A new beginning

Hello.

It's been a while since I last updated this blog, but I'm pleased to say that after my father's death I am finally feeling better and getting on with my life.

I am also delighted to say that I am managing to keep the weight off successfully - 9 months later!

Anyone who has followed or read this blog will have seen one of my last posts, where I mentioned how I wanted to find a way to help others out there trying to lose weight. This plan is now well underway, and you can find out more information about the initiative, and what I'm trying to achieve, by logging on to my new website at mydietfit.com.

Take a look and feel free to let me know what you think, what you'd like the service to be and how I can help.

Devastating

On 31 Dec 2010, after a 3-week deterioration as a result of a bacteria he caught, my father passed away.

This has been devastating for our family, as both he and my mother had been making a brilliant recovery, but my dad was still fairly weak and therefore had a weak immune system.

I am so grateful for the time we spent with them in August, and that my dad got to see me now - he was so proud to tell everyone how much weight I had lost and was so proud. For his sake, and mine, I won't let him down ....

Five months later - The End

Today was a hugely momentous day – as I had my very last LPG/endermologie appointment and weigh in at Alizonne

I booked it especially as we just got back from a 2-week holiday in the US (large portions!) and it’s just after Christmas, so in a way this was meant as a bit of a test to myself to see how well I’ve coped

First – the holiday. Generally I found it easier than I thought I would, largely because as I can’t have gluten or dairy it does cut out pretty much all the bad temptations out there. Although I did watch what I ate, I did have some treats and did sometimes have 2 courses, so definitely didn’t feel deprived at all. Unfortunately during the holiday my husband got sick and ended up in hospital for 5 days, cue eating from a hospital cafeteria again – although I will say at least the choices weren’t just hot sandwiches, so I was able to keep to a balanced diet

Second – Christmas. Again, with a bit of foresight and planning I managed to navigate this. I make a dairy free chocolate mousse which everyone loves, and which I did have some of. I stayed away from snacking outside the 2-4 hour windows, but aside from that it was fairly easy

So, although my home scale has me slightly lower, I weigh myself first thing in the morning at home, whereas my Alizonne appointment was this evening:

Current weight - 67kg (200g loss since last weigh in) - 42.9kg lost to date
Weight in stone - 10st 7lb (1lb loss since last weigh in) - 6st 11lbs lost to date, or 94.6lbs

So, at the end of this momentous journey, what have I learnt?

Well, I’ve learnt that I’m much stronger than I thought I was. I’ve always been determined, but usually became despondent if I didn’t see results – but I guess the beauty of Alizonne is that you do see results, and fast. What I mean by strong though is how I was able to stick with it during what has without a doubt been the hardest year of my life emotionally: from my parents’ accident to the challenges at work and from starting a new job to my husband’s illness. I don’t know whether it was easier given this was frequently the only thing I felt I had any control over when everything else was falling apart, maybe it was

I’ve finally figured out that not every diet works for everyone, and the reason Alizonne worked for me is because it matched my personality and who I am – this is I think the trick that so many people are missing and something I intend to do something about

I’ve learnt that there are a few essential Alizonne fundamentals that are good practice to follow for the rest of my life:

• Eat every 2-4 hours

• Eat 3 meals and 2 snacks a day

• Drink 2 litres of water every day

• Understand calories – the book they give you at the end is an invaluable source of helping you get a grip on what is a good vs bad calorie

• Know your medgem and mentally keep tabs on how you track through the day – without being obsessive

And my own three little additions:

• Weigh yourself regularly – it helps you keep a check on things so you can nip problems in the bud, and when you see things are under control it is a fantastic morale boost and helps keep you motivated

• Listen to your body – it will tell you whether it’s happy or not

• Look at old photos of yourself regularly – it will remind you what you used to look like and each time you do make a promise to yourself “NEVER AGAIN”

I’ll be dipping in and out of the blog now, as I think it has served its purpose – but I do hope if you’ve found this it provides you with some help on your own journey. Good luck!

Four months later

Wow, so much has happened since I last posted, including me starting the new job and getting stuck into everything - which has made it feel like absolute ages since my last Alizonne appointment, even though it has actually only been a month.

I got back to the UK after a work trip today, and had a Venti Starbucks coffee just before my Alizonne weigh in and LPG/Endermologie, but even so I'm quite pleased with the results:

Current weight - 67.2kg (100g loss since last weigh in) - 42.7kg lost to date
Weight in stone - 10st 8lb (0lb loss since last weigh in) - 6st 10lbs lost to date, or 94.2lbs

My home scale actually has me weighing less, but even with the Alizonne weight I'm still happy - yippee!

Just one more weigh in next month and then I'm going to go it alone .....

OMG - I can't believe it!

So, I saw a gorgeous blue coat in the latest Easy Living magazine which is available at Monsoon, and popped in today to try it on.

I tried on the Size 12, which fit ok, but actually felt a little loose even with the fleecy jumper I was wearing underneath. So I decided to try on the Size 10 - and it fit perfectly!

I'm not saying I'm a Size 10, especially as I bought a pair of Size 12 cords just before the coat, but do think I'm somewhere between a Size 10 and Size 12.

Absolutely can't believe it - Alizonne has really changed my life .......

Measurements - three months later

I finally got around to having my measurements done again on Sunday, and the results are:

Bust - 84cm (2cm loss since finishing - 24cm lost in total - 5cm below target)
Waist - 77cm (3 cm loss since finishing - 27cm lost in total - 5cm off target) - though it doesn't seem to matter as I'm definitely within the correct range ;)
Hips - 91cm (4cm loss since finishing - 40cm lost in total - 4cm below target)

I also lost 1cm off my arms and 2cm off my thighs since the last measurements a month after finishing.

So far so good, just keep going!

Three months later

I can't believe it's already been 3 months since I phased off Alizonne. In some ways it feels like I finished ages ago, but then went I went back for my LPG/endermologie treatment today it felt like I've never been away.

Anyway, the continuing good news on the weight front:

Current weight - 67.3kg (1.1kg loss since last weigh in) - 42.6kg total lost to date
Weight in stone - 10st 8lb (2lb loss since last weigh in) - 6st 10lbs lost to date, or 93.9lbs

I am genuinely not trying to lose any more weight, but it still feels quite good to see my body is able to pretty much maintain without me feeling deprived - although I am getting chocolate cravings today as my period started ;)

Hooray!!