At the age of 46, I have managed to accumulate 33 years’ worth of weight and body image struggles. Damn, that is tragic.
I have been on more diets than I can remember and flogged myself through numerous exercise regimes that did little more than feed my feelings of inadequacy. However, the saddest part of this story is all that time spent wishing I was not in the body I was in.
Am I through the other side and celebrating the glory of my soft, (no abs in sight) tummy and ginormous breasts? Nope! Not really. Well sort of. Sometimes. But things are certainly a lot better than they were … Now, at least, I know how to manage my weight and lose the extra kilos that seem to creep up on me each year. I do know I am not alone on this one though so with luck I can share what I have learned to help you feel more in control as well, but more about that further on.
I, of course, have done the typical round of fad diets that were at best temporarily successful. In addition to this, believing I was doing the right thing, I became vegetarian in my early 20's and maintained that for about 20 years. I later came to realize this was not serving me well either.
Having graduated as a Naturopath in 1999 I had what I thought was a very thorough knowledge of nutrition. My diet was mostly organic, low in fat, included an abundance of whole grains, and fruit and veg, which, in essence, followed the recommendations of the food pyramid. Despite this, I was constantly fatigued, overweight and muddle-headed. I had a short fuse, sudden mood swings were just the norm, and an unending desire to collapse in the middle of the afternoon was common. I felt justified in blaming this state of being on …. being a mother of four, stress, just my build, lazy etc., etc… Looking back, I can see that a heavy reliance on grains, mostly wheat-based cereal, pasta, bread, and muffins, was a major contributor to my problems. It didn't matter how organic or wholesome the ingredients were the fact was that the high carb, low-fat diet was making me unwell.
In 2014 I came across the Changing Habits 4 Phase Fat Loss Protocol and it literally turned my health around. I started the protocol as a vegetarian but very quickly felt inclined to try eating meat again. On my first round, I lost 10kg in a few short weeks and managed to keep that weight off.
The most dramatic change in my diet, following the protocol, was replacing the mountains of carbohydrates (grain) that I was eating with good quality fat and more protein. Previously, I often joked that “my full-button was broken”, after a large meal, others around me would say “Oh! I am soooo stuffed”, to which I would readily agree simply because I didn’t want to advertise that I could eat a mountain of food and still be hungry. (By the way, that full button has a name, it is called Leptin and is the hormone that is supposed to tell you-‘you are full' when all is working as it should!) Following the protocol, I was eating much less, I was happier, my moods were no longer so volatile, and my energy was so much better, no more afternoon naps!
About a year later I did the Changing Habits protocol again to lose an extra 7kg and to reset some hormones, namely Leptin! At 43 years of age, I finally reached my ideal weight and was healthier and happier than ever before.
What I have learned is that there are three key elements that simply should not be ignored when managing our weight and if we can pass on this understanding to our daughters it will serve us all well.
- Regardless of whether you are trying to maintain your weight, lose weight or gain weight, one simple fact remains. Nourishing your body with what it needs to support a healthy life is the priority. Losing weight by depriving your body of needed nutrition is not a healthy option anymore that stuffing your face with lolly snakes and soft drinks is if you need to gain weight.
- Whilst movement is critical to our health it is not the first consideration when aiming to lose weight. Whilst exercise will play a role in shaping your body and giving you those elusive abs, healthy, sustainable weight loss, is dependent on the food you put in your mouth. Eating nutrient devoid foods in the wrong quantities and then running around to burn off the calories you ingested is just plain dumb … sorry!
- Health is a journey, not a destination. We need to tweak things as we travel through the decades, as we grow, change and ultimately as we educate ourselves about what works for our body and what doesn’t. There is no one size fits all.
As you may have guessed, the topic of weight loss is on my radar right now as I have a few kilos to shed. The warning signs have been creeping up. A soft squishy muffin top has started to delicately rise over my waistband and is precariously close to spilling right on over the top, in addition, are the two extra muffin tops that spill rudely out the top of my bra. Yeah, there is no pear shape in my gene’s unless you were to take the pear and stand it on its head!
The good news is, instead of grabbing onto the latest fad diet or even more frustratingly, feeling totally bewildered as to what the heck I am supposed to do about it, I know exactly what to do and exactly what will work.
I am very happy to recommend the Changing Habits Fat Loss Protocol as I know it works.
Having accumulated a lifetime of experience and learnings I have put together my own protocol that has proven to be a very effective fast weight loss protocol that still ensures I continue to get an abundance of nutrition to fuel my body and keeps me feeling in control. The Abundant Nutrition Weight Loss Protocol doesn't require any special drops or supplements and works on the ‘food for life' philosophy. I don't want to change my diet drastically in order to shed the extra kilos rather just tweak it a bit to keep it manageable.
So here is my invitation, if you are in a similar position and want to join me in ditching some extra kilos then I would love your company. A little accountability goes a looooooong way which is exactly why I am sharing my plans with you here. To get a snapshot of my weight loss protocol have a read of this post – Abundant Nutrition Weight Loss Formula and stay tuned as I will be sharing my journey on Facebook and Instagram to help keep you inspired. My plan this week is to get organized, enjoy my beautiful daughters 15th birthday on Tuesday, and make a start next Monday because as you know, everything has to start on a Monday!
Much love
Edwina