Still losing and loving my housework.

74.1 kg Tuesday 14th Dec 2010

I have been stuck around 74.7 for several weeks now. I had the munchies and ate more than I planned but it is usually under 6000kJ a day. One thing that is different is all the exercise I am getting from doing my housework. I never did much housework before but now I have a jobs list for the month planned out on a calendar page (that I download for free from wincalendar) and I try to get things done in two hours in the morning. Afternoon chores are one hour and not as grueling as vacuuming.
My goal for Christmas was 72.2kg but there is no way I will get there. I don.t care though. My last plateau was at 76.4. My latest plateau was 74.7. Looks like I am being successful no matter how slow it comes off.

Success again

74.8kJ 25th November 2010
yesterday 74.9kJ

My weight has dropped nicely since I started the 12 14 12 12 plan. I was desperate to get my intake down from about 5700 to 5000kJ. I decided that four decent meals with 3 1/2 hours between them was a reasonable goal. 4 hours is too long and I feel miserable so I settled on 3 1/2. This timing also fitted in with when Neville wanted his lunch. I don't eat anything other than at those times and I try to get to the full kJ amount for each meal.
Today:
Rice cereal and milk - 1073 (7:30)
Steak(100g), beans, carrot, gravy - 1195 (11:00)
Mango, 1/2 large banana and large coffee - 1200 (14:30)
1 sausage, beans, carrot, sweet and sour sauce - 985 (18:00)

I found that the sausage dinner was plenty last night. I ate half a banana to get up the kJ count but felt over full.
I will see how I feel at lunch. Yesterday I had a small coffee and a 90kJ chocolate stick after the same steak lunch.
I have found that the cereal alone is enough for breakfast. I vary the menu with orange juice, 1 egg on toast and small cereal, two eggs on 1 slice of toast, pikelets with banana and jam and coffee. They all fit into 1200kJ.

Need a new habit

75.8kg Sunday 21st Nov
Monday I am back to 75.3. I have been getting out of the habit of being careful and justifying snacks for any reason.
I have found that my jobs schedule has been working really well and I have been getting a lot done that I used to think of and say I would do later. Breaking the housework and one off jobs down into set time slots seems to make doing them a lot easier.
Why not try the same system for meals? So now my plan is to have four meals a day at set times. I may look at the clock and wish it was time for afternoon snack but at least I am not in the kitchen looking in the fridge and pantry til I find something.
7:25 breakfast - 1200kJ
11:00 lunch - 1400kJ
2:30 afternoon tea - 1200kJ
6:00 dinner - 1200kJ

I find that I can swap lunch and afternoon tea to be morning tea then lunch if I want to go out for morning tea. I have only tried it for three days but it seems pretty easy to go 3 1/2 hours between meals and the 1200kJ is like a real meal or a hearty cake. I have my meat at lunch time and just veges and desert at dinner.
By the way the jobs schedule is:
7:30 - 9:30 (for summer)
3:00 - 4:00
I have a downloaded editable calendar month that I type in all the things I want to do into the time slots.

Continued weight loss

75.3 12th Nov

I have bounced around 75.5 - 75.8 for a few days. Today I am the lowest I have been for more than 12 months. I got to 72.5 in June last year. I feel a bit thinner. At 80kg I felt fat and uncomfortable.
I have been finding it difficult to get my kJ count down to 5000. I generally eat about 6000kJ a day. I still feel as though chocolate calls me when I don't really need it but as long as I still lose weight I'm not going to beat myself up about it.
My husband and I both keep track of what we eat and try to decide between treats rather than have them all. This way we don't feel deprived and still keep the kJ under control. Comparing this photo to my last photo ( Oct - Plateau) I think my thighs look a bit thinner.

Another loss

75.7kg 7th Nov
The last 4 weeks I have stuck at 76.4. All this week i was around 75.8. It seems now that I have really lost another 0.5kg. I have been craving sugar and looking for extra food this week. Even with a few days over 6000kJ I have managed to continue the losing trend. I didn't reach my two month goal but that is OK since I still lost some. I have just set my new goal start from 75.7kg for the next two months. The plateau is obvious when the results are graphed.

Meal size

75.8kg 3rd November

We went away Monday and stayed the night with friends. It was obvious they ate differently to us. A lot more on their plates and a huge icecream for dessert. We had the ice cream too and today I stayed the same and he lost a few points. We had Aldi milkyway chocolate snacks to eat on the road and a bottle of pepsi. We bought some raost chicken from Woolworths for lunch and ate it at a picnic table on the way home.
We both have a desire to eat a lot but it is controllable.

Hard yards

75.9kg 26th Oct
25th - 76.0kg

After three weeks around 76.4 I have dropped again. Not just yesterday but today as well. The graph tells the story for the past two months. The entries are weekly. The last entry is based on today's weight.
Yesterday I had:
sultana pikelets with jam for breakfast and snacks - 2655kJ
I didn't need all the milk for the pikelets so I made coffee for breakfast as well.
Lunch was 1/2 an avocado and tuna on two mountain breads 1338kJ
In the afternoon I made another small coffee - 165kJ
I had a yoghurt pop - 400kJ
At 4 o'clock I had avocado on mountain bread - 650kJ
At 5 o'clock I had 2 rice crackers with a bit of nutella and peanut butter and tea - 650kJ
A pear to finish - 290kJ

6148kJ for the day.
A bit over the top but I am still losing weight. I will try to get back down today.

banana for breakfast with tea - 365kJ
Lunch is out. About 3500kJ. This is some battered fish with salad and potato salad and a spoon of chefs specials then jelly and soft serve ice cream.
Dinner is avocado on mountain bread - 650kJ

This = 4515kJ
So I can fit in a coffee when I come back from lunch - 330kJ
A pear after dinner - 290kJ
New total = 5135kJ
It would be nice if this is the total for today but I still might have a cracker or extra pear in the afternoon before dinner. See how I go.

Plateau

76.1 22nd Oct
Every day til today has been 76.4

It is about time I started going down again. I am still on track for 72 at Christmas. I just have to stick to 5500 instead of going up to 5600, 5800, 6000 on some days. It is hard not to though when I get the urge to eat. My body fights any change in weight. It is always easy to lose that first 2 kg when you start because your body hasn't got used to the extra weight yet and gladly goes back to what it was used to. This is why I am not too concerned about losing it slowly. I am able to maintain the 5500 or less without too much pain so I don't stop losing it just comes off slowly.

Cravings

76.2kg 15th Oct

I did really well yesterday til I got to dinner time and I had to have two pieces of toast with peanut butter. I think of this as a wild break out but it only brought me up to 6200kJ for the day. I still lost weight for this morning's weigh in.
Today I thought I would have a big breakfast of banana pikelets. This means I have two snacks as well of two and a half pikelets each. With rice and sweet and sour chicken for lunch and rice and curried egg for dinner today's total is 4650kJ. I will use the rest to have a coffee or jam on my pikelets and I still have to eat the pears.
I put 76.2 in my graph and it is good to see the weight graph slide a bit closer to the goal graph with this new entry. My table is weekly weights for each Sunday. I can put in each day in the Sunday spot and see how I am going. It is the Sunday weight that counts so I am trying to get to 76. I have today and Saturday.
It is interesting how strong the urge is to eat more than you plan. I know the body likes the status quo and will try to keep a stasis with weight as it does with temperature. 1/2 a kilo a week is a pretty fast change for the body and I feel that it is nothing to do with will power when I have to eat more. But keeping around the 6000kJ mark even when we eat too much stops us from putting weight on.
We watched the show about the top three weight loss programs and the doctor interviewed said that 95% of people put their weight back on in 5 years. I feel like I can maintain this way of eating for ever. We haven't changed our shopping list, we still eat the same food as before but we count the kilojoules and plan. It is not a diet but it is a healthy eating plan. I will never put the weight back on again.

Slow and steady

76.4kg 14th Oct
12th and 13th were 76.7kg

I am back down to what I was last Sunday. I am hoping I can get down to 76 by this coming Sunday.
I have kept the count down just below 5500kJ for yesterday and the day before. It seems that once I have a few days of wanting to eat everything in sight I can manage quite easily to get it back to 5500 for a few days.
Today should be a 5300 day with sweet and sour chicken for lunch and avo bread for dinner and two pieces of fruit and some cake and chocolate and a cup of coffee. I may give in to the second cup of coffee and go to 5630 but I can probably manage with a cup of tea. I really want to get to 76 by Sunday.

Not too bad

76.4kg today. Same as yesterday.

Breakfast - toast with banana and honey and juice - 1715
Lunch - sausages and mash and beans and wine - 2150
coffee and chocolate and pear - 1080
Some marshmallows - 200
Dinner - avo and bread - 650
1/2 wine - 150
Pear 200
= 6145

Another big day. Surely I will put weight on tomorrow.

Making a graph

76.4 Sunday 10th Oct

I made a graph in Numbers of my weekly weights each Sunday. It looks excellent. A steady drop.

Today has been a big day for eating. My count is over 7000kJ but less than 8000. Doesn't sound too good but it was rainy and dull and difficult to stay away from the kitchen.
What did I eat today:
Breakfast - toast, juice - 1400
Morning tea - coffee, oat slice - 1330
Lunch - mince and veges - 1010
Wine - 300
More coffee and half chocolate - 630
Dinner - 650
Wine - 150
Pear - 290
Marshmallows and cheesecake bites - 400
1/2 chocolate - 300
100 listed but can't remember what it was.
= 6560

I actually thought it was a lot more than this.

Oh well. Tomorrow is a new day. Maybe I just needed a bit of a splurge.

Too much to eat

76.4kg today Friday 8th Oct

I decided to save some of my prawns for dinner this time. Last time we had prawns I ate them all at lunch and felt way too full. I also felt the need for coffee and chocolate in the afternoon so my dilemma was how to keep the kJ under control. But by the time I ate the 6 prawns I had saved for dinner I didn't feel like anything else. I had my pear before bed and totalled about 5500kJ for the day.
Needless to say I was able to lose weight so I am now hoping that I can at least maintain the 76.4 til Sunday and that will mean I will have lost 0.5 kg in a week.
We have been counting kJ for about 6 weeks now and we are both finding it easier to judge and juggle to keep between 5000 and 6000kJ for the day. I know that I can keep this up until I get to my goal weight of 58 kg.
We have decided that we won't officially count on Christmas day and Boxing day because we want to have all those Christmassy things like cake, pudding, ice cream, chocolate, cocktails. I did a quick count of what all my wants would add up to and it came to about 14000kJ for one day. Funnily though when I looked over the list I was thinking 'How can I possibly find room for all this?'. So maybe it won't be such a big blowout after all. It is fun to look forward to a free day and imagine all the treats we can have. I don't have any desire to break out earlier because I really want to get down to 72kg by Christmas. I can remember winter 18 months ago I was 72kg and I felt great so that is what motivates me to get there again.

Still motivated

76.7 kg today Thursday
Sunday was 76.9
Monday 76.6
Tuesday 76.9
Wednesday 76.9

Somewhere I went up to 77.2 again which was frustrating. However, on Wednesday we went to lunch again and had jelly and icecream for desert and I just had to have a half piece of chocolate last night with my tea and I still lost.
Both of us are finding that we go up and down over the week like the stock market. We zig and zag but the trend is downward. Hopefully the stock market trend is upward! To balance out the lunch I had avocado on a mountain bread for dinner.
Today we got a free small slurpy with our fuel so we had half each and called it 300kJ each.
We are having prawns again today. The prawns and the sauce are 1300kJ. I should have some veges tonight but I don't feel like it. I will have two avo and mountain breads. Banana and mulberries round it out to 5600kJ for the day.

Another Week

76.9kg today. This weeks loss = 0.2kg
Another week has gone by. Last Sunday I was 77.1kg. I spent three days on 76.8 then went up to 77.2 and today I am down to 76.9. Losing the weight is a slow process to match the rate that I put it on, I suppose. 25kg in 25 years. I hope to lose it a bit faster than that. An average of 2 kg a month would make me happy. But it may be slower than that. I don't want too much pain. If I can lose it at any rate and eat what I have been it should be easy.

I prepared today's menu this morning, piling on what I thought was a lot of food and would surely put me over 5500kJ. But when I totaled it up it was fine.

1/4 rock melon - 165
Mulberry pie - 1200 and coffee - 330

two mountain breads and avocado - 2 x 650 with tuna - 403
coffee - 330 1/3 my banana ration - total banana ration 2 x 365

1/3 banana and tea
carrot and potat0 and sauce - 135 + 440 + 100 = 685
1/3 banana and tea

total = 5143kJ
There is room here for a wine 150kJ if I feel like it.

Making choices

76.8kg again today

I added a glass of wine after prawn lunch and then finished off a few tablespoons of left over mulberry sauce before dinner. I didn't feel like a big dinner so I left out the potato. This gave me kJ for a cup of coffee after dinner with my banana.

I am learning to consider what I am eating so it fits in the kJ count for the day. It is getting easier to swap things or halve things rather than eat everything. I feel as though I will be able to maintain this eating habit for a long time til I get to my goal weight of 60kg and then maintain order in my diet so that I do not put it on again.

We have a rock melon that we need to eat. A quarter slice will be about 250 kJ. This is no more than a banana or pear so we will be able to fit it into our kJ count quite easily as a fruit snack. It will mean leaving out other less useful snacks like wine or chocolate but they will wait for another day. We don't want to waste the rock melon.

I don't feel as though I am doing without anything I just juggle the items so I can eat things just for fun as well as nutrition.

Planning meals

76.8

2 days at 76.8. Time to take the limits in hand again. I went close to 6000 for a few days. I baked an oat biscuit that has some sultanas and walnuts. Could I say it is some fruit and some protein as well as a sweet treat to justify allocating 1000kJ for each piece? Probably. I have also baked a mulberry slice ( since we have a lot of fresh mulberries on the tree now) 1000kJ per slice. It has a fruit portion so I can justify the high count.

In order to control the kJ count I have decided to eat my protein at lunch and my vegetables at dinner. Basically dividing my meal size in half.

Today was banana pikelets for breakfast and two snacks - 2110kJ
Chicken, 1/2cup rice and sweet and sour sauce for lunch - 1431kJ
After lunch coffee and 2 pikelets with jam - 330 for the coffee
Afternoon tea was a cup of mulberries 150kJ
Dinner was carrot, beans, potato and sauce - 725kJ
After dinner was 2 pikelets and jam and tea. Today's jam was 150kJ

Total 4896kJ ..... but I did have a few tastes of my mulberry slice and maybe a few extra fresh mulberries so around 5000kJ is more correct.
It seemed easier to stick to the plan today.

Tomorrow I have planned small porridge for breakfast 750kJ
Morning tea is mulberry slice and tea - 1000kJ
Lunch is prawns and seafood sauce 1300kJ
Slice for afternoon tea - 1000kJ
Veges for dinner as yesterday - 725kJ
After dinner medium banana - 365kJ

Total 5140kJ
Hope I lose weight tomorrow.

Hungry days

77.0kg

Even with 2 big days just under 7000kJ I have still lost weight. I was really hungry and felt like I was eating all the time. But even with extra coffee and chocolate and extra breakfast or crackers with peanut butter I counted kJ and kept it under 7000 deliberately.

Today I had a small porridge breakfast - 1/4 cup oats and 1/2 cup milk - 750kJ
Then all you can eat lunch! Battered fish, chips, rice, satay chicken, potato salad. Then jelly with a spoon of custard, a spoon of cream and 100mL of soft serve. Total about 4000kJ.

Dinner is beans, carrot and sauce - 285kJ
After dinner 1 cracker with peanut butter and honey 365kJ
Total = 5400kJ

Just veges for dinner is pretty slim but I'm sure I can be a bit hungry if need be and survive.

Eating Well

77.3kg today.
I am losing steadily even though yesterday I had lots of snacks. It was supposed to be 4696kJ plus 2 pears but instead I had:
1 pear 290
handful of mini marshmallows 395
Another coffee 330
Another 1/2 a piece of choc 300
and left over fresh juice 100

At this point I had to rethink dinner. Beans 50 and carrot 135 and sweet chili sauce 100 = 285
I figured this would not satisfy me so I doubled the veges and mixed gravy with the sauce - another 285. So dinner was 570 rather than the planned 1095.

I thought I had blown it but the total was 5586kJ and I lost weight!

Today is 1/2 cup oats and 1/2 cup milk plus extra water with 1tsp honey and 1 tsp butter for topping for breakfast- 1395kJ

Lunch is roast lamb 100g, 1 medium roast potato, 1 piece of roast pumpkin , 1 roast carrot and boiled beans and gravy - 2000kJ

Dinner has to be left over chicken (150g when raw) 750kJ plus beans, carrot and 1 tsp sweet chili sauce - total 1035kJ

4430kJ so far. Room for some fruit. A pear 290 and a banana 365 and a two orange glass of juice 200. I am pretty full after the porridge so I will have only tea for morning tea or a pear if I have to eat something. The banana and cup of tea for afternoon and the orange juice for after dinner.

Projected total is 5285. But it isn't even lunch time yet. There is still a bit of room for coffee if I need it.

Slowly losing

Today I was 77.5
Yesterday 77.4 (23rd)
Day before that 77.5 (22nd)
19th I was 77.7
So, slowly but surely. The last few days my kJ count has been close to 6000. Today I will try to keep below 5500.

Toast and tea for breakfast with jam and vegemite - 1000

Coffee (330), 1/2 a piece of chocolate (300) and a banana (365) for morning tea - 995

Lunch is chicken (750) with 1/2 cup rice (395), beans (50) and carrot (135) with 1/4 cup of sweet and sour sauce (275) - 1605
I will cook double and save half for tomorrows lunch.

And dinner is chickpeas with tomatoes and beans and carrot - 1095
One tin of chickpeas and one tin of tomatoes is enough for two meals so I will add extra beans and carrot to make tomorrows dinner as well.

Cooking double is convenient and makes it easy for the next day.
Total so far is 4696kJ

I will probably have a couple of pears. One for afternoon and one after dinner. 2 x 290 is 580

4696 +580 = 5276kJ

Still Counting kJ

This morning I was 77.7kg. Down another point 1. Today's menu included an avocado and an orange juice drink since I still have several avos and lots of oranges from the neighbour's tree. These are both very filling and healthier than coffee and cake. Also less kJ. So I felt like I had some spare for extras.

I splurged with banana cake, cheese cake tid bits and wine so dinner was beans, carrot and potato with gravy. Today's total is just below 6000kJ. Hopefully that is low enough to lose a bit more. If I could resist the sweets I would lose a lot faster!

I did my yoga this morning but it was too cold for a walk this afternoon.

Lunch Out

Today we went to the bowls club for lunch. It was a delightful 'all you can eat' buffet with prawns, chinese dishes, roast veges, apple crumble with custard, chocolate cake and coffee.
I had toast for breakfast for about 1000kJ and I allowed 3000kJ for lunch. I had chocolate and tea for afternoon tea and I will have baked beans on a slice of toast for dinner. So 1000 + 3000 + 600 + 400 + 400 = 5400kJ Perhaps a mandarine later for something sweet after dinner. 5500kJ.

This morning I weighed 77.8kg. It is a long time since I have seen 77 on the scale.

Gradual weight loss

Yesterday was a 6000kJ day and I still lost 200g. I was 78kg this morning. Today's menu is plain porridge with cinnamon, coffee and small piece of chocolate and a mandarin, lunch was rice with chicken and carrots and sweet and sour sauce. Afternoon tea will be banana cake and coffee then a baked bean mountain bread jaffle. I may have a mandarin later for something sweet after dinner. The total is about 5400kJ.
I have to stick to the restricted kj plan till I get to 70kg. Hopefully by Christmas so I can splurge a bit. Then it is back on track till I get to 60kg. Obviously I will have to be very aware of my intake for the rest of my life so I don't just put it all back on again. I am determined to get to and maintain a healthy weight.

The Shopping List

We have prepared early for our Thursday shop.

Frying pans (so cheap they are almost disposable)
beans
pears
mandarins
tomato tins
potatoes
tuna tins
beetroot tins
basmati rice
bacon
cat food

from Coles is
chickpeas and rice mountain bread

This weeks special at Coles was the rice milk at $2 a carton. We bought 20.
And Kettle chips 2 for $5.
Nothing at Woolworths for us this week.
Over the past 6 weeks Aldi have had gluten free flours and mixes. I bought 8 SR and 4 Plain last week because they are not everyday items. The flour was a dollar cheaper than the brand name one that Coles keeps.

We still have chocolate and I have some Smiths chips left from the other week. I baked a banana walnut cake last week so that is there for this week for treats (1000kJ per piece!)

Today is about 5000kJ. This morning I weighed 78.4. Down a bit thank God.

Reducing kJ even more

I managed two days at 6300kJ and maintained my weight. The next day was 7600kJ and I put on 1/2 a kilo. I am moving up and down between 78.9 and 78.2 kg. It is pretty frustrating. Today I have cut back to 5300kJ. It is hard to fit in anything yummy but I still managed to have a piece of banana and walnut cake.
Today I had 1/4 cup of porridge a pear and banana cake before lunch. Then 1/4 homemade chicken pizza and Mountain bread with 1/2 an avocado. Fresh orange juice for afternoon tea then pumpkin soup and Mountain bread with half an avocado for dinner. I will have a pear before bed.

The menu was low in protein today. I will have some sausages and beans for lunch tomorrow, porridge for breakfast and chickpeas and tomato for dinner with avocado on Mountain bread. I have several little avocados that I have to eat quickly.

I have been a bit lethargic lately. I have been making sure I have some vitamin B and my Thyroplex capsules. I still take my vitalzym to help keep the blood flowing. When I don't feel great I think about my varicose veins and tendancy to get blood clots, my thyroid inefficiency, my heart murmur and now my thinning hair and my indigestion nearly every night. The last few nights I have had trouble sleeping so it is hard to be positive. But I get over it. My thyroplex and vitamin B help I think. Today was better.

I am looking forward to being 78.2kg tomorrow.

Kilojoule count for today's menu

Today's weight 78.7kg

Pikelets 1/2 cup flour 1140, 1 egg 375, 1 tbsp sugar 250, 1/2 cup milk 330 = 2095
2 tbs jam 300

Roast dinner for lunch 1/2 cup beans 50, 1 roast potato 150g 870, 1 carrot 135, 100g lamb 710, 1/4 cup gravy 107

Coffee 330 (for the milk)
Chocolate 700
25g chips 500

Small roast for dinner 1/2 cupbeans 50, 50g lamb 350, gravy 107.
Banana 375
tea

Total = 6609 I may have a pear before bed 290

Lethargy

I haven't felt 100% today. I forget that I need to watch my thyroid. I took a thyroid supplement yesterday and today. I will continue till I feel better. The capsules are Thyroplex. Just a general thyroid supplement. 5 years ago I was diagnosed with hashimotos. I believe I was stressed and run down, contracted whooping cough and since I had a genetic predisposition ( my auntie had thyroid problems) I got Hashimotos. I took thyroid extract while I was still working. Last year I retired and went off the thyroid medication. Less stress makes it easier for the thyroid to work properly.

I have tried to keep to the kJ count but I had extra chocolate and coffee. I am still less than 7000kJ for the day.
I had porridge for breakfast, curried eggs and rice for lunch and tinned tomatoes and chickpeas for dinner. Snacks included chocolate, coffee, chips, 2 pears and orange juice. I may still have a banana later. I am tired but I need to work out tomorrows menu. I am determined not to get off track.

Shopping budget

Over the last year or so I have tried to limit what food comes into the house by having a shopping budget. It is not that I can't afford whatever I want to eat, but having a tight budget helps me control what food I buy. I buy meat at the Super Butcher. Chicken, steak, sausages. beef mince.

I check the Coles and Woolworths catalogues looking for specials on things I normally buy and I will buy multiples to try to save money.

I went shopping on Wednesday mostly at Aldi. It is much cheaper than any other shops.
This list is for two people.
6 pink lady apples
432g tin pineapple slices
185g x 2 tins tuna in springwater
400g x 2 tins chopped tomatoes
450g tin beetroot
large jar sweet n sour sauce
1kg carrots
500g x 4 packs of gluten free plain flour
500g x 2 green beans
200g hazelnut chocolate
1.8kg bananas

200g x 2 Smiths chips ( on special at Coles)
400g x 2 chic peas tins (at Coles cause Aldi doesn't have them)

My meals are simple. I try to include steamed vegetables with lunch and dinner. I used to have lots of broccoli but it has vitamin K that is a blood clotting agent and not good for my bad veins. Green beans are my substitute. I use basmati rice to help fill me up several times a week. I alternate between oats and banana pikelets for breakfast. No commercial cereals. My doctor said to cut down on meat so I try to have tuna and chick peas 3 or four days a week.

My varicose veins have been a problem over the last year or so. I have had three bouts of thrombophlebitis or inflamed blood clots. The inflammation is extremely painful and looks red and feels hot like an infection but it is caused by the blood clots. It is possible to feel the clots like big grapes in the surface veins. What caused the clots I am not sure but in each case I pinched the veins by squatting down. By the third time I knew what was happening and immediately took my Vitalzyme capsules when I felt the pain start. 5 capsules 3 times a day seemed to work as well as the clexane blood thinner that the doctor gave me for the other 2 bouts. It takes about three months for the clots to go away but at least this time I didn't have more than a few weeks of mild pain. The other times I couldn't walk.

It is not something that all doctors have seen. I looked for something that would help prevent further clots. I have a genetic history. I found the Vitalzyme at Return2Health site and I take it now everyday. Just a maintenance dose of 2 to 4 capsules a day.
I also exercise with Yoga and walking to try to improve my circulation. I also want to lose weight to try to take the strain off my legs and improve circulation.

I think my varicose vein problem started with my two pregnancies. I would have worn support stockings during my pregnancies if I knew what I know now.

Introduction

This is not the beginning of my weight loss journey. I have gone 2kg up and 1kg down for the last 20 years. I am 20 kg over weight and think I have a good plan now!

I hated going to Weightwatchers meetings. I can't afford to buy ready made meals again and I love my snacks. I have gradually worked towards healthy food for many years. I just eat too much for my age and activity level. But I worry about my health and am determined to lose my extra 20 kg.

Problems with my varicose veins have prompted me to get back to a healthy weight.
I have a shopping budget to help control what comes into the house.
I have started counting kJ because it seems I am close to the right amount for weight loss I just need to control the extra bits more tightly.

I have just worked out tomorrow's food tonight. It helps to be organised. It is a high protein day mainly because we thaw out 300g of chicken each. It has a total of 5819kJ. 5000kJ is the lowest you can go safely and 7500kJ is as high as I will go on some days. There is room in this day's menu for another coffee and even more chocolate if I want it.

Breakfast is porridge total of 1395kJ
1/2 cup rolled oats 840kJ
1/2 cup milk 330kJ
extra water
to serve: 1tsp butter 150kJ and 1tsp honey 75kJ

Morning tea
2 mandarines 170kJ

Lunch total 1482kJ
150g chicken tenderloins 750kJ
1/2 cup beans 50kJ
1 medium carrot 135kJ
1 medium potato 440kJ
1/4 cup instant gravy 107kJ

Afternoon total 875kJ
1 large banana 545kJ
Cappuccino with 1/2 cup milk 330kJ

Dinner total 1307kJ
150g chicken tenderloins 750kJ
1/2 cup beans 50kJ
1 cup pumpkin 400kJ
1/4 cup instant gravy 107kJ

After dinner
25g nut chocolate 590kJ
Cup of tea

Enjoy.