Your Success Stories

Bedrich: Little changes – Big difference
‘For 15 years I ran my own small company in Prague. During those 15 years I spent a lot of time driving or sitting at a desk, developing software applications and seeing clients. Many times I would miss meals and I would end up eating on the run or I would miss meals completely and have a huge meal late at night. The result was my weight soared from 76 kg when the company began to a peak of 97 kg during 2005. My energy levels were not good, I felt unhealthy, and worse, a blood glucose test in 2004 showed that my 2-hour blood glucose levels were too high. Both my mother and father had type 2 diabetes and, at 55, I knew I needed to make some changes but didn’t know how or where to begin.

Everything changed for me when I visited my daughter in Australia for 3 months in late 2005. She told me about the GI and the importance of daily exercise. I began eating oats with fresh fruit for breakfast and for lunches I would make my own sandwiches using capeseed rolls, salad and a cheese slice. I used avocado instead of butter. We always had a salad with dinner that contained different beans and vegetables. We typically ate poached chicken breast or tinned fish but would also have lean cut steaks on a BBQ. Another major change was daily walking to and from the bus or train station. When I left in late February 2006, my weight had dropped to 82 kg. Best of all I just felt so much better.

Today back in Prague my weight is 84 kg nearly four months later. I continue to choose low GI carbohydrates in place of the old high GI versions I ate before Australia and am now walking to the train station to get to work leaving the car behind. I am confident I will be able to maintain my new weight with these new but easy changes.’

David Lee Nall says: ‘Taking care of yourself is the best way to take care of others.’
‘I was living the American dream: I had a beautiful family, a new house, four cars, and a business that was grossing seven figures. I had come a long way for a skinny, dyslexic kid who had been a poor student. But in the midst of all this hard-earned success, my weight had climbed to 245 pounds, my energy levels were flagging, and I discovered some tumors on my stomach and lower back. Although the tumors were diagnosed as benign, the health scare was a wake-up call. I wasn’t even 30 years old. My son was only four. I wanted to be around to see him grow up.

On 1 December 2004, I decided to change my life once and for all. I made the decision to start taking care of myself. I bought healthy foods, watched what I ate, and restructured my exercise routine. And I resolved to enter the 2006 Texas Shredder Classic, a natural, drug-tested, body building contest.
I began eating small, frequent meals totalling 350 grams of protein, 300 grams of carbohydrates and 40 grams of fat daily. However, I was getting headaches and always feeling hungry. Then I found out about glycemicindex.com. By choosing slow carbs, I was able to lose weight without feeling hungry and sustain my intense workouts. Five days a week I did 30 minutes of high intensity cardio workouts and weight training, with 45 minutes of cardio on the weekends. After losing a total of 59 pounds and dropping my waist size from 42 inches to 32 inches, I placed second in my class at the body building contest.

But the real reward was how I felt: I hadn’t felt this good since I was in high school, when I’d first started weight lifting and strength training as a way to overcome the weak knees that prevented me from playing sports. Today, I still manage my franchise business, but because I enjoy seeing people undergo the same kind of transformation I went through I also have my own personal trainer business. My motto is that no one is ever too old to adopt a healthy lifestyle; the body has an amazing ability to heal and renew itself.’
www.davidleenall.com

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