Me!

People often ask me what's the secret to my weight loss success, so I thought I would blog about it so that you all could read about it. In 2007, I was facing my 40th birthday and not too chipper about it.....I was heavier than I ever had been in my life and pretty unhappy about it. In late March/early April, I decided to do something about it but wasn't sure exactly what. A lady that I knew told me about her diet which was all organic/natural.....I wasn't sure if it would work, but it didn't sound too bad to me. I was discussing this with my sister one day and she said "That sounds like the Dr. Oz plan". I remembered hearing something on Oprah similar to what I was talking about so I did some research and discovered the book "You On a Diet" by Dr. Oz. I was hooked immediately and became a faithful label reader.

I cut out soda pop and drank mostly water. I quit eating anything with bleached, enriched flour; high fructose corn syrup; and partially hydrogenated oils. I quit eating processed foods and started to eat more healthy, natural, nutritious foods and snacks. I limited my calorie intake to around 1200-1500/day. I ate 4-5 small meals daily consisting of 100% whole grains, fresh fruits and veggies, and clean proteins such as chicken or fish. And I limited the foods I ate to 5 grams or less each of sugar and fat. The transformation was amazing!! I lost 55 lbs and went from a size 14 to a size 4!! See the above photo vs my profile pic for comparison!!

Today, I still maintain this healthy diet most of the time.....I will on occasion eat a burger or a piece of cake because I don't think self deprivation is helpful to weight loss. If I eat something that I don't deem "healthy", I limit my portion size......1/2 a burger instead of a whole one or skip the bun. If anyone is interested in losing weight, I would highly recommend the above mentioned book or check out Prevention magazine and the Flat Belly Diet book too!! Stay tuned for healthy tips and meal plans, etc. Good luck!!