Weight Loss Challenge Results

Weight Loss Blog - Last Day of challenge!

Well today is the last official day of my self-set challenge. It has been a month on the Kate Morgan diet and this morning I approached the scales with "Eye of the tiger" playing in my head.

Any my final weight ..... (drumroll ......) ..... 84.7KG!

That's a loss of 11.8KG! That's over 12% of my body weight gone over the month!

My final measurements are:
Waist: 103cm (40.2 inches) 12cm lost!
Chest: 106cm (41.5 inches) 5cm lost!

Now I should point out that this is not the recommended Kate Morgan weight loss method. They would recommend replacing no more than two meals a day. But I find if I get the taste of food it really sets me back. After about a week I get used to the shakes and the cravings disappear.
But for legal reasons, I would recommend doing it the correct way and you can find out the info from their website: http://www.katemorgan.com.au/

Here are my before and after pictures


Well I have done it. Smashed the 10KG weight loss challenge in a month, now I face a much tougher challenge....... Keeping the weight off.

Will keep you up to date on my progress.

Bad Habits

Weight Loss Blog - Day 22

I was good all weekend ....... until Sunday at lunch time.

As I said in an earlier post, I had some people over on the weekend and was cooking up a BBQ. I had my shake in the morning and at around 9:30AM my cousin came over to help me with some landscaping of the front yard. (If you were impressed with my weight loss before and after photos wait till you see my garden before and after photos!)

I ate a hamburger, one chicken kebab, potato chips, lollies and a three beers. I was like a man possessed! Having deprived myself of food for so long then given myself an all you can eat ticket for a limited time range is not a good idea.

But after the BBQ, I did go for a half an hour walk ...... down to the shops to get more beer and some ice creams! I only had one of each though.

The next day I jumped on the scales and felt remorse, I have set myself back at least four days. But I am happy to report I am back on track still have hope I can reach the 10KG mark by the end of this week.

No weight loss before and after pics on this post sorry, I am holding off for a biggest loser style finale ..... but you can see my new garden though ;)

Persistence pays off!

Weight Loss Blog - Day 19

I lost 0.5KG today, putting me down to 88.1KG. Measurements were:

Waist: 106.5cm (41.7 inches)
Chest: 109cm (42.6 inches)

I did my 10 minutes on the exercise bike this morning and had a Mocha flavoured shake.

Lunch I had a Chocolate Kate Morgan shake. Carried quite a few heavy boxes to and from the car, so have made this my weight workout for the day!

Dinner I had Mocha again and then went to the cinema with my girlfriend to see Fighting (top movie!). I bought some sugar free mints to eat in the cinema .... didn't even smell the popcorn this time. I must be losing interest in food or something? Bizarre .....

Anyway, I have 10 days of my personal weight loss challenge left and 1.6KG left to lose the 10KG I set for myself.

I will now just post on Mondays (photo days) and Fridays to make it a bit more interesting ... like a Biggest Loser Finale ;)

Oh, I also mentioned I might start to bring a meal back, I have changed my mind about that for now, but will eat on Sunday as I have visitors coming around and I don't think they would be impressed with a milkshake lunch!

Changing the game.

Weight Loss Blog - Day 18

Nothing worth reporting today. Exactly the same as yesterday! Did 10 minutes on the exercise bike.

Breakfast: Banana shake
Lunch: Berry shake
Dinner: Tomato Soup

Now that I don't have much more weight to lose I am going to cut down on the posts, blogging only on Fridays and Mondays.

I have also decided to introduce one meal slowly back in, going to 2 sachets and one real food meal. Still toying around with that idea, so will fill you in with that tomorrow.

Much better weather tonight, managed to sneak in a 30 minute walk.

Slow and steady wins the race

Weight Loss Blog - Day 17

I'm back to 88.6KG! Not losing much now, maybe I am building muscle in my legs from all the riding? Doubt it. My measurement are showing I am losing weight but the scales don't like me at the moment.

Waist: 106.5cm (41.7 inches)
Chest: 109.5cm (42.9 inches)

I had a Mocha shake this morning and it was fantastic! They didn't have this flavour last time, but I managed to get a few this time around. I did 10 minutes on the exercise bike as per usual.

Lunch was Choc Mint and for dinner I had another soup. This one was chicken flavour, not bad now that I have mastered getting it clump free!

Due to really crap weather, I had to miss yet another walk, but did a few sets of bench presses.

One step forward, two steps back

Weight Loss Blog - Day 16

Alright, so the title might be a slight exaggeration but it is how I am feeling - I put on 0.1KG. But realistically is would just be fluid. My measurements are:

Waist: 107cm (41.9 inches)
Chest: 110cm (43.1 inches)

A little bit off the gut to confirm I am still on the right track. I try a new flavoured Kate Morgan sachet this morning, Tropical. It was great, or maybe it was just different from the others. I only got one of them so it is hard to tell.

I jumped on the exercise bike for 10 minutes.

Lunch was Choc Mint and for dinner I give the Tomato soup another go. The last one I had tasted alright but was a bit of a disaster due to the powder clumping up. This time I poured the powder into the boiling water (not the other way round), and stirred like crazy. Much, much better. No clumps!

Picture time!

Weight Loss Blog - Day 15

Ok, so now that it's Monday, it is time for a current photo.



I know.... Still a little work to go, but I lost another 0.4KG today putting me to 88.6KG. I seem to be a bit slimmer in the face, so I think I have lost the weight all around my body this week, not just off the gut.

I went for a quick 10 minute ride on the exercise bike this morning and downed a Cappuccino flavoured Kate Morgan shake for breakfast. My measurements were:

Waist: 107.5cm (42.1 inches)
Chest: 110cm (43.1 inches)

Lunch was Butterscotch, which is OK, but I wouldn't be able to have this flavour regularly.

Dinner time I had a Banana shake. I has been pouring down with rain since I got home from work so have given walking a miss tonight. Maybe tomorrow night....

Sunday Bloody Sunday

Weight Loss Blog - Day 14

Sunday, it's kind of a bitter-sweet feeling. It's a day off, but you know you have week of work ahead of you.

Jumped on the scale first thing and I now weigh 89KG. That's a 0.5KG loss overnight and a total loss of 7.5KG since the start of my weight loss journey. Measurements are:

Waist: 107.5cm (42.1 inches)
Chest: 110cm (43.1 inches)

My Kate Morgan Meal replacement sachets today were:

Breakfast: Choc Mint
Lunch: Banana
Dinner: Berry

Didn't do any exercise today! I think one day off wont hurt.

Weekends are tough ....

Weight Loss Blog - Day 13

I always struggle on the weekends as I am more likely to be put in positions where I am tempted by yummy (but fattening) food.

Today was a good result. 0.4KG lost putting me down to 89.5KG. I measured myself also:

Waist: 108cm (42.2 inches)
Chest: 110.5cm (43.2 inches)

Had a Butterscotch shake for breakfast and a Berry one for lunch.

Managed to get out in the afternoon and replenish my Kate Morgan sachet supplies. Got my hands on a heap of Banana flavour, some Choc Mint and a few other favourites. I also grabbed a few soups.

Now, I am not into soup much really. I tend to eat more bread and butter dipped into the soup than the soup it's self. But without bread and butter I am not sure what to expect.

I have a Kate Morgan tomato soup sachet for dinner. It is quite different from what I imagine, being a more creamy type of soup. It more tastes like a mild curry sauce than tomato soup, but it is much better than I expected. The one problem with the soup sachets though, it that when you mix in the boiling water, the powder clumps up. The clumps do not taste nice! Beware the clumps. Think I will stick to the shakes!

As an afterthought, I jump on the exercise bike for 10 minutes, as I have done no exercise up until now.

Under 90KG milestone!

Weight Loss Blog - Day 12

Almost missed typing this blog post as I have had so much on today! Lost another 0.1KG today putting me below 90KG's for the first time in ages. My new weight is 89.9KG!

Measurements were:
Waist: 108cm (42.2 inches)
Chest: 110.5cm (43.2 inches)

I had myself a Pine Lime flavoured shake for breaky, then 10 minutes on the exercise bike.

Pina Colada was my lunch and settled for an old favourite for dinner, Cappuccino.

After dinner I went for a 30 minute walk. Would have gone for longer but it was quite windy.

Back in business!

Weight Loss Blog - Day 11

Lost 0.7KG today bringing me down to 90KG.

Just a short post today as I only managed to get in my 10 minute exercise bike ride in today due to having too many things on.

Measurements were:
Waist: 108cm (42.2 inches)
Chest: 110.5cm (43.2 inches)

The Kate Morgan sachets I had today for my meals were:
Breakfast: Cappuccino
Lunch: Chocolate
Dinner: Vanilla

I also resisted the ultimate temptation at dinner time when I had to go down to Nandos and wait while my girlfriend ordered and ate her food. It's getting easier each day that goes on.

Getting there .... slowly!

Weight Loss Blog - Day 10

Lost another 0.2KG today. I now weigh 90.7KG and my measurements are:

Waist: 109cm (42.6 inches)
Chest: 111cm (43.5 inches)

Yes, for some reason I lost weight but have gained a centimeter on the gut! Must be fluid retention, I had to measure twice to double check.

Did my usual 10 minutes on the bike then grabbed a Pina Colada shake for breakfast.

At lunch time I had a Choc Orange Kate Morgan sachet and had a Butterscotch one for dinner.

After dinner I managed to get a 30 minute walk in then got into blogging.

About to do some light weights, just three sets of bench presses then have an early night.

Weight Loss Blog - Deja vu

Weight Loss Blog - Day 9

Not much to write home about today just 0.1KG, bringing me down to 90.9KG. Measurements are:
Waist: 108cm (42.2 inches)
Chest: 111cm (43.5 inches)

Exactly the same as yesterday!

Just a short post today. I had a Berry Kate Morgan shake and a 10 minute ride on the exercise bike this morning.

At lunch time I had a Pine Lime flavoured sachet and dinner an old favourite, Cappuccino.

Was going to start doing weights tonight but decide to give it a miss as I had to move a heap of heavy boxes around at work today and think I have done enough weight lifting for one day.

After dinner I went and saw a new movie, Public Enemies. I thought I would be spending the 2 hours and twenty minutes drooling over the smell of popcorn, but handled it quite well. Good movie by the way, just went for sooooo long!

Week one weight loss results

Well here it is as promised, my starting picture beside my current picture! I can't believe how far my stomach was sticking out before. I still have quite a way to go, but am obviously on the right track.



Weight Loss Blog - Day 8

Not a big result on the scales today, but the weekends are normally when I go downhill eating junk food and having a few beers. Only 0.1KG, but I will take any loss. This takes my total weekly weight loss to 5.5KG. Not bad, considering the small amount of exercise I have been doing. Still anything is better than nothing.

Can I beat this total next week....tune in to see ;)

Measurements are:
Waist: 108cm (42.2 inches)
Chest: 111cm (43.5 inches)

For breakfast I have a Chocolate flavoured meal replacement shake and jump on the exercise bike for 10 minutes.

Lunch is a Vanilla Kate Morgan sachet and for dinner I have Choc Orange shake.

After dinner I go do my 40 minute walk at the local park. Will try to step up my exercise this week ...... starting tomorrow! Think I will start doing some weights to tone those man-boobs!

Weight Loss Blog end of week wrap up

Weight Loss Blog - Day 7

It's Sunday already and it has gone quite quick. The first few days were a bit difficult but now it's smooth sailing.

Today I forgot to weight in when I got up. I only remembered after breakfast! So I opt to weigh and measure just before lunch.

Speaking of breakfast, I had a different type of meal replacement this morning. It's still a Kate Morgan meal replacement, but it is in cereal form, it kind of looks like porridge when mixed with water.

It has a little more fat content in it than the shakes, but I only plan to have the cereals as a one off every week. The cereal meal replacement I have is cinnamon flavour, it's quite nice!

I weigh in at 91.1KG. Only 0.2KG off yesterday but not bad considering I have a belly full of cereal! My measurements are:

Waist: 109.5cm (42.9 inches)
Chest 111 cm (43.5 inches)

Same as yesterday.

For lunch I have a Pina Colada meal replacement shake and for dinner I have a Cappuccino shake for dinner.

I haven't done any exercise up until now but sneak in a 10 minute exercise bike ride and 50 crunches before finishing this blog post.

Picture results tomorrow morning! Yes, sorry you will have to see my flabby stomach again. Hopefully it will look a little smaller from last Monday.

My daily nutrition for Weight Loss

Today's post I thought I might give you a run down of the nutrition I am getting from my Kate Morgan meal replacement sachets.

	Average per sachet	Average per day
Energy	872 Kj	2626 Kj
Protien	17.2 g	51.6 g
Fat - Total	2.2 g	6.6 g
Fat - Saturated	1.0 g	3.0 g
Carbohydrate	29.3 g	87.9 g
Fat - Sugars	24.1 g	72.3 g
Sodium	184 mg	552 mg
Potassium	460 mg	1380 mg
Vitamin A	192 ug	575 ug
Thiamin (Vitamin B1)	0.3 mg	0.9 mg
Riboflavin (Vitamin B2)	0.6 mg	1.8 mg
Niacin	2.6 mg	7.8 g
Folate	52 ug	156 ug
Vitamin B6	0.4 mg	1.2 mg
Vitamin B12	1.0 ug	3.0 ug
Vitamin C	10 mg	30 mg
Vitamin D	2.6 ug	7.8 ug
Vitamin E	2.6 mg	7.8 mg
Calcium	400 mg	1200 mg
Iron	3.1 mg	9.3 mg
Iodine	38 ug	114 ug
Magnesium	82 mg	246 mg
Phosphorus	299 mg	897 mg
Zinc	3.0 mg	9.0 mg

Don't know what half of this stuff means but it is working wonders!

Weight Loss Blog - Day 6

An awesome result today. I weigh in at 91.3KG, a weight loss of 1.1KG. That's a total loss 5.2KG over the 6 days. Measurements are:

Waist: 109.5cm (42.9 inches)
Chest: 111cm (43.5 inches)

I am stating to notice the change, now that my gut is slightly smaller than my chest. One thing I have also been getting are pimples! Not many, but I put that down to all the crap and toxins leaving my body. Mental note: Next time I grab some more sachets from the pharmacy, grab some Clearasil!

I have a Choc Orange Meal replacement shake for breakfast. I don't do my usual 10 minute bike ride this morning, opting to sleep as it is Saturday, but do it later on in the day.

Lunch is a cappuccino flavour shake and for dinner I have a berry shake.

Did 20 minutes of riding on the exercise bike, but other than that it has been a light day, exercise wise.

Kind of feel like a beer ..... Lucky there are none in the fridge.

Weight Loss Blog update

Weight Loss Blog - Day 5

Just a short update for tonight as my power has been off for the last hour and a half. The whole street has no power due to some trees falling on power lines due to the strong wind.

The only exercise I managed to squeeze in today was my 10 minute bike ride in the morning.

Weighed in at 92.4KG, losing another 0.5KG aver the 24 hours! Measurements were:

Waist: 110cm (43 inches)
Chest: 111cm (43.5 inches)

Breakfast: Berry flavoured Kate Morgan shake
Lunch: Butterscotch flavoured Kate Morgan shake
Dinner: Pine Lime flavoured Kate Morgan shake

4 Top Tips for Weight Loss while dieting

Here are 4 top tips that are really helping me with my weight loss journey that are quite easy to apply to increase your chances of success.

1. Never go shopping hungry. We've all done that right? You go down the shops to get one item and return with a bag stacked with snacks! My worst vice are Salt & Vinegar Pringles. It's true what they say, "Once you pop, you can't stop". Try to shop after you have had your dinner and avoid the snack isles.
2. Change your routine. We are creatures of habit. If you change your diet, you should also look at changing your daily routine as well. For example, this week I have been filling up my petrol at a different petrol station, as the regular place I go to I know where all of my favourite snacks are kept. I can walk in there on auto-pilot and manage to come out with a coffee flavoured milk and a Snickers bar! Also, maybe avoid driving past your favourite takeaway restaurants. Take away the temptation and dieting will be much easier for you.
3. Avoid dinner time television. Prime time television is loaded with fast food ads. Last night I observed a KFC commercial, followed by a Pizza Hut commercial, then followed by yet another KFC commercial.... it kinda made me hungry! Off topic, but the other day at the pharmacy I observed a young boy with his mother purchasing some over the counter medicines. All of a sudden the boy starts pointing at something on the shelf. "Mummy, that's Robitussin .... off the commercial ..... it's good for coughs!". The kid was only about 5! If a Cough syrup commercial can affect a child that young, I would hate to see his reaction to a McDonalds sign!
4. Drink plenty of water. Water is a natural appetite suppressant. So if you are a soft drink drinker, make the switch today.
   

Weight Loss Blog - Day 4

It was tough getting out of bed today also. Not such an impressive result on the scales today only 0.2KG, weighing in at 92.9KG. Still a loss is a loss and I am still heading in the right direction. Measurements today are:

Waist: 110.5cm (43.2 inches)
Chest: 111cm (43.5 inches)

I am running out of different flavours to try so I have a Kate Morgan Cappuccino shake. The cappuccino one is great for mornings like this when I need a bit of a pick me up.

I get a good 10 minutes of riding on the exercise bike, then have a soak in the bath. At this time I make the wise choice to skip doing crunches tonight, opting for light hand weight instead.

While at work, at lunch I had a Chocolate meal replacement shake. Bugger! I forgot my shaker this morning, but am able to purchase one close by.

For dinner, I have another Cappuccino sachet. I could survive on the flavour alone, it has a real coffee kick unlike some other meal replacements that claim to be coffee, that I have tried in the past.

After dinner I go for a 40 minute walk around the park down the road. It is a great place to walk because the area is quite hilly, with lots of ups and downs to get a great workout.

Tonight I will let my tummy recover, avoiding crunches and doing some light hand weights while watching the AFL footy show.

Over 1KG weight loss each day!

Weight Loss Blog - Day 3

It was tough getting out of bed this morning. I slept in till 6:30AM then jumped on the scales.

93.1 KG! Wow that's an additional loss of 1.9KG, making my total loss 3.4KG. Although I haven't noticed any dramatic results in the mirror, I am looking forward to putting up some new pictures of my fat gut on Monday to see the difference. My measurements were:

Waist: 112cm (43.9 inches)
Chest: 111cm (43.6 inches)

My stomach feels like someone has kicked it from the 100 crunches I did last night. For breakfast I mix up a Vanilla Kate Morgan shake.

After breakfast, it's on to the exercise bike for 10 minutes (it felt like 30 minutes!).

At lunch time I had a Banana flavoured meal replacement sachet. It tasted like a banana paddlepop ice cream (if they still exist!). This flavour has become my new favourite!

For dinner I had a Berry sachet. Not bad, I think I am over the hunger thing. It is the end of day three and I don't feel the need to walk over, open the fridge and stare into it for a few minutes.

After dinner I went for a short walk to the shops and back due to the crappy weather (30 minutes). Think I may do another 100 crunches and crawl to bed ;)

Jezhug's Weight Loss Challenge

Weight Loss Blog - Day 2

Got up early again and weighed in. 95Kg ..... That's an overnight loss of 1.5Kg! A great result, but it's still early days. Today's measurements were:

Waist: 114cm (44.6 inches)
Chest: 111cm (43.6 inches)

For breaky I had a Choc Orange Kate Morgan meal replacement shake then jumped on the excerse bike for 10 minutes. My legs are a little sorer today, but I should be able to push past this in a few days.

One thing I can say about meal replacements these days is there is so much variety! The first few days I will try all the flavours and then stock up on my favourites. Years ago I had some success using the Optifast meal replacement sachets (or Modifast as it was called at the time). Back then I had the choice of Chocolate and Vanilla and half the time the powder would clump up almost choking you in the process of drinking it. Let me tell you, meal replacement sachets have come a long way!

There are plenty of meal replacement programs in my area such as Tony Ferguson and Celebrity Slim available from the local pharmacies. I chose Kate Morgan for price and location. They also have cereals and bars too, which I might have to try closer to the finish line.

I had a Pine Lime sachet for lunch. I thought it would be the exact same as the Pina Colada one I had yesterday, but it was quite different and had to make a mental note to get a few more of this flavour.

After getting home from work I had a Butterscotch sachet, it was awesome.

Still a bit hungry, but I have been having a piece of extra chewing gum every now and then to take my mind of it. I have been drinking a lot of water but decided to get some soda water and low joule lemon cordial. This is as close to soft drink I will be having this month.

I walked down to the local supermarket to get my drinks and walked back, getting a good half an hour of walking in.

Time to do some crunches. I leave this blog post with the promise of 100 crunches! what better way to make this flabby tummy disappear.

Mission to lose weight!

Weight Loss Blog - Day 1

OK, so I have been throwing this idea around in my head for a few days now. I have decided to try to survive on meal replacement shakes for the next month and share my experiences via this blog.

I have been putting off weighing myself the last two weeks as I have been on holidays, and while I know I have stacked on a few kilos, I wasn't quite ready for a reality check just yet.

I jumped on the scales this morning..... man, have I let my self go, weighing in at 96.5Kg.

My goal is to lose around 10Kg over the month. I will mainly be having Kate Morgan meal replacement sachets in place of meals. There may be a few times I will go off track, but by documenting my results daily on this blog it will give me more motivation.

This isn't an easy thing for me to do, I am quite shy and the thought of placing picture of my flabby stomach on the internet is quite a scary thought. But, by doing this I will not only motivate myself, I will also feel obligated to keep on the right track.

I don't really know what has thrown me into this kind of mindset? Maybe it was because I turned 30 at the end of last year and know I don't want to be attempting this challenge at 50! All I know is that lately, I have been setting myself goals and seeing them through. This will be no different.

Today's post is mainly laying down the ground rules I will set for myself. I plan to post to this blog daily and:

• Weigh/measure myself daily
• Record any food and drink I have
• Record any exercise I do
• Post progress pictures weekly

Last night I spoiled myself and splurged with fish and chips for dinner. Just typing about this is making my mouth water, so I better move on and fill you in on my day.

I got up earlier than normal today, 6AM..... no surprise really as on my holidays I was getting up at the crack of noon! Weighed in at 96.5Kg and jumped straight on the exercise bike. My legs wanted to give up after a minute, but I managed to stick it out for 10 minutes.

I also measured my waist and chest.
Waist: 115cm (45.2 inches)
Chest: 111cm (43.6 inches)

Breakfast was my Pina Colada Kate Morgan shake...... Yum, pineappley!

I took a Cappuccino flavoured sachet in for lunch as I normally like to grab a Rush Latte flavoured milk at lunch time. Still not hungry!

The drive home from work was a different story. I turned the radio up so I couldn't hear my stomachs groans for food. It's funny how you don't notice how many fast food places are around until you go on a diet!

I tuck into a Choc Mint Kate Morgan sachet for dinned ..... that's better. Until look over at my girlfriends plate of Spaghetti Bolognaise.

After dinner we went for a 40 minute walk around the park down the road, then came back and got to work blogging!

Here are the starting pictures from this morning which I hope by the end of this project I can show off a much slimmer me. Warning these pictures may disturb some people ;)

This man is a dentist, so we can't show you his face....
Not really, just a bit shy.

Now the first picture is what I see when I brush my teeth in the morning, not so bad until I catch a side-on view of myself in the mirror!

Well that's enough for tonight, feel free to leave a comment below if you have any good exercise tips.