What happens to your body when you get fit and lose weight

Pretty much everyone wants to lose weight to look better. But hardly anyone talks about the changes in your body that can make you feel better when you start to get fit and lose weight after years of, well, sitting on your arse.

So let me talk about a few of the changes I’ve experienced.

I sleep better. I used to suffer from the three a.m. nasties. You know – waking at three in the morning, and not finally falling asleep again until ten minutes before my alarm was due to go off. These days a proper night’s sleep is the default, not the exception.

I’m in a better mood. My family and friends are less likely to catch grumpy me, and far more likely to catch serene, content me. The difference is striking.

My skin and allergies are better. I’ve struggled with asthma, allergies and eczema all my life. These days you wouldn’t know it. Rashes are rare, I don’t need an inhaler (unless I come across a dog or a rabbit), and I barely touch antihistamines. My eyes are no longer puffy and red in the mornings either.

I don’t get earwax buildup any more. An odd change, but really noticeable.

I don’t get tartar build-up on my teeth any more. Another weird improvement. Go figure. I always thought tartar had something to do with water quality and getting old, but apparently it’s bodily wellness. Who knew?

I’m looking okay these days, for an old bird. I’ve more improvement to make, but I’m on my way to wellness.

Change comes from persistence. As does wellness. We don’t become healthier from one meal, or one “good day” but from real transformation repeated daily, over and over again every day of our lives.

We can get better. Those of us who are obese can become fit and well again. The slide into poor health and misery is not inevitable. It takes commitment and support from family, friends and groups such as Overeaters Anonymous, but we can do it. We just need to believe in ourselves, and believe we are worth the effort necessary to change.

Allergic to everything? My allergy journey…

My doctor had a medicine for everything and none of them worked!

THIS TIME LAST YEAR…

I’m an allergic person. I was diagnosed with eczema younger than I can remember, and some of my earliest memories involved my mother slathering my skin down with hydrocortisone and calamine lotion.

I was also told there was no cure for any of this. It was just “the luck of the draw.”

This time last year I was on over a dozen medications, including: 2 types of antihistamines plus antihistamine eye drops and three courses of prednisone; nasal spray and asthma puffer; three cortisone creams and ointments; specialist low-allergy hair shampoo; heavy moisturiser for my crazy dry skin that hurt, cracked and peeled; and a few others as well.

I was not well, but all my doctor could do was prescribe me more drugs and say it was “genetic”. I was miserable.

Furthermore, my doctor said my blood sugar was rising and I was likely to be diagnosed diabetic soon.

THE DEFINITION OF INSANITY

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.

My doctor was giving me drugs that masked, rather than healed my illness. That clearly wasn’t working, as I was getting sicker and sicker, so I dumped my doctor and began to find out more about my actual illnesses, and how they were caused.

The rest is history.

ONE YEAR ON…

One year on, I’m a different person. I’m on NO medicines at all, and I need none of them. I’m healthier, happier and thinner. While not where I want to be yet, regarding weight, I’m on a good path and heading in the right direction.

I’ll talk about how I’m doing all this in upcoming posts. And I’ll be clear: I am NOT a doctor and have no medical training.

However, I’ll also point out that no doctor could help me. I needed to help myself.

So read on, and I’ll share what I’m doing and how it’s going. You might want to give it a try too, especially if you’ve been down the path I’ve been on.

Whatever you decide, I wish you the best of health.