It is pretty difficult for me to find a diet that works for me, my Graves Disease and the steroid-based medication that I take for it both effect my metabolism and cause me to fluctuate between losing and gaining weight at excessive rates - and there is unfortunately very little that I can do to control it.
It's not a very pleasant experience to be out of control of your own body and weight, but there's nothing I can do about it other than consider the option of surgery to completely remove my thyroid gland- which is something I am currently weighing up but not ready to decide on just yet.
So because I have been depressed about my current weight situation, I decided to try a diet and see what happened - I have tried many diets in the past such as Weight Watchers and the Atkins Diet etc, and no matter how rigidly I stick to them I haven't lost a single ounce.
However I did try Slimming World once before and managed to lose half a stone, which may not sound like much for most people but that is unheard of for me in terms of managing my own weight! On the medication I am on, Its a bit of a small miracle to manage to lose half a stone by my own efforts!So I decided to go for Slimming World this time, and to join a group with a friend for the added support and motivation.
I have been on the Slimming World diet for 3 weeks now, and have so far lost 4lbs.
Again this may not be a huge amount for most people, but it is substantial to me!
It can be a little frustrating to lose at a slower rate to other people in the class, but my class leader reminds me that 1lb per week lost between the date I joined and Christmas Day would be over 1 stone lost altogether - and that sounds great to me!What I love about this diet, is that I have the freedom to eat most things as long as they are prepared in a healthy way.
I follow the extra-easy plan, and that means I can unlimited amounts of pasta, rice, potatoes, vegetables, fruit, lean meats and various other staple items as long as they are cooked in a healthy manner.
Here is an example of what I eat in a normal day:
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs on dry brown toast (from my Healthy Extra B allowance - I'm allowed 2 small slices per day) and plum tomatoes.
Lunch: Spaghetti hoops on dry brown toast (From my Healthy Extra B Allowance)
Dinner: Home made chinese Fake Away! Chicken stiry fry with lots of veggies cooked in Fry Light and Soy Sauce, "fried" rice done in Fry Light with peppers and chillies, and rice noodles.
The above meals are all "syn free" - meaning if I want a bag of crisps or a chocolate bar in the evening, I can have one without any guilt as I have my daily syn allowance to use up!
What I love about doing this diet is that it's really made me pay attention to the ingrediants I use when cooking, and has helped me to be more conscious of what I'm using in recipes - plus it's encouraged me to cook fresh rather than always go for the more convenient but far less healthy jars and packet sauces!
I came across this video recently which shows a fantastic looking Salmon & Prawn crumble recipe cooked in a Microwave Oven, which looks amazing!!This would be very low syn on the diet I am currently doing, and I am very tempted to give it a whirl!
Do you follow any particular diet? As always, I'd love to hear from you!
