20This is a fantastic success story from one of our Quickstart Guide and Paleo Challenge ebook users. The first part of this was originally written in the beginning of September 2012. Enjoy!
For me, today is the last day of week six on your Quickstart Challenge. I’m sure you get messages like this all the time, but I wanted to add my experience and thank you for your guidance on my road to better health. I have Celiac disease (diagnosed November, 2011), and had been struggling to understand why I still felt terrible while following a strict gluten-free diet. I’m female, 35, with two kids. I have been completely compliant with the Paleo plan for the entire challenge–no cheats. Ever. And it was easy.
Here’s what I lost: 21 pounds, two pants sizes, and at least three inches in the waist. I sure wish I had been brave enough to take “before” measurements and photos like you suggested, but I wasn’t in a place where I could even look at myself in the mirror, let alone have a permanent record of what I looked like. I also lost my seemingly uncontrollable cravings for carbohydrate-laden foods, particularly sugars. Now, I get hungry, I eat until I’m full, and I stop. Done.
Here’s what I gained: self confidence, increased energy, healthier sleep patterns, a gluten-free kitchen and mostly paleo family (my husband got on board when he noticed the changes in me at week three, and now the kids are completely gluten-free and eating mostly paleo), a sense of control over how I feel and what I do in regards to food, and the ability to use my body in ways I thought were lost. I started a couch-to-5-K program, and I’m up to 2.5 miles after only 5 weeks. I also gained a BMI that is in the “healthy” range, and lost my old “overweight” one.
I can’t explain how awesome I feel.
I wanted to specifically thank you for how user-friendly, well-priced, and accessible your Quickstart guide is. The recipes are delicious, and I feel great taking the time to be mindful about preparing and consuming the food I eat and serve to my family. My traditional-diet in-laws visited during week three, and I served them the Paleo foods with no apologies. They raved. The diversity of recipes and rich flavors have been a treat to prepare and share.
Because of your guidance, I feel confident in my ability to continue the Paleo lifestyle for myself and my family. I am most thankful that you helped my husband and me open our eyes to the damage we were doing to ourselves and our kids by putting toxic foods in our bodies. We feel excited for the long-term commitment to eating and feeling well.
With my most sincere thanks and appreciation,
Olivia
Below is an update from Olivia two months after she wrote all that.
I still struggle to feel at home in my body, but it is in better condition than ever before, and it can do things I never thought possible–I run (run!) about 10 miles a week, which is huge for me. I was completely sedentary before your nutrition guide; I just didn’t have the energy to sustain much physical activity.
In the weeks since I contacted you, I have lost another eight pounds, so my total now is 29. My family is mostly paleo at home. We are a husband/wife team with two girls, six and three. The kids get some non-gluten starch every now and then, and everyone but me is allowed to eat whatever is served when they are away from home. That balance works for them. I have found that I am now predictably healthy if I only eat what I prepare in my own kitchen, so I just pack food, and it’s really no big deal. The food I take along is generally more appetizing than anything I see out there anyway. Just tonight, my husband said that he is amazed at how many “real” foods he has realized he really likes now that we focus on eating fresh, whole, wholesome foods.
Anyway, I attached two photos. One is from November last year, at the peak of my undiagnosed Celiac disaster. I had actually dropped a few from being so dehydrated. Sorry about the quality; it is truly the only picture I have from that period of my life. I absolutely refused to let myself be photographed, but that was a group shot I couldn’t avoid.
The second picture is from this past weekend. Look how happy I am! I cropped both of them, but did not otherwise alter them. It’s amazing to see them side-by-side.
Thank you so much again for providing the resources that I really believe changed my life. I appreciate your support.
