?I have to change now,? Anne Nesbitt told herself.
And, by golly, Anne, that's exactly what you did!
Anne was diagnosed with diabetes type 2 a year ago and, as she said, ?I needed to do something about it. I knew it was a serious concern and could ruin my health if I didn't stop it now. Besides that, I was very unhappy with my excessive weight and lack of stamina.?
Anne, with all of her intelligence and meticulous organizational skills, found the traditional diabetic dietary recommendations ?unhelpful and confusing.?
And her diabetes just kept getting worse, not better.
That scared her. She wanted to be active and full of energy so that she could enjoy her life and her husband.
?I see bent-over, sick old people, and I don't want that for myself. I am 65?I want to be a healthy old age.?
Anne certainly is on the right track. She has lost over 6x her personal weight loss goal for the month.
Weight loss was plenty exciting enough but wait until you see what Anne gained in this same month:
=> Lower blood pressure
=> Lower heart rate
=> Higher energy
=> Clearer thinking ? that's almost scary, Anne is already as sharp as can be
=> Better taste
=> More positive attitude?I don't know how Anne could possibly have a better attitude than she already had, but this is what she told me
=> Psoriasis healing
=> Clothes fitting better (love that feeling!)
=> Grocery shopping easier and faster (yeah!)
=> Cooking easier and faster (double yeah!)
=> Fewer dishes to clean up (triple yeah!)
=> Lower grocery bills (quadruple yeah!)
=> Lighter on feet
=> More desire to get out more and do more instead of sitting home
=> Anne's husband can get his arms around her and is as proud-as-punch of her commitment to her
And the best gain of all? Anne is little-kid delighted with herself, and she deserves to be?just like we all deserve to be.
So how has Anne made all of that happen for herself and so quickly?
Did she have to starve and deprive herself? No, she was never hungry, and she never felt deprived.
Did she have to bore herself to tears with carrot sticks and celery? No, she loved her new way of eating with all the different, new flavors mixed with her favorite old flavors.
Did she have to count out 16 grapes or measure out ? cup of a mere morsel of food? No, there was no counting or measuring or weighing. Anne ate as much as she wanted to fill herself up.
Did she have to eat exactly like Dr. Leslie? Now that would be way, way too radical, wouldn't it?
The answer is ?no.? Anne did not eat just like me at all. She still ate some of her all-time favorite foods.
So what did Anne do?
She just followed the four golden rules to permanent weight loss and little-kid delight:
1. Think addition, not subtraction?or, in other words, think about the foods you get to add to your life, not what foods you ?have to? give up.
You don't ?have to? give up a thing, but you ?get to? add the ?best-for-you? foods.
2. Fill-up, and I mean fill-up, on the ?best-for-you? foods first.
3. Every time you eat, ask yourself one question: ?Does this food feed me or deplete me??
4. Follow the Dr. Leslie ?casual/dress-up rule.? Goodness me, what does that mean?
Well, it's simple. 80% of the time we dress in casual clothes; 20% of the time we dress-up for special occasions. (Okay, for me it is more like 99% casual and 1% casual but let's pretend it's 80/20.)
Just like casual wearing clothes, 80% of the time you eat at home or in a routine, controlled (hopefully) environment.
So follow your food plan and make wise, healthy food choices.
20% of the time you may go out or have friends over or celebrate a special occasion, so eat what you want and don't fret or guilt over it! Just go back to the ?best-foods-for-you? the next day or the next meal. No biggie.
Don't put yourself in that box of deprivation with a bunch of restrictions that you will never follow forever and ever. Just make better choices at least 80% of the time. So simple.
The very best reason to make positive changes in your life is for you??Your body first; everything else, second.?
But let's face it, it sure feels so good when your husband (or wife) puts his arms around you and says, ?I'm just really proud of you, honey, for losing weight.?
That's exactly what Anne's husband said to her and not once, but many times over.
Do you know what the very best news is of all, my dear friend?
Anne has become the hero of her own ?dream-come-true,? and her other hero is walking right by her side.
Is there any wonder why Anne is little-kid delighted?
Dr. Leslie Van Romer is a motivational health speaker, writer and lifestyle coach. Visit Dr. Leslie at Http://DrLeslieVanRomer.com for practical direction, hope and inspiration.
