Rachel on Losing 10 Kgs in 3 Months with Vively

“Being able to monitor your blood sugar levels in a graph in real-time and see how the inputs such as your diet and lifestyle is translated has been huge… Since starting Vively, I’ve lost nearly 10kgs”

Tell us a bit about yourself and why you signed up for the Vively CGM program.

I’m a nurse and shift worker, and work in a pretty stressful environment. About a year ago, I was diagnosed with PCOS and caught up in that whole experience. As a result I was carrying some extra weight. I was doing a lot of research and I was starting to get desperate. Time is my enemy for the most part, having the energy has been a difficult experience. Most people on a weight loss journey want to lose the weight because you’re told you’re in a high risk category of conditions, so you might have to do medications which I definitely don’t want to do.

I had seen a dietitian a few years ago, but I found that the advice wasn’t properly tailored to my lifestyle. I had tried several styles of meal plans, like Lite and Easy, Jenny Craig, but nothing worked.

I came across Vively through Instagram. Having grown up in the digital age, I thought I’d give it a go. It’s been a really positive experience. I wasn’t sure what to expect, I’d never come across this type of program before, as a healthcare worker I’m usually skeptical about these sorts of things.

How was your experience with the CGM sensor and Vively app?

Being able to monitor your blood sugar levels in a graph in real-time and see how the inputs such as your diet and lifestyle information is translated has been huge. Also being able to chat to a dietitian in real-time and get their feedback has been really empowering.

My goal when I signed up was to lose weight. I was on the cusp of being prediabetic and I want to prolong the onset of diabetes as much as possible. Since starting Vively, I’ve lost nearly 10kgs.

How has Vively helped to change your behaviours?

I’ve been able to make some pretty big changes to my diet. In particular using the CGM over the Christmas period, and seeing the effect of lots of different foods, was really interesting.

I started experimenting by adding a serve of greens to every meal, then adding protein, then a bit of carbs, and try to build up a more healthier eating habit over time. I would try to be as descriptive as possible when logging my food so that I could observe the effects.

There is a sense of forced accountability with the app, through the logging and real-time feedback, which was helpful for sticking to the change in behaviour.

What do you like about Vively that’s different to what else is out there?

I like that I didn’t have to wait or ask for information. My CGM arrived, it was very straightforward instructions about what to do over 3 months, and provided a whole lot of education that no one wants to tell you in person.

I like the hand held access because I think patients should be in control, and being able to see the chart myself, sometimes doctors don’t let you see the chart, I don’t need permission to make changes.

With Vively, you have to want to engage, you have to have the time and space, you need to want to know what you want to know. You can lead a horse to water but can’t make it drink. Being able to do it all myself gave me a sense of control.