2026 : We've Got This!

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posted by ClarinetCathy
on 27 Apr 2026 at 09:49

Dawn and Sue
So lovely to read your posts. You have both lost weight since the beginning of the year and so don’t be too hard on yourselves. We know that the plan works but we have to be in the right mindset. You both sound determined to make the best of the remainder of your time on the plan and to learn about what will work for you. I am going to stay on the plan with you for the next few months too to navigate my way through to maintenance. Because we got it at a discount price (thank you Dawn) I feel like it’s worth the investment to keep going a little longer. Unlike you, I only stuck to the food plan. I did a little bit of the exercise and enjoyed a few meditations along the way but my plan is to make more of the exercises going forward. My walking pad is great and I really enjoy it but I think I went a little too fast last week and have spent a week with a bad knee! Note to self! I have noticed some loose skin on my arms and so I will do some of the weight exercises and I’ve read that fasting to autophagy can help with loose skin. Might try a couple of long fasts each month.

Sue losing 500g a week is most certainly doable and I have every confidence that you will reach your goal by September. Dawn, I hope you have a wonderful 60th birthday and when you get back from your Scottish Highlands holiday I feel you will be ready to embark on the 12 week plan. We have definitely got this but as I know only too well, the time has to be right. The online plan worked for me and I know when the time is right it will work for you too. This week is my last week on the plan. I will finish on Thursday before my little holiday and when I get back I will be back on it with you both. Together we can enjoy the next few months and make a difference to our health. HBA1C test tomorrow for me. Hope to get my result before Friday.
posted by ADD6605
on 27 Apr 2026 at 19:25

Thanks Cathy, I hope you enjoy your holiday and am pleased you will be continuing the plan alongside us once you are back:) Dawn X
posted by arcticfox2
on 27 Apr 2026 at 20:25

Hi everyone,
Great to read everyone’s progress and determination for continuing. Even if it has only been a little bit of weight lost, it is still progress.
I have certainly been one for letting myself get off track over the years, but I’m hoping that things are changing for the better.
I had a really stressful incident in town on Saturday when I took my car in to change tires involving someone following me. It turns out he was a casual acquaintance who just wanted to say hi, but it really freaked me out. I called a help line to talk about it but got a guy who did not understand at all why it was a big deal for me. Talked to my godmother who is normally pretty good about providing some comfort but she said I should feel flattered that someone liked me enough to come and say hi. The drive to comfort eat after all this was really, really high, but in the end, I called a special line that I have access to that will put me through to a counsellor (I don’t like to use them and tie up resources for others but my counsellor is away right now) and they put me through to a counsellor who happened to also be neurodivergent and a sexual assault survivor and she was able to understand and assured me that it was understandable that I was upset. So that really helped. I opened a tin of soup after that and had that for dinner whereas I might have used this as an excuse previously to run into town to load up on junk, so I am pleased about that.
I think I have lost some weight since being on the meds. Interestingly my belt has only gone in one hole, but I seem to have lost more in my legs than around my waist, which is very different, because usually it is very hard for me to lose anything around my hips and in my legs. So I suppose I will carry on doing what I’m doing and see how much I can lose before needing to switch things up.
posted by Dreamscometrue
on 28 Apr 2026 at 08:22

DAWN and SUE – me three! I’m frustrated with myself as I got off to a great start on the online programme but gradually allowed myself to be derailed. So in that sense I’m annoyed that I’ve “wasted” it : but on the other hand, like both of you, I have lost some weight and am probably further forward than I would have been without it. My aim at the beginning of 2026 was to lose 20lb by the end of the year, slow and steady, at around 1-2lb per month. And I’m on target for that – am half a stone down – so in that sense it’s all good. It’s just when I started the online programme I began to lose more rapidly so I upped my expectations. Never mind. I’m away for a week as of Friday and will then get back on board again, probably changing to a faster programme (I was on the 5:2).

CATHY I hope your blood test goes well today. You’ve done so well with the weight loss and I really hope that this reflected in the results. And I’m also hoping for you to hit 140lb by Thursday. Enjoy that G&T! Thursday is my birthday so I will raise a glass to you too 🥂

ARCTICFOX your experience of being followed sounds very scary, even though it turned out to be well-intentioned. Sometimes people just don’t think! I’m sure there must have been a less confrontational way to come and say hello. But well done for not rushing for comfort food. And it’s great that you’re losing inches where you didn’t expect to. I’m looking forward to your next update!

If I don’t post again this week I wish you all well and will be back on here wc 11th May. Hope everyone has a good couple of weeks X
posted by SueBlue
on 28 Apr 2026 at 09:01

DCT – Wishing you a very happy birthday for Thursday 🙂
posted by Mariet
on 28 Apr 2026 at 11:17

Happy Birthday DCT, I hope you have a lovely day and enjoy your break as well.

Arctic Fox, I can’t believe the response you got after you were followed, even though it was all innocent in the end. I would have thought any woman would be able to recognise the common fear so many of us have of assault and more. I am not surprised it affected you powerfully and I congratulate you on the way you handled it.
I didn’t weigh for a few weeks, I have been milling around the same 200g for weeks and weeks and my digestive problems took a long time to clear up after I stopped the online program. So I was thrilled this week when I weighed and found myself 1.3kg down at 65.8, my lowest for about 6 years, and the smallest waist measurement for 9 years. Still more than half my height but oh well!
I hope you all find the online course continues to help you. I love reading all your posts even though I don’t post often myself.
posted by ClarinetCathy
on 29 Apr 2026 at 13:16

Hello everyone
🥁 🥁 🥁 🥁 My HbA1c result is in and it’s gone down to 35 from 44 so I am well under the “below 42” normal result. My 12 weeks low carb 800 keto diet has achieved the health benefit that I desired along with a 25.5 lb weight loss . My last day will be Thursday so I will see if I have got down to 140 lb. Today I was 141 lb. I’m over the moon that my hard work has shown in my blood work.
I’ve got my eye on an almond croissant from Pret A Manger at the airport as a holiday treat! I’ll be having it too! I hope it doesn’t make me feel unwell! I’ll report in tomorrow with my final score weight and then I’ll be back here again when I get back next week. Just wanted to share my NSV result today.
Thank you everyone for sticking by me over the difficult times and for your kindness and support. It’s been a roller coaster at times and like a game of snakes and ladders but with too make snakes and not enough ladders and now I at the finish line – just got to avoid that long snake thst always lurks about near the finish line!
posted by arcticfox2
on 29 Apr 2026 at 18:08

Amazing Cathy! So well done! Very proud of everything you’ve managed to accomplish. Enjoy your treat and the holiday. You deserve it!
posted by ADD6605
on 29 Apr 2026 at 18:58

That’s fantastic news Cathy, well done! Dawn X
posted by Dreamscometrue
on 29 Apr 2026 at 20:33

CATHY and MARIET well done to you both for your losses! And Cathy that’s so great about your result too. Fantastic news. Enjoy your holiday and your treats 😊
posted by arcticfox2
on 29 Apr 2026 at 23:45

Yes, Mariet too, well done. I finally just had time to go back up and look at the other posts.
Thanks everyone for your support around the incident where I was followed.
In other news, my belt has gone in another notch this week. I have been struggling with eating but because I am not inclined to do the impulsive thing and run to the supermarket for easily consumed things I am trying to make simple meals at home. I put some lupini beans, frozen spinach nuggets and paneer into a bowl and microwaved it and then added curry powder and greek yogurt. It was tasty and it made a lot so I had it for 2.5 days. So that was good for getting some nutrition into me at least.
I had a work lunch today at a local cafe and bakery that I thought would be good because they do gluten free baked items, but the only gluten free low carb option they had was tomato soup and even though I have been able to have small amounts of again tomato recently, I did not want to risk that amount. So they made me a gluten free toasted cheese sandwich instead. It was not very nice nor very satisfying, but it was hot and enabled me to at least eat something. I had greek yogurt and a pear in my bag that I ate when I got back to the office.
posted by SueBlue
on 30 Apr 2026 at 01:52

Cathy – wow! Well done on your blood test results! You really have done so well so far this year – I’m glad you have your trip to look forward to as well, that’s a nice reward for all of your hard work 🙂
Mariet – congratulations on your loss too!
ArcticFox – don’t want to leave you out so well done on your latest NSVs with your belt and healthier eating.
posted by ClarinetCathy
on 30 Apr 2026 at 09:23

Happy Birthday DreamsComeTrue 🥂 🥳
Have a wonderful day and enjoy your holiday . I’ll see you back on here when you are back. Holidays are for fun so don’t be too hard on yourself whilst you’re away. Enjoy it and get back to it when you come home.
posted by ADD6605
on 30 Apr 2026 at 13:34

Happy birthday DCT, hope you’re having a lovely day🎉 Dawn X
posted by arcticfox2
on 30 Apr 2026 at 20:53

Happy Birthday DCT. I hope you had a good day.
Just another NSV to report. I went for a walk and talk session with my counsellor today to unpack all the stuff that has happened this past week (it’s a lot!!!) and I usually wear my athletic compression tights because they support my lipedema tissue on my legs during exercise and also have a leg pocket for my phone. But they are not acting like compression tights anymore because they are too loose! Good and bad news I suppose. Not great that they are not supporting my legs anymore but the good news is that they are not too expensive and I can get another pair in a smaller size at the mall.
Anyway, we unpacked what happened on the weekend and like the counsellor I spoke to on Sat, my counsellor confirmed that of course it would be upsetting to me and validated me for being so persistent in seeking help and seeking the right person to help me after that situation. I also had another situation on Monday that really blew my mind. I had an online interaction with my old counsellor on a therapy social media page. She did not know it was me as I was posting anonymously, but from her post I found out that she is high masking autistic. Wow! In 2 years she never told me that. I know she didn’t have to disclose it, but here she was disclosing to some anonymous person on a public forum. It would have helped me to know that. I have training and experience working with autistic people, but although I was picking up on a lot of signals from her, I wasn’t connecting the dots, I think because of her masking. If she had disclosed it, it would have helped, although I now see that she was getting really overwhelmed by how intense I can be, and that was causing me to feel like there was something wrong with me. So it has been a huge week of insight for me and that was why there was so much to unpack. I have also realized that I really need daily deep connection in-person with other humans who accept me for who I am. We were talking about how to identify those humans who can do that and who do not get overwhelmed by me, and how I have been trying to shrink myself down to fit in with those who do not accept me for who I am my entire life. I feel like this shrinking down is likely connected to the binge eating in a big way. We were also starting to talk about some workplace accommodations for me that would result in less interaction with people who wear me down so that I have more energy to connect with people who build me up outside of working hours. So, yeah, a really big day. Thanks for listening! I come across much less intense and more manageable for most people in writing!