Port Macquarie

Monday:

I think I'll save this morning's weigh-in until the end...

We spent last week at Port Macquarie on holiday. We hadn't been there before, but had to find something at short notice as we weren't sure which week Tim could take off work and our usual places were booked out. Actually we haven't been away longer than a weekend since moving to Sydney nearly three years ago! Installing the pool took all our money and attention. Port Macquarie is four and a half hours away (plus stops for lunch etc), north of Sydney, just far enough that it doesn't book out as quickly as the closer tourist spots. Population of about 45,000. It was lovely! We were so lucky with the weather too, 23C nearly every day - in the middle of winter! - clear and sunny.

Sorry a lot of the photos are so glary, the sun was so bright! The beaches were really interesting, lovely golden sand with outcroppings of sculptural rocks.

On the first day we went for a long walk, two and a half hours (there and back) along the beaches and through little sections of bushland. We could see the spouting and splashing of whales not too far out. We got as far as the rainforest café but I was too tired to face the rainforest walk, we had lunch and walked back. I was exhausted!

The kids and Tim collected 'staves of power' - walking sticks that they retained for the whole holiday. I think there was the Staff of Awesomeness, the Staff of Light and Dark, and the Staff of Art. I had a 'poking stick' on the first day but preferred to walk unencumbered.

The kids had a dip in the hotel's heated pool in the afternoon - very brave of them as 'heated' barely took the chill off. There were plenty of other children in with them. The adults wisely all sat in deck chairs and stayed warm.

There were several restaurants within walk of the hotel or else we drove five minutes into town. The food was really good everywhere, hardly a disappointing meal. I had dessert most nights but usually shared with Jasmine. We bought some supplies and had breakfast in our rooms most days. Also plenty of snacks - like the Haagen-Dazs ice cream!

On the second day we drove back to the rainforest area and walked around the 1.3 km raised boardwalk, it wasn't very inspiring. Just scrubby Australian bushland in winter. We weren't far enough north for the pretty stuff. We went into town for lunch and walked along the shoreline, there was a long series of rocks painted by locals and/or tourists - often recording visits to the area. One had dates every year back to 1993.

Later the kids played on the beach opposite our hotel, sandcastles and gymnastics and paddling freezing feet in the ocean. I perched on one of the rocks and enjoyed the fresh sea air.

The third day started cloudy so we went to mini golf - the clouds cleared pretty quickly and I wished I'd taken my hat! Another bright sunny day.

I had slept really well the first night but then had two bad nights so had an awful headache. Tim thought it might be withdrawal (from Duromine/phentermine) but that didn't seem likely to me since it had been more than a week since I'd taken any. Wouldn't withdrawal happen sooner? I slept fine after that so it was only one bad/grumpy day. 

More beach play in the afternoon, and into town for dinner where we found this wall. My angel daughter:

Saturday was the only colder day, max of about 17C. In the chilly morning we had a good walk along the shore in town, and went to the two (very small) local art galleries. Many buildings had these weird graffitied koala statues in front of them - the rainforest walk had several. I checked the website and there are 62 in all, every one painted differently by a local artist as a sculpture project to celebrate the iconic Australian animal.

We thought about going horse riding, or to a movie, but ended up deciding to go whale watching in a boat. In terms of seeing whales up close, it was amazing. We zoomed out to where two 10-metre long humpback whales were dawdling along, they head north this time of year to warmer waters to have their babies before heading back to the chilly south for better feeding. One did some lovely water dancing for us.

Well, actually all the splashing was not for our benefit. The guide explained that all the breaching and tail slapping is by the females to summon the males. And it worked! In about 20 minutes we had six or seven arrive, with dolphins who apparently like to ride the bow waves in front of the whale's snouts (noses?), jostling for position. They were all around and under the boat. 

Unfortunately by that point Jasmine and I were in no position to enjoy or even watch what was going on. The sea wasn't particularly rough but it was a small boat (12 passengers) which rolled and yawed a lot as we putted along keeping alongside the whales, so by then Jasmine and I were both miserable with seasickness and making use of the bags provided. Urg. At least I had been ok for the first bit, I think poor Jasmine was slightly queasy right from the start and it just got worse and worse. She never got out of her seat. The last half hour was horrible for us both. 

Also it was freezing cold out on the open water, even in the heavy waterproof ponchos provided, and I was terrified when we were going fast to and from the whale area (I am not good with speed or heights/depths) especially when the driver put in a few extra zips and curves for fun. So overall I was very glad to get back to land! I felt ok as soon as my legs stopped trembling. At least Tim and Aiden had a great time. And we certainly saw some whales!

On our final morning we had breakfast at a café right on our beach.

Then we went back to a little tea shop where I'd fallen in love with this cute set the day before - you can't tell in the photo but it is impractically tiny - the teapot probably holds one normal cup full and the six cups each hold a mouthful! But fun for sipping the choc-mint tea we bought there. I just had to have it. There is a teeny goldfish in the bottom of each cup, revealed as you drink. I plan to bring it out as a joke, next time I serve visitors cups of tea. Or they might be a good size for nuts, blueberries or other small foods.

Finally the long drive home. It was a great holiday, but I do love home! And my own bed.

Tim is back at work today, the kids return to school tomorrow.

So this morning I weighed 73.2 kg - up 1.7 kg from last week. No surprise there! I did a lot of eating over the past week. Lots of walking, too, but not enough to offset the calories. I'm back on Duromine today, hopefully the break of over a week will help trigger a reset so it works for me again.

I received my TAFE transcript in the mail, it's not my actual Diploma but it says I've passed everything (which I knew of course) so at least I have proof I can show potential employers. Still hoping to hear from that 'perfect job' this week and get an interview.

Back on

Thursday:

I went to my doctor on Tuesday after my haircut and got another script for Duromine, so you'll have to ignore what I said before about waiting a much longer time before trying it again! I was getting frustrated with my inability to lose weight without it.

Brief summary of Duromine history (all dates are Mondays which don't 100% match with actual start and end dates but Monday is my weigh day:

Start 16/08/17: 84.7 kg, waist 102 cm (waist not measured until a week later so might have been more)
After 3 months 13/11/17: 75.1 kg, waist 97 cm.

Loss of 9.6 kg and 5 cm off waist. Minimal side effects but didn't seem to be working much by the end of the three months. Delighted with result. Felt so much happier in my body.

More or less maintained over 2 month break including Christmas period.

Restart 01/01/18: 75.4 kg, waist 97 cm
After 1 month 05/02/18: 72.6 kg, waist 96 cm

Loss of 1.8 kg, 1 cm from waist. Much stronger side effects including nausea and extremely dry mouth. Also dizziness but my doctor thinks that is my low blood pressure and the flu not the Duromine, and it continued after I stopped the medication while I had the flu. The side effects didn't seem worth the relatively small weight loss so I didn't ask for a repeat prescription.

This Monday, 05/03/18: 74.9 kg, waist 97 cm, hips 107 cm, bust 101 cm.
Regain of 1.3 kg and 1 cm on waist, most of what I'd lost in January.

The doctors at my clinic rotate every six months or so, I once tried going elsewhere to get continuity of care but didn't like the doctor who looked at my high blood sugar and obesity and basically said 'you're fine'. So I went back to this place. I have liked every single one of the doctors I've seen here over the past two and a half years (five of them I guess!) and this new one is the nicest yet! There had been a change since I last went. They are all young, female, straight from medical school I think and this is part of their work experience, up to date with new information and keen as mustard. Not much experience though. (There is also a experienced male doctor continuously there but I like to see a female.) Anyway, she gave me a month of Duromine (have to see her again before I get repeats) and wants me to get down to 65 kg which means losing another 10 kg, but she didn't just hand me the script. We talked about weight loss strategies for now and in the future when I'm no longer on Duromine, and somehow I found her more motivating that other people who have probably said the exact same thing. Probably a combination of her charisma and attitude and my own mental state. Things like restricting treats to weekends, exercising more, reducing portions, drinking more water, all stuff I know but don't always do. She wants to see me again in a couple of weeks.

Yesterday I started taking it again (have to take it early in the morning) and felt energised and appetite-suppressed all day. I foolishly read a book on the train on my way home from the city, which can give me motion sickness at the best of times, and got a bit nauseated which took a couple of hours to subside even after I got home. I had 2 fruits and 5 vegetables and some lean protein, small amount of fat, ten glasses of water. Excellent day. Nearly an hour of brisk walking, made up the last four minutes jogging up and down stairs at home because I wanted to hit an hour of exercise.

I slept poorly last night, just lay there wide awake quite a bit. Also had to get up five times to pee! Probably got four good hours of sleep. That's fine, I know it will take only a couple of nights to resolve then hopefully I'll sleep really well like I have in the past.

A little bit nauseated all day, dry mouth but not unbearably so like last time. I really hope the nausea passes soon. I keep burping (and feel better) so I seem to be creating gas in my stomach? I did 60 mins dance this morning and went for a 30 min walk in the afternoon. Tired now - that is a lot for me! Eating was good.

Party

Saturday:

We did some gardening in the morning, and while Tim was digging out yet more tree roots he found that they were attached to a big tree stump under the ground! When we had the land cleared for the pool, several large trees had to be removed, and they ground the stumps down but only to 20cm below ground level (I think). I had to get someone to come and completely remove one stump that was in the way of pool construction, but this one was left. We'll just plant around it. It will rot down eventually. In fifty years or something.

We had a lovely swim in the afternoon. With the heater only on for a day and a half in was still a bit cool in the water but you got used to it. Lovely hot day. The weight I've lost makes a big difference to how I feel in my swimming cossie. We're going to work hard on the garden this week while we're all on holidays and then have a pool party the next hot weekend.

In the evening we went to a birthday party, one of Tim's lesser-known cousins. It was a 1920's theme, some people really dressed up but we just wore our best approximation of flapper fashion from what we had. The party was fine but the food was awful! It was dinner time, there wasn't a sit down meal but plenty of finger food, little pies and mini quiches and deep fried stuff etc. Unfortunately, as well as all being terribly unhealthy it was all cheap inedible frozen food bulk purchased, that none of my finicky household could eat. Even the pre-sliced cheese was horrible. On the other hand, the dessert table was magnificent! I had to have something (not home til late) so my dinner was a spring roll, a couple of handfuls of chips and some petite fours. The macarons were delicious. I'm sure I had plenty of calories but I didn't feel like I'd eaten a single nutrient. Oh, except one fresh raspberry that I ate off a little tart then threw the tart away.

I did take a Duromine tablet in the morning after only one day off, no nausea all day. Tim and I are both having some hay fever symptoms so I don't know if that was affecting the queasiness. Either way, hopefully that has passed. I've been eating too many calories for much of the week and I weigh the same today as I did Monday. Only one more day to see some kind of a loss this week.

Exams

Friday:

I've had two oral examinations in the past two days (I mean one-on-one exams with a teacher, not dental work) and I was so nervous. I don't mind written exams, but having a teacher stare at you waiting for the specific answer they need... you never get used to that, even at my age.

I had one role-play in class (I'm the librarian, the teacher is a customer with a research request), we did a practice last week and I was a bit awkward so I practiced all week - thought up scenarios and went over and over everything I needed to say. And I nailed it! I remembered everything, spoke smoothly, friendly yet professional, my teacher said I was excellent. All the rehearsing paid off!

Then I had a weird one today over the phone while at home, for one of my online subjects. I was given some brief scenario notes but wasn't very clear on what was going to happen, so I didn't get to do any specific practice (except making sure I knew the course content, obviously). The teacher half-heartedly pretended to be a customer for part of it but mainly just asked me questions. I did stumble on one bit that I didn't know - until the teacher gave me a hint that I wasn't supposed to know how to do that bit (being only a junior nobody in the library) so I reassured the 'client' that I would get the problem solved and said I would refer it to a more senior staff member and follow up to make sure it was done. I think I did pretty well overall, certainly passed, maybe not quite as 'star pupil' as the other one but good.

Now I have four assignments to finish over the two weeks holiday, and a tricky written exam first week back that I need to study for. But I'm going to take a proper break from study over this weekend before I start on those. I need a rest.

I've had a bit of nausea on and off since I started Duromine, only mild after the first couple of days and I was prepared to put up with it. But the past three days were really bad, strong nausea for a lot of the day. I'd do a huge burp and feel a bit better but it would soon be back. Very unpleasant. It may have been exacerbated by stress, and Tim did have nausea when we all had the flu a couple of weeks back, but I think probably the Duromine. I don't know why it suddenly got bad. For most people it's the other way round - you can start with bad side effects but they reduce or go away completely after a while. I decided to stop taking it for a day or two and see how that goes, I didn't take one today. On the forums, some people had success with reducing side effects by taking a little break. I hope it works, I don't want to stop Duromine yet as I've been having good results, but the nausea was too much. Also, while nauseated I was nibbling dry carbs to settle my stomach so I wasn't sticking to my healthy diet anyway - and I certainly wasn't exercising - so it was kind of defeating the purpose.

Today I wasn't as bad, but still felt queasy straight after breakfast, and then again in the afternoon when I hadn't eaten for about three hours but worse after I did eat... I'm not seeing any pattern. I had a little nap in the afternoon.

I didn't notice being any hungrier today, but there was a psychological difference. A little voice whispering "You didn't take an appetite suppressant today, so obviously you're not 'on a diet', so why don't you just eat some junk food even if you don't really want it?" Shut up, annoying voice, I'm not listening!

Tomorrow is going to be really hot, so I've put the pool heater on today to warm up the water again and we can swim tomorrow! It will be a nice start to the school holidays.

Pork crackling

Saturday:

Last night I tried a new recipe, pulled pork. I thought it would be quite healthy (hah!) as there was no added fat at all, the marinade was orange and lime juice with about eight different herbs and spices. I just left out the salt. It had its three hours of slow cooking and came out of the oven all falling-apart tender.

So I started to pull it apart with forks. I had bought tortillas for the others, I was having mine wrapped in lettuce leaves. There were some crunchy overcooked bits around the edges, so I ate those as I worked. Delicious. And the crackling. It was on the top after the last turn in the juices so it was all nice and crispy. So I nibbled at that too. Just a bit here and a bit there. But the "pulling" process took longer than I expected and there was very little of the crackling left when I was done. I discarded all the semi-dissolved fat that was under the crackling.

You were supposed to strain off the fat and toss the remaining juices back in with the shredded pork, but I seemed to have only fat left in the pan. Indeed, when it congealed later it was all fat. So I didn't use that. The shredded pork looked pretty good. But I was feeling oddly full. And then I bit down on a whole clove. I know some people used to chew then to freshen breath or something, but I found it revolting. I really struggled not to throw up as I tried to scrape it out of my back teeth. Really horrid taste.

I at with the kids and had one tiny lettuce leaf wrap and I was done. Very full. And still a bit nauseous. As the evening went on I felt more and more queasy. I had a shot of Cointreau (orange liqueur) to settle my stomach and it helped a bit.

This morning I felt much better, although the smell of pork fat lingering in the kitchen still turned my stomach. I had a slice of watermelon and a cup of tea for breakfast. Now I feel truly nauseated. I've been fighting it all morning. Some dry rice crackers (not on my pre-diabetes approved list, but good for nausea) have helped a little but I still feel sick. I'm not longer sure it is just from too much crackling. Would the effects of that last so long? Maybe I'm actually sick.

That was a longer story about me feeling sick than I had planned!

Would pulled pork still turn out tender if I removed all skin and fat before I cooked it?