tests etc every 12 weeks.

But back to my doctors appointment. Previously I used to dread sitting in the chair in her office as it wasn’t real wide and had arms that I found impossible to fit between. I used to have to half sit on it with the edge of my humongous backside perched on the very end of the chair as I couldn’t squeeze my body between the armrests, let alone fit the rest of me on it. This time I could actually sit on the seat and not have the chair arms cutting into me

When I told my doctor how much weight I’d lost she was delighted and had the biggest smile on her face as she congratulated me and told me that very few of her patients who she had recommended to lose weight had actually followed her recommendations and followed through with doing it. She checked my blood pressure and instead of my usual 140/80 or 150/90 (even with me being on a couple of blood pressure medications), my blood pressure last week was a very respectable 120/70. A huge improvement and major non scale victory.

I wasn’t overly confident in a loss on the scales today considering the amount of carbs consumed last Thursday, so it was no surprise to find that I’ve gained 100 grams. Still, it’s the price I pay and I own it. It’s only 100 grams after all. It could have been worse. No point in crying and being depressed. After nearly eight and a half months I feel my weight loss will slow down some and I’m trying to prepare myself mentally for smaller losses, even plateaus. It’s all part of the process. When I look back at my monthly results this past month has definitely been one that I’ve lost the least amount of weight.

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However, when I look back over the past 36 weeks I’m still really happy with my weekly progress on the scales.

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What’s important is not giving up, and to look back at how far I’ve come since I started. 36 weeks ago my days were spent sitting in my recliner. I couldn’t even buy a pair of shoes from a department store because my feet were so puffed up due to my weight and fluid build up, nothing ever fitted, other than thongs. Because I had size 11 swollen feet I had to have specialised shoes fitted. The last time I’d bought shoes was a major effort of being driven to this special shoe shop half an hour from where we lived and having to be fitted with shoes wide enough to get on my feet and ones I could just slip on or off. I might add here that those shoes were not cheap, $150 at least, closer to $200 for one of them. They had to be slip on shoes too as no way could I even bend down to my feet to tug the shoes on and heaven forbid if there were shoe laces, no way could I manage them My long suffering partner would have to help out by putting socks on my feet, then help get the shoes on. It was just easier to not buy closed in shoes, to avoid all that hassle. So even on cold winter days I was wearing slip on sandals.

Now I can go into a department store, like I did last week, and pick up a pair of closed in shoes and pay only a quarter of the price I used to. (and like I mentioned last week I can even manage putting on socks as well as the shoes.)

Before if I went into the kitchen to do anything, even just washing a couple of dishes, I had to sit down on a chair. I never left the house, unless I had to go to the doctors. I’d enviously look at my friends posts on Facebook where they posted about going out to places, going overseas, enjoying parties or meals with friends and family. Even if they were just going to a park with their dogs I’d be in tears at missing out on such basic enjoyments. My life revolved around food and feeling sorry for myself. However you would never know it by my Facebook posts. Funny jokes, making light of things, never revealing how bad things were for me. I was almost as bad as those poor souls you see on My 600 lb Life show. I was ashamed to be seen by my son or daughter’s friends.

So bit by bit I’m getting my life back. I know I keep harping on this just about every week, but it’s a big deal to me.

Something that I’ve been thinking about lately because it’s been mentioned a few times on the support group I’m in, is the debate about weighing daily, weighing weekly, or even not weighing at all. For me I found that weighing daily messed with my head, hence me choosing to weigh weekly. Not weighing myself at all wasn’t what I wanted to do because I like to see the numbers going down. Yes, I know the fit of clothing can indicate weight loss, but it’s a buzz when you look back and see what you used to weigh and how much weight has been lost over a period of time. I decided to do a bit of Googling to see what I could find about weighing in weekly compared to daily and found a few articles, this one (as quoted below in italics) being one of them: How often should you weigh yourself?

Imagine this: You decide it’s time to make a concerted effort to lose weight. You start exercising regularly and embark on a healthy eating plan. The time comes to check in on your progress, so you step on the scale for the moment of truth.

Alas, you haven’t lost any weight.

What do you do? Continue with the exercise and healthy eating plan? Throw in the towel, and go back to what you were doing before? Start restricting your eating even more as an effort to make weight loss happen faster?

These are all completely normal and reasonable reactions to a lack of success on the scale. Weight loss, maintenance or gain can be tricky to navigate. Put more plainly: The scale can be tricky to navigate.

Weight fluctuations are common because your weight is determined by a variety of factors. These include but are not limited to how hydrated you are, what you recently ate, your bathroom habits, the climate and your exercise routine. A few kilos of weight fluctuation here or there are usually not a result of fat gain but a result of your body doing exactly what it needs to do to regulate its physiological functions. So, how often should you weigh yourself? Whether your goal is maintenance, loss or gain, let’s talk about the scale.

The very first question you need to ask yourself is: “Will weighing myself (daily, weekly, periodically, etc.) help me or harm me?” Since there’s no magic answer for how often to weigh yourself, figuring out what is helpful and motivating for you as an individual is how you decide.

DAILY WEIGH-INS

Many people find weighing in daily provides a sense of accountability and is helpful for having a good idea of where they are with their progress. For many, it helps to keep progress on track. If you’re able to look at the overall trend and not stress about the fluctuations, then by all means, weigh yourself daily.

Does a half a kilo weight gain sour your mood? Or, are you absolutely elated to see that you’re down 1 kilo? If the daily weigh-ins powerfully affect your mood and behavior, then you might want to reconsider how often you weigh yourself. The number on the scale should not have the power to dictate your mood, the events of the day or your overall quality of life — it’s just a number.

If you do weigh daily you can work out your average loss each week or however often you want to by using the calculator on this site: Working out average weight loss over a period of time.

I worked out mine based on what I weighed when I started, and what I weigh today.

!!!!!!Screenshot_2019-07-25 Calculate Average Weight Lost Over Time

WEEKLY WEIGH-INS

Weighing weekly can have its advantages — it allows you to track progress while still having six whole days to not focus on your weight.

For best results, pick a consistent day each week, and weigh yourself in the morning. Look for trends, but don’t get caught up in the minutiae. Recognize that it will take a few weeks to get a picture of where the trend is heading. This can be a good tool to help you feel accountable without making you ride the daily emotional roller coaster that is (or can be) the scale.

OCCASIONAL WEIGH-INS

Some people opt for the occasional weight check-in. People may do this at home or rely on the scale at the gym or doctor’s office to get an idea of where they are. People who opt for the occasional weigh-in often have alternative ways of identifying weight shifts, like the way their clothes fit or how strong they feel while exercising.

NEVER WEIGHING

There are many people out there who smash their scale and never look back. Some people find it helpful to focus on how they feel in their clothes, the balance of their meals and snacks and how they perform with their exercise rather than focusing on the number. This can be a valid way to approach health —there’s much more to health than a number on the scale!

If you are weighing yourself multiple times per day, stop! With rare exceptions, you should not weigh yourself more than once per day. Obsessing over a number on the scale can turn into a very problematic pattern that can disturb the peace and happiness in your life. If you decide to weigh yourself, the scale should be a tool that helps you, not harms you.

Overall, ask yourself about what is most helpful for you. For some, daily weigh-ins are the best route. For others, weighing less often is better for overall health. Each of us has different ways of experiencing things and inviting motivation and positivity into our lives. Find what works for you and stick to it!

I was discussing diets with a friend via Facebook and she told me she weighed herself daily and we were comparing the pros and cons of daily vs weekly. I was talking about not weighing myself daily like she did, and she made a joke about having to strap a pair of scales on her feet so she could constantly keep tabs on her weight. Obviously she was joking, the mental image gave me a giggle as I pictured myself wearing a set of scales on each foot.

So that’s it for another week. Thanks again for reading!

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Week 35. Another milestone reached.

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Warning: I mention a couple of non Optifast foods so if that’s a trigger for you proceed with caution!

Another good week for me. I was counting down the days to today, and hoping madly that I’d be getting the result I wanted.

Last Friday I drove my partner and I, plus Golden Retriever Ollie to a dog beach on Bribie Island. While walking on the sand wasn’t something I did, it was a lovely spot and a nice change from the four walls of the house. On the way home as it was after 1.30pm I stopped at Maccas so that my partner could get something to eat. He wasn’t going to do that because he didn’t want me to endure the smell of a burger and fries, but I was adamant that he could eat in front of me without me going homicidal or succumbing to temptation and demanding one for myself. He was kind though, and sat on the tailgate of the car to eat, so that I didn’t see the food, but my sense of smell was working overtime. I was pleased with myself for being strong.

I had the oddest dream last night that my scales weren’t working, and that when I stepped on them the screen was blank, no computer voice telling me “It’s ready.” and then announcing my weight and the weight showing up on the screen. I remember dreaming that I kept stepping on and off them and becoming very frustrated that they weren’t working at such a crucial time. It seemed so real that I woke up this morning and was worried that it was actually true. Last week I was only 200 grams short of my 60kg milestone so I was eagerly anticipating at least that much weight loss. If the scales didn’t work I’d be screaming at them.

I’d changed things a bit last week, having my main meal at lunchtime with a shake around 4.30pm, and my Optifast bar at the usual 8pm time. I’d upped my pedaling exercise from 20 minutes twice a day to 30 minutes twice daily.

So with great anticipation I stepped on the scales this morning and thankfully they were working, phew, what a relief.

YES!!! I’d done it! Not a huge loss, but still a loss. I’d cracked the 60kg barrier! 60.6 kilograms gone in 8 months! So worth every trip to the toilet caused by all that water, so worth resisting every temptation I’d faced, so worth the $$$$ spent on Optifast products and allowed foods. It’s still only part of what weight I have still yet to lose but that 60kg loss has improved my life and health.

I’ve lost the equivalent of a whole person or 3 20 kilo bags of cement mix! No way would I be able to lift up that much weight, and yet I’d been carrying it around and putting a huge strain on my body for years. Whatever was I thinking?

So this morning my partner and I headed off to Westfield and the Muffin Break store to enjoy a much anticipated cappuccino and muffin. Actually we had 2 cappuccinos each, and boy oh boy was it good! It’s been over 3 years since I have had a cappuccino, I savoured every mouthful , and took my time nibbling on the muffin. Every crumb was eaten, no waste here.

Next stop was Target where my 60kg reward was a pair of comfy joggers for walking around the house in. Non slip soles so I feel more secure when walking on our tiled floors. Again there was satisfaction in being to actually fit my feet into shoes that 12 months ago wouldn’t have fit because of my feet being so puffy with fluid. And to be able to put them on my feet without needing assistance from my partner….. let me tell you that unless you have not been able to put on socks and shoes you have no idea what an achievement it is to perform such a basic task for yourself.

I did more walking this morning than I’ve done in a few years now, probably 4 years. Albeit I was using a shopping trolley to help me but I still managed it though admittedly once I had finished in Target my legs were getting a tad wobbly and I had to sit for a bit before walking back to the car. Tonight I am having home made hamburgers for dinner, something that I have been eagerly anticipating for a couple of months now. I will be back on track again tomorrow though, and I am looking forward to my next mini goal of losing 75 kilograms.

Tomorrow morning I have an appointment with my GP for a check up and will be having blood taken to make sure all is well so I can continue with intensive for another 12 weeks. I’m pretty sure everything’s okay and that she’ll be pleased with my progress.

My weight loss seems to be slowing down somewhat and I’d been expecting that to happen after such a long time, but as long as the numbers keep going down I’m happy. I didn’t put that weight on overnight, so it won’t come off overnight.

That’s it for this week, thanks again for reading, and being so supportive!

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