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[stargazinghare]

Hi all, today I went into the changing rooms of a shop to try on a shawl. I could not believe how enormous I am. I was 11st (5' 6'') 3 years ago when I began suffering from excruciating sciatica. I quickly became debilitated and so just sat around comfort eating for 2 years until spinal surgery finally ended the pain. Now I've recovered, I tip the scales at a cow-sized 17st. I look like Jabba the Hutt. I've decided to do the Lipotrim 3 shakes a day. This is day one. I'll let you know what happens as I descend into hell. I've had a necklace engraved with the words 'No Matter What' - that is, no matter what the occasion, the pressure, the hunger pangs, the misery or the temptations, I will not sabotage my own efforts. Wish me luck! I wish you all the same and am looking forward to getting to know you all! xxx

[moreless Administrator 7 stone]

Hi and welcome, stargazinghare

I wish you lots of luck trying to survive on 3 shakes a day! It's definitely not for me!

Take a look at the Pinned Posts section, to the right of your screen (bottom, if you're using a mobile) and have a look at the Welcome Newbies thread.

Look at the Topics section beneath that, for posts that could answer any questions you may have. Consider joining any, or all, of our challenges, as they're fun and motivating.

Join us for the Monday Group weigh-in. If you follow Zest and myself, you'll be notified when we post the threads. The latest weigh-in thread can always be found in the Events section, to the right of the home page and remains open until 6pm on Fridays.

Be active on the forum, as that's where we exchange ideas and get our daily dose of motivation and inspiration.

Wishing you all the very best as you start your journey to health and happiness

[jessdobsonn]

Hey! Just here to give a big tip and some personal info.

I've tried doing the shakes myself and countin calories, the lot. And although I'm trying to start somewhere, I know I won't find it by going cold turkey! I'm a sucker for comfort food/eating and I've progressively got bigger and heavier, and I know I have to stop!

I think cutting down gradually will be easier, and increasing exercise as you go. Which is what I'm going to do; opt for healthier choices in food and drink plenty water! Herbal teas help along with water so that you feel fuller, and snacking on fruit and veg helps too😊

Wish you all the best and let us know how you progress!

Jess x

[misstippytoes]

welcome 😊 I was also that 'cow size' weight when I started this properly in mid-October and although I've had a couple of blips I'm 7lbs lighter already. Just through cutting down on the rubbish and getting out walking and i know that if I really put in the effort then I'll lose the weight. I can't do the shake stuff as I don't like/drink milk and most of them seem to be like that. I hope you find success with them but if not then the nhs 12 week plan is a great option. Spend time on here if possible as there is lots of support and its a great distraction.

[JiminyCricket 7lbs]

Wishing you the best of luck, and congratulations for taking the determined start that you have. This forum is amazing for support

[Norni]

Hi, good luck with your efforts. Can't help feeling though that a more normal eating plan, less dramatic, might serve you better in the longer term. Reasonable portions of protein and non starchy carbs with small amounts of starch thrown in each day....staying off the sugar....the weight should fall away. Excercising with a friend for encouragement helped me a great deal as well as cutting down on alcohol.

So glad to hear your pain is behind you.....that must have been really tough.

[wa2un7 Maintainer]

I wish you all the luck in the world although I don't envy you your 3 shakes a day. Hope it works for you🙂

[Faqhiavelli]

Hallo mate

Good luck! Remember to take time to not beat yourself up and congratulate yourself on every effort.

As you can see a few here are concerned about shakes for weight loss. They have some good reason, the evidence says that shakes can produce a great deal of weight loss, but they don't tend to effectively keep it off. The problem is that that journey of losing weight on the shakes doesn't help us learn or practice anything about healthy living and eating light and well. So when the shakes are done we pile on a load more weight again before we really learn how to eat healthily.

Not saying don't try it, but try to prepare for this. Lots of reading and learning about how to cook healthy, get yourself a bank of recipes, and remember that cooking healthy and exercising is all about routine and organisation, so work on that too. Take your time, and congratulations on getting started!

[SlimmerSue62]

I wish you luck do not be hard on yourself. take things slowly and sensibly you will reach your goal

[Applesnake]

Hello,

I completely sympathise with that changing room feeling. It's horrible, but in a way it's good because it's motivating. Although I've lost quite a bit of weight I still hate clothes shopping because of the mirror thing and the feeling of choosing nice stuff and making it look awful!

I agree about the shakes thing, I couldn't do it and personally I'm looking for a long term, sustainable change. However, I did do a 3 day juice fast earlier this year. I struggle with self control around food and the fact that I stuck to the juice for 3 days gave me a real "you can do it" boost. It was also an interesting experience. Your shakes may be just the thing to give you that boost to get started.

Best of luck anyway. X

[Seuzan]

Also have a look at the NHS 12 week plan if you haven't already done so. It may be a good plan B to support you after doing the shakes for a while.

You can do it!!!!

[Saima123]

Best of luck 😉

[Redwitchrocks]

You go for it and keep us posted - j

[Caz28]

Hi, the shakes may be a good way to kick start your diet, but the only way to lose the weight and more importantly, keep it off, will be to learn new eating habits, as the shakes aren't a sustainable way of eating, you can't do it forever! There's loads of great information and tips on this site, good luck!

[Cat33 Restart Dec 2023]

It must have been absolute agony to have had sciatica so badly I'm glad you now have relief from it no one could blame you for comfort eating as it must have been really miserable for you

If you have the shakes for a while and lose some weight it will give you a good boost to then get into healthily eating again

Good luck 😀