Since Tracy began the programme, her blood pressure and blood sugar levels have now returned to normal (Pic: The Fast 800)
Fifty-seven-year-old Tracy Baker from Berkshire had been unhappy about her weight for a long time and always struggled to lose it. However, her high-stress corporate job just kept adding to it.
"Due to the amount of time spent on aeroplanes and in hotels, I was eating a lot of rich, unhealthy foods," she told the Daily Express. "I was working 12-hour days and I also wasn't doing any physical activity or looking after myself at all," Tracy added.
However, one trip for a normal health check-up revealed she was not just pre-diabetic but also had high blood pressure—both conditions that needed her to lose weight, pronto!
At five feet and one inch, Tracy weighed 101 kg, and her doctor said she was grossly overweight for her height. While she began taking blood pressure medication immediately, she re her lifestyle also had to change to reverse both blood pressure levels and pre-diabetes—along with the weight.
Tracy tried Dr. Michael Mosley’s The Fast 800 Programme
That is when Tracy took up Dr. Michael Mosley’s The Fast 800 Programme – but did proper research on the science behind the diet before she started. The programme's community-led focus and the support network available resonated with Tracy.
"I knew I was eating poorly and not exercising. I knew I had to make a very big change to my life because I was scared that if I didn’t do something drastic, it might have some serious long-term consequences," she added.
She consulted her doctor before starting the diet, as she was aware that calorie-restrictive food options do not necessarily work for everyone. She then signed up for a free seven-day trial and gave it all. Tracy admitted that, at times, she found the diet "a little challenging," but her strong will and family’s support saw her lose an impressive 3 kg in the first week alone.
How did The Fast 800 Programme work for Tracy?
Tracy said she totally cut off alcohol. "We’d noticed that during lockdown, our alcohol consumption had increased, along with the rest of the country. Cutting out alcohol was pretty easy for me, and I treated myself occasionally with zero-alcohol, gin and tonic,” she said.
The more weight Tracy lost, the more energy she had, and that is when she also began exercising and working out regularly. She took help from the programme’s regular exercise schedule at home before joining a local leisure centre and re-establishing her love of running and swimming.
She now regularly runs 10 km, swims twice or thrice a week, visits the gym once a week, and has taken up an aerobics class as well.
Weight loss brought Tracy's blood sugar and blood pressure to normal levels
Since she began the programme, Tracy’s blood pressure and blood sugar levels have now returned to normal. So far, she has lost 30 kg along with 30 per cent of her body weight. She is just 4 kg short of her target weight and has a healthy BMI.
What is the Fast 800 Programme?
Dr. Michael Mosely invented the popular Fast 800 Programme, which focuses on healthy eating—a strict 800-calorie, long-term regime along with exercises to help you lose weight in a healthy manner.
The Fast 800 Programme is a combination of intermittent fasting and a Mediterranean-style eating plan, with optional meal replacement shakes. According to studies, 800 calories is the magic number when it comes to successful dieting, as it is an amount high enough to be manageable but low enough to speed weight loss and trigger a range of desirable metabolic changes. The secret of this programme is that it is highly flexible; depending on your goals, you can choose how intensively you want to do it.
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