A Success Story--Are YOU Next?

by Catherine Ipcizade | More from this Blogger

07 Feb 2007 02:33 PM

Today on the Rachael Ray Show, they featured a woman, (Renee Rheney) who wanted to lose weight, but just didn't know how to go about it (sound familiar?).

Renee was paired with another viewer (Jennifer Tuma) who had lost an amazing amount of weight, and today they brought both women back for an update. After two months, Renee has lost more than 25 pounds.

So how did she do it?

She started with a game plan. She first had to understand why diets don't work. Then she figured out what to eat (and not to eat), started a food journal (yes, this is necessary--you'd likely be very surprised to realize what you actually eat and to discover your binge times each day), and got a fitness plan.

Renee implemented the "Plan, Pack, Prepare" plan, which Jennifer told her was vital to success. Without this plan, the temptations of over snacking and poor meal choices are great and eating something unhealthy is almost inevitable.

To get into shape, Renee joined Curves, a nationwide workout center for women only. In addition to this, Renee also started lifting weights at home-using a phone book.

Renee, like most people who have been trying and failing to lose weight, said she had years and years of bad habits to break. She took small steps and has now yielded big results! She can now run up four flights of stairs. She can touch her toes. She used to be mortified to go into a department store and try on clothes, but not any more. Now Renee is gaining the confidence to keep her motivated and to keep her head held high.

Her friend and trainer, Jennifer Tuma stated, "We've made real changes in Renee's life. It would've been really easy to hand her a book and tell her to eat this and do this. But half of the people who do that gain at least half of the weight back within a year."

Instead, she helped Renee by implementing three key strategies for permanent weight loss:

Education-sometimes we forget what's healthy. Jennifer states that we have to know how our body works in order to know how to treat it properly.

Motivation-creating a vision for yourself is about more than setting a number goal. Think deep-what do you really want, for your body, for your mind...for your life?

Dedication-taking a no-excuses attitude approach is the first step toward making a lasting change.

No matter where you are in your own weight loss journey, I hope Renee's story inspires you to keep moving, keep trying, and keep dreaming. Renee is making her dreams reality and so can you.

Way to go, Renee!

Learn more about Catherine Ipcizade

Cathy Ipcizade is 30 years old and currently resides in Southern California. Prior to coming to California she grew up in Arizona.

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