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Success stories
It’s the success stories that keep me going. This summer and fall has been a great time for that. I want to tell
you a couple of them.
The first is my best friend, you know the old story, those you care about are the last ones to give your ideas a try. We
had begun exercise together around 1987 at Gray’s Gym. We took personal training from Gary 5 days a week for 3 years
and were in awesome shape. We were too cheap to pay for the nutritional information and never had a menu calculated for us
so in a sense we worked a lot harder than necessary on the exercise part of it and though we were doing a bang up job of the
eating, when in reality we didn’t support the exercise program with the eating. As soon as she stopped the exercise
she put all and then some more of her weight back on, her health was on a downward spiral. In January 2002 she finally decided
to start eating right and take a 15 minute walk every noon. Her sugar was at 289, blood pressure was skyrocketing, kidney
infections were frequent (a sign of system shut down). In May sugar level was 116. She had lost 30 pounds and was several
sizes smaller and felt great. That success allowed her to continue on now in November, 10 months from the start she has lost
60 pounds. Her doctor is amazed, most people losing this kind of weight get themselves in worse shape, because most weight
loss program do not allow for body fat reduction. She’s gone from being 53% body fat -severely morbidly obese - to around
33% body fat, I have told her that if she continues to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner that by next July she will be in a
2-piece and looking like she should. A conservative guess is that she will be at least 20% bodyfat by then, well in line for
her age. But more importantly than that her health has returned, her mood and self image is back to it’s old happy go
lucky self, out from behind a wall of fat. Everyone wants to know her secret but when she tells them that she had to force
herself to eat frequent meals of potatoes, chicken, veggies or rice, fish and veggies, or oatmeal, egg and juice, their eyes
glaze over and they want to hear what magic product she took or what extreme exercise she took part in, they just don’t
believe it. Impossible that just plain old common sense is the best weight control, too bad so many people are brainwashed
by clever marketing ploys for quick fixes that make it impossible for success.
See Below for added info on this success story
Another great example are a husband and wife who travel with a repair crew and come to the mill for the fall repair work.
It’s been about a year since they walked into my gym asking for the total package, nutrition and exercise. They were
here for a few weeks. He had been serious about weight lifting for a few years, she was the typical mother, battling weight
and body fat. In the past year he gained 30 pounds of muscle and she lost 60 pounds. Both will now stick with the healthy
eating for a lifetime. They have done it for a year and look and feel great. They could have gone on for years reading magazines,
following the traditional fitness advice from every Joe Blow. It would have turned out that she would have tired of it due
to the time demands of having three young children being home schooled and traveling. Without the eating she would have had
to put much more effort into the exercise and when time ran out for that she would have gained it all back. The male is a
different story, he would have lifted heavy and hard, tried to eat better but needed some extra guidance. He would have eventually
injured himself in the quest for bigger muscles, instead with the correct eating he could be in a bodybuilding competition
within 4 weeks of preparation. Because his everyday eating style is competition preparation. It was a thrill for me to see
these people walk in my door.
It’s amazing what six months of maintaining a quality eating program can mean and one year of it can add a decade
to your life. What calorie counting, restrictive, product tacking, pill popping diet can keep giving and keep giving life
changing results? Our bodies are meant to be fuel by real food on a frequent basis. Starvation eating styles have led to this
obesity epidemic. Remember obese people come both heavy and also thin. Thin is not the answer, fit with low body fat is the
answer.
I wrote "Success Stories" in November 2002. That was 11 months after the beginning. For Christmas
her husband gave her a bracelet. It so happens that she had been unable to wear a bracelt for several years due to her weight,
knowing this he wanted her to have one. She was thrilled, it barely fit, real snug, but it was on, she had lost the weight.
Now just over a month later the bracelet has over an inch and 1/2 of slack. She is only loosing about a pound a week now but
the BODY FAT is reducing at a rapid rate now. After a full year of eating better quality food, more of it, a balance and never
skipping meals. One of her doctors is thrilled and want to know her secret, you see even they have been brainwashed
by media mis-information. She is a real success story.
Prove Me Wrong! By Bonnie Sprinkle 2003
You’ve all seen Allyson in my ads, many people know her. After being friends for 20 years, she decided
to shut me up once and for all about the eating thing. About 15 years ago she had lost weight before through excessive exercise
and a little knowledge about eating and gained it all back plus more. This time around she has done it through healthy eating
and a very little amount of exercise and has returned to health. Allyson was severely morbidly obese, someone to whom doctors
might have suggested stomach reduction surgery or some type of liquid diet. Luckily she did not have those type of doctors,
for over a year they had closely monitored her sugar and cholesterol levels. She was given the opportunity to work with diet
and exercise before being put on medications for high blood pressure and sugar. Finally she felt as bad as she could and had
to make a change, she was sick all of the time.
To begin with she only somewhat followed my eating suggestions but, began feeling better, having more energy.
A couple of months went by then she had another kidney infection. “how could this happen when I’m eating so much
better?”, she’d ask. I’d say continue, it will get better, you’ve got to repair your body. She got
better and continued with the eating but was hostile. Saying “this isn’t doing any good, I’m still getting
sick!” All the while improving health levels, having more energy, feeling better. She received encouragement from only
one other person, her PA, who said keep eating and working with Bonnie. Then about 3 months into it she noticed that her cloths
were getting baggy, the doctor said she had lost eight pounds. At that time she began walking twice a day for 15 minutes each
time. She felt like it.
Then when all was going well, another kidney infection! I’m saying, “hang in there, the body is
still repairing itself, you are getting better everyday, her PA was saying the same. Her friends, family and co-workers however
were telling her that eating has nothing to do with it. Some people are just prone to certain conditions.
Then somewhere around September the clothes sizes started to melt off, in March (15 months later) she realized
that she had actually been all winter without a cold or the flu (with no shot), a first in the past 10 years at least. Meanwhile
the doctors are telling to keep up whatever it is that she is doing, and most of them think that it was RESTRICTIVE eating
and serious exercise. Allyson did neither. 30 minutes total time about 5 days a week was all. She did come in the gym maybe
10 times over the past year, so actually exercise had very little to do with it. My biggest stumbling block with everyone
is busting myths about healthy eating. The body needs quality fuel to function, most common concepts for weight loss are actually
creating this obesity epidemic. And it’s related health issues.
By the way she has only lost 40 pounds, several clothes sizes. She lost the space that a whole person would
take up within her clothing. Or you could now put 2 people into her cloths. That is because she lost body fat rather than
looking to lose weight.
So I say prove me wrong, go ahead. I dare you. But instead of giving up after a month or even six, really
show me. Do what I recommend for one year and then I dare you to tell me I’m wrong. Anyone can prove me wrong in a month
or two it takes a special person to take a year to do it.
Allyson in January 2004
It's been 3 years, allyson has almost come full circle. she now understands that
when she eats REAL food and eats throughout the day, that she will feel great. Most of her health issues have greatly improved,
her only issue currently is high sugar. I feel that once this is in line it will be the last of her issues as she returns
to health.---- Years os skipping meals and binge eating had left the body with losts of reparing to do. She's looking toward
a lifetime of better health and healthy eating.
UpDate March 20, 2004
Allysons' Sugar issue has been resolved. The sugar is high when she skips meals,
even dinner. When she eats a balanced diet frequently throughout the day - she feels great. She hasn't really begun exercise
beyond walking for 15 minutes twice a day and since she didn't walk over the winter now has a slight heal injury that has
to heal before exercise is started, even walking. She's thrilled to have lost another 16 lbs since her last doctor visit and
wants EVERYONE to know that's she's kept her weight off and steadily improved her health for over 3 years now ---
keep eating, Allyson
Update October 2004 -
Allyson is exercising 2 days a week for about 20 minutes and walking some days. Her
bracelet that barely fit 2 years ago and was loose last year is now falling off. Her facial features are much more pronounced.
Last to go will be the belly, but with every passing month it gets smaller.
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