Losing 60kg with Lifestyle Changes

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Karen: Hello, I'm Karen. I am one of the instructors here at Spice. About four years ago, when I was 43, I was walking up the stairs at the hospital at work one night and really short of breath. And I suddenly thought, "Hmm, I'm 120+ kilos and very unhealthy and I need to do something. Otherwise, in a few years' time, I'm going to be looking at, well, basically a future of chronic illnesses and things like that."

"I'm very happy with the lifestyle changes to reduce blood pressure and diabetes, now I don't have the problems as I had before."

So I took myself along, after a great deal of heart-pounding, to Group Fitness Classes with Sheree at the Mertonvale circuit hall. And I have to say it was the biggest step I took. And probably the hardest was actually walking in there and doing it. I was sort of walking up and down outside thinking, "Oh, oh, oh, I can't do this." But I did, and gradually started to do one class a week, built it up to a couple classes a week, did my Zumba instructor's training, and just sort of moved on from there to my Cert III, and a couple of other different fitness qualifications.

It was hard work. I would go home exhausted. I'd go home with sore knees and everything else. But gradually, as the months went past it got a little easier and I could work a bit harder. So that was my main motivation. And in that time, I've probably halved myself from what I used to be.

I've probably halved myself from what I used to be

I've probably halved myself from what I used to be. I do feel good. I feel really well, healthy. I'm very happy with the lifestyle changes to reduce blood pressure and diabetes. Now I don't have the problems as I had before and of course my knees don't hurt anymore, which is really good.

Need to make
LIFESTYLE CHANGES TO REDUCE BLOOD PRESSURE AND DIABETES
but don't know where to start?

Sheree: So what results have you achieved and how does that make you feel?

Karen: Well, as I said, I have lost about 60 kilos without watching the scales or anything. I was really focused health-wise, movement-wise, what I could do. I wasn't forever going, "Oh, 0.5 more kilos," something like that. It was always getting healthier, getting stronger, moving about, all of that sort of thing. So yeah, I'm a lot stronger. I'm now learning to take on a little weightlifting. And the seniors, which I really love doing. And it's not something I would've pictured myself doing at all four years ago. So yeah, as I started out, it was working on, "I need to get healthy. I need to lose a bit of weight," but not focusing on the numbers on the scale as much. And it's gradually moved into, "I've heard about some new things and I've found a new - I don't know if you'd call it a hobby - obsession that I like doing." So yeah, and now that's a really good thing.

What would you say to someone who's just thinking about starting?

Karen: Don't worry about how you might... like I did, you might go in feeling, "I can't do this. I'm overweight. I'm on my feet and I've got sore knees. I've got whatever else." Give it a go.