‘Tired and unfit’ mum loses 27kg after her weight left her at risk of heart attack and stroke – this is exactly how she did it at 50
- Perth mum Judy Fallens was approaching her fifties feeling unfit and overweight
- She was shocked when she was put on medication for high blood pressure
- The moment was the ‘wake-up call’ she needed to turn her health around
- Judy has since cleaned up her diet, is exercising daily and off her medication
- Since the beginning of the year, she’s lost 27kg and dropped three dress sizes
An Australian mum has revealed how she dropped 27kg and stopped her high blood pressure medication after an alarming visit to the doctor gave her a health ‘wake up call’.
Judy Fallens, from Perth, was heading into her fifties feeling tired, unfit and overweight and was shocked after she walked out of a routine visit to the doctor with abnormally high blood pressure.
The visit was the jolt she needed to get her health back on track so with a close friend she started lightly exercising and cleaning up her diet until the kilos started to fall off.
Not even a year later, the mum-of-two has gone from a size 16 to an eight, is feeling better than ever, walking 6km every day and no longer needs to take her blood pressure medication.
Before and after: Judy Fallens (pictured) lost 27kg in less than a year by cleaning up her health after a scary visit to the doctor gave her a much-needed ‘wake-up call’
Judy, who has two sons Mitchell, 17 and Lachlan, 13, said she was active until she become ‘sedentary’ thanks to an an ankle injury and gradually started to put on weight over a span of eight years.
High blood pressure: What are the risks and causes?
High blood pressure is a major risk factor for chronic conditions including stroke, coronary heart disease, heart failure and chronic kidney disease.
About 21 per cent of high blood pressure burden in Australia in 2015 is due to a diet high in sodium—higher for men (23 per cent) than women (17 per cent).
In addition to high salt intake, other risk factors for high blood pressure include poor diet, obesity, excessive alcohol consumption and insufficient physical activity.
High blood pressure can be controlled with lifestyle measures and medication, reducing the risk of developing chronic conditions.
‘You just slowly start to accept it and I didn’t really realise how unfit and unhealthy I started to get until I went to the doctor,’ she told FEMAIL.
Judy’s doctor was taken aback at how high her blood pressure was after a routine check and words like ‘stroke, heart attack and diabetes’ were brought up.
‘It was quite shocking being diagnosed with high blood pressure – I hadn’t even known I was ill or suffering. You can’t feel high blood pressure and that’s the scary part.’
Judy, who runs a business from home with her husband Ed, said the doctor’s visit was the ‘wake-up call’ she needed to turn her life around and achieve her goal of being ‘fit and fifty’.
‘When I hit 50, I didn’t want to be unfit. This is worse than unfit,’ she said.
‘I thought this was the beginning of the end if I didn’t do something positive to turn it around.’
Judy had ‘no plan’ as to how she was going to start her journey to better health until late last year, just a few weeks after the fateful doctor’s visit, she heard about the 1:1 Diet from her beautician, Nicola.
She and her friend Christine, would visit Nicola every three weeks and see the results of the diet she was on for herself.
‘I could see how much weight she was losing and she was so excited about what she was doing,’ Judy said.
‘We walked away one day and said let’s ring up Michelle, the consultant. We sat down and listened to what she had to say about the plan and diet and started the very next day.’
The 1:1 Diet by Cambridge Weight Plan is a low calorie meal replacement diet that Judy combined with healthy dinners of protein and vegetables as well as regular exercise.
Judy started the 1:1 Diet which is a low-calorie meal replacement plan combined with healthy dinners of protein and vegetables as well as regular exercise
Five food to help maintain healthy blood pressure – and five to avoid
What to eat
What to avoid
Source: Heart Foundation
Judy is a self-confessed ‘fussy eater’ and was ‘hesitant’ about starting the diet but found it slotted in easily with her life and family.
A lover of Coke Zero and wine, which she had to cut out, Judy confessed she struggled at first but doing the diet alongside Christine to hold her accountable and seeing results kept her motivated to continue.
‘First week had a big loss was motivating and ‘I thought this could work’. I had consistent had losses there after,’ Judy said.
Judy and Christine starting exercising slowly together, going on walks and hikes until they were regularly trekking 6km every day.
Judy said she was delighted to go on a shopping spree to a buy a whole new wardrobe for her new size eight figure but it’s how she feels about herself that made the hard work worth it
Three months in Judy was 15kg lighter, walking everyday, off her blood pressure medication and feeling better than she had in the past 25 years.
As the weight kept coming off, Judy’s total loss hit 27kg and she was able to reduce the amount of meal replacements she was consuming.
‘I do five and two – during the week I still eat the plan food and protein and vegetables for dinner,’ she said.
‘On Friday nights, Saturday and Sunday, I’m able to eat what the family eats and the wine and treats and everything then come Monday morning I get straight back.’
Judy said she was delighted to go on a shopping spree to a buy a whole new wardrobe for her new size eight figure but it’s how she feels about herself that made the hard work worth it.
‘So many people kept telling me I looked so much happier,’ she said.
‘I never thought I was unhappy but when you stop doing things you used to enjoy you just need to make a change.’
Eight things you can do to improve blood pressure
1. Engage in regular physical activity
2. Stop smoking
3. Avoid unhealthy fats and foods high in salt –
§ People with high blood pressure should limit their salt intake to less than four grams per day (equivalent of less than one teaspoon of salt)
4. Incorporate fresh foods into your diet. Recommended intake: Five serves of vegetables and two serves of fruit every day
5. Maintain a healthy weight
6. Limit your alcohol intake to no more than two drinks per day for men, or one drink per day for women with high blood pressure
7. Seek help from a doctor who may prescribe blood pressure medicines
8. See your doctor regularly to have your blood pressure checked
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