DIET FAILED AGAIN thread 6- everyone welcome

[thenewaveragebear1983]

We made it to 1000 posts on thread 5, here is thread 6

@Storyland your day sounds great, I love a clear out too!

I felt a bit better today with the help of some super strong decongestants, managed a good bit of housework this morning and then we went to the lights and Christmas markets. The markets were horribly busy, kids loved it, I found it a bit stressful tbh, then all trains were cancelled and we waited ages to get home, and had cheesy chips and mulled wine for dinner instead of going for a meal. The light trail was lovely though and I feel quite festive now.

My strategy this week is alternate day fasts. Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday are off plan so the other days are to be strictly ON plan. Tomorrow I'm going to have lentil and veg soup for lunch, and chicken thighs with lots of veg for dinner. Lots of water. I'm hoping I feel a bit better tomorrow and can manage a short run but I'm not going to force it if I feel rough. The week is going to be crazy enough as it is and I'm not going to get to many classes so it's not really going to make much difference in the long run. After this bonkers week I can then have a couple of calmer weeks before Christmas!

Hi all. I've not checked the scales much recently but seem to be stuck at about 90kgs. At least I'm not going higher (touch wood). I need to increase my sleep and exercise though (have said this for a while).

I did have a chicken stew in the slow cooker which was very nice. It was a bit basic so going to put a bit more effort in the next one which I plan to start today.

@TalkToTheHand123 hope the second chicken stew was a tasty success! I'm terrible at stews.

I'm a broken record but my update is life is busy and I'm not being disciplined at the moment. Ended up having cereal for tea yesterday because that's all I had time for. We're having McDonald's tonight because of piano lesson, supermarket shop and worship practice.

Things should get a little easier next week. And the Christmas tree is up which makes me feel very calm and happy whenever I do get 10 minutes to sit next to it.

Hope you're all doing well

Hi everyone, I hope you are all well. @thenewaveragebear1983 I hope you are over feeling rotten and are back to full health.

<whispers> it's going quite well here. The extra large chicken and lots of veg with only a few potatoes seem to have filled me more and I'm snacking less.

I know chicken has become a Mumsnet joke but I really did get quite a few meals from it and the dogs enjoyed the bits I don't eat. I'm buying another one this morning and DP is buying one too so long as I cook it.

I've still enjoyed a couple of lattes per day and a skinny bar (a bit like a much firmer chewy Milky Way, which is about 80 cals). I'm ignoring all the bars of chocolate in the spare room until I've lost some weight.

So grocery shop later, list in hand and no deviating from that list. DP makes me smile every week because he won't have a list, he likes to use his memory and every single week he forgets something. At check-out he sees something in my trolley he's forgotten and runs back for it and when we get home he remembers something else. Last week he forgot crisps in the store and the whole chicken which was his main meal plan when we got home 😁

Anyway I'm rambling again and have to start my day. I'm hoping for a bit longer dog walk since the weather is dry and I need to get more steps done.

Have a good day everyone.

Hello everyone.
I'm sorry I left you all ..I do read your updates but feel it was too smug of me to post.
Mounjaro has literally changed my life ..I am now at the lower end of healthy BMI for first time ever.
I feel fantastic.
I'm now on a tiny dose and managing to continue eating sensibly and smaller portions etc.
Only thing not returning is desire for alcohol! Which is a good thing .
If any of you are even thinking about it, do it

@Theredjellybean thanks for the update, I have been thinking about you. Such great news. Really happy for you.

Going ok here this week. I'm trying to balance out my social events by having quite strict calorie counts on the other days. It's just such a busy time. I'm still feeling quite stuffy, over the worst of my cold now but still not 100%. I'm going to run club tonight (hill repeats 🤮) and then bootcamp afterwards which I'm not really looking forward to in the cold and dark.

Food wise I should come in around 1500 today, tomorrow is my night out with the school mums so it will definitely be a few wines and a meal - and last time we went they closed the kitchen before desserts so I think this time we'll be making sure we get some!

Little weigh in today, I'm 156.6lbs which to be honest is about a maintain but I'm not entirely sure. It's about that. Still just over 11st but considering my wild and exciting social calendar it's not too bad.

I'd miscalculated my dates and realised that Christmas break up from work/ school is but 2 short weeks away, not three as I had been blindly thinking. Oh my. I think because it's so mild my body clock is still in October.

Anyway. Out tonight. Out Saturday. Loooooong run on Monday, then last bits of shopping for dcs . Next week, no social plans so I am planning a full super strict week - need to do a menu plan for that so I don't end up eating toast. I can hopefully pick up a few exercise classes and get some miles in as well as I have no more socials.

I'm making luxury hampers for all wider family this year, no faffing around getting thoughtful individual gifts. Everyone likes food don't they? So ds and I are hitting the posh garden centre food hall on Saturday, and if I play my cards right, ds will do all the choosing as well. Win! I might even do one for dh, the man who has everything.

@thenewaveragebear1983 haha I have a man who has everything too. My you are busy, I hope you enjoy all your outings.

@Theredjellybean hi, hello, so lovely to hear from you, I've been wondering how you are. I'm so pleased you are doing so well. I know nothing of this miracle you have. Is it prescribed, do you buy it, how do I get it? So many questions but I'm delighted it's working well for you. Do stick around, I've missed you.

I'm doing ok-ish, not as well as I was at the very beginning of the week but it's not been as horrendous as other weeks.

I am now totally over chicken, I've bought an extra large one for three weeks now so most meals have been chicken, I'm over it!

I'm off to the hairdressers in an hour, I've left it too long this time and my hair is driving me crazy. I'm sure there will be significant weight loss when all this hair comes off.

Have a great Thursday everyone.

@Theredjellybean I've just started reading up on mounjaro, it seems very expensive to me. Have you had any side effects? I'm a little worried about the dizzy spells because I already suffer them occasionally and don't want to make them worse. Also I'm not sure how it would affect my ME.

I took something similar years ago but stopped as I found it expensive and it didn't really work.

I'm so very pleased it's working for you, I'm thinking seriously about it.

@poorpaws ...so...I paid for the mounjaro myself.
You start with 2.5 mg dose , each week for 4 weeks, with a discount code it cost me £110.
So 27.50 per week.
Then the next month you move to 5 mg doses, the price goes up , I paid £155.
Next month 7.5 mg doses and so on.
The top dose is 17.5 mg and costs around £200.

Now....the first month is supposed to be "priming" doses and not doing much but I had fantastic results, so when I ordered my 5 mg pen, I then actually only went up to 3.75 mg doses , so I got 6 doses out of it.
Now have another 5 mg pen and back on 2.5 mg doses so will get 8 or 9 out of this one.

I've had very minimal side effects.
The worse is nausea if I eat too much or fatty foods. It is useful in respect it's stopped me putting that type food in my mouth as I don't want to feel sick.
I have had a worsening of my reflux pain and had to be more concientious about taking my meds for this.
I haven't really felt dizzy , except maybe once or twice when I had literally forgotten to eat for 24 hrs.
Otherwise I feel amazing, being slim really is just brilliant. I love the fact all my clothes are loose, I loved walking into Zara this week and thinking I could choose anything...( I didn't as I'm 55 and lots won't suit me but not because I'm fat).
Other benefits...my skin looks great, I have plenty of energy, my liver function has improved.
I think I'm concentrating better.

I've not had fatigue but some people report it on higher doses.

I would say I fully embraced the effect it had and had such appetite suppression I forgot to eat for days. Lots of people on threads about it ,talk about eating enough and getting their calories in etc...i couldn't eat when it was at it's strongest... literally could not force anything in. Plus I loved the weight coming off quickly. Some posters moan about not losing then post what they are " forcing" themselves to eat and I want to laugh ..you still need to be in a calorie deficit, mounjaro doesn't melt the fat away.

For me it removed any thinking or thoughts around food, it made not reaching for the biscuits/gin/cheese no effort...I literally just thought " nah, can't be bothered".
You do or can feel hungry on it but then you eat a small portion and wow you are full..and boy you feel full !

So I'd say go for it...I got mine privately and use med express who ask for photos and you fill in a form.
Honestly I had to make myself a few kgs heavier to qualify, as got turned down first time.

You would be eligible on NHS if you have BMI greater than 30 and you have high BP, diabetes or another health condition. But it's hard to get GP to prescribe it, if you can afford it , it's worth paying for it.
There is a pinned thread on here with discount codes.

I can afford it, so not worried about that but will say the large reduction in food bill and the takeaways , grabbing coffees and maybe pastry or lunch while at work or travelling, has more than paid for the mounjaro.

I used to spend 5-10 pounds easily, 3-4 times a week, popping into cafe when walking dogs or when in London at work, just getting coffee and snack or breakfast...I don't anymore.
I used to buy a litre bottle of gin every week, now once a month...if that.
Can't recall the last time I bought a takeaway.
Not bought wine for weeks
One packet of biscuits has been in cupboard for 3 weeks now...

@Theredjellybean thank you so much for taking the time to inform me. I cannot believe how wonderful it's been for you and before I read your post, so yesterday morning, I decided I would go for it.

I started to fill in a form and it was all going well, and I was so excited until I got to the part about health and remembered (how could I ever forget) that I had a heart attack a couple of years ago. At that time my blood pressure went sky high and I've been on tablets for that and I also take statins. My BMI is 27 point something (can't remember exactly) so I do qualify weight wise. I am sure, having had the heart attack, that I won't qualify and nobody will give me the tablets. I feel quite down about it because I was so excited but really I can't afford it. I had to take early retirement from work due to my ME (CFS) and I'm not on any benefits so my income is very low. Luckily I am mortgage free but apart from that my monthly income is minimal (and if you've been reading this thread you'll know I've just paid a £3,000 vet bill, which to me is a tremendous amount of money).

I greatly appreciate all the information you've given to me and the time Taken but I'm afraid I've got to carry on trying the old-fashioned way. Wouldn't it be wonderful if I could kid myself I was taking the tablets, but I don't think that's going to happen. Looks as if I'm going to be poor and fat. 🤣

I am still absolutely thrilled for you and please keep popping back and letting us know how you are.

@poorpaws I think your bmi has to be 30 to qualify? Not 27. That's quite a big jump in weight. I just went onto med express and I'd need to be 13.10 at my height to qualify. I think these are great for those who qualify. To be honest, if I qualified, or was very close to qualifying, I would probably like jellybean have slightly elevated my weight in order to be accepted. It sounds so easy! The interesting thing for me is how they seem to calm the 'food noise' and the constant obsession with food, and that's not exclusive to people who are overweight or obese. In fact, many people who are 'normal' bmi experience this, and binge eating, and all those unpleasant feelings and thoughts- I have done my whole life and I have never been obese. Hopefully the research into these medications will mean that there might be more support for this. Currently there is no help really through the nhs for this for normal weight people except antidepressants as unless you are actually overweight they deem you not 'bad' enough to require any help. There's been times in my life where my every thought is food and weight and it's made me incredibly unhappy. And of course a lot of people are taking it once they are no longer overweight, so it must be safe to do that and the benefit must be to their mental health/relationship with food issues rather that further weight loss. So it's interesting to see if it will ever be available for someone with normal bmi for all those benefits not just weight loss.

Sorry if my post seems a bit rambling, it's hard to articulate really. I guess my thoughts on it are it's good for those who qualify now but hopefully more people will be eligible for that kind of support in future

I also completely agree...I wasn't obese, I lied and added a few kgs and shrunk myself an inch...to get my BMI to 30 , it was 28.1
I know that's not great but alternatively I could have just let rip for a month and actually added the extra weight.
Obviously I wasn't going to chop feet off to lose inches :)
However I just about kept my weight to overweight by very low calorie, huge amount of exercise and it was miserable as I obsessed about food and binge ( and I'm ashamed to say purged occasionally).
I did have to send in a photo so they could have said no...but honestly at BMI 28 I did look fat...quite fat.
It should be available to people with combinations of BMI, health conditions, and fat distribution...I had typical belly central menopause fat...the most dangerous type.
So by using mounjaro I have decreased my risks of diabetes, stroke, heart attack. I've dramatically reduced my gamma GT...liver enzymes showing up if you drink ...plus as now barely drinking that compounds the health benefit.
I'm likely to cost the NHS less in the future...
If this was available through my GP or just via a private GP who had to monitor the patients properly then the risks of eating disorders patients getting it, would be negated.
I don't agree with the online services providing it but that isn't enough to stop me...but I'm a doctor and I can monitor myself !
Btw @poorpaws ...it's injections...you have to jab yourself not tablets !!!!

Thank you as well for saying nice things...I wish it was available to all...and I think it's BMI 27 + health conditions or over 30.
Bloody guidelines not taking into account ethnicity, family history, personal history etc

I watched my friend who is on wegovy (and delighted with it) inject and it was a tiny syringe thing, not difficult at all. She also is saving so much on food and alcohol now that it is paying for itself.

I ended up having a massive load of food yesterday, I'm not even sure what happened as I was planning to be very conservative. However, we went to McDonald's after football and I would normally not have anything, but I did. I genuinely don't think I've eaten a McDonalds in maybe 6 years! I also had some chocolate and some wine! So all in all a massive calorie overspend! I am out tonight and then thankfully that's all my socials done. I need a clear week of healthy food and recovery!

I'm really hoping football is cancelled today, it's absolutely blowing a gale outside and driving rain. I don't fancy getting there never mind standing watching! Maggie is looking forlornly outside with her legs crossed rather than go out for a wee! It's grim out there!

Plan for the weekend:
Meal plan and food shop- need vegetables and healthy food!
I'd like to do a long run on Monday on my non working day, but may do it tomorrow. Don't think I can quite face it today

Aaaaannd relax - that's all my socials over. They've been fun but exhausting. Last night was really fun, it's the first time I've gone out with the gym lot and we all just chatted all night, it was easy conversation and a real tonic. Much needed.

Today I've had a big roast dinner and lots to eat, but I'm now on a few weeks of healthy eating before Christmas. I really need it. It's my non working day tomorrow so I am going to walk the dog and then go for a run, I'd like to do 10k weather permitting, and I'm also going to go into town to blitz the last of my Christmas shopping. So a busy day planned. I have done a food shop and menu plan as well. So no excuses really. I need to have a few healthy days now, I need to shift this cold and feel better before Christmas.

Hope you've all had a good weekend

Evening all,

I had a really good day yesterday but today has been an absolute disaster 🤣 I packed myself a delicious healthy lunch but someone sent a delicious box of brownies into work and I ate 2 and then ate 2 mince pies as well, AND some chocolate raisins 🤦‍♀️

I'm still feeling really tired and just cannot shift this cold. I don't even have any actual cold symptoms, just an occasional explosive sneeze, and a heavy chest. And this awful brain foggy tired feeling which comes and goes. I dropped ds at football and sat in my car and napped for 20 minutes which is crazy. I'm just so wrung out

Will try to get my food back in line tomorrow. I have a gym class and running club tomorrow night. I really need to get some running under my belt, I ran last week once but not since and missed another weekend (that's 2 in a row due to this illness).

I've ordered myself a habit tracker pad on amazon, it's a pad with 10 lines with 31 tick boxes, to track your 'habits' over a month, I'm quite looking forward to getting it! I need a new notebook but I thought this could be fun and a good motivator.

this one

Sorry I've been absent again, I haven't been well and have been sleeping constantly and when I've not been sleeping ive been eating to keep my strength up (as my mum used to say).

I hope you are all well and staying happy and calm in this festive period. This is the first time Ive been this late with the Christmas decorations and I still have no idea when they are going up or if they are going up at all.

I usually do a deep houseclean before Christmas but that hasn't been done either this year.

I'll go back and read after my last post but I just wanted you all to know I'm alive and kicking.

Hopefully the new year will bring renewed enthusiasm and I'll get this weight off then.

Have a good Wednesday everyone.

Hello, I'm also alive and kicking!

Been a hectic couple of weeks which included working all day Saturday at a works event. Was rushed off my feet but the day was a success so worth it in the end.

Yesterday was my graduation ceremony for my Masters. DH and DD were with me. We had a nice meal out afterwards and DH and I shared a bottle of prosecco when we got home. DH was pleased that his shirt and suit fitted him more comfortably now that he's lost weight this year. I thought he was looking good too!

With Christmas so close I think I'm just fighting to maintain. The days are so full. We have a big family party a week on Saturday and the day after my mother in law arrives for Christmas week. Which means this week I need to get the house guest ready. Hoping to keep this weekend empty for cleaning and wrapping presents

Also alive and kicking. I’ve been decluttering, trips to the tip, charity shops, made some good progress.

@Storyland congratulations on your masters, you clever thing.

@poorpaws @thenewaveragebear1983 sorry you are both unwell. No Christmas tree up here either, still got some cleaning to do before I am allowing myself.

@Sedgwick thanks, today is the first day I've actually felt better, that's a full 2 weeks of it! Our tree is up but i'm not bothering with loads of decs this year, I just threw a load of lights up instead. I'm feeling quite Christmassy, I cannot wait to break up next Friday. I think it's because (shhhh!) I'm not seeing anyone on Christmas Day, it's just me and dh and our kids and I am really looking forward to it.

I ate a load of crap today, plus wine. It's been that sort of day! Tomorrow, dog walk in the morning, plus I try to run at lunch and should get to bootcamp after work.

I'm really tempted to get that habit tracker @thenewaveragebear1983 . Maybe this will be the stationery that finally fixes my life! The bullet journal never worked for me.

Not much to report from me today. I'm going to do some shopping tonight whilst DD is at Gymnastics. Need a couple more presents and christmassy food too. I'm a bit tempted to treat myself to a new set of winter bedding.

Only one more week of work now. I'm hoping the Christmas break will be dry enough to get some walks in. I've missed being outside and moving about.