"I was 140kgs. I had been obese for the last 25 years of my life, and I couldn't remember what it was like to feel normal. I had high blood pressure and I had just been diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes Melletus.
My eating was out of control. I had to change my lifestyle. I made a goal to bring my weight back to normal.
At 54 years of age I did it. So can you."
Everything began in my brain:
1. Honest self-analysis
Situation at that time (140 kg overweight, high blood pressure, Type II Diabetes Mellitus); Doctor’s advise to change my lifestyle
2. What did I want to achieve/What were my expectations?
Loosing weight, getting fit, healthiness, better lifestyle, longer life
3. What could I achieve in which period of time?
I wanted to achieve sustainability by little progress step by step, not coming under mental pressure. The speed of my weight loss resulted on the change of my lifestyle, and my personal golden rule was and is: don't push your limits.
1. I banned all food with high sugar and fat content off my daily nutrition, e.g. Soft drinks, sweets, fatty sauces, junk food, breakfast cereals etc.
2. Moderate, intelligent eating. Weight loss is about 90% intelligent eating and 10% exercising.
3. Fruits, vegies and salads became a regular part of my daily nutrition
4. Red Meat once a week at the most, poultry once a week and fish two or three times a week.
5. I had 2 – 3 slices of my Herman Brot Low Carb Bread in different variations every day and created my own recipes.
1. I bought the right shoes and started walking, but not more than 1km per day in the beginning. I never went to my limits and finished the daily exercise always with the feeling: ”I could have done a bit more”. That was the best motivation to do it again the next day.
2. I increased my walking continuously over nine months up to seven to ten km per day, and my speed increased to 10 km per hour.
The way I did it was easy and not stressing me, and I had a lot of fun. Exercising was no longer something which had to be done, but something I wanted to do. Daily exercises to gently train the entire body, especially the heart muscle and supporting the metabolism. My exercises are still making me happy day by day.
Exercises and sports can be done in many different ways, like walking, jogging, running, push bike riding, swimming, playing tennis or soccer, or even visiting the Gym, whatever suits you. Whatever you do, do it in moderation and don’t go to your limits to stay motivated.
I clearly remember the day when I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes; my blood glucose was 17.5 at the time of my diagnosis. I was on medication for my heart. Additionally the doctor put me on medication for my high blood glucose levels. My weight was causing all of my health problems; I was around 140kg at the time of my diagnosis.
It was not that I had not tried to lose weight - on and off for years before I had tried but the weight came back faster than I lost it.
I knew that I had to change my life, but it still needed a lot of time to find the right path to my new life. The doctor made it clear that my condition was one that could only be helped with medication, but to cure it was solely up to me.
I tried so many alternatives; diet pills, soup diets, slimming drinks, meal replacements and supplements, etc. Nothing worked.
Finally I understood that no quick-fix would help me - I had to rebuild a healthy, natural lifestyle. The first step, and one of the hardest, was giving up sugar and fat. I was addicted to it in all forms; sweets, cakes, pastries, fatty foods and soft drink dominated my life. With the help of a nutritionist and my GP I started to change my diet to reflect a healthy lifestyle.
While I loved fruit, vegetables and salads, and certainly felt healthier eating them, they did not satisfy me the way that my old diet did. I needed something to fill the gap, and to keep me feeling full enough to not want to reach for those extra sweets after my meals.
Rice, pasta and potatoes are filling, but full of carbohydrates. Other breads not only had the carbohydrates but also a lot of sugar.
At the time I had been setting up a business to bring a Low carb, High Protein and Low GI bread into the Australian Market.
My bread suddenly changed from being my business to being my solution.
I turned myself into a guinea pig to test the health benefits of my bread. On paper it was perfect for me but I had to see and feel the results for myself.
The first thing I noticed was that it filled that gap. It filled my stomach where salad and vegetables couldn’t, and the fullness lasted much longer than the cheap unhealthy filler-foods of my old diet. I was satisfied at every meal because the bread gave me what my body needed; it gave me nutritional balance, it gave me the energy I needed for my daily exercises, it kept my blood glucose at a healthier level thanks to its low G.I, and it tasted great.
I ate it with nearly every meal, and found more and more ways to use my bread creatively, to incorporate more healthy foods and to enjoy healthy, clean eating.It was at this time in my journey that my friends and I, with a growing passion for the bread and for healthy eating, created our first set of recipes.
My transformation showed me that it is all about intelligent eating. Weight loss is 90% about what you eat, and 10% about exercise. You cannot drive a car without the right fuel just as you cannot move a body without intelligent eating.
My bread gives the human body what it needs to reach its optimum performance. Not just for me, but for other obese people, for diabetics, for vegetarians, for people looking to build muscle mass, or for any person who just wants the simple goal of living a healthy lifestyle.
This is the bread that saved my life.
October 18 2011
Diabetes newly diagnosed
I came to the doctor to report my symptoms, symptoms that came on overnight; dead hands, cramps in calves, sweet smelling urine, a stiff left shoulder, and heartburn…
Actions:
Prescription added: CARTIA TABLET 100mg 1 daily
Prescription added: DIABEX XR 500 TABLET 500mg 1 nocte
The doctor gave me clear advice that I had to change my lifestyle immediately. I was originally prescribed with 1 DIABEX tablet per night, but increased the dosage to 4 to keep my condition under control. In conjunction with my high blood pressure medication and heart burn tablets, I was taking a lot of pills per day.
November 1 2011
Blood Glucose: 17.5 (well beyond a healthy range of 3.6-6.0)
Between this medical report and the initiation of my new lifestyle in March 2013, I tried several other diets for weight loss, none of which I was able to maintain.
see my progress and read my story
Thursday May 29 2014
Doctors Statement:
“after Christian started the very healthy lifestyle he lost significant amount of weight” -Dr. Navid Hamedani, Beaudesert Family Practice
Blood Glucose: 4.2 (within a healthy range of 3.6-6.0)
This is the average blood glucose level I have maintained since December 2013, confirmed in May 2014 and revoking my original diagnosis.
I have officially beat diabetes.
Tuesday, 8th July 2014
A Current Affair - The new super bread >
Sunday, 6th July 2014
I finished the Gold Coast Airport Half Marathon today, in a better-than-expected time of 2hours and 18minutes.
I was surprised at how good I felt after I crossed the finish line; my body runs on premium fuel thanks to good nutrition, intelligent eating and the power boost of my bread. I paced myself well (maybe a bit too careful at the start) and reached the finish line with ease.
Thursday, 29th May 2014
It is official – I have beat Type 2 Diabetes!
This is fantastic news for me and the best reward for my change of lifestyle. At the time of my diagnosis I never thought that I would be feeling as fit and healthy as I do now.
Life is great!
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