Welcome to the blog.

There’s no master plan here — no content strategy, no hustle, no five-step path to enlightenment. Just thoughts, lived experience, and the occasional well-aimed rant.

I’m 56. Stuff hurts. Sleep’s overrated. And life’s not quite what it used to be — but I’m still standing (or at least leaning heavily on one side).

I called this blog Not Dead Yet because, well… I’m not. And while I’m still around, I’ve got a few things to say. Some of it might be worth reading. Some of it probably won’t. That’s the charm.

If you’ve found your way here, thanks. Stick around if you like words that mean something and don’t mind a bit of bite.

More soon. Or not. Depends on how the hip feels.

I'm Falling Apart

Well, at least I think I am. Let's see now. I am a type-2 diabetic, I'm going bald, I'm overweight, and I need to have a hip replaced. Oh yeah, I have high blood pressure, but that's probably got more to do with being heavy and not doing as much exercise as I used to. I was always very active, even though I've been chunky for the last twenty years. Then, I started to drive HGVs. I'd always wanted to be a trucker, but my body had other ideas after three years.

You see, being sat down all day, bouncing up and down on an air-suspended seat, has accelerated my arthritis in my hip. Sleeping in the back of the lorry doesn't help either; it's a chicken-and-egg scenario, but I'm not sure which came first. Either way, it has been decided that I need to have my hip replaced.

Here's the rub. I need to get some weight off fast. But I can't walk too far without my hip hurting me and making it difficult to continue. I'm trying to keep my food intake as low as possible. Still, I am an emotional eater, and I am battling stress and anxiety about work and the upcoming operation, which is causing depression. I'm putting on a brave face, although I can't escape the feeling that I'm failing on multiple levels.

I hate getting old, although I am looking forward to slowing down and doing the things that make me happy, like writing, taking pictures, messing about with AI and spending as much time as possible with friends and family.

Watching - Warfare 

Six Weeks to a Healthier Me: My Aggressive Pre-Surgery Weight Loss Plan

I'm 56 years old, weigh 125kg, and in less than six weeks, I'm scheduled to have hip replacement surgery. I've got high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes. I want to lose 10–15kg before the operation—not for vanity, but because it could change everything.

This is more than a short-term fix. It's a line in the sand. I'm using these six weeks to reset my body, health, and mindset. It's the start of a bigger transformation.

Why the urgency?

Keto and intermittent fasting have worked for me in the past. So that's the base of my plan. Add some gentle daily movement and simple structure, and I have a path I can follow. It's going to be strict, but it's achievable.

The Six-Week Strategy

1. Go Very Low Carb (Keto)

• Under 30g net carbs per day
• No bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, or sugar
• Base meals around:
  • Eggs
  • Meat, fish, and poultry
  • Leafy greens and above-ground veg
  • Cheese and healthy fats like olive oil and avocado
• No fruit except maybe a few berries now and then
• No processed "keto" snacks that hide carbs

I’ll prep simple meals in advance so I never have to think about it.

2. Intermittent Fasting (18:6)

• Eat between 2 pm and 8 pm
• Fast for the remaining 18 hours
• During the fast:
  • Drink water, black coffee, and tea
  • No milk, no sweeteners
• Two meals per day, no snacking

Fasting suits me. It keeps things simple and cuts calories without counting.

3. Gentle Daily Movement

I can't do heavy workouts, but I can:

• Walk 30 minutes a day, broken into 10-minute blocks if needed
• Do gentle mobility and stretching exercises
• Use resistance bands or bodyweight for strength without stressing my joints

The goal is consistency, not intensity. Movement also helps blood sugar and sleep.

4. Hydration, Electrolytes, and Sleep

• At least 2.5 litres of water per day
• Add salt, magnesium, and potassium to avoid keto flu
• Sleep 7–8 hours a night – recovery starts with rest

Weekly Goals and Adjustments

Week 1:

• Expect a 2–3kg drop (mostly water weight)
• Feel sluggish for a few days, that's normal
• Stay strict, stay hydrated

Week 2:

• Start to feel better
• Energy and mental clarity improve
• Walks get easier

Weeks 3–4:

• Weight loss is slowed to 1–2kg/week
• Routines feel automatic
• Possible plateau? Tighten portions or widen the fasting window if needed

Weeks 5–6:

• Final push
• Stay consistent
• Optional 24-hour fast once a week for an extra boost (only if feeling strong)

Tracking Progress

• Weekly weigh-ins (Friday mornings)
• Blood glucose tracking daily
• Blood pressure monitoring twice a week
• Log meals, movement, sleep, and mood

If something isn’t working, I won't mindlessly follow any plan that's not helping me.

Post-Surgery: Keeping the Weight Off

This isn’t a diet. It’s a long-term shift. After the op, I plan to:

• Stick with low-carb, high-protein meals
• Keep an eating window (maybe 10 am–6 pm, depending on recovery)
• Keep walking and build in light strength training as I heal
• Stay off the processed stuff
• Continue tracking my health data

I want to come out of surgery healthier than I've been in years. That means:

• Reversing my type 2 diabetes, or at least keeping it well-controlled
• Possibly reducing or eliminating blood pressure meds
• Having the energy and mobility to do more with life

Final Thoughts

This six-week plan is just the start. I'm not trying to be perfect. I'm trying to be consistent. If I mess up one day, I'll return to it the next. No excuses.

The goal is simple: Lose 10–15kg, make surgery safer, and lay the foundation for a longer, healthier life. I haven't mentioned the mental health aspects yet, I will expand on that in a separate post.

Time to get to work.

On Saturday morning, I woke up feeling like my leg was at a funny angle. No problem. I'll move and roll over, and everything will be okay. Wrong. As I moved, a familiar, if not unwelcome, pain shot down the outside of my left thigh and ended up throbbing near my knee. Fuck!

For several months, I have been coping quite well with my arthritic hip. Most days were bearable, and some were fantastic, with little to no discomfort. Then I had to go and meet the surgeon who is to perform my total hip replacement operation. No problem, I had to have some more X-rays to help the doctor get some internal measurements for the prosthetic joint he will be "installing". Fine. Until it wasn't. The radiologist needed me to lie on my back, bend my left knee and allow my leg to drop to one side. My leg moved about 10 degrees from the vertical. "Can you just try to move your knee down a bit more?" she said. I dutifully tried, and there was some movement. "Hold it there", she said. I held the position for around 30 seconds, but it was enough to change things for me.

At that point, I wasn't in too much pain, but I did feel like something was different, an uncomfortable feeling, as if something about my joint had changed, maybe even moved. That evening, I said to my wife that my hip was aching more than usual, so I took an extra painkiller and went off to bed. It was a restless night. And, to be fair, almost every night since has been disturbed.

Fast forward to last weekend. I went to sleep on Friday night, and I think I had a reasonably good sleep. But then, in the early hours, I must have got myself into what I thought was a comfortable position. It wasn't. All day on Saturday and overnight into Sunday, my leg has been getting increasingly uncomfortable, and yesterday, at my surgery pre-assessment, it began to be very painful again. Typical. So, I am not at work. I am waiting to see my doctor this afternoon. I need to find out if there is anything that I can do to mitigate the pain. I am only weeks away from my surgery. I wonder what can be done to help. Resting and allowing myself to get into a comfortable position is helping. As long as I don't have to move too far or too quickly, the pain subsides quickly. But the way the pain has flared up again is frustrating. I am so close to getting this fixed once and for all. I hope I can make it to the finish line in one piece.