Losing weight without dieting

Many want to be slimmer and jump into diets. It works as long as you do it, but once you stop, the weight you have lost often comes back. If one wants a permanent change, the only way is to change life style and that is very much a mental journey. It may sound difficult, but it does not have to be. This lady has done just that and you can read her fantastic story here. No diet, still a huge change. Read and let her inspire you.

Name: Kim Kenny

Age: 54

Occupation: Transformational Health and Life Coach

Family: Wife, mom of two boys and two girls (ages 31, 27, 25 and 22), grandma (Mamaw) to three cutie-pies (two boys ages 3 and 2 and a girl who is 9 months)

Lives in: Ontario, Canada

Your weight loss story is a bit different than some others. Usually we are staring at the scale and we forbid ourselves to eat this and that, and we make it for a while and then fall back. What did you do different?

I spent years telling myself "this time I'm going to lose the weight for good", only to get frustrated at the deprivation of a diet and give up. I felt like I couldn't live that way the rest of my life, so I resigned myself to the fact that I was just going to learn to love myself as I was, but that was until I would see myself in a mirror or go try clothes on or see a picture of myself... Then I would jump back on the diet bandwagon because I was disgusted with what I saw.

At my highest weight, I was 330 pounds. I'm only 5 feet tall, so I was basically as big around as I was tall. In 2016, I ended up in the hospital in ICU (intensive care unit), with oxygen levels at 60 per cent. I was put on bi-pap to help clear the fluid from my lungs and to help my breathing. I remained in there for ten days. The doctor had me on very high doses of prednisone, which they told me would cause weight gain. I knew that if I didn't start losing weight, then I was headed for a lifetime of illness.

I decided that it was time to try something new. There had to be a way to eat where I didn't feel deprived, where I didn't have to say no all the time. I started by making healthier choices. I started eating more regularly instead of starving myself all day and then eating all night long because my body needed nourishment.

Once I began to eat real food, instead of takeout and processed foods, then I noticed that I wasn't craving the unhealthy food as much, in fact I didn't even enjoy it the same. I started to have more energy and to have less brain fog. Feeling good started to become more important to me than having that bag of chips or that piece of cake.

Being able to fit into my clothes better, move around without being out of breath or without being exhausted just walking from one room to the next, felt way better than having takeout for dinner. And as I saw the weight begin to drop off, I started to enjoy looking at my reflection more. I felt more confident and empowered and I realized that that feeling wasn't worth losing over eating processed food. I learned what foods give me energy and what ones take it away, so I began to gravitate more and more to the energy foods.

Along the way, I also realized that if I wanted to have a piece of cake once in awhile, then I could absolutely do that. It wasn't cheating because I wasn't on a diet. If I want a piece of cake, I take a tiny piece and savour every single morsel. I don't need to feel guilty because I'm not on a diet. I eat what I want, but I eat it in moderation. I choose healthy food more than unhealthy now and I make my portion sizes smaller.

The weight has not come off quickly because that only happens when we follow a plan that has a lot of "don't eat this, don't eat that" rules, and I recognized that if I followed a plan like that, then as soon as I started eating again I would gain it all back and then some.

I have lost 77 pounds (35 kg) since learning the "Ditch the Diet mentality", which is on average a pound a week (454 grams). My clients are seeing similar results and they are telling me that they don't feel anxious about their choices; that they almost feel guilty for losing weight because they haven't been "dieting".

You have three grandchildren and it seems that they have been a big part of your life style change

Yes, I have a 3 year old grandson, a 2 year old grandson and a 9 month old granddaughter. I am so privileged to be able to take care of each of them one day a week. They were a big factor in me getting healthy. I wanted to be able to go for walks, play with them and even care for them without being completely wiped out for two or three days after. I wanted to be the fun grandma, not the disabled grandma or the grandma that was too tired. I wanted to be around to watch them grow up and I knew that I was on a dangerous downward spiral the way I was eating.

So now, I'm able to care for them, play with them, walk up and down the stairs half a dozen times when it's bedtime, and I am still able to come home and do things for me and for/with my husband.

I'm a caregiver at heart; it's what brings me joy. I realized that if I wanted to give my best to my loved ones, then I needed to be my best!

Are you ever scared to not be able to maintain your new life style?

At first I was. I thought maybe it was just a fluke that it was working and that eventually I would get bored of it and give up. But now I realize that eating delicious, healthy food isn't boring. There are so many colours and flavours to choose from if I just use a little imagination. I like feeling lighter, having a clear head, feeling satisfied, having energy and being able to do more of the things I want to do.

I now know that I don't need to diet to get to my goal weight. I just get to keep doing what I'm doing, one step at a time.

I know that I don't have to live by the scale. Yes, it is a part of my weightloss journey in order for me to measure my progress, but it's not the only measurement of success. Being able to look in the mirror and like what I'm seeing, to be proud of my accomplishments, to be empowered to make good choices, to have self-control and to know that I am helping others achieve the same thing is my ultimate measure of success.

If you want to join my journey and begin your own as well, then I would welcome you to join my facebook group to "Ditch the Diet" for yourself and get started on living out your new story! www.facebook.com/groups/ditchthedietin5days

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