Yahoo Lifestyle 
Doctor's words that made mum lose 35kg in 9 months: 'Shocked'
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Queensland mum of four Nikki Viljoen discovered her weight had peaked at 115kg.
So at a routine doctor's appointment, she decided to ask her GP for weight loss recommendations.
His response: “gastric sleeve surgery”.
Speaking with Yahoo Lifestyle, the 48-year-old recalls: “Initially, this shocked me! I knew over the years that I had gained weight - but I never thought it was THAT bad. So bad that my own doctor thought the best solution was to try surgery."
Nikki came to believe it was in her DNA to be overweight
“Being a mum of 4, I never made the time or effort for myself as I always put everyone before me," she says.
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“After having children I tried many diets, but they were always hard and very different to what my usual cravings were for. And so they just never lasted, as I felt like I had to give up so much delicious food to lose the weight.
“Despite feeling tired, sluggish and having little energy, I started accepting life being a bigger girl, and believed that it was in my DNA to be overweight.
“At the age of 40 I had to start blood pressure medication after a bit of a health scare where I ended up in hospital. At this stage I wasn’t too worried, as once again, both my parents have high blood pressure, so it’s all part of my DNA, right?”
Serious concerns about surgery recommendation
“When I cracked a silly joke with my GP, about a 'magic diet pill' and his advice was to get band surgery, I felt gutted and thought to myself ‘he must really think I’m in that category to get a very intense and serious surgery’.
“This really made me start to think long-term - where I will be in life if I don’t get help? What are the consequences of carrying this extra weight? Will I die from a heart attack?
“My eldest sister had the band surgery a few years ago, lost almost 50kgs, went to Thailand, got all her extra skin removed, and sadly she has gained all the weight back after old habits came to haunt her.
“This made me think that this surgery is not what I wanted and it was not a long-term solution for me, as I know how much I love food. I knew I had to look for something that I can do over a long period of time and maintain for life.”
How Nikki lost 35kg in 9 months
“Realising I didn’t want to do the gastric sleeve surgery, I was looking for another alternative. I had seen a TV ad for Lite n’ Easy and loved the simplicity of what looked like ‘normal’ food being delivered to my door."
So she decided to give it a try.
“After 9 months of eating well and picking up extra exercise like morning 8 kilometre walks, I managed to lose 35 kgs. Not only that, my doctor halved my high blood pressure medication - which is always a bonus,” says Nikki.
The healthiest and happiest at 50
“I recently turned 50 and I’ve never felt healthier or happier in my entire life," shares Nikki.
“My blood pressure medication has been dropped to a very low dosage. My cholesterol is healthy and normal. And, I’ve realised that it's not my DNA’s fault that I was overweight, only my bad eating habits.
“I now wake up everyday feeling full of energy and ready for the world.
"And I maintain my weight by still following Lite n’ Easy Monday to Friday, and on weekends I enjoy picnics or fish and chips on the beach with my family, not worrying about my weight."
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