Sharon J.

"'The Fat Flush Plan' has changed my life. I have lost 73 lbs in seven months, and learned a healthy new way of eating. I started Fat Flush weighing 223 lbs. Eliminating weight-loss inhibiting foods, such as white flour, white sugar, trans-fats, and artificial sweeteners and adding in real foods gave me a workable eating strategy. I have learned that food allergies can play a major part in weight gain and management, and overall digestive and skin health. Following the wisdom of Ann Louise Gittleman awakened me to the bigger issues of my family’s health and the environmental health of my home. I can’t imagine that I would ever go back to my old ways of eating. I eliminated all of the high-fructose corn syrup and trans-fat products in my children’s diets. Then I replaced, as best I could, processed grocery store products with organically grown products. As a family, we are eating much better because of 'The Fat Flush Plan.'

I was an average size as a child. During high school, I wasn’t big, nor was I overly thin—I was a size 9/10. I am unsure of my weight at that time. I am 5’8” and have a lot of muscle due to the fact that I used to lift weights. As a result of my muscle mass, I can never go by what the height and weight charts indicate as an ideal weight.

I did great weight-wise in my first pregnancy. The night I went into labor, I was 150 lbs. The next day, I was down to 140 lbs and all the way to 132 lbs a week later. Three years later I got to the smallest I have ever been (130 lbs) and everyone thought that I had an eating disorder!

About 5 years later I started rapidly gaining weight. I put on 30 lbs in one month with no increase in my food consumption. Due to a family history, my doctor tested my thyroid along with several other tests. They didn't find anything, but to be the safe side, the doctor took me off birth control pills that I had been on all during high school and the 5 years since my daughter’s birth. Immediately the weight gain halted, but it was as if I had no metabolism. At this point, I was up to about 160-165 lbs. I stayed at this weight for several years until I became pregnant again. Up until the pregnancy, I tried a little eating modification, and a few 'diets in a bottle' to no avail.

Due to my size and overall health, I had no energy or drive to exercise. After my son was born I was up to 180lbs. Two more pregnancies followed in the next four years. After the last pregnancy, I was up to 200 lbs. Then I started having pains and numbness in my legs if I sat for more than 20 minutes. After several months, it was determined that I had bulging discs n my L5 and L6 vertebrae. After numerous therapies, the doctor did a spinal fusion. Right after this, I had a partial hysterectomy due to heavy periods.

After recovering and undergoing physical therapy form the surgeries, I began to look at my weight again. I was afraid to know what size I was, so I always bought elastic-type pants! I was serious about taking care of my weight because I was convinced that the extra weight I was carrying was partially the culprit in my back problems. Also, I had a multitude of health issues. I had suffered with migraines and other headaches since I was a child. I had four peptic ulcers and had been diagnosed with Acid Reflux and IBS. The doctor was trying to put me on antidepressants for depression, but they made me feel numb and emotionless, so I rarely took them.

I started trying to walk, though I couldn’t do much at first. I also started trying to cut out some of the fats and to eat “healthier,” as I saw it. After months, I saw no more than a 5 lb difference. Everyone that I worked with was really into the Atkins’ Diet, so I figured that I would try it. I did great, and lost 30 lbs! This—with all things considered—was great, but I didn’t feel well at all. All of my health issues remained, and in some cases were getting worse. After 3 months I was burned out. I think I ate more bacon on that diet then I ever did in my whole life! I wasn’t eating it because I wanted it, but simply because it was permitted.

I gained back the weight I lost on the Atkins’ Diet along—some extra lbs—and was up to 223 lbs. A co-worker of my best friend, Lisa, had been on 'The Fat Flush Plan' and had been telling her all bout it. She would tell me a little here and there about it, but I don’t think I was ready for it then. Finally, I came around and read the book. It was so different from anything else that I had read that I read it again. I think that I have read 'The Fat Flush Plan' about 5-6 times now. I found that depending on what phase I was in, I would focus more on that and would pull new stuff out of the book and from the Forum that I hadn’t noticed before. Lisa and I started 'The Fat Flush Plan' together. We purchased our Fat Flush supplies at Triangle Nutrition, in Raleigh, NC. The employees there are very knowledgeable about TFat Flush, and support their customers with free classes and the products need for all of the 3 phases—including a supply of all of the Fat Flush books. I had found my health food store!

I stayed on Phase 1 for 3 weeks and went on to Phase 2, where I stayed for a few months. However, almost a year later—even though I had lost 50 lbs—I was feeling sluggish and fatigued. After doing research on the Forum, I realized that I really needed a detox because of all the toxins that were surely reabsorbed during the metabolizing of my fat stores. I bought 'The Fast Track One-Day Detox Diet' and began to study that and learn how it was different from 'The Fat Flush Plan' in its approach. Again, Lisa and I prepared for the 11 day detox. It was great! I felt a world of difference, the way someone should feel who had lost 50 lbs. I found the fasting day to be very empowering. It showed me that I could beat food!

My activities included mostly walking, aromatherapy baths, and experimenting with the recipes in 'The Fat Flush Plan' and 'The Fat Flush Cookbook.' From day one I wrote daily in 'The Fat Flush Journal and Shopping Guide,' even though I had never done that before and resisted in the beginning. However, it became an important tool in my weight loss success and I highly recommend it. I found that I could go back and read about what happened on a day that I might slip up and eat something that I shouldn’t, like dairy, and how that caused my body to react with bloating and discomfort. Without the journal to refer to and re-enforce healthy eating, I might not have stuck to the eating strategy.

Even though Fat Flush had improved my well-being and outlook on life, I realized—after several doctor visits and lots of reading—that I had Seasonal Affective Disorder (S.A.D., a state of depression that is brought on in the winter months by the lessening of sunlight). However, it did not deter me from continuing with 'The Fat Flush Plan.'  I went to Phase 3, where I added back in more carbohydrates, and just went slower. I did not want the depression I felt to cause me to revert to bad eating habits. I attribute Fat Flush’s elimination of processed carbohydrates to helping me not to revert to eating them again, as many people do when they get depressed.

I was 55 lbs lighter than when I began 'The Fat Flush Plan.' I was very happy about my weight loss, but was still dealing with self-esteem issues. Even though I had lost all of this weight, I still had to wear larger clothes to accommodate the loose, sagging skin in my stomach area that had been stretched out from four pregnancies and weight gain. Along with the support of my husband and best friend Lisa, I decided to have a tummy tuck. I hoped that a tummy tuck would give me back my figure. The operation was successful, and my doctor removed 7 lbs of skin from my abdomen. He told me that the excellent results from the procedure were due mostly to the fact that I had already lost so much weight. The remaining eleven lbs dropped off as I recovered from the surgery. There is now a noticeable difference in my figure! Without the knowledge that I learned about health and weight management from Fat Flush , none of this would have been possible—and for that I am very grateful!

Since losing the weight and becoming healthier, I have noticed the following:

- I have allergies to dairy products and black pepper! These are things that I consumed on a daily basis.

- I haven’t had a headache of any sort since starting this diet! I would at least have a tension headache every couple of days and migraine every couple of weeks.

- I no longer have any sort of digestion issues! (Acid Reflux or IBS)

- My depression is more under control without medication."

Sharon J.