The last of the Mohicans

[enlightenme2]

So, this is my last VLCD journey. I plan to go all the way, and even beyond if I can. I will maintain as well as it makes no sense to do all this and put it back on again. I've also noticed that the most successful dieters do so by accountability. As I have no one around me who is overweight and/or dieting. I choose to be accountable in this diary.

So a little about myself: I've always been on borderline chubby side of life (I blame my mom's genetic pool ) but have always been active in sports and such so that kept it down somewhat... That is until I went to Uni in the US with everyone not caring one whit whether you were big or not... Plus being away from home, from the naggers, boy did I eat! Take-aways, home deliveries, you name it I was there already. And I gained, and gained and gained. Being a tall gal (6ft) at that I ballooned up to 357 massive pounds! I still remember my grand-parents' look of utter shock when they saw me after those 4 years... so embarrassing!

And I carried that weight around, met and married my husband at that weight... and one day declared I'd had enough. I lost about 90 pounds on calorie counting, and we moved to the US for my husband's company. I had a daughter, the Internet bubble crashed blah, blah... He wanted to come home to be closer to his parents and I still maintained my weight at around 270... Dabbled a bit with Cambridge, and got pregnant with my son, and it wasn't until that fateful first Easter Hunt with him that I got serious about dieting. My daughter had taken a photograph of me bending down to help him pick up an Easter egg. I had on these Gap baggy pants (which I still have) and i was MAMMOTH-like. That very next Monday I got myself sorted with a counselor and I started my VLCD journey.

I was high on ketosis or whatever, because in 5 months, I'd achieved a 62-lb loss... And I maintained it for another 4 years. I started running, exercising regularly etc - but never got to goal. I was always losing and gaining the same 10-15lbs... and with every restart I would say it was the last time, but by the end of the first week I was doing something off-plan. In 2014 we had a personal tragedy and let's just say that I pretty much ate AND drank my way back up to 265 lbs of sheer misery.

It's taken me 2 years to process what happened but now I'm back and determined! The fact that Minimins was restored also helped greatly - I knew that I had to choose a date to restart that wouldn't doom me to failure. So I chose January 4 as the official start date. I started with CWP, got my stock of the 3/4 things I liked.. But within 2 weeks (without cheating though) I knew I wouldn't last! Not with such a low lack of choice! So I did my research, followed a couple of ladies doing Exante (thanks lil for going in such details, Darcy too) they were such a source of inspiration - that I made the switch!
I ordered my Exante packs which came out way cheaper than CWP and I have been doing the Total Solution
100% since last Wednesday.
So Happy Week one to me!!
I weigh in on Sundays as it keeps me from doing silly stuff over the weekend. I'm slowly discovering the Exante variety. It's safe to say some will become my staples others I never want to cross paths with and i mean NEVER!!
So I'd lie to say I'm in no rush, coz let's face it, no one wants to VLCD their entire existence... BUT I'm acknowledging the fact that I'm willing to take the necessary time I will need to get to goal. I will NOT beat myself up if I have some odd off days - I won't let the wagon pass by until I'm securely hitched on it!

This is it, the end of the old and the beginnings of a new ME! I welcome everyone and encourage you guys to leave me tips as I'm an Exante Newbie.

Thanks for reading my story
XX

 

[Kay003]

Hey Enlightenme2, firstly well done for taking accountability and starting your own diary. I was secretly following you on other peoples dairies and was like `where's this girls diary ' you must have heard me through ESP, hehe . So glad you started one hun. Glad you switched to Exante and are finding the packs easier. It's so hard when we have a long journey ahead if the packs don't taste good and its working out cheaper for you, so win win . I admire your dedication over the years and especially with everything you have been through personally. It's one thing finishing something from beginning to end but to start stop start stop can be very exhausting and a lot of us have been there and done that (me included ). To dust ourselves off and start with the same enthusiasm all over again deserves a clap , it is hard believe me, so well done !

I look forward to following your journey hun. I too have a diary on here in the vlcd section, I'm following SnS , would love to see you there, spreading your positivity like I've seen you do on other peoples diaries , your a great support to others hun and I love your sense of humour !

Kay xx

 

[enlightenme2]

I will say for the record, that I'm a savory gal by nature, but the sweet stuff isn't bad at all!
this is my list of what I've tried so far.


Cheese & Bacon Breakfast Eggs
Yuck - I don't think it has the right consistency to be called eggs... I must not be making this right! I'll try it again at a much later date!

Pasta, Ham & Mushroom Soup - Not bad, I enjoyed it
Indian Style Curry with Rice - LOVED it
Indian Daal Pot Meal - liked it until I tried the curry... now i'm having a hard time with it... it's great to have in my work bag though
Beef and Black Bean Pot Meal - it was a meal... that's all I can say! won't reorder though
Pasta Carbonara - Yuck - no! this was just wrong... but I have to say I don't care for it IRL... also I like my pasta "al dente"

Sweet and Sour Noodles - Just had it... same thing re the noodles. I'm not a fan of sweet/salty stuff anyway, but I wanted to give everything a chance. Not reordering though!

Now mind you I don't really care for sweet things
Caramel Crunch Bar - YUMM
Raspberry and White Chocolate Diet Bar - not bad but too sweet for me
Deliciously Different Cookies and Cream Diet Bar - ugh, no this stuff just grossed me out!
Exact Diet Peanut Butter Bar - It may be my tastebuds, but I expected the PB to taste stronger... I love love PB!
Chocolate Coconut Bar - It tasted good for the first bite, then the synthetic flavorings took over
Chocolate Orange Bar - very very good!
Cherry and Almond Bars - EWWWW... never ever doing that again!

That's it so far... but I will continue to make some annotations - i have to try the pancakes and the porridge as well! I'll leave the shakes for when it gets warmer out. I'm not a fan of "drinking" my meal either!

 

[enlightenme2]

Thanks Kay! that means a lot! We come on here for support, not put-downs right?
(We get enough of that out there.. though sone of us are more sensitive to it!)
Doing a diet seriously is hard work, it's frustrating and courageous - but a VLCD - you're just taking it that ONE step further, it's a bit heroic - at least to me it is
However, I don't mind a stern-talking to if I'm derailing - which I hope I won't, but one never knows...
I don't live in la-la land, and I can admit to being wrong, but I don't sugarcoat and don't like it when it's being done to me.
I've created this diary so that I can be truthful about who I am on this journey - and to look back on it when I'm slipping into old habits (bad ones) or just getting too close to the comfort-zone ("oh, one won't hurt, I'll do Exante one week and the weight will come off")

 

[enlightenme2]

ok, so I had my last meal of the day. It was the red thai soup as I need to taste everything I bought. It's not bad... it's not great either, but it will get the job done on the blah days when I'm not obsessing about what I'm going to eat. Would definitely eat it before carbonara or sweet and sour noodles ANY day!
It filled me up quite nicely and it was smooth and creamy. Good job Exante!

 

[Darcy15]

Hello and welcome

I so enjoyed reading your introduction

....and you're so right about accountability

Really good luck with your Exante journey

 

[elephantbum]

Hi Enlighten,
Great to see you have a diary. Your products even sound tastier than the Cambridge ones. Good luck with your journey, I just know you are going to smash it x

 

[enlightenme2]

Hello and welcome

I so enjoyed reading your introduction

....and you're so right about accountability

Really good luck with your Exante journey

Thank you Darcy! You're really the one I have to thank for the diary!
Even coming on here regularly you were able to get the support you needed, you got to vent when life got heavy or unfair, and you can go back from the very beginning and recapture that oomph you had! I'll definitely be re-reading it!
I love the way you plan your cruises as well, never been on one! My husband wouldn't go for it

 

[enlightenme2]

Hi Enlighten,
Great to see you have a diary. Your products even sound tastier than the Cambridge ones. Good luck with your journey, I just know you are going to smash it x

My goodness EB - while on Cambridge I was really cringing when the weekends would come. I'd sulk and have my veggie soup in the corner while everyone else ate. With Exante, I actually sit at the dinner table and don't feel deprived! I mean they even have pizza for those off-nights when I want something extra but don't want the carb overload it could bring. But most important, I feel in control and that, my friend, is priceless!

 

[Slinky_Malinky]

Looking forward to reading how you get on!

 

[quirkyme]

Hi Enlightened! All I can say is I'm excited for you and am looking forward to reading your diary!

 

[rhodesbride]

Hi
Just came in to say Hi! Sounds like you have your head in the right place and you sound really determind.
Good luck xx

 

[enlightenme2]

Hi you guys! Thank you so much! It really means a lot to me to know I have support from people who know what this is like and what I'm going through. I think that's partly why I've failed so miserably these last 7 months. Not having a strong support system!

And thank you Mini for bringing the site back because honestly, before, I never even gave it a second thought! I really took Minimins for granted and that it would be here when I got my head screwed back on again... Imagine my despair when I came back to find the site down... Such a shocker! Will learn to appreciate this special tool. X

 

[enlightenme2]

So up early today as it is going to be crazy busy with a major event coming up next week... Will be staying away from the buffet that's for sure (hate canapes, hors doeuvres, and all those little thingies - they just taste salty to me)
My plan today is to just have the curry so I know what to expect, I can't be busy AND disappointed! Already drank 2 coffees (with a splash of chocolate tetra) and 1l of water. Roll on Thursday I say!

So as this is my space, this is where I'll write stuff I wouldn't even admit to my BFF!
So, sometimes when I meet some snotty skinny biatch looking at me (well judging me really!), I have these fantasies about dispatching my fat on her... see how they'd feel! It's not their fault I'm at this weight, but I'd love for them to be in my shoes - just for a day!
There that's out!

 

[Darcy15]

Thank you Darcy! You're really the one I have to thank for the diary!
Even coming on here regularly you were able to get the support you needed, you got to vent when life got heavy or unfair, and you can go back from the very beginning and recapture that oomph you had! I'll definitely be re-reading it!
I love the way you plan your cruises as well, never been on one! My husband wouldn't go for it

Oh, how kind of you to say this

I'm single, so only myself to consult about travelling

.......and I do so love cruising

 

[enlightenme2]

So bored... and busy at the same time! Meetings just eat so much time, it just seems such a waste - nice and sunny out and I'm stuck inside... And I promise I'm hungry - or maybe I'm imagining it?
I can't tell as of late I've always had something in my mouth! Is this just bad habit? I'm full of water and had my first pack - took no chances and ate the curry... I guess this too shall pass!

 

[enlightenme2]

I've eaten my curry as a second pack!
Gosh, I'm having a hard time imagining I will have to eat another meal - will see about a sweet pack maybe!

 

[sybersadie]

So, sometimes when I meet some snotty skinny biatch looking at me (well judging me really!), I have these fantasies about dispatching my fat on her... see how they'd feel! It's not their fault I'm at this weight, but I'd love for them to be in my shoes - just for a day!

Wow, you've read my mind

 

[enlightenme2]

I'm eating the double chocolate bar. It's weird - it feels gritty, like i'm eating sand - Now why is that? otherwise the taste is ok, quite salty so it balances out the sweet taste

 

[enlightenme2]

SO I didn't eat the entire bar, only half, it was really gritty and my teeth were not pleased at all! But I put it in the freezer and I'll do like the Cambridge bars - I cut them up in pieces, then I throw them in the freezer, whenever I feel like snacking, I pop one in and let it melt in my mouth. Will def try it with the PB and coconut bars - I think that's the only way I'll be able to eat the chewy bars!
Taking a break right now to catch up as I'm working from home today.
My husband is taking my son skiing, so that will be 2 less people in the house this weekend. My daughter pretty much does her own thing - the guys are the only ones lacking in self-sufficiency and it's not like I don't try to train them!