So, it's the start of day 9 and I'm feeling fantastic. My first virtual weigh in with my 1:1 consultant, Julie, comprised of me weighing myself, getting my 5 year old to snap a picture of the scales, (because, when i tried to do it, the phone made me 3/4lb heavier!), then whatsapping the pic across, so that she could record my weight loss. I was most pleased with my 8lb weight loss, even though I was advised that this weeks weight loss would be some fat, but mostly fluid. Next week will be a different matter as this should all be fat loss. I'm already impatient and quite excited to see what results the scales will have for me then! I will add progress pictures of me on a monthly basis I think, as I don't think the weight loss will be obvious at a weekly rate just yet.
So, how am I feeling? Fabulous! I went through a couple of days when I could have just sat down and closed my eyes at any point in the day, but fatigue is a symptom of keto flu, and I have experienced it before, when following a keto diet. But by Thursday, day 7, I felt great. The sun was shining, it was warm, and early evening time, all I wanted to do was go for a lovely long walk.
It was like a complete shift from the, oh i'll sit here on the couch, watch some telly and go to bed, into an energised, optimistic and motivated feeling that came over me. As I'm only on 600 calories a day, and drinking so much fluid that I have to be able to pee approximately every 20-30 minutes, I decided not to go too far at first. As it happens my sister was taking her dog for a walk, as she does most evenings, but she usually walks about 5km, so I joined her on the first part of her walk, just under 2km. It was lovely to see her and have a proper face to face conversation as we haven't been able to because of the lockdown.
The exercise was great, beautiful warm evening, great chat with my sis, and I felt great when I got home. My sister walks pretty quickly and at times I did feel a little out of breath keeping up, but it was good to get my heart rate up a bit and I felt energised and as if I was indeed getting the tiniest bit healthier!
The next day, day 8, I was doing some serious gardening. Lots of weeding, digging, scraping and moving things around (play house, trampoline, wood, pots, trugs full of earth ans we're building an wildlife pond), and although I had said I would meet for a walk again today, after soaking in a hot bath, I didn't think my back, joints and hamstrings would allow me to walk. Having said that, it was another beautiful evening, and if I had sat in the arm chair for 3 hours, I would have been as stiff as a board when I came to move, so decided to go along.
I actually walked just over 4km this time and I think that it helped with my mobility rather than the opposite. Sad point; I found an injured wood pigeon in the road when I was almost home, so now I have a temporary new resident, to go with my other permanent lodgers, my 2 cats, 2 guinea pigs and 3 budgies! You'll be relieved to hear that Woody the wood pigeon, as my little one named it, made it through the night and will be going out in to the guinea pig run today, to give it more room to stretch its poorly wing, so to speak. I'll keep you posted on Woody alongside my weight loss journey!
So, long story short, I'm feeling great, am over the moon with the weight loss so far and still enjoying the meal replacements, going into week 2. If you are thinking of trying this plan, then please do. Its more than just a weight loss plan, I'm re-discovering myself and the things I enjoy, starting with walking for pleasure!
See you soon!
