.png?resize=380%2C285)
I was so excited! My long-term boyfriend had finally proposed and we were getting married. We’d been together for seven years and didn’t want to wait any longer. We set the date for three months away and I threw myself into preparations. I was determined to have the most amazing wedding ever, but was soon shocked by the cost of everything.
We were keeping things pretty simple but we’d already gone well over our budget and I was becoming increasingly stressed as I tried to hide our spiralling debt from my fiancé. During this time my fiancé was offered a job back in our hometown. He decided to take the job so we had to add moving costs to our growing debts.
My best friend and I went dress shopping and I found the wedding dress I wanted to wear. It was a gorgeous gown, long and white and elegant. It cost $4000 and although this was more than I wanted to pay, I’d fallen in love and just had to have it. I couldn’t even afford the minimum deposit but the sales assistant let me pay $100 if I promised to make regular weekly payments.
We were moving the following week and as we’d be staying with my parents for the first week and didn’t have a confirmed address yet, I gave the bridal shop the address of the place we would be moving out of. I figured I’d just change the address at a later date. I danced out of the shop, delighted with my dream dress.
The following week I went back to the shop to make my next payment before we moved away. I knew we’d be coming back often enough to make regular payments as we still had many friends in town. I looked out for the sales assistant who had helped me the week before but she didn’t seem to be there. The young girl behind the counter explained that she had just started at the job. I told her I was making a lay-by payment and gave her my name. She looked through her file for my card, all the while chatting about how excited she was to have started this new job. She pulled out my card and asked if I was making my final payment, seeing as there was only $100 left outstanding. She had obviously mixed up the amount I’d payed with what was owing. I froze as I realised her mistake. I felt terrible and knew I was doing the wrong thing but I couldn’t stop thinking about all the money troubles we’d been having while trying to organise the wedding. If I could get out of paying for my dress it would really help.
I started talking to distract her from realising her mistake and paid as quickly as I could. As I left the store with my beautiful dress, I thought about how I had probably cost that girl her new job. I felt sick but forced myself to think about how much I had saved. We moved from that town several days later so they had no way of tracking me.
We had a beautiful wedding and settled in happily to our new home. Everyone told me I looked beautiful in my dress — a dress that should have cost $4000 but ended up costing $200 and most probably that girl’s job, not to mention the loss for the bridal shop.
I never told my husband what I did. He’d be horrified by my dishonesty. He sometimes wonders why I go out of my way to avoid returning to our old town. I’m too ashamed to admit that I’m terrified someone from the bridal shop will recognise me.
Picture posed by models.
By Judy Davie
**”I recently stopped drinking cow’s milk because it made me feel nauseous and soon after I drank it (either in coffee or tea) or ate food with milk or cream in it I would throw up. I switched to soy milk and then consulted my doctor, who sent me for tests. The results came back that I was not lactose intolerant. Do you think this could be an allergy to something else in milk that is making me feel ill or should I just put it down to a dietary change and keep drinking soy?”
— Alison**
I certainly think you should be guided by your own body’s reaction and if you have no doubt that milk is the culprit, then clearly you have a problem.
If it’s full-fat milk and cream you’re eating, it may be a reaction to the fat, in which case you could try skimmed as an alternative. If skimmed produces the same reaction, it may be a reaction to the protein in milk.
Milk contains six proteins. Eighty percent of the protein in milk is casein protein while the remaining protein is from whey. The two main casein proteins are beta-casein A1 and beta-casein A2. Most of the milk coming from large commercial dairies comes from Friesian cows producing milk with A1 protein. Other breeds such as Guernsey and Jersey cows, sheep and goats produce milk with A2 protein.
Some researchers believe that the chain of amino acids which form a protein in A1 milk is weaker than in A2 milk, causing the chain to break off a small piece known as Beta Casamorphin. This piece can break through the gut wall into the bloodstream causing disease and other complications. Despite this, there is insufficient evidence for authorities to suggest banning A1 milk from the diet completely.
Given that dairy produce is still the best source of readily available calcium obtained from food, it’s worth trying an A2 variety, either from branded A2 milk or goat or sheep’s milk. If you still have a reaction, switch to soy, rice or oat milk, all of which are fortified with calcium. But all should be consumed in moderation as they are very high in energy (kilojoules).
There are many people who eliminate dairy from their diet. If you find you feel better without it, you should make a concerted effort to eat other calcium-rich foods such as canned salmon, almonds, tofu, tempeh, sardines, prawns, bamboo shoots and Chinese broccoli.
For a list of calcium rich foods, visit www.thefoodcoach.com.au and conduct your search for nutritional value using the keyword ‘calcium’.
After being fed up with my unhealthy lifestyle, I bit the bullet and hired a personal trainer for just one session per week. He set me a program to use when I came to the gym on my own, and for that one session I have alone with him per week he really works me hard and motivates me to keep going.
He also encouraged me to start a wheat-free diet, which means I cut out any breads, pasta etc that contain wheat flour. This small change has resulted in less bloating, feeling lighter and of course weight loss. (I’ve lost around 1 kilo per week since starting). I can still eat other carbohydrates such as rice etc, so I don’t feel like I am missing out on anything at all!
I would definitely recommend hiring a personal trainer if you need that extra bit of support along the way. I find that the extra $40 or so I spend a week to have him there for me is so worth it!
Exercising half an hour a day, four times a week is really not any kind of inconvenience, and if a former exercise-hater like myself can make the change and find myself really enjoying the benefits, so can you!
— C. Richardson
I used to have trouble snacking and staying motivated. So I put a photo of myself looking big on the fridge, and one of J.Lo (I think she’s gorgeous) next to it.
Now when I go to eat, I’m reminded of what I was and what I would like to be.
— Ally
Every week Dr Chris Brown answers your pet questions — submit your own or browse our archives.
By Judy Davie
**”I eat a lot of fruit every day as part of my weight-loss program (I eat about five serves/pieces a day). Am I getting too much natural sugar? Will eating lots of fruit help with weight loss?”
— Kate**
I don’t know anyone who has got fat from eating fruit and if it’s stopping you eating other sweet foods like muffins and biscuits, then it’s a good thing.
Five pieces of fruit, however, such as two apples, an orange, a pear and a kiwi fruit, is the equivalent of 1900 KJ and makes up nearly 30 percent of the daily energy allowance on an energy-restricted diet of 6500KJ a day.
It’s not a problem provided you ensure you are also getting a balance of other essential nutrients such as Vitamin A, B group vitamins, iron and calcium, but it could be a bit of a juggling act. These nutrients are found in low-fat dairy (for calcium), red meat* (for iron), green, orange and red vegetables (for vitamin A, folate and numerous other vitamins), wholegrain cereals (for B vitamins and insoluble fibre) and good fats (for vitamin E and essential fats).
Here’s an example of an excellent day’s eating plan where you meet your nutritional requirements**, consume five pieces of fruit and stick within the energy confines of 6500Kj a day.
NB: Always buy small pieces of fruit and eat them during the day rather than late at night.
Breakfast: ½ cup low-sugar natural muesli, with skimmed milk, one kiwi fruit and one small pear.
Morning tea: One small sized red apple, one coffee made with skim milk.
Lunch: Two slices wholegrain bread with two slices avocado, 1/3 cup grated carrot, two thin slices chicken breast, one small tomato, lettuce, one medium sized green apple.
Afternoon tea: One medium orange with 200g fat-free natural yoghurt.
Dinner: One grilled fillet steak (140g) served with two small boiled potatoes, one cup steamed broccoli with quarter tablespoon olive oil.
Total kilojoules: 6512KJ
*Good sources of iron also include octopus, mussels and oysters.
**The new RDI calcium for bone strength and to prevent osteoporosis in women is 1000mg, achievable when you include low-fat dairy in your diet. A broad-spectrum multivitamin is a good idea when on an energy-reduced diet as it will help you achieve the RDI nutrients without increasing your energy intake from food.
May is one of the most beautiful months of the year and in my opinion there’s no better month to get into the habit of walking first thing in the morning.
With the colder days it’s important to heat the body more from the inside with warming foods. Chunky soups that provide a whole meal in a bowl make substantial and convenient lunches. If you work, take the soup in an airtight container and heat it in the microwave, or if there are no heating facilities available invest in a thermos to keep it hot until lunchtime. Most soups are even better on the second and third day after making so it’s a great idea to make a couple of big pots to alternate and enjoy for the whole week.
Day one | Day two | Day three | Day four | Day five | Day six | Day seven
½ tbs dark sesame oil
50g fillet steak cut into stir fry slices
1 clove garlic
1 cm piece ginger grated
½ carrot
10 snow peas
1 cup bok choy
1 tbs sodium reduced soy sauce
½ tbs lemon juice
1 tsp sesame seeds
Heat the oil in the wok, brown the meat and set aside. Add the garlic, ginger and carrot. To stir fry for 3 – 4 minutes. Return the meat to the wok and add the snow peas, bok choy soy sauce and lemon juice and cook for a further 3 – 4 minutes. Serve with the rice and sesame seeds sprinkled on top.
Ada Nicodemou
Kate Ritchie — Gold and Silver Logie winner (Most Popular Actress and Most Popular Personality on TV)
Rove McManus and his mum, Coralie McManus.
Rove won the Silver Logie for Most Popular Presenter, and his show Rove Live won the award for Most Popular Light Entertainment Program.
Sonia Kruger — Co-host of Dancing With The Stars (which won the Logie for Most Popular Reality Program)
Jeanne Little — She didn’t win any awards but we just love her frock!
Terri and Bindi Irwin
Bindi was a presenter at the Logies, and Terri accepted a Hall of Fame award on behalf of her late husband Steve.
For more about the Logies, go to www.tvweek.ninemsn.com.au
