Tomorrow is the big day, and I'm feeling sick with worry at the moment. In 12 hours we will be at the vets, and he'll be having his pre-med. We're staying with him until the operation starts, but we won't be able to see him then until he's come round. I'm not very thrilled with that, but the only alternative was the 3 hour each way journey to my old vet. So ...

I don't know what to write really. I feel like I've lost most of the last week. My life is on hold until this operation is over, and he's safely back home. I've been walking and cycling and going to the gym and eating carefully as usual, but it all means nothing at the moment. Hopefully, by the end of this week, I'll be able to care about losing weight again rather than just going through the motions.

Thank you to everyone who has left messages of support here. It means more to me than I can possibly put into words.

I really hope everything goes well with the surgery. I think that even though it's a different vet that's going to be doing it, I'm sure they're very skilled at what they do.

I think it's really good that you're still exercising and eating well while going through all this. Even though you don't really care about your weight at the moment, you're making the effort to do something about it anyways. I know once the surgery is over and everything is ok you'll get that drive back again!

Good luck with everything, I hope all goes well.

Thanks, Risty. Well, we're home already without the operation done. He had a blood test first, and the vet wasn't happy with the level of one of the enzymes in his liver. (He said it wasn't anything to worry about normally, but it slightly increased the risk of the anaesthetic.) So, we're going to wait two weeks and then do another blood test to see if things have improved.

I'm feeling a lot happier and a lot more relaxed now. Even though the operation has still got to happen, I feel like I'm getting to know the vet more. We took Sam back out to sit in the car while we were waiting for the results of the blood test, and the vet came out and sat in the car with us to go through it. He seems a nice man, and very thorough, so I think there's a bit of trust starting to build up there.

So, I'm quite happy at the moment. I've just got to work out how I'm going to explain to my new employer that I need a day off in my first week there!

It seems like ages since I last posted something weight loss related in this diary, but my head's a bit clearer now, so I'm able to think about what I'm doing again.

I went back to the gym today for the first time since the Thursday before Easter, and I felt really glad to be back. (I'll probably be spending less time there from now on because I'll be concentrating on getting myself fit for cycling, but it's good to know I haven't lost my gym motivation.) I used the rowing machine today, for the first time since my induction, and really enjoyed it. I'd spent my whole 20 minutes on the treadmill negotiating with myself about the bike-with-arms, which I wasn't looking forward to, and the result of my negotiation was 10 minutes on the bike and 10 on the rowing machine. It added a bit of variety and made the bike more bearable. And I continued the negotiation on the elliptical, where I really didn't want to do 20 minutes, but managed to convince myself because I had a new CD on, and kept saying to myself, "Just keep on to the end of this song, and see what comes on next." I could probably have kept going for hours like that.

I've decided (as discussed somewhere else on this forum) that I'm going to start cycling to work. It will be 9 miles each way, so I don't think there will be any need to do extra cardio once I'm doing that. I've been out a couple of times on my mountain bike to get in some practice, which I've enjoyed in a funny kind of way (the downhill parts, at least), and have found that I need a new bike. My poor old mountain bike is not going to be up to 90 mile weeks, and it isn't fast enough or comfortable enough to use every day. At the moment, I'm leaning towards a hybrid, but I've got more research and "trying out" to do yet.

And tomorrow is update day. I think the news (at least on the weight front) is going to be good.

Hi Alibran,
Cycling to work sounds like a great plan!!
Good for you for getting back to the gym - I can so relate to the talking yourself through the next song mentality! I'm always playing psych games in my head!

Hey, I'm glad you're feeling better about the vet. I think that with the vet showing concern and making the decision to wait may have helped. Personally I would see that as the vet really caring about the safety of my pet

I'm glad you get back to the gym I think that if you cycled to work that would be awesome! You definately wouldn't need to do extra cardio while doing that. Just make sure if you do that you have a good warm up before doing any weights.

Good luck on your bike research and finding the right bike for you!

Risty, I always do my resistance training before my cardio, so I won't need to do anything different as far as warming up is concerned. I usually do 10 minutes on the elliptical to make sure I'm warmed up properly, or 10 minutes on the bike-with-arms if all the ellipticals are taken.

And here's the big update .....

My beautiful boy has just got off my lap, where he's spent the last half hour purring and having a fuss made of him. Now he's curled up in his bed - sorry, one of his beds - (which is on my desk so I can easily stroke him while I'm at my computer) settling down to sleep, so I get a chance to type.

My update day has been very good. Weight is down to 150, which is so exciting. I've lost 2.3lb in the last week. (In case anyone is thinking this is rather a lot, my weight loss seems to vary from week to week. Since I started here 5 weeks ago, I've averaged 1.4lb a week lost, which I think is pretty sustainable.) I've also lost 0.5in off my bust, 1in off my waist, 1in off my hips (which I'm very happy about), and 0.5in off my thigh. All in a week. Wow!!

Since I'm now at 150, which is a bit of a milestone, I thought I'd start a record of my changing measurements here. I'll update them with every 10lb I lose.

So .....

Weight 157lb
Below bust 33in
Waist 34in
Hips 41in
Thigh 24.5in
Calf 16in
Arm (Top) 12.5in

Weight 150lb
Below bust 32in
Waist 32in
Hips 40in
Thigh 24in
Calf 16in
Arm (Top) 12.5in

I hadn't lost anything off my hips or thighs until this week, so I was so pleased to see the measurements this morning. And I'm still waiting to see a change in my calf and arm measurements, but those are smaller measurements so the changes will be smaller, and I'm only recording half inches. I've been driving L up the wall today, measuring her to get a comparison.

I think (although it's really hard to tell) I've gained some muscle. I know you're not supposed to be able to when you're in a deficit, but Steve has said it can happen when you first start doing resistance training. Some of the muscles I can see look bigger, and carrying logs round to the back of the house today was much easier than last time, so I've obviously got a lot stronger. I'm quite happy if I have gained some muscle. I have no plans to try to become muscular, but it would be nice to have some shape when the fat goes.

Hey, congrats on reaching 150 and losing those inches, that's awesome! I think your weight loss isn't too much at all, you're losing it at a good rate. You'll definately reach your goal in no time

I trimmed my hair today. (OK, so this isn't exactly the right place to be talking about hair, but it seems to be where I'm keeping my diary at the moment.) It's amazing how much more relaxed I am doing it myself. I took about 3 inches of the length, and got rid of all those nasty layers that have been hanging around since I started growing it. If any hairdresser had taken 3 inches off my length, they wouldn't have lived to tell the tale. I've still got a few splits, mostly in the layers that didn't quite get caught by the scissors, but I'll get those in my next trim in about 6 months time. I'll try not to cut 3 inches next time. I'd still like to grow a few inches longer, and that won't happen if I keep taking off all the new length.

I'm starting to think resistance training is good for my asthma. After I did my resistance training today, I got on the treadmill and did the exact same program as I did yesterday, and it was MUCH easier. Yesterday, I really struggled and thought I'd have to stop a few times (although I didn't). Today, I had enough breath to sing along with the music during the easier intervals (I was the only one in the gym at the time!) I've started doing bench press in my last couple of workouts, after that useless PT made me think I couldn't do it at first because she had it set too low and I couldn't lift it, and I wonder if that's making me "open up" my lungs somehow. I find I'm standing taller on the treadmill too.

It's all really good news at the moment. And I'm going to talk to the vet about just taking Sam back for his blood test in 10 days time, and putting off the mouth operation a bit. He doesn't seem to be bothered by his mouth (except when he bites someone, and he shouldn't be doing that anyway), and I start my new job soon, so I need to get settled in a bit before I take time off.

Sounds like you're doing awesome on your exercising. I'm glad that the resistance training is helping you in other ways (asthma, treadmill, etc) I think that's great.

By the way, how long is your hair?

Oh I'm glad to hear that life is becoming more settled! Building a relationship with your vet is a HUGE benefit!

Yes, life is starting to feel a bit easier now. I can't quite figure out why, really. I mean, Sam still has to have the operatoin, and now there may be something wrong with his liver as well, I start my new job in a week and we're just going to have enough money to last until then - I think - and when I start my job, I've got a bus test to get through before I become permanent. I feel like I should be pretty stressed, but I'm not. So, I shall just make the most of it

My hair is a tiny bit past my waist. (I could tell you the exact measurement, but that would make me sound really sad, lol.) I would like it to be hip length, and hopefully it will be there in a year or so. When I lived in London, there was someone I knew who was really tiny with beautiful long hair, and I always wanted hair like hers (I was really tiny myself at the time). Now I've got the long hair, and I'm working on being really tiny again!!

I'm glad you're feeling less stressed - it really is about accepting what comes, one at a time. You can get through anything that way

Your hair sounds lovely - every time I think about growing mine out, I get it whacked off! LOL!

I'm glad you're not feeling stressed out! That's the best way to handle things.

My hair is pretty long. I wish I hadn't layered it though, because now the sides are shorter and it's a pain trying to catch it back up to the rest of your hair. My hair is wavy and gets tangled so easy, so I have a problem with split ends. I don't really know what to do about it. I would love for my hair to be that long too, but there's always split ends and it just doesn't look so nice. The back of my hair being the longest is almost down at my waist, but I need a trim and badly. If you have any tips about split ends I'd really like to know, thanks!

I could tell you loads about hair care. I lived it for about a year while I was going through the most difficult growing out stage. I was as obsessive about growing my hair then as I am about losing weight and getting fit now. This is the forum that saved me from cutting: Long Hair Community. You'll find pictures of the most stunning hair you've ever seen, which is how I was so inspired to stick at it.

My approach is no blowdrying, no straightening, no colouring. (I use natural, plant based dyes.) I also wash at the most twice a week, don't use shampoo, do an ACV (apple cider vinegar) rinse every time I wash - if you ever think of trying this DO NOT use it neat, read up on it first! - and wear my hair either in braids or buns most of the time to protect it. I save wearing it loose for when I go out somewhere nice. It sounds high maintenance when put like that, but it's completely the opposite really. I just wish losing weight was as easy as growing hair!

Anyway, I smell food (it's L's turn to cook tonight), so I think it's time I turned the computer off. We're having vegetarian chilli tonight, and it smells delicious - and only 400 calories