In May 2022 I weighed 16st 6lbs. I had yo-yo-dieted for years and was suffering from a few health issues, bile malabsorption and a hiatus hernia and was facing the prospect of more surgery (I’d already had my gallbladder removed), so I knew I had to lose weight. So, I joined LighterLife and signed up for the weekly CBT Mindfulness sessions.
What the CBT Mindfulness Group has taught me…
One of the most important things I’ve learned is that we don’t need as much food every day as we think we do. I’ve discovered the value of having smaller portions. I’ve also started to notice the connection between my brain and body, so I realise when I feel full and take that as a signal to stop. I learnt a lot and I really enjoyed the group support. My Mentor, Terri helped me enormously and learning about why I had overeaten in the past was a huge benefit in understanding how I’d got to the size I was.
Endless support…
I also joined the LighterLife TotalFast Support group on Facebook as well as my Mentor’s client WhatsApp group, so I was always in touch with advice and news. On Facebook, I found the hacks really inspiring. As well as LighterLife’s support, I received a lot of support from friends, family, even work colleagues. I would urge anyone doing this diet to let all their friends know because their positive encouragement helped keep me on.
5 stone lighter…
Now that I’ve lost 5 stone on the LighterLife TotalFast plan, I’m off all the medication that I’d been on for my health issues. That’s a huge plus! But I’ve also noticed my mental health and sense of wellbeing has greatly improved.
I’ve always liked wearing bright colours, but now I know I can look really good in them. Even better, I walked into a shop the other day, picked a size 10 outfit off the rail… and it fitted!
I’ve always enjoyed being active, even when I was overweight, and have been a member of a Roller Derby team for a long while. I worried that losing weight would mean, without all that “natural padding”, I might get more knocks and bumps. Quite the reverse! I’ve just played in a tournament and noticed how much my speed and agility had improved. In short, if they can’t catch me, they can’t bump into me!
Helen’s top tips…
Respect the boundaries of the diet and don’t fight them – they are there for a reason. Try to stay focused too but own up to the times you can’t, and ask yourself what happened. Another tip, which worked for me, was trying out all the hack suggestions in the TotalFast Facebook Support Group – it just keeps things interesting!
If you, like Helen, also need support on your own journey, at LighterLife we have lots of support to help you on your journey. Get in touch with your personal Mentor by doing a postcode search here or emailing findmymentor@lighterlife.com
