My first check in with the Doctor.

Now, technically I started my ‘Fit by forty’ regime two weeks ago when I started walking daily and modified my diet to ensure I was eating the correct portions and mixture of foods. As I’m going to do my best to avoid recommending or advertising any specific product here, I’m not going to say its name but will admit I am following a diet plan idea from one of the many worldwide weight loss companies. It’s a few years old now, this plan, but it worked for me when it was ‘new’ and has been approved by my Doctor.

It’s not a diet either. It’s modifying my diet to one better suited to living a longer and healthier life. There’s none of that crap meal replacement rubbish, no pills, no potions and no tricks. I have modified their plan a little by refusing to use ‘diet’ products or pre-made items at much as possible. Low fat good - synthetic diet things bad. It means, if I want to eat it, I make it from scratch. From salads and stir-fries to cakes and biscuits. I will go on more about this meal/diet plan in a later blog post. This one is really just me checking in to show what I’m starting at and where I hope to be - come forty!

So, I’m just over 36 and a half years old, vaguely fit – I’m a housewife so do have some level of fitness and activity level. When I started this, I was 120kilos in weight and my waist measurement was 123cm.

That was 2 weeks ago. Since then I don’t feel my fitness level has risen much, but I am now 118kilos and my waist measurement is 112cm. Yay me! And all done from modified diet and gentle exercise.

Why start my blog on the new regime today and not two weeks ago? Because today was the day I visited my Doctor to discuss the best approach to it all. Because, besides my weight, there are a few other issues that need fixing. Most stem from an ankle injury I received 20 years ago that was never treated properly. So, over the following years, the injury has caused issues in my body all the way up into my next and shoulders. So, if you hurt yourself, get proper treatment! Don’t let them just slap a plaster on for 8 weeks and be done with it. If I’d had the required physio at the time none of the ankle, hip, pelvis, back, shoulder or neck issues I now have shouldn't have happened. All it did was add to my unwillingness to be active as it hurt.

And so we focus on my Doctor’s visit. She is a lovely lady, fantastic Doctor and dedicated to better health and living as the best preventative to illness and injury later in life. She has always encouraged my interest in nutrition and always willing to listen to my ideas and minor diagnosis and not treat me like an idiot. Dr Cara is a saint!

She listened, understood and jumped in boots and all to help. Firstly, as the BMI way of looking at your weight doesn’t fit all body types (yep, mine is abnormal - go figure), I wanted to find what ideal weight my Doctor felt I should be.  The way the lovely Dr Cara put it is: If you were fit, healthy and NOT pregnant when you were 21, that that's your goal weight. And, I was all of those at 21. In fact, that was the last time I was truly happy with my weight and fitness level. I was 94kilos back then and not into waist measurements so plan on going with the healthy: Under 80cm idea.

So! I have to lose 24kilos and 32cm off my waist, and then keep it off before I'm 40.

Other plans of attack are to go to a physio for a complete overhaul to fix the ankle and, once the weight is under control, get a breast reduction. I’ve always been big boobed and being overweight and having three kiddies who had a good run on the breastfeeding means they are adding to some of the back issues and I am sick and tired of the ‘chest pains’ they cause.

I will also be undergoing blood tests to ensure my cholesterol is good, my thyroid is behaving and have requested undergoing the diabetes and insulin test to see how likely it is I will get type two diabetes. It’s not a given I will get it. But my current weight and health levels and family history indicate it’s a good possibility. And, quite frankly, I don’t want diabetes! It’s not just some annoying thing that means you have to cut down sugar. It is a nasty disease, causes blindness, poor circulation that can lead to amputation and lots of other nasty things. If I can cut the risk, or remove it completely – I WILL! And let it be an example to my children too. Just because it could happen, look at how we can prevent it.

 The good thing to know is my heart and lungs sound good and my blood pressure is just fab. Yay me!

What to do now? Well, it’s only day two of week three so it’s early days. I have another nine weeks to reach my first weight goal of 110 kilos. Go me! I need to arrange physio appointments (it’s going to be costly but it’s an investment in my better health). There’s the meal planning to continue with, the exercise timetable to make and the fun to be had. As this isn’t a hard and terrible chore in front of me, it’s a fun new adventure that will prove it can be done.

Stick with me and we’ll see if I can make it through Christmas unscathed!