If someone told me in May I would have lost 16kg in 5 months I would tell them that they were crazy!
Below there is a photo of me at the end of April and then a photo of me just one week ago.
I know the photos aren't the same size, but you get the idea.
and here is one that is a close-up of my face
This is all thanks to a combination of the 12wbt and staying 3 weeks at The Biggest Loser Retreat (once in July and once in September)
I know I have a long way to go, but its great to reflect on what I've achieved.
This is about how I got to where I am today. I started this current phase of my journey 15 weeks ago when my daughter Jackie ask me to do Michelle Bridges 12WBT with her. My first reaction was I don't think I can cope with failing again. I have been on one diet or another for nearly 40 years and have manage to weight 163.5kg at my heaviest. For someone who is only 163cm or 5’4” tall that's a lot of weight. Some diets like weight watchers I have done several times. I have done them all!!! from ever type of restriction diet like; no fat, no sugar, no carbs, to: just soup diets, one food type each day, pre-package, meals, Lite n easy,Jenny Craig, protein only diets, Protein shakes, acupuncture, Hypnotherapy - where you think you have had lapband surgery..Its hard to remember them all. All were successful in getting me to loose 10 kilos or so but all I could not maintain the diet for one reason or another & I’m afraid I never really got into exercising regularly. Time frame for sticking to these diets was also about the same time each time. I would be brilliant first 2-4 weeks seeing weight come off then slowly I would start waving with old habits and by 6 to 8 weeks I would be lacking motivation to stick to it missing all my comfort foods. Sometimes I lasted longer but eventually I would gain the weight back and a bit more as well. So I am the classic yoyo dieter. Resulting in going from 80 kg (the smallest I ever remember being) in my early 20’s to 163.5kg in my 50’s. At the time when Jackie ask me to do 12WBT, I was at the end of 2 difficult years for me with my health. I had a workplace accident where I tore the tendon that goes from your big toe to your heel. When it happen I was still on one of the many diets & weighed about 140kg and treatment for nearly 12 months was have me sit with my foot up waiting for it to heel & putting me on a drug called Duromine- to stop me feeling hungry. What a mixture …. Duromine is basically speed so here I am sitting not being able to move around, trying not to eat too much & having all this energy I could not get rid of. By the time they agreed that sitting wasn't fixing the problem I had put on another 10 kilos and fitness wise, I could hardly walk anywhere without panting. After the operation I had no more pain which was excellent but now I had another issue. No pain but my heel was numb which meant when I put it on the floor I cant not feel the ground…its a very strange feeling. So I learnt to walk again with a numb foot and extra weight…I tried a few more diets & hypnotherapy, constantly at chiropractors trying to fix my gait when walking. Then at the beginning of this year I could hardly breath and doctors thought I had developed a clot on my lung, but after testing & being scared out of my life & seeing several Doctors, I was diagnosed with a twisting rib…it was like the straw that broke the camels back .. is this how life is going to be now…just pain all the time. I think looking back I was probably on the verge of a break down & I turned to comfort eating through the pain. Then through lots of treatments by caring medical professionals including my GP giving me laser acupuncture, massages & chiropractic visits my rib went back in…& I weighed 163.5kg. How could I be that heavy..scales must be wrong… During this time I was watching Biggest Looser series on TV with parents and children with obesity problems and during most episodes I would just sob relating to so many things. And that's when Jackie asked “do this with me mum…” I said let me have a look at what it involves but I knew I would be doing it with her not wanting her to fail. I would do it for her…I hated seeing her struggle with the same weight issues. Little did I know at the time it would change my life forever. Our obesity problems in our family go back through the generations. My father died at 46 of a massive heart attack when Jackie was only 3 months old,he was a big big man, his father died 12 months before him also obesity related, my youngest sister also struggles with her weight and now my daughters have had weight issues. There has to be a better way other than having surgery, which I have had 3 doctors tell me I need to go have. I am an intelligent educated woman why can I not get my weight under control. So we signed up to Michelle Bridges 12WBT that was 15 weeks ago
this was me
& this is me today
after 12 weeks of healthy eating & walking
I have released 15 kilos- bust = -10cm, waist = -24cm, hips= -7cm, thighs = -9cm, arms = –2cm & have just signed up to do another 12 weeks with 12WBT. Jackie & I are going to document our journey hoping that our struggles and successes help others put an end to obesity. I did not fail, It was the diets that failed me… This is not a diet we are on, its a lifestyle change with health eating and we are getting healthier and fitter every day.
On the 1st May I started the Michelle Bridges 12 Week Body Transformation (12wbt)
While doing the program I have learnt several things
Weight Loss is MAINLY about food: Now I've done Weight Watches, Lite n Easy, Store Purchased Freezer Meals. I've starved myself and taken all that I love out of eating and I've still struggled to lose weight. Or I lose it, and then it comes back on. But the 12WBT program is different. It teaches you how to cook food that you love, food that you can say that you could see yourself eating for the rest of your life. I can't see myself EVER changing my eating habits that I've picked up while on Michelle Bridges (I may increase my calorie intake, but I won't completely change the types of foods I'm eating). Like, I can eat chocolate every day if I want - As long as I factor it in to my daily calories :-)
Exercise Is Important, but it is just about MOVING MORE: Now Michelle Bridges has some fabulous exercise routines that she WANTS you to complete, but she also explains that it is better to be 100% with your food and 50% with your exercise then the other way around. So some weeks, I've been able to be 100% exercise and 100% food. Others I've been flat out with work and unable to fit in a major workout - but I've just focused moving more (walk that bit extra at work every day, park further away at the supermarket, if you can't fit in an hour walk of an afternoon, do 20mins)
That this is possible: This is the first time I've been on what people call a 'Diet' and felt like I can actually do this! I've seen the weight come off, and it isn't SUPER HARD. I still need to eat right, but I wouldn't say it is difficult - because its more about what you put in your mouth than trying to fit in 3 hours at the gym everyday
This blog is for me to share my experiences of losing weight.
I'm 28 Years Old. I've been a larger person all my life, trying a range of diets, fads and exercise programs. This time something is different. I've been on the Michelle Bridges 12 Week Body Transformation and I've also been to The Biggest Loser Retreat in QLD. The combination of these two programs have finally enabled me to see that THIS TIME, my weight loss journey WILL be a success!
At the moment - my theme song is 'This is It' By Dannii Minogue
How I Got Here: Short Version
On the 1st May this year I weighed 117 kg - my heaviest weight so far.
Two years ago I weighed 90 kg for my wedding. Three months after I got married, I damaged my foot and struggled to walk for 3 months, which means I relied on quick/fast meals because it hurt to stand.
The following 6 months after that it hurt to do any activity for a period of time longer than 5-10 mins (walking, running, aerobics etc), so within 12 months I put on 20 kg. The following 9 months I slowly put on the final 7 kg.
April this year I went to a Chiropractor, having tried everything else to try to get my foot back to normal. She found that my foot had been slightly out of its socket all this time, and that is why it hurt so much to be on it for an extended period of time (X-Rays, doctor appointments or seeing a physiotherapist didn't pick this up). Over two sessions she put my foot back into it socket (it was quite painful), and I was FINALLY able to complete activity like a normal person. I couldn't believe the vast improvement in my movement in such a short period of time.
After I could walk again, I knew I wanted to get rid of the weight I had put on in the last two years.
A friend of mine had done the first session of Michelle Bridges 12 Week Body Transformation for 2013 and recommended that I do it with her for round 2. I signed up and asked my mum to sign up with me.
Mum and I had completed 8 weeks of the 12wbt (more on that later) and she got a surprising email - she had won a trip for the two of us to spend a week at The Biggest Loser Retreat. We were both over the moon!
We spent the 7th-14th July at the Biggest Loser Retreat and it was the BEST experience ever! (more on that later)
Since the 1st of May, I've lost 11.5 kg, which leaves me 15.5 kg to go before I reach my first goal: To return to 90kg and to have a 'Drown the Gown' photo shoot in my wedding dress. That's me on the right --->
My goal after that is to get between 70-75kg or a comfortable size 12.
