Sandra Never Expected to Become so Slender!

My first medical appointment with Dr. Carney was on June 6th, 2016 but I had previous encounters with Dr. Carney through the ATX Alive PlantPure Potlucks starting many months prior to that. I had also met Dr. Carney earlier as she presented at some of the monthly ATX Alive potlucks in Austin which were organized by my sister Patty. In fact I attended one of the potlucks at Dr. Carney's office in February of 2016 and brought my best friend Shirley with me.

After the February potluck, my best friend Shirley announced "I'm gonna do this." And, she did! Seeing her making changes and getting results was the spark I needed to consider doing this as well. It took me a couple of months but I eventually also found myself saying "I'm gonna do this" and I did. That is when I made my first appointment with Dr. Carney.

I had an interest in losing weight and my sister talked to me for about five years about how she ate. But, I did not respond because my sister was always thin and so I did not actually see her making improvements. and I was just NOT interested in having a "carbohydrate" lifestyle.

Dr. Carney spent time educating me. We drew my blood and I returned a couple weeks later to go over all the numbers. This was something no other doctor had ever done. Dr. Carney outlined a program of completely plant based nutrition with large breakfasts and lunches consisting of greens, beans, whole food starches like squash, yams and potatoes and small lighter evening meals eaten before 6:00 PM.

Her Starch-Smart System started working. Weight was coming off on the high complex carbohydrate diet. My dreams were coming true. Not only was I losing weight but my cholesterol numbers were coming down without medication.

Previously my doctor had simply given me a prescription for Lipitor and sent me on my way. I was on and off those statins but I resisted refilling them because I found the need to refill medications irritating. At the same time I was still eating high fat, high protein, low carbohydrate foods. I found myself gaining about ten to twelve pounds every year and eventually weighed 189 lbs. I would have easily been over 200 lbs by now if I had not adopted the Starch-Smart System.

I expected Dr. Carney could help me but it wasn't until I saw the changes in Shirley that I realized it would work for me as well. I never expected to become as slender as I am now. At first weight loss was slow. I thought I would be happy if I could just get down to 150 lbs. But I have lost over 50 lbs in one year and am now at 138 lbs and quite content. I have never starved myself. As Dr. Carney suggests, I eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a queen, dinner like a pauper and try to eat all my calories for the day before 6:00 pm. I have not weighed what I weigh now since I was nineteen years old.

My cholesterol has come down to around 170 from the high 200's. However, I need to make an appointment with Dr. Carney soon to see if my cholesterol is down to 150 yet.

My problem with my previous high protein diets was that they are not satiating. I have been there and done that. The Calorie Density principle just makes more sense. Get full. Get satisfied. This diet is for everybody.

Aside from losing weight I am no longer depressed, My emotions no longer swing up and down. I feel more energized now than I ever did before. I feel younger and more confident. Being able to wear a size 6 outfit or even a size 4 makes me feel great: emotionally and psychologically.

I see diet and exercise like a monarchy; eating is king, exercising is queen and together they form the monarchy. But, I would have to say that food needs to be the primary focus. Look first at the food you are eating and then look at your exercise.

The ATX Alive PlantPure Potlucks have been a huge source of support for me. I went with many of these new friends to the Healthfest in Marshall Texas and was able to hear Dr. McDougall there as well as Dr. Carney. This was a fantastic experience for me.

Once you get on this high complex carbohydrate way of eating it becomes addicting. You don't want to get off the ride because it's such a great ride.

I recently met a new friend Noey who thought I was part of a cult but after a few weeks he somehow decided to contact me again. He started listening and decided to give this way of eating a try. He lost 12 lbs in two weeks and has now lost 35 lbs. Now he is a great source of support for me.

I have other friends now that I am helping who are making changes and are seeing results. Some make changes slower than others. I use Facebook to promote this way of eating. Some people think I am crazy and de-friend me. But many others ask for help. I have to remind myself that I didn't listen to my sister for quite a few years and just learn to be patient with the people who are slow to believe.

Truthfully, this way of eating was difficult for me at first. Dr. Carney told me about the Instant Pot and that helped a lot. Now I have an air fryer and other cooking tools. All these gadgets are becoming fun. You do need to invest time and learning about how to prepare the foods. It took me this year to figure it out.

The best advice I think I received from Dr. Carney was to not eat calories past 6:00 pm. This can be difficult but it is true. If I eat past 6:00 pm it is much harder to get to sleep early enough. I have become interested in the idea of intermittent fasting. Stopping eating by 6:00 pm and then not eating again for 13 or 14 hours till breakfast seems to work really well for me.

Simplicity is my key to success. I make a couple things each week and eat them most of the week. This makes food preparation much easier and does not consume hours of every day.

Some co-workers don't agree with my approach on weight-loss. At the same time there are others that want to know everything I have done. After spending time going through the whole program with them they often leave for lunch and still have a steak. But, my sister reminds me that I did the same thing for five years. So, I need to just keep planting seeds and give people time to grow. I can't force anybody.

My parting words of wisdom are this: Read The McDougall Program for Maximum Weight Loss. Visit Dr.Carney.com, Make an appointment with Dr. Carney and "Just Do It!".