Weight & Wellness Success with TJ & Anita [REPLAY]

Transcript:

DARLENE: Well, welcome to Dishing Up Nutrition brought to you by Nutritional Weight and Wellness. Listeners, let me ask you a question. How long have you been listening to Dishing Up Nutrition; you know, either on our live show or on a podcast? Did you know that Dishing Up Nutrition has been on the air on 107 for the past 18 years? And many of you have been listening for 18 years. And we really thank you for that. That is so special and we really appreciate your support. And just to let you know, we work hard each week to present information that can make a difference in your health.

You know, before we started the show today, I was just commenting on when I'm putting together a script, I'm thinking, hey, would my mother be able to understand this and do something with it? So that's how I look at things. And so, as you know, our message is a simple one. It's eat real food for better health. It's a simple message that gets amazing results. We see it every day. Don't we Kara?

KARA: We do. That's right, Dar. It's a simple message, but the results are amazing. And today we have two very special guests who experienced these amazing results. They have experienced long-term weight loss and better health. So you'll want to stay tuned because you're going to want to hear Anita and TJ's health journey. So before we have Anita and TJ start sharing their story, I just want to introduce our, myself and my co-host.

My name's Kara Carper. I'm a Licensed Nutritionist and Certified Nutrition Specialist. I have a master's degree in holistic health and I've actually been with Nutritional Weight and Wellness, Dar, has it really been over 15 years?

DARLENE: Oh my gosh, Kara.

KARA: Oh, I think it was. I was there way back when there was just the, the one single office in St. Paul.

DARLENE: Yep. Okay. So just to introduce myself, I'm Dar Kvist. I'm a Certified Nutrition Specialist and a Licensed Nutritionist, and I've been around for a long time. And we started Nutritional Weight and Wellness in one little office, like Kara said about 25 years ago. And now we have six local offices in the metro area with many dietitians and nutritionists doing individual nutrition counseling and education to clients all over the world. Kara, you know, can you name a few of those places that we have clients from? I know we have one from India.

KARA: I didn't know about that one. I mean, England, Australia, really across the globe, not even just across the United States, but across the globe.

DARLENE: You know, Montana, New York. I mean, you know, some of the local in the United States, we have clients.

KARA: We do, we do. They're all over. So we're fortunate to be able to share our message globally at this point. And so the format of our radio show, Dishing Up Nutrition, for many of the weekly shows and podcasts, this is sort of how it goes. We research a topic. So just to give you an example, next week's topic is called “Avoiding Menopause Weight Gain”. So we take that topic that we've researched and we discuss on air our findings and our clinical experiences, just from our offices and meeting with clients for 25 years, like Dar said.

DARLENE: We know a lot.

KARA: Yes, we have a lot of information. Today we'll be interviewing two special guests, like I shared, who took the nutritional information they learned in class and changed not only their weight, but also their health.

DARLENE: It's great to have you and let, let me introduce; this is Anita and TJ Skinner, and it's really a great pleasure to have you join us today. Anita, I think you started on this health journey way back in 2003. Am I right?

ANITA: If I, if my memory serves me, Dar, you're right.

DARLENE: Well, you're eating, right. So your memory must be good.

Anita’s healthy journey

 

ANITA: You know, it is. I mean, I, it is. I actually tell, when I think of it, I think, well, I kind of took the revolving door approach. I came in 2003 and I learned what I was ready to learn, and time went on and I came again in 2007 and learned some more. And then I was pulled away by all the things that pull you away in life and came back a couple years ago right before the shutdown, the pandemic shutdown. And the thing is, is that I tried other things along the way, some very well known, very popular programs. And I, I would try because I did my whole life.

DARLENE: So Anita, when you first came in 2003, what were you wanting to accomplish?

ANITA: Always, always weight loss, because, you know, if that was the definition of healthy to me. I had to lose weight. Because I, I think it's a common…

DARLENE: You're not alone.

ANITA: I am not alone. I don't believe that anymore at all. Over the time and the experience, I've been very lucky to have some experience where I've had extreme successes on a couple of other “diet programs”. I've had extreme success and then complete flip flop failure from the, the way I learn to eat in those programs.

DARLENE: Yeah.

ANITA: So that's why one of the things that I have still today is I still have the original materials from the time I came in 2003. And then when we came in 2007, because there was something about them; I got rid of all the other materials I ever got from every, every other program. But these, for some reason I kept because they could, they just, they just made some kind of sense.

DARLENE: Well, it's, you know, like it's a simple message. It's like, eat real food, a little protein, a little vegetables, a little fat, nothing fancy, but it works.

KARA: And isn't that interesting too, that Anita's initial goal motivation for, for trying this plan was weight loss? Like it is the motivation for so many people. But I bet you really liked what you found at Nutritional Weight and Wellness. It wasn't a low-calorie starvation plan.

ANITA: Love that.

KARA: You know, and we encourage people to eat more of the correct things to fire up their metabolism. So I'm guessing that that's what it kept you coming back to the plan. There's one aspect.

ANITA: That is of what kept me coming back. And also there's so many resources. There's so much support and I need support. I need daily reminders because out there we get daily reminders of three fast food joints on every block.

DARLENE: Yes.

ANITA: We get daily reminders of advertisements that were not good enough until we weigh, you know, look like pretty thin, too thin maybe. I don't know. That's my opinion.

KARA: It's really like a cookie cutter approach. It's not individualized.

ANITA: And, and you can't do it, you have to, you know, you're just not good at enough until you, until you look a certain way. Meanwhile, I was wondering why can't I feel good? Why can't I feel happy? Why can't I, why am I not good enough unless I make other people jealous? I don't know. You know, it's some kind of weird dynamic out there.

DARLENE: Yes, there is. I agree with you.

ANITA: And you know, so it's one of the kind of silent messages I've gotten from Nutritional Weight and Wellness is that you want you eat to feel good. And if you feel good, you probably have a better chance of dropping unwanted weight and just being, you know, operating, wanting to do more in your life because you have more energy, more vitality, more zest. And this is from the food I'm eating. And not only that, but who knew; real food tastes good. It really is tasty. And one of my favorite things about this program is the recipes. I love who's ever done those recipes. I think they're, they're just so fun. It's one of the fun things we do; TJ and I.

DARLENE: Well, you know, they're, they're based on something simple because people are busy these days and they can't have a lot of ingredients and, and all those things are simple, but they taste great.

ANITA: You don't need a lot of ingredients.

DARLENE: Yeah.

ANITA: You know, and maybe just slow down a little to be nice to yourself and give yourself some tasty, yummy food that it will actually make you want to do stuff after you eat it.

DARLENE: You know, so, you know, I think we should bring TJ into the conversation.

KARA: I think we should. We'll come back to Anita too. This is, this is such great information.

TJ’s health journey

 

DARLENE: So TJ, you, you joined with Anita and I don't know. Were you just be in a really good supportive husband or were there some things that you wanted to change about your health?

TJ: Well, I think it was probably a little of both, but I, I, I was, I learned a long, long time ago; I, I think it, even in the fifties, when my mother brought home the bag of margarine and I was, I was tasked with putting the red dye and making it look like real food. And I, and I had an uncle who had a farm that I spent time on, and that was real food. And I liked that taste. And I, I didn't like the taste of the new food that was coming in.

And then when I was in Vietnam and got C-Rations, that, that, that stuff was left over from World War II. It was not food. It was terrible. So I was really looking for something a lot along my all my life. So when Anita and I got together, I was into Adele Davis: eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a duke.

DARLENE: Yep.

TJ: And, and so I was always aware of food and, and when she was looking for these different, I, I was so happy when she found the gold standard. She really did. You are the gold standard, Dar.

ANITA: I agree.

KARA: That's so wonderful. Well, TJ, I'm so sorry to interrupt, but we do have to take our quick commercial break here. We can finish that when we come back. You're listening to Dishing Up Nutrition brought to you by Nutritional Weight and Wellness. And again, today's topic we have two very special guests, TJ and Anita Skinner, who they're sharing their Weight and Wellness success story. So be sure to stay tuned, to learn how they work together to achieve health and weight loss and just overall feeling great. We'll be right back.

BREAK

Blood sugar connection to eating high sugar foods

 

DARLELNE: Welcome back to Dishing Up Nutrition. Here's an interesting observation: when you eat highly processed carbs, you know, one, those that are more they're higher in sugar, you know, such a soda, bagels, cookies, cereal, crackers, or chips, your glucose goes up, your sugar level goes up, your insulin level increases, and your fat cells suck up the excess sugar, making bigger fat cells and causing a deficiency of glucose in the bloodstream, which then signals our brain to crave sugar and processed carbs. I think people could understand that. So, you know, eating high sugar foods leads to cravings or more sugar and hunger.

KARA: No, I think you did a good job of explaining that. It's that spike in the blood sugar that's followed up by the crash. And when we have low blood sugar, we crave more carbs and sugar.

DARLENE: And it's kind of interesting that people can visualize this, that when they eat sugar and they have excess insulin, the fat cells just suck it up and expand the fat cells. And of course you gain weight.

KARA: Mm-Hmm.

DARLENE: Fascinating.

KARA: So we want to, we want to avoid that and get back to our real food that we've been talking about.

DARLENE: Right.

KARA: So we're back from break and we have Anita and TJ's Skinner here with us today; live by the way. It's so great to meet you both in person. And so, before break, TJ was just sharing that he and Anita had been searching for a plan, searching for some kind of program, but really hadn't found one that fit until they found Nutritional Weight and Wellness, Dar’s message, which you referred to as the gold standard.

TJ: Yes.

Other diet programs that didn’t work for Anita and TJ

 

KARA: And so back in 2005, I understand that you, you were taking some classes, the Weight and Wellness way classes, and just, but you decided to lose weight. Maybe it was with a different plan. But it didn't work out so well or this is the, this is the information that the dietitian had shared. Could you just tell the listeners about how, what happened in that scenario?

TJ: I, I think what we're talking about is the, the wasn't it the one that we got over at Southdale?

ANITA: That's one of them.

TJ: Yeah. And, and, and it was, it was the typical, you know no, no cut, cut out all fat and low carb diet and very little or no red meat, you know, it's that, it's, it's that kind of the, the thing that I actually got for when I had high cholesterol numbers, the doctor gave me that, and it it's exactly the opposite of what, what we learn here in this program, thankfully.

KARA: Okay. Okay. So that wasn't, that didn't work out even though you were, you tried it?

TJ: No, we, we lost weight. I lost weight pretty quickly, but then gained it twice as much back. And I was in a job that was not, I was a little, I was pretty sedentary. I was an executive assistant, so it was a secretarial and I was sitting a lot. And I developed, later on I developed DVT, deep, deep vein thrombosis.

DARLENE: Oh, yes.

TJ: That actually, the x-ray technician said was the largest clot she'd ever seen.

DARLENE: Oh, wow.

TJ: But anyway, I got on the everything else was healthy, so I didn't have to have the injections and so forth. I took oral medication and it wasn't until I got back into the complete eating real food and, and the good and the gold standard that, that I started to actually the, the deep vein thrombosis is completely gone. And I've lost 40 pounds, the in the last two years that have stayed off.

DARLENE: Wow.

KARA: Congratulations.

TJ: Thank you.

DARLENE: But it's not the pounds as much as the fact that it changed your, the arteries and, you know, that's amazing point. Congratulations. That's the point. That's the key.

TJ: That is the key. You're right. Thank you.

DARLENE: So, let's kind of think let's fast forward to 2018 and Anita, you kind of started, you know, you, you decided you, you were retired, right?

ANITA: Right.

DARLENE: Decided to be taking care of yourself more and you two took some in-person classes when we could still do them. And, and so what happened, how did you feel? You know, explain more to us. And originally, how did you find Nutritional Weight and Wellness very first time, way back in 2003?

ANITA: Way back in 2003, I believe was, was a community outreach program from Edina Community Center at their high school. And, and there was just a, kind of an intro class to this thing called Nutritional Weight and Wellness, talking about eating real food and losing weight by eating food instead of processed food.

DARLENE: And what did you think of that when you first heard, heard that?

ANITA: With all my experience of trying all these other gimmicks and, and you know, low fat and fat will make you fat, those kind of things, it rang a bell.

DARLENE: Okay.

ANITA: So I would made me interested to go and check it out because I had so much experience of denying and restricting myself that this sounded welcoming and it sounded like a different, really, truly different.

DARLENE: Yes. Truly different. You know, TJ, you, it must have felt right to you too, because you grew up eating like real food.

TJ: Oh yes. Oh, yes. It sure did. Yes, absolutely. And it was the first program that said butter was okay. You know, and I love butter.

DARLENE: And just for the listeners, repeat again, what has happened with your health since you went back to being a hundred percent on the Weight and Wellness this way?

Elimination of DVT from eating the Weight and Wellness way

 

TJ: Well I have just without even trying I've dropped weight, but also the deep vein thrombosis that I had was, is, is completely gone. So I'm able to work out just like I used to before and live a normal life. And, and actually I got an apron for Christmas and I made the pumpkin custard. So I had a wonderful holiday; the Nutritional Weight and Wellness pumpkin custard was lovely. And I recommend it.

KARA: That’s a great recipe. Yeah.

DARLENE: I mean, I think that's pretty amazing the results that you've had, you know, amazing.

KARA: Right, well, and since January 2020 is when all of this occurred with the 40 pounds and one thing, a theme that I, I think I heard from both of you, I just want to make sure I'm getting all this correct, but it's, it's like you both stopped focusing on the scale, started focusing on what can I do to feel good for energy for better health.

TJ: Right. That's exactly right.

KARA: And the weight loss was just a great side effect.

TJ: Yes.

DARLENE: Right.

KARA: We, we want everybody to take that approach because it's often backwards; focusing on the scale and the number and the low calorie and the starvation, and then, you know, that is not a way to promote good health and energy or moods.

DARLENE: No, and it's also, I think a lot of times when we're teaching classes, or even on the podcast or individually working with people, it's having them understand that their health is more important than their weight numbers, that number on the scale. And it's so ingrained in people that they have to think, “What's that number; what's that number this morning?” You know, so…

ANITA: You're reminding me that we've been doing a little decluttering around the house, you know, and I came across a scale I had bought a couple years ago and I realized every, I, I would put it away and take it out periodically. And every time I took it out, I was bummed by looking on the scale because there's some kind of obsessive button got pushed. You know, now it's important and oh, this is higher than it should be, or it's a little lower. So I better whatever. But I just noticed a bummed feeling every time I used the scale. So guess what went and got donated?

DARLENE: Oh, good.

ANITA: I, I, I got rid of it. I donated the scale and maybe somebody else and find a better use for it than feeling bummed every time you go on the scale.

KARA: It's so important to know yourself. You know, I mean, some people yeah are different and you know, they maybe weighing helps. But if for anyone listening that can relate to that, I would encourage you to do what Anita did; throw it away, donate it to someone who can, who can use it. So now it is time for our break. You're listening to Dishing Up Nutrition.

January in Minnesota, where we are broadcasting from means that it's time to start making some hearty soups. Marianne, our culinary nutrition educator, will demonstrate how to make great tasting and healthy soups. So join her either January 25th at 6:00 PM or January 27th at noon to watch Marianne create her magic in the kitchen.

Cooking Classes

BREAK

DARLENE: Welcome back to Dishing Up Nutrition. We're proud to announce that our Menopause six-hour Seminar is now available online. This class is packed with information for women in perimenopause menopause, and post-menopause. We discuss everything from incontinence to menopausal weight gain. We also share natural solutions.

To sign up, go to weightandwellness.com or call 651-699-3438. And we have been doing this, putting this class together for two years. And it's amazing.

Menopause Solutions Online Seminar

KARA: I'm excited to see that, to share that final product and to personally see it.

DARLENE: Yes. So Anita, you, I think you were a part of another program at one time and it didn't work out too well for you. What's happened when you, to your healthy eating?

Anita’s past restrictive fad diet story

 

ANITA: Well, I, I needed, I felt I needed to lose weight and I felt I needed to get tough with myself and get serious with myself because I needed to lose weight. I was tired of being the weight I was and feeling like I did. So I joined a quite well known weight loss program. And I, I remember the time zone was like, I, I think I started in September and got really serious, you know, really got into it and would start to lose weight and would lose more and more weight, but not feeling great, but really determined. You know, I want to say white knuckling when I look back at it, but I was very determined and I, and to, to ask this and demand this of myself and I kept on the program and I would lose weight and then I lost more weight finally, and I'd have plateau and then I'd lose a little more weight and a little more weight.

And then when it came to the final two, maybe 100, two pounds, I, it wouldn't move. I would try harder and be more strict with myself, deny myself more, restrict myself more. And I couldn't make that last couple pounds budge. The very last day of the, that program was just before Christmas, all these many years ago.

DARLENE: Yeah.

ANITA: And I, I got weighed the program and low and behold, I had shot over my goal eight pounds past my goal since the last week. Something weird happened. And, and I was like, kind of scared and ecstatic at the same time. How could I lose that much weight when I wasn't losing anything? Well, that night I went to a, I don't know, some kind of event, probably a pre-Christmas event. And I was just like feeling thin, you know, and, and accomplished my goal plus beyond.

I came home and it was, went to the refrigerator, opened the door, looked in, saw a pint of ice cream, sat there and just started to pour that, just eat it. Like, I didn't know who this person was, was doing this. This was the same night as I reached my goal. And I, and I looked for anything that I could look for to just shove it in my mouth. When I think back now, I think it's probably high fat stuff. I think I was probably starved for fat. Not sure, sure. Maybe protein probably too. And, and so it was, it was shocking to me and I, and I even remember thinking this feels, this must be what an eating disorder looks like. You know, because I, I, I was out, I just was out of control. I was out of control.

DARLENE: Yeah. Mm-Hmm. And probably just, you were just nutrient deficient.

ANITA: Yes, totally. I’m sure I was.

DARLENE: From not eating enough food. And not enough real food. And it pushed you into binging on whatever you could put your hands on at that point.

ANITA: Until I gained the weight back quite quickly and, and told myself, I will never do this again. That I will never diet like this again.

KARA: That type of a program, you said denying and restricting.

ANITA: Yes.

KARA: Dar don't we know we have so many clients who are trying those approaches.

DARLENE: Right.

And then it ends up, you know, it, it backfires and then there's, and, and they can't stop some kind of like gain the weight back, binge eating involved, compulsive eating.

DARLENE: So Anita, now that you've been doing the Weight and Wellness way plan a hundred percent, have you ever felt like binging again?

Anita’s solution to eliminating binge eating behavior

 

ANITA: No.

DARLENE: Say that louder.

ANITA: No.

DARLENE: Okay.

ANITA: I will tell you, I feel that it's, there's a requirement for me to be healthy and happy. And I would put myself in that category that requires me to be nice to myself, nicer than to…

DARLENE: That's a nice way to say it.

ANITA: There's I, you know, I have to look as, am I being mean to myself here? Maybe it's better to have a little something than deny myself because I'm not good enough, or I'm not doing the right job or, you know.

DARLENE: Yeah, whatever goes through your brain.

ANITA: That's not the right outlook. It seems to be a better approach to be nice to myself, to, to it's it helps me lose weight and feel healthier.

KARA: Now that is true definition I think of self-care is what you just shared.

DARLENE: Yeah.

ANITA: Maybe that's. Yeah. Thanks. That makes sense. Yeah. That's self, it's a better self care. Mm-Hmm. Yeah.

KARA: Good for you. So Anita and TJ, so you sounds like you're at team, you've been a team to achieve better health and weight loss as a nice side effect. Can you tell our listeners how does that work? Like, we're just curious. Do you cook together? Do you take turns? What does it look like at your house?

TJ: I think that's a TJ question.

KARA: That’s a TJ question. Okay sure. TJ take it away.

Planning and preparing balanced meals is key

 

TJ: Sure. Well in, in, in my past, I, I had done several years of professional bartending. So I, I'm not a stranger to doing dishes and cleaning and, and around the bar. So I switched that to the kitchen. And but, but now what we do is, is sometimes we'll, the, the whole, the, the crux is planning. That's the big thing is planning, planning, planning, our Nutritional Weight and Wellness meals and days. And sometimes Anita will be the sous chef and I'll be the chef. And most of the time she's the chef and I'm the sous chef. So it's, it's traded off that way. It's, and, and we have fun. We have fun doing it.

KARA: Do you like mostly the same things? Like, are you able to eat the same dinners or…

ANITA: Yeah, don't hate us. We do. We really have a problem with that. I know some people do that.

TJ: I'm amazed at the recipes from Nutritional Weight and Wellness. I've not had one that I didn't like.

DARLENE: Oh my gosh. That's so nice.

TJ: It's amazing.

DARLENE: Wow. That's great. Thank you.

KARA: You're looking at the creator of, I would say most of those recipes here: Darlene.

DARLENE: It was interesting when I was creating recipes, sometimes I would create them in my head and then I would cook them, but I never follow directions, you know, I, so then I'd have to have someone else do it and write the, write the exact things down. So yeah, it's a process. So, so I think that Anita, you know, you're, you have some great advice I think for people that are kind of, you know, we have a lot of clients that have had a history of binging, you know, they starve and then they binge, and then they starve and then they binge, and then they starve and they binge. So what would you suggest to people if they want to stop that?

ANITA: I, I would, you know, I'd, I'd want this for, for anybody out there who's listening because it's a terrible thing to go through; that I would suggest, I would want you to know that that was a valuable experience for me.

DARLENE: Yes. You learned something.

ANITA: I, I really, yeah, I, it was a very clear marker for me that diets don’t work. And we hear that you hear that that's a mantra places.

DARLENE: Right.

ANITA: But it was a clear definitive you know, awareness that I came to that I wouldn't have had before. So I don't consider it anything. I, I think it had its value.

KARA: Mm-Hmm.

ANITA: So these experiences that we have that aren't so hot can make us ready for what.

KARA: That’s how you learn, right? What does work.

ANITA: And what the good stuff, where, where the good stuff is. And because it's hard to believe. It still is, you know, that it, it, fat is fat is good for you. Fat helps you lose weight. I, you know, I, I believe that, and I'm still setting it in there because I can have times where I go, oh, and I'll look at the calories in something and I think, what am I looking at calories for? But I go head back there on my default buddy.

TJ: Habit.

KARA: Yeah. Habit old habit. It's like those tapes and old message that are played, right. The messages. Yeah. They're ingrained for so many decades, I would say so that's what I would say.

ANITA: I'd say, you know, all the experiences you have, they can lead you, you know, where you want to go. If you want to feel good and be healthy, you can be, you can be, don't think you can't just because you failed before, because I failed and I've, and I'm succeeding now.

KARA: Well, it's time for another break. And I'm really excited. Dar had mentioned that we are going to be releasing our Menopause Solution series, and I'm just really excited that I was able to be a part of that six hour seminar, myself and Melanie Beasley, another dietitian.

DARLENE: They did a great job.

KARA: Well, thank you, Dar. I haven't seen it yet, but I'll take your word on it. But for many years, the Menopause Seminar, it was an in-person event of course, pre-pandemic days. And it was for an entire weekend. Because of many requests, you know, people loved that. They actually came from across the country and we get book hotels.

So because of all these requests to have something like that, we are now offering the Menopause Solution Seminar online. It's packed with so much information. And with the digital format, the online format, you can learn at your own pace. So again, you, if you want to sign up, which I would encourage you to, if you are interested in learning more about perimenopause or menopause, it's online at weightandwellness.com, you can also call our office at (651) 699-3438.

Menopause Solutions Online Seminar

BREAK

DARLENE: Welcome back to Dishing Up Nutrition. We understand that because of the processed convenience food environment we all live in, it takes ongoing education and support to stay on your real food eating plan. We offer support in many different ways. You know, I like what Anita told me before the show. She wants to practice habits that feel good while she's doing them; not only when the goal is met. That's pretty interesting comment. I like it. It means so much. She wants to practice habits that feel good while she's doing them; not only when the goal is met. We want you to enjoy the process of staying healthy.

So I encourage you to learn with us by taking the Nutrition for Weight Loss series or the Menopause series or the Renew series, or you can take a one hour class such as Immune Building Foods or Getting a Good Night's Sleep or Breaking the Sugar Habit. You know, these classes are on our website, weightandwellness.com or call us at (651) 699-3438. And we'll help you figure out the class and the time that works best for you. The people that answer the phone are great for helping people.

Nutrition Classes

KARA: Yep. They can, they can help you determine, you know, what makes the most sense for you based on your, your individual health concern. So we are back in the studio with Anita and TJ Skinner, our special guests for today who are eating the Weight and Wellness Way. And, you know, because it is, it, you might be listening as a podcast, but right now it is we're in the middle of the Christmas holiday. And so for a lot of people, that's a very challenging time. It just seems like there's more treats. And for some, there are more social events or family events and just a lot of processed foods. So I was just wondering, how have you both been able to stay focused, whether that's foods that, or treats that have come in your home, or if you did have any events to go to, how have you been able to keep eating the Weight and Wellness way?

How to stay on track with the Weight and Wellness plan

 

DARLENE: They're both going to answer at once.

ANITA: Or not.

TJ: Well, the first thing that comes to my mind is that we, we have a lot of loving friends and they give us gifts and sometimes there's too much sugar in them and there's stuff that isn't in the Nutritional Weight and Wellness program for us. So we immediately re-gift them, or even sometimes throw them away. We accept them graciously because we know that they were given in love. But we get rid of them. We don't keep them in the house.

DARLENE: So TJ, why do you, why do you really say no to those things? Cause some of those are really expensive gifts that people provide, you know why just say no?

TJ: Good point, good point Dar. I, I know what it does to me. I know it doesn't feel good. I get inflamed and, and I pay for it if I, if I have that. I feel so much better eating the Nutritional Weight and Wellness way that it's, it's just a, it's a habit now not to take it. And I know it's going to hurt if I do.

DARLENE: So did you over the holidays, like thinking about Christmas dinner, did you feel like you were being deprived because you didn't have some of these extra treats that are advertised all the time on TV?

TJ: Oh, no. Not at all. Not at all. This is our this is our second full Christmas now, since we've been doing the program 100%. And it, we, we had a good time preparing the menu. We had a wonderful brisket, which is also a tradition, but we had wonderful Brussels sprouts recipe from the book. And I, I got to use my new apron and make pumpkin custard, which was fabulous and got all my treats in.

DARLENE: So you didn't feel that you were being deprived or…

TJ: Not at all. Not at all.

DARLENE: Okay. And the next morning you woke up.

TJ: Feeling great. I think we even went and worked out didn't we?

DARLENE: Yeah.

KARA: So it sounds like you're, you're realizing, or maybe you've realized this for a while. It's just not worth it. It's not worth the, just going to have a couple cookies, couple of those Christmas cookies, because what happens? I mean, do you, do you actually get low energy, cravings or what would happen, do you think if you indulged in some of those cookies? Anita, what might happen for you?

ANITA: Well you know, one of the ways I, it's easier for me to say no to this stuff is because there are some things that I would make exception for, but they become few and far between; they're usually excellent ingredients because most of the stuff that's available doesn't make the cut for taste anymore. I think we've been doing this long enough that we haven't mentioned this, but you know, this, your ability to taste the foods and differentiate and taste real food, the more you taste it, the less satisfying processed food is because salt and sugar is used to cover up the, the less than good tastes that are, you know, making up those foods. Yeah. All that processed stuff, you know, you can taste it after you've been doing this for a while, so it doesn't become a matter of, of, oh, I'm doing this for my own good.

It becomes a matter of, yeah. Not worth it. Just not tasting that good, but, but there will be times when I will, you know, I just, I, I think it's really helpful to, if you really want something, be nice to yourself and go ahead and have a bite or two or a half or whatever, but just what might be worthwhile to be aware of what happens when you're eating it, what it tastes like and then how you feel afterwards and maybe the next day. And, and we are, we are not into feeling low blood sugar at our house. It's, it's almost fear of low blood sugar at our house. We brought snacks with us today for after this is over.

DARLENE: I was actually, that was going to be my next question for you. What do you do now when you're, when you're out? I mean, when you're home, it's, it's easier.

TJ: Right.

DARLENE: But when you're out and about like today, who do you do so that you don't end up with these low blood sugars?

KARA: Oh, this is great. Tell us what you have there in your snack pack.

ANITA: Okay. For, for, for starters, for breakfast we had mint smoothies because it's available energy, those smoothies, they're in the cookbook, tons of them. They're delicious and they're immediately available energy and we're working on those right now. After this is over this interview's over we have a bag of, we have Duke’s meat sticks; they’re made without nitrates. We have some carrots for both of us for carb. The Duke’s is for protein, and the, and then our fat is we brought Brazil nuts. TJ brought Brazil nuts today. So we got protein, fat, carb. And also just in case, because again, we don't like low blood sugar, we, we both have a, a bar.

KARA: Sure.

ANITA: If we're, those are very, those are balanced. Those have the balance of the protein, fat and carb.

KARA: So, so you prepared, you thought ahead.

DARLENE: Yeah.

KARA: You knew you were going to be gone and you thought, well, just in case and you packed a snack. So is really about that that thinking ahead and that preparation piece.

TJ: Planning is a big deal.

ANITA: And, and here's the deal. The more you do this, the better you get at it, you, these are skills. And like we're getting better in the kitchen together.

DARLENE: Yeah.

ANITA: And, and every time we make a recipe, it seems like it takes quite a while to make it. But every time we repeat it, it, we get a little faster, a little it's a little smoother, a little it, because it's a skill and you build the skill. Life is easier.

DARLENE: Mm-hmm.

ANITA: You know, so you go try another one.

TJ: Well, like when we started deviled eggs, it took us like an hour at first. Now it takes us 20 minutes for, to do 12 eggs from boiling to ready to eat.

DARLENE: Right.

ANITA: Peel under, in under five minutes used to take us like 20, 25 minutes to peel those dozen eggs.

KARA: That's encouraging for anyone listening that might be intimidated to kind of, of get started on a real food plan that it does, it might take a little bit more time.

TJ: Yes, yes.

KARA: And thought at first, but it gets easier and faster.

DARLENE: You know, Anita, one of the things that you had made a comment to Jolene who is the nutritionist that you're working with right now.

ANITA: Yes.

DARLENE: You said when we step away from foods and sugar treats that are always calling our name, as you know, we just went through the holiday season and there were special sugary treats every place you looked, right?

ANITA: Yes.

DARLENE: But you didn't really you didn't partake of those. So how, how do you keep, how do you keep your focus all the time? Do you keep it with each other?

ANITA: You know I would say the best way we keep focus is to keep our meals and snacks regular, because you just don't feel the cravings as much. You know, it like the way I look at sugars and treats, treats, quote, unquote, processed foods, cakes, cookies, potato chips, pretzels, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. The way I look at those is like frenemies. They are real nice to you up front. But, but you know what? They, they whack your around really badly when you're not…

TJ: They're painful.

ANITA: They're painful.

DARLENE: Yeah.

KARA: You both have talked about inflammation. The inflammation that is an after effect of eating that way.

TJ: Yes.

DARLENE: Yeah. Well, you guys have just done an amazing job. You know, back in I think it was about 2019, I wrote some classes called the Renew classes and I think you've taken them, haven't you?

ANITA: We repeaters. We take them every time.

TJ: Every chance we get that. We love those.

ANITA: Yeah. Because this is, you know, this is a program about information, but it's also about insight and, you know, insight is something that comes in, you like it, something gets really clear and yeah, sugar's bad for me. I get it. Blah, blah. And then you kind of forget it as you go along. And then it's just to repeat these classes as you get the support and you get to be reminded and pick up a detail you forgot.

DARLENE: Okay.

ANITA: You know, ask time because you are ready to hear more. You can't hear everything at once. There's a lot.

TJ: And I, and I Need accountability and I get it there. Yeah. It's wonderful.

DARLENE: Okay. Okay. That's great to know.

KARA: Well, you know, our time is already up and Dar and I just, we can't thank you enough for being here today for being willing to share your story, being vulnerable.

DARLENE: I think you're going to help a lot of people that are thinking what's this real food stuff all about? You know, and it isn't as hard as people think, is it?

ANITA: No, just at all. Just take a one step at a time and learn as you go and trust that. Give it a chance.

TJ: Yeah.

DARLENE: Yes.

KARA: I think Anita and TJ really make it all feel very doable.

DARLENE: Mm-Hmm.

KARA: This, this whole plan.

TJ: Well, and we want to thank you very much for having us. It's been an honor. Thank you.

KARA: It's been a real pleasure today. Well, our goal at Nutritional Weight and Wellness is to help each and every person experience better health through eating real food. Like Dar says it's as simple yet. It's a powerful message. Eating real food is life changing. Thank you everyone for joining us today and enjoy the rest of your holidays.