Billy's Story

I ate fatty foods to minimize stress and to "feel good" for several years. I got so obese that I'd lose my breath and have to rest after walking to the car to start it for my wife in the mornings. I'd  often eat triple cheeseburgers with multiple orders of fries and extra cheese. I ate every 30 to 45 minutes, full meals. I went on a skinnytaste ww and keto diet at different times over the course of a year. I lost weight but didn’t feel any better and I'd eat up to 18 boiled eggs a day at one point. I tried willpower and taking everything out of the kitchen and having my family dieting and doing portion control with me. None of that worked much and caused more stress.

I quit dieting altogether a couple of years ago when some family came to visit and I decided I'd rather not hinder spending a good time eating out with them while they were here for a week because of my diet restrictions. I am a man who was taught a good time is a huge steak or burger or pork with all the sides and gravy. That a man ate meat and lots of it. I lost all control and willpower over my eating and resigned myself to die eating comfortably.

In January 2020 I had chest pains so bad that I was forced to go to the doctor. I was on meds for triglycerides and was told my cholesterol was high and I needed to lose weight, but I would always shoot back that I didn’t want to diet. With my mindset I didn’t know how a diet would satisfy my food cravings. I had a Pet scan because I was too out of shape to endure the treadmill stress test. Everything came back fine, but the doctor told me to lose weight by doing a 95 percent vegan and 5 percent fish diet. I began slowly eating down the full freezer of meats we had and buying better foods to go with his recommendations over the next several weeks while reading Eat to Live. I started the process of getting rid of meat and dairy beginning March 28^, 2020.

A lot has changed since then. I lost 88 pounds. I don’t go hungry. I quit drinking two pots of coffee with eighteen sweeteners a day. I have very little chest pains whereas I uses to believe I was about to die daily. Like Dr. Fuhrman said in his book I have the energy to exercise because of following his diet. I ride a bicycle just about every day for 3 to 13 miles each time. I feel better physically and better about myself.  I still struggle with emotional and stress and eating a lot, but at least I'm eating better foods. I've lost weight every weigh-in except once a few weeks ago when I gained a pound. I actually crave salads and good food over bad food just as Dr. Fuhrman says. I’m a big sweets person so I have prunes and golden raisins and unsweetened applesauce (which is surprisingly sweet) and fresh fruits on hand that satisfy me.

I had major headaches for about a week when I quit drinking coffee just as Dr. Fuhrman says, and also as Dr. Fuhrman says I discovered I have a lot of energy and have better sleep patterns. I’m going to my doctor next week to see if I can get off the triglyceride medication. I am fully satisfied with this way of eating, and actually I found that it’s impossible to eat all the food suggested in a day so I do what I can. I am trying to switch my mind over to this just being how I eat now instead of it being a diet to lose weight, but I haven’t fully got there yet. The results though are enough to keep me going until my brain discards all the old bad information about food and accepts the reality of this diet being the way to live instead of it being a part of masculinity.

 

Results may vary.