Physical Changes apart from weight loss

[Aloha]

WOW I am asthmatic...We are burning of in the top end so there is a lot of smoke in the air...so I am not at my best at the moment....but congratulations on beating this awful disease....I've had it since I was 6 months old....I can't imagine life without my puffer....I too am on a preventer (flexitide)...When you weight the good and bad the good far outweighs the bad.....and I also read somewhere of loss of periods for some....that has got to be a good thing....LOL...if you aren't planning children at the moment....I would love that to happen to me....the only thing that would sort of bother me is if I lost my hair....I love my hair....but this is a good thread I love reading all the stories....thanks everyone for sharing your experiences...

ps: i had to laugh at scratching your whole back....now that's something to look forward too.

[Soon2BSlim]

I have to comment on other posts I've read about husbands also losing weight just by following a healthier eating plan while their wives/partners are eating strictly Cohen's. My husband is one of those, always skeptical when I'd start a new diet or "try again" to lose weight but after a month of me being on Cohen's and him seeing the weight falling off me and how easy it was he decided to eat similar to the way I'm eating, just not weighing food, and he's also lost a couple of kilos already!

That's got to be a benefit, , after all, what skinny chick wants to be stuck with an overweight couch potato?

Another thread I've been watching is the PCOS one. While I, thankfully, don't have PCOS it's great to read about the positive changes that sufferers are experiencing since being on Cohen's.

[R.T]

So far I have noticed the dark circles under my eyes have completely diminished. My knees do not feel sore any more and I can run up the stairs without getting out of breath. And this is just 2 weeks into the diet. So I am waiting for more things to happen and I know they will!!

[Cheral]

Hey Andy

I wish my bum had turned bonny like yours !!, mine has just become bloody boney !! I am finding it difficult to sit down for long periods if the chair isnt heavily padded.

Ive found the heartburn I have suffered for the past year, sometimes really bad chest pain that would keep me awake at night, has totally dissapeared. From about week 2, havent had one single bout of pain.

gotta love this diet....

[louise41]

Very interesting to read all the changes. I am looking forward to seeing some of these changes on myself. Last time I went on a similar program I noticed the improvement in my elbow. They had always been very dry and the skin really became soft! I also started waking early in the morning and believe me I am not a morning person. I started going for a bike ride before work - unheard of! I have just started and am getting headaches - did others notice that when they started?

Louise

[Annabelle Joy]

Most do get headaches at the beginning, Louise. It's part of the detox process. They should be gone in a couple of days.

AJ

[Cheral]

Yes, I had headaches for the first week or so, long gone now. Actually one downside, that I can only attribute to my eating habits now, is giddiness. I am finding that I needto get up slowly from bed, particularly if I have to get up in middle of the night. Also when I bend over or even sometimes get up from a chair. I hope this passes, will have my blood pressure checked next time I visit the doctor as this is often a sign of low blood pressure.

[Andy46]

The bony bum - I can take my pants off with out undoing the belt or clip or button - no matter how tight I can pull a two ring belt up - no bum at all now ------- women would kill for it ...........but hard to sit on a wooden chair for more than ten minutes or so .....numb numb numb.......but how good is it to be 70 kgs less than this time last year .......... Yep I'll take a bony bum and a hard chair any day ........ you just watch me !!!!!!!

ANDY

[louise41]

I notice that my stomache feels much more comfortable when I get rid of the flours from my diet and no feeling of being bloated which makes for a much more comfortable afternoon

[lynzir51]

Thanks to all of you for giving me such a laugh to start off the day and for pin-pointing some of the things I have experienced but had not realised they were happening as a result of the foodplan.
Also for listing the negatives which are much less of a concern when you understand that others are also going through it.
My list so far
- Joint pain gone.
- I think a reduction in migraines though still get them with a weather change (rain/storms/westerley wind) - probably not a lot I can do about those - it gets tiresome being a barometer but I'm darned good at it!!!!
- Down a shoe size (wasn't expecting this - have had to give my shoes away!)
- Boney bum - it's a bit disconcerting finding these bones and not entirely pleasant.
- Other bones I had forgotton I had - & how pleasant - hip bones, ribs, legs, ankles etc.
- Major reduction in fluid retention - I have ankles!!!!!
- A face shape - I used to wonder where my daughter got her pointy chin from - now I know!
- Losing that awful spare tyre - apples are for eating!! I don't even want to go into the gut spare tyre - I had even briefly considered surgery.
- Improvement in my dry eye/nose/mouth condition (some people believe may be linked to sugar so this improvement may support this position).
- Feeling so much better - had tried so many things and almost given up hope. I have actually lost weight with a long-term thyroid condition so can't use that as an excuse anymore!
- Peoples reactions to me - which makes me feel good and annoys me at the same time - I am the same person!
This Forum - being an insomniac, I now have people to play with at all hours of the night - thank you!

Negatives
Hair falling out - relieved to hear others experience it!
Constipation
Want my cappuccinos - black coffee doesn't do it!

[Annabelle Joy]

Evidence on this one is less than conclusive, but I visited the eye specialist today with an ongoing issue. Previous visit was about 15 months ago. He did a thorough check, including having me read the chart on the other side of the room, and a card in my hand. One of my eyes is shortsighted and the other is longsighted, and because of that I don't need to wear glasses. In each case I read the bottom line with no mistakes. I asked how I did last time, and apparently then I made a couple of mistakes on each. I thought I could see the lines better this time. He said that it's not uncommon for people to do better on their second visit, possibly because they are a little nervous the first time. I told him I thought it might be because of my diet and he was very interested, took down a lot of details about it.

AJ

[Soon2BSlim]

Wow! How cool is that AJ! I'm sure it must be the diet. I don't think we realise just how many aspects of our wellbeing centre around what we eat.

I have been wondering if I should post about a minor issue I've had, not sure if it's diet related although in my heart I think it is.

My issue was mild incontinence. As a fatter person I was aware of not always being able to control bladder leakage especially when coughing or sneezing (I know! How gross!) and I put it down to having had 4 children and getting older. HOWEVER, I have been noticing recently that it's no longer an issue! It may be a case of less fat pressing on the bladder but even if that's the case it's still diet related and I'm really happy it's gone!

Add to that, my nails are longer and stronger than they have ever been, even when I was pregnant! I normally have soft nails that I couldn't grow because they were always splitting or breaking but now they are strong and grow easily.

[Annabelle Joy]

Your issue is definitely likely to be the diet, SoonSlim. One of the problems of obesity is that our urinary tract muscles can't do their work properly, because when they tighten they have to work through the fat layer. If the fat is removed they can work as they are meant to.

AJ

[Soon2BSlim]

Thanks for your reply here AJ. I found your explanation very interesting as I would never have put incontinence and obesity together but it certainly makes sense.

Louise

[Soon2BSlim]

I think this needs a bump. I've been reading lots of diaries and seen a number of positive changes that people have experienced, it would be great if they could be posted here too. I didn't want to hijack people's diaries and copy their personal information here but maybe some who read this will be happy to post it again in this spot.

Also, for all the newbies and those wondering how their lives might change apart from "just" weight loss, I think this is a great place to start. It's a place to find mostly positives but a few negatives about losing weight on Cohens. I guess if we see it as the good Dr's medicine we may expect some side effects!

Thanks to everyone who has contributed so far. You rock!

Louise

[louise41]

One of the changes I have noticed is just how great I am feeling, a bit like Im on a natural high!

Louise

[ConnieK..]

My PCOS Changes

Ok well here's the results.

PCOS causes ( amongst other things ) low good cholesterol, High bad Cholesterol, high Triglycerides and reproductive hormone imbalances like excessively low SHBG and High FAI ( Free Androgen Index a calculation of testosterone to Sex Hormone Binding Globulin, which indicates the androgenous traits like hair growth and male pattern baldness).

When I was first diagnosed this was my results, compared to today:

SHBG: Then 14.1 (normal range 30-90) Today 53.0
FAI: Then 7.8 (Normal range 0.4-6.0, women preferrable < 3.0) Today 1.0

Cholesterol: Total then 6.6 ( Normal 3.9-5.5) Now 4.0
LDL Chol : then 2.8 (normal < 3.5) now 2.5
HDL Chol : then 0.7 (normal > 1.0) now 1.0
Triglycerides: then 2.4 (normal 0-2.0) now 1.1


Fasting Glucose Then: 5.5 (normal 3.1 - 6.0 preferrable under 5.0 with PCOS) Today 4.4

I AM ECSTATIC!!!!!!!!!!!!

Everything is normal ... my risk of type 2 is gone My Dr is amazed, he has referred 3 people to Cohens after seeing me last time. This is such a big thing for me ...... **dances happy dance**

Soooooo PCOS girls - the news is all Good!

Connie

[Kohinoor]

Ah Connie,

Everything is normal ... my risk of type 2 is gone My Dr is amazed

That is HUGE !!!

All of the numbers just "settling down" to Normal - would you have dared to hope for this when starting out?

That is just so awesome - I'm sitting here with a big silly grin on my face thinking of what that might mean for you - it's all good news ...



I am SO happy for you, darl

Koh

[sundaymorningstaple]

Way to go Connie!!!!!!

So it's pretty obvious my fantastic results were no fluke, how great is that.

Talk about being given a NEW YOU! You are a completely new person that you've never met before.

Congratulations.

The "New" Stallion

[Soon2BSlim]

That's fantastic news Connie. I'm SO pleased for you!!! I hope you don't mind if I do the happy dance with you WOW! That's really awesome!

And thanks for posting it here, I'm sure it will be one of the deciders, for others with PCOS, in choosing to follow the Cohen's route.

Woohoo!

Louise