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Weight Loss that Lasts — Living with Joy Work
The best long-term solution you probably don’t want to hear
It was a beautiful day. As sunlight streamed through her windows, Janet pulled her favorite outfit from the closet. The black pants zipped easily at her waist and the silky jade top showed her toned arms and her nearly flat stomach.
As she fluffed her hair and put on her earrings, Janet started planning. “Let’s see… how will I do my joy work today? I think I’ll start right now by eating my usual breakfast before I get into the car and head to work.
“Then I’ll walk in the park at lunch, eat an apple for my snack and stop at the gym on the way home. In fact, I’ll put everything I need into my workout bag and set it by the front door so I don’t forget to take it along.”
It wasn’t always this way. Just four years ago Janet top the scales at 324 pounds. She had tried every diet, spent time at a spa and hired a personal trainer.
With each weight loss effort, she would lose a bunch of weight, but with in a few months her weight would go back up. Her worst experience came the year she lost 100 pounds but gained all of it back the following year.
When Janet came to my weight-loss clinic, she was ready to give up on everything, including ever losing weight again. But as we spent time together, she began learning new skills including ways to build self-esteem and stop emotional eating.
Over the next two years, Janet became stronger and more determined to be successful. With the help of my coaching, she stuck with her new program until she reached her goal weight.
When she finished my clinic program, Janet felt confident she was ready to live in a way that would maintain her success.
The transformation
It had been almost two years since I had seen Janet. As she sat in my office now, I was amazed at the vibrant healthy woman she had become. During our visit, Janet reminded me of her long history of struggles with her weight and her life.
“What changed?” I asked. “How did you finally reach the point where you were able to lose that much weight and stay at your goal?”
