So many things to talk about, so much ground to cover. I have not written a blog post for three weeks – my bad! As I read this back I see that it is a little disjointed, but I hope you will forgive that on this occasion. I usually only try and say one overall thing, but I have lots to relate today.
Before Photos
Three weeks ago, I got weighed a day late as my Grandson had been with us all week and we were looking after him.
But so much happened before that weigh in that I must backtrack. I had a visit to my new doctor. In Bracknell I had the same Doctor for over twenty years. Dr Cody is a little younger than me, I’m guessing, probably in his late fifties. We have always got on extremely well.
Following my unwanted heart episode of ten days previously when my heart rate spiked, I had booked an appointment with my new doctor in South Wales. My first GP appointment in our tiny village surgery in Penclawdd. The receptionist asked if I minded an appointment with a lady doctor. I said ‘no’ thinking that I would get the female version of Dr Cody in Bracknell. And after all I was only going to talk about my heart. I was desperate to see anyone really.
‘I Hope It’s Not Her!’
Skip forward to the following Wednesday and I am sitting in the waiting room awaiting my call. I watched carefully as doors opened and closed and all sorts of ladies appeared and disappeared. ‘I hope it’s not her’ I thought to myself on at least one occasion. I do know that I am bad for thinking like that but I’m only human. I experienced an increasing nervousness about the whole lady doctor thing.
Eventually a voice came over the tannoy ‘Mr Kenneth Jones to room 2 please’. I eagerly made my way to room 2 to discover that my new doctor, a certain Dr Busby, is definitely not a female version of my old doctor. Oh no! It seems to me that all doctors, policemen and school teachers are getting newly qualified having just graduated from nursery school. They are so young!
My New GP
Dr Busby must be in her early thirties at the most. She swivelled around in her chair to greet me. Our eyes locked as we assessed each other and decided if we were going to get on or not. I hope I hid my shock and surprise but probably didn’t. She’s a doctor after all and doctors are clever people. We proceeded somewhat uncertainly for a few minutes until I had explained my history over the last two years and why I was there.
I witnessed the moment that she decided I was not a timewaster and she swung into action. I was so relieved that she took me seriously and we set out a plan to find out what is wrong with my poor old ticker.
When I told her about my weight loss and my fitness she was very positive and encouraging. My pulse and other things presented me as being a very fit person, which is why we need to find out about last week’s blip.
She firmly informed me that a particular drug I am on cannot be stopped under any circumstances due to my condition. I must continue with it for the rest of my life. She also confirmed that the drug will inhibit weight loss as a side effect. Not great when you are on Slimming World. It is possible to lose more weight but it will be very slow. Tell me something I don’t know! I have tests booked to find out what is wrong next week.
A Fabulous Week
In the meantime. We had a fabulous week with our grandson Alfie. We played, walked and ate together. He can only eat the weird stuff babies have, but he was with us as we dined in a variety of hostelries and at home. We were exhausted but happy.
As well as this I have been following my eating plan 100% apart from a bit too much wine on Saturday 14th October. My #onplanoctober thing got me focused. But the results were not forthcoming until yesterday.
Mr Sleek and My 6 Stone Award
Six Stone Award
We walked the five miles to Killay over the hills to our group not really expecting anything too great. ‘Just a loss would be fine’ I lied quietly to myself. We have recently joined the social team in our new group, so I get weighed before the main event. I watched as the numbers gave me an unbelievable loss of three and a half pounds. I was ecstatic!
This meant a total loss of four and half pounds for October, but more importantly the gaining of my six stones award. I only have one stone to reach my target. The whole point of me doing my #onplanoctober thing was to get this award and I did it by the skin of my teeth.
Breaking Facebook
I thought for a while that I had broken Facebook with all the likes and comments being made from both my Bluebrook and Killay group friends. Very touching. I was also awarded the Mr Sleek award and had the opportunity to tell my story and show pictures of how grotesque I was before my diet.
These many elements to my recent days have brought me to a new place. There are so many rooms in Slimming World. There are bad rooms… Guilt, Blame, Shame, Deceit and many more. There are good rooms… Pride, Confidence, Joy, Success and so on.
A Great Day For Freedom
That Wednesday doctor’s appointment two weeks ago was a great day for freedom. My Freedom Room! Hearing about my drug made me realise that I can only do what I can do. Not only that, I have done the best that I could possibly have done in the last two years. And my best has brought me a long way. My best is good enough.
My Best Is Good Enough
Even if I wander off to another room from time to time I am still good at this Slimming World diet. This has given me freedom in my head to not torture myself and be negative. I know not to berate myself when the scales don’t perform for me and I feel like giving up. After all, I have come this far and I am not a quitter.
The bad rooms are simply part of the overall journey. You can’t have a successful journey without some problems and bad days. As I said, my six stones award was a great day for this freedom in my head.
Copious And Gratuitous Use Of The ‘To Do’ Verb
‘Kerching!’ My head has finally appreciated the monumental thing I have done and am doing. And I am not done yet. I’m still doing! In fact, it’s not done until it’s done. I will keep on doing the same things, with probably the occasional visit to a bad room but I will get there in the end. More than this, I know what I have to do. My head has cleared out some more junk and I have freedom. When I come to my senses I can be in my Freedom Room.
My Usain Bolt Moment
In amongst all this I did something two weeks ago that I haven’t done since I was in my twenties. I was great at sport in school and was one of those kids who made the school teams for most things. I lived in my PE kit. My best sport was cross country running, and I represented Garth Hill School, Bracknell over two athletics seasons for this. The Berkshire youth champion was also in my year, so I regularly came second but I loved sport and was good at it.
As an adult I played football until I was about 28, when I kept getting injured. Fast forward to the incident a few weeks ago. I was on a bus trip to the Mumbles which involved a change of buses at Singleton Hospital. Imagine my concern when I saw the bus I needed to connect with already waiting for me as the first bus pulled in. It was about 100 metres away.
All the people leaving the bus at the hospital were slow getting off, think crutches and people even older than me. By the time I got off I was sure that the second bus was bound to leave without me… So I ran. I literally sprinted across the road at top speed which I never knew I had. About 40 yards into my Usain Bolt moment I had an epiphany of realisation that I was moving very fast and that was not allowed. I had no idea I could even run.
A case of ‘Miss the bus and live, or catch the bus and die’. I know that is somewhat overdramatic, but this thought literally went through my head. Such was the pleasure and sheer joy of the experience that I nearly said a bad word, but I kept on running. I am still alive to tell the tale. My Fitbit told me my heart rate peaked at 87bpm which is well within limits for me.
Freedom Room
An Honourable Mention
Clarice achieved her six-stone award over a year ago. I was totally in awe of her achievement at the time and can still remember the event clearly now. I expressed my concern that I would never get to six stones and she calmly told me ‘You will get there’ with a confidence I didn’t have for myself. I know I could never have done this without the support of my many wonderful Slimming World friends.