Hi I have just joined Mumsnet to take part in this thread as it is so helpful.
I have been on Alizonne/Alevere since Feb 1 when I was 16 and a half stone and I am only 5ft 1.
5 months in and I have lost 4 and 3 quarter stone down to 11 stone 9. I am now buying size 14 clothes and was a size 22 at the beginning.
I absolutely love the diet and I love being thinner. I am aiming to get to 9 stone which just sounds bizarre but I really believe I can do it. I have done Weightwatchers and Slimming World in the past and lost weight but never anything like this and I put it all back on. With this diet I am determined to keep it off.
When I see people I haven't seen since I started this they do a double take and say I look fab which really helps spur me on.
The diet is not that bad. It is scary and hard to think of totally giving up bread, cheese, wine, chocolate etc but the constant weight loss and positive effects really spur you on.
Financially I am paying £240 a week which is a massive amount to me. However I hope that the financial commitment will really help me keep the weight loss off. One thing I hadn't factored in was the additional cost of new clothes which I am having to constantly buy. This is necessary so I look good at work but also because looking good in new slimmer clothes keeps spurring me on. It's amazing how cheaply you can buy clothes which are smaller sizes. I am saving on wine, going out, meat and a few other things which slightly helps offset the cost.
The diet itself works for me because
- I go every week for a one on one session so there is nowhere to hide and no point cheating;
- I can have sweet satchets - I love the chocolate dessert which I have daily as a chocolate mousse, unlimited stewed rhubarb sweetened with canderel which I have with the vanilla pudding satchet, caramel drink which I have as caramel mousse by limiting the water and hot chocolate to drink;
- I can add gherkins and beetroot to my salad every day and have melon and strawberries/raspberries every day;
- I don't have to exercise which I hate and wouldn't stick to;
- I don't have any rolls of flab because of the skin tightening treatment;
- my husband loves that I am losing weight and because there is nothing tempting for him in the house he has lost a stone and a half too; and
- mostly importantly it is so strict and rigid a diet that you absolutely have to break all your bad eating and drinking habits from the start and know that you will never go back to those bad ways.
My biggest fear is coming off the diet. However there are 8 stages which they aim to help you adapt. Most of the diet is stage 1 but I will be finally starting stage 2 in a couple of weeks.
Once target is reached you can go back as often as you like for a free 15 minute session where you get weighed and discuss how it's going. My plan is to go once a week initially as I adjust.
I would love to hear stories of people who have gone through the next stages and how they are doing on the other side.
I have had low points like others mention- one week I lost nothing at all in spite of sticking religiously to the diet- however I have learned that I have to keep perspective and remember the big picture.
This diet is not for everyone but for me it's perfect and I feel the best I have felt in decades. (I am in my 40s).
For anyone on the diet at the minute I would highly recommend making sure the clinician does the chin treatment each week as well as the others. I didn't find out about this until 3 months in but now I am having it every week and I really see the difference. There is no extra cost and it only takes a couple of extra minutes.
Hope this helps others. Happy to answer any questions.
Having just read this back I am worried I sound like a marketing person for the clinic but I assure you I am a genuine diet patient!
Xxxx