Something I don’t talk about, and know I haven’t written about, is I am a certified nutrition and wellness consultant. I felt guilty for a while because I knew when I was practicing what I’m preaching. I obtained this certification a 2017 as I have a passion for a healthy mind.

I read a book a few years when I realized my mom had dementia. The Grain Brain by Dr. David Perlmutter changed my whole thought process. He talked about what we feed our bodies, we feed our brains, as well. One of the studies in the book mentioned consistently high levels of glucose affected the brain which could/would lead to dementia and/or Parkinson’s. My mom was a severe diabetic for 33 years. Her body just could not produce insulin to keep her properly regulated, and this resulted in her taking five shots a day.

What we feed our brains, reminds me of my 6th grade graduation program when computers were just starting to come about: GIGO Effect. GIGO – garbage in, garbage out. The GIGO Effect can be applied in so many aspects of our lives.

Eating clean, or even just healthy, is tough. I feel that’s why the first three letters of diet is DIE. No rocket science there. When I went for my certification, I needed two case studies of individuals I could consult for two months. I didn’t use their real names to maintain confidentiality. Anita Brake (get it? I need a break!) made the most progress and I was most proud of her. This is why I decided to finally share the story.

Anita was clearly pre-diabetic. Her doctor wanted to start her on medicine. Thankfully Anita looked for another outlet. She wanted to avoid medicine and try to make changes on her own. As a former competitive power lifter and runner, I had experience in exercising. I was able to lay out a plan for not just today, but for tomorrow and beyond.

Fad diets pop up constantly. People want to look for a quick fix. However, when you stop doing those quick fixes, your body freaks out and the weight comes back on. It’s so important to train your brain to make lifestyle changes. This is the hardest part. People want to be healthy and skinny, but they don’t want to put forth the work into doing it. You didn’t gain the weight overnight, so you will not be able to take it off overnight. If only we had that magic wand…

I could not stand on top of Anita to tell her every day what she could/could not eat. Or what exercise regimen she needed to do. I could only provide guidelines and give her the support to do it on her own.

We kept in touch during the process. She used MyFitnessPal app to track her calories. It also helped her track her macros. She was able to log her exercise and see how many calories she burned. This app kept her honest to the overall regimen. I highly recommend that app. Logging your food truly helps you see everything you are taking in. You know the saying, “Abs start in the kitchen, not in the gym.”

At the end of two months, Anita had more bloodwork because her doctor wanted to put her on medicine. She was stunned with her results. Her glucose dropped 47% and her trigyclerides dropped 55%. This is just unheard of for most. All of this was done on diet and exercise.

We live in a society of instant gratification. We want it and we want it now. However, the good things in life come from hard work and sacrifice. You can look back and say, “I did it.”

Take control of your life. Peace out, Trout!