BEFOREAFTERWere you very
overweight?
I’m not a big bloke, really;
I’m about 1.75m tall and
I was about 95kg, so not
huge. But I’ve always
been self-conscious
about my pot belly and I
didn’t like people calling
me ‘Big Gazza’. I spent
years dieting and I’d get
to 88kg, but could never
maintain it. The pot
was always there and my fasting
BGLs were always a bit high. I’ve
got a really sweet tooth. When
I start eating sweet things, I can
really get a run on, which isn’t
good. Lorraine used to say I was
like a rat scratching around the
cupboard at night, looking for
food. I can be a bit of a guts.How did you get a win?
I heard about the CSIRO Total
Wellbeing Diet and, when I did
the survey online, it said
I should do the diet for
cravers. It asked about
diabetes and they have
a diet for people with
prediabetes or type 2,
so I was surprised they
didn’t recommend that.
I signed up thinking it
would be great if I could
get to 85kg, but they
said I’d get to 76kg.
I thought, you’re joking.
But 12 weeks later I was
76kg and, more than a year later,
I’ve kept it off. I didn’t realise the
impact of that extra weight until I
lost it. I’ve lost that pot belly, but
also weight off my arms and legs.
And my BGLs are back healthy.
It’s the best $150 I’ve ever spent.What was the diet like?
It’s fairly common-sense and you
can eat a reasonable amount, so
it’s not about starving. It’s aboutlearning to eat healthy food in
moderation and maintaining
that. You can still eat bananas
and cheese, like a normal person.
To start I wasn’t sure about kale,
but I don’t mind it now. On
Thursdays they send you the next
week’s diet, which is helpful. We
print that out and get everything
we need from the supermarket.
Then, over the weekend we food
prep, like making a
batch of bircher muesli.
Lorraine does all the
cooking; you’ve got
to know your skill set- she cooks, I eat. But
the recipes are pretty
simple and tasty. For
breakfast I might have
porridge, lunch might
be a salad wrap with
a bit of chicken and
for dinner it might be
cauliflower, beans and
carrot with a little bit of melted
cheese and 100g of beef. Don’t
have to eat cardboard!
What made it different to
your normal diet?
It has made me think about
portion size. I’ve always been a
big eater – if you put it in front
of me, I’m going to eat it. But
after a while, I adjusted to eating
less. Now, if I have a big meal it’slike carrying a brick.
I’ve also learned to
wait a while before
eating; it’s okay to
feel a bit hungry. To
start with I had to
weigh everything to
get portions right.
But now, I know
what 22g of avocado
looks like and how
much chicken to
cut up, without
the skin. We’re also
eating a bigger
variety of vegies. Things like
leeks, beetroot and purple sweet
potato. We make baked chips out
of it and, oh wow! I don’t think
about takeaway food anymore;
I don’t feel like I’m missing out.Did you exercise too?
Yes, I did all the walking it
suggested, but not all the
exercises. I need to be careful
with my back, but some of the
balancing stuff was really great.
It’s a different way of exercising,
and fun. I’m leaning over and
balancing on one foot and feeling
a bit self-conscious – I’ll say to
Lorraine ‘I look like a jerk.’ But
in getting older it’s good. It’s not
about bulking up or lifting things.Are you still a craver?
Because I’m not hungry, I crave
less, but sometimes old habits
come back. I might have some
yoghurt after tea and Lorraine
says, ‘do you really need that?’
It’s good she does, because my
cravings haven’t completely gone.
But 90 per cent of the time I feel
good about my eating. I haven’t
had to take any medication for
my diabetes and my BGLs
are good now. I like
being smaller and
eating well. I don’t
W miss Big Gazza. ■
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my story: type 2
I didn’t
realise the
impact of
that extra
weight until
I lost it
diabetic living NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2019 119