Friend of Julie: Eating My Way Out

Today a few of us contributors got together for a lively conversation at Dennys in Enfield for breakfast. Except for Susan, I would never have met any of these beautiful ladies, if it were not for our Journey with Julie.

 It was a wonderful time, and we had the most perfect waitress: When she came over to the table, I stated to her "I bet not one of us at this table will order toast with their breakfast." At first, she just looked at me, trying to absorb what I just said, and then she asked if we were all on a "special diet" which we laughingly shook our heads yes to. She then proceeded to tell us she has lost 73 pounds on Weight Watchers! WooHoo! How awesome is that?

She was very attentive to us, although the orders were mixed up a little! (I find that it is very confusing to waitstaff to say NO to bread, but YES to homefries.) 2 of us (Susan and myself) are on maintainance, so we both ordered the homefries. Well, Susie got hers, I got none, and then out came Karens plate, with, of course, my homefries. We made it work! The above picture was taken by a lovely young girl who patiently took pictures with 3 of our cameras!

I know Theresa is also going to post this picture with a blog, but, I really wanted to add it here. Our visit together tied into something I read this morning, in the much published Reader's Digest, July 2012 edition and I wanted to share it. Our obesity in society makes headlines, all the time. I am so honored to be with such committed people in our small part of the world to stop obesity, get healthy, and "relearn" to eat. Theresa let me know that the author, Mark Hyman, MD who is quoted here, is worth reading, and I for one, will look into his works. All because of one sentence:

"Chronic disease is a foodborne illness. We ate our way into this mess, and we must eat our way out."

I for one, know that I started with Julie yes, for the weight loss, but more for the fact that at age 43 I was diagnosed with high blood pressure, and prediabetes. One day my 23 year-old daughter made a comment about she hoped I would be around for a long long time. That would not happen had I continued on the downward spiral I was on.

When Susan started with Julie, I signed up soon after. And within 9 months, I was off all meds, no longer worrying about type-II diabetes, have more energy, and sleep better than I ever had (If only Julie could get rid of the hot flashes for me! But, I know I can't have it all!). We all know that Julie states in her classes that we as a society created diabetes, among other things. You can find many others who agree. If foods with flour and sugar were no longer produced and marketed, our existence on earth would not be wiped out! And, as a whole, a lot of the obesity issues would be stopped in their tracks. Schools are now removing vending machines from their cafeterias, and I for one, tell young people ALL THE TIME to cut out the Sports Drinks and Sodas. They are nothing but empty calories, and our fine Dentists in the world are UNABLE to keep up with the amount of tooth decay that occurs with these products. And some of our fine young people are listening!

After meeting this morning for breakfast, I then went with Hubby to a graduation party. People who hadn't seen me in a long time didn't recognize me. Of course, the "what did you do?" question came up, and I explained about the hypnosis. (These were family/friends I was with, and felt comfortable stating this) Most were astounded-one (who is overweight) asked if I felt I "went into Ketosis". I said I probably did, but that was not what Julie was about, as we get to eat corn and squash, etc. etc. (things I'm pretty sure you don't get to eat on other low-carb diets). Then came the "you can get very very sick from Ketosis" discussion, to which I again stated did not have a lot to do with this journey, but, it probably can happen. I wanted to say to her: I ate my way into this mess, now I am eating my way out, but, the conversation changed, and I was happy to let it go. So, now I will add this statement to my repertoire, and proudly back it up as I eat a chicken leg and cheeseburger without the bun.

I went to a refresher with Julie last Thursday, as a lot of us have recently done. I for one know that Julie is there with me, guiding me, and I never feel alone. That was proven today as I was asked to help put cupcakes on a plate for someone who was leaving the graduation party. I got frosting on my fingers, and, after the desserts were covered and handed to their owner, I quietly walked into the kitchen and washed my hands. I actually felt like I had poison on my hands! That quote by Dr. Hyman was rattling around in my head. I felt like if I licked my fingers, I was going to get an illness! I for one, am sick of not feeling good. In this last year, I have never felt better. I am doing my part to "eat my way out" and I will never, ever look back.