PEERtrainer Success Story: 30 Pounds Lost In A Year Following Dr. Hyman and Dr. Fuhrman

This is a great success story. This woman managed to totally transform her body while working on a PhD. She sent me her story and then I asked her how she did it. I got a great response that I think will be helpful to everyone. One thing stood out from this story- once again we are hearing of a doctor (Dr Hyman) recommending the elimination of wheat as a way to lose weight and improve energy.

Btw- if you want to see the before and after pictures before reading this story:

click here to see missbec's before and after pictures

Hi Jackie,

Last weekend I attended an out-of-town conference and arranged for my friends (who live in a nearby town) to meet me at my hotel after the conference was over. We hadn't seen each other since September 2008. I joined PT in February 2009 and have lost about 30 pounds since then.

It's about time for my friends to show up and I'm finishing the details with checking out and about to print my airline boarding passes from the hotel computer when my cell phone rings. It's my friend. "Becky, we're here!"

"Where are you?"

"In your hotel lobby."

I'm looking around and I don't see anyone. "I'm standing right here in the lobby. What are you wearing?"

She tells me she's wearing a lavender sweater. I spot her husband before I spot her, at the same time she exclaims, "I didn't recognize you! You're so skinny!"

I'm not at my goal weight yet and I'm not perfect, but it is certainly encouraging to hear these comments. My Iranian friend, who I also hadn't seen since Sept 08 and visited with on this same trip, didn't know how to say, "You're so skinny!" in English, so she substituted with "Your fat is finished!" As we say in church circles, "That'll preach!"

I have before-and-now pics posted on my profile (missbec) if you're interested.

Thanks for the site - I know that it has made a huge difference for me!

Happy new year!

Becky

After getting this email I asked her to describe some of the changes she made and the things she did to help with this transformation. Here is her response:

Jackie, 

I don't think I'd be where I am today if not for my PT group and the encouragement and ideas I receive there - and being able to post whatever I'm thinking or struggling with at any time and know that someone in my group will read it and respond.

My story:

When I went to the doctor for my annual physical two years ago, she told me that my triglycerides were too high and she wanted to start me on cholesterol medication - at age 38! I said no way and I knew what I had to do. I had followed Eat to Live several years ago and had been very successful with it, but in the intervening years had slipped and gained all of the weight back. Although I had remained vegetarian, I had started eating a lot of cheese and a lot of carbs, especially bread, and even cookies and other sweets (especially if I was baking for my husband). I told my doctor to give me a few months to see if I could get the level to come down through diet; I told her I was going to follow Dr. Fuhrman's plan (she was familiar with his work because they both practice in Flemington, NJ).

I started following Dr. Fuhrman's plan seriously and exercising some, but not regularly. I lost about 10 pounds and when I went back for my follow-up blood work several months later, my doctor was amazed at the reduction in my triglyerides. I don't think she believed that I would really be able to do it on my own just through changing diet. Then my husband and I moved, the holidays arrived, and I gained some of that weight back. I realized I had to get serious about being healthy.

I found Peer Trainer in February 2009 and joined a group and started logging daily. I started wearing a pedometer and made a goal of walking 2000 steps each day, then increasing my daily goal each week. Whenever I wanted to eat something that wasn't good for me, I would think about how I was going to have to log it on PT, and that would be enough to discourage me from impulsive poor choices. (I'm always honest in my logs - if I eat it, I log it.) Just the discipline of logging was a big help for me. I also track my weight daily in the private part of my log, so I can see the trends.

I read Dr. Mark Hyman's "The Ultramind Solution" last June. I've stayed with Dr. Fuhrman's eating program, but I added vitamin and mineral supplements recommended by Dr. Hyman, and followed his advice to eliminate wheat, dairy, and sugar from my diet. I wasn't eating dairy before that, and not very much sugar, but eliminating wheat made a huge difference in my energy level. I still have an occasional bit of dairy (but I don't keep it in the house), but I try to avoid sugar as much as possible (especially refined sugar and high-fructose corn syrup and artificial sweeteners), and I eat very little wheat because it now gives me headaches. We moved again in August 2009 so that I could start work on a PhD in California. It's been a challenge adjusting to the routine of school and living in the city.

I'm not perfect and I still have times when I eat things that are not healthy - like a slice of cheesecake my sister made over the holidays, or some cheese, or tortilla chips. But I try to regroup as soon as possible when I slip and maintain a consistently healthy lifestyle. I don't bake cookies for my husband any more and I try to encourage him only to get junk food that I don't like. I always try to eat more and more veggies, and I make most of my food from scratch...lots of beans in the crock pot, since a grad student has neither an overabundance of time nor a lot of money!

This is really about being healthy for life, not just about achieving my goal weight. I know I still have a ways to go in getting my exercise program to where it needs to be for optimal health; that is hard to do when my studies can be so intense. And I'm actually looking forward to going to see my new doctor for my physical exam this week, because I'm so pleased with what I have accomplished in the last year!

Becky 

click here to see missbec's before and after pictures!