The more that I am out meeting new friends and connections, the more I am convinced of the magnanimous purpose and importance of what I am sharing. I have loved the training on wellness and balanced living, and it has made such an impact on my own personal life but I am just overwhelmed by the needs that I am seeing fulfilled and answered by the training and programs that I am sharing.

For about 5 years I was speaking and teaching on grief recovery, giving our testimony. Since it was ministry-related, I had so many people coming up to me for guidance and couseling, which I knew I was not equipped to offer. But at the same time, so many just need an ear, a friend, an encouraging word. So that is what I could offer.

What I found was that in addition to dealing with spiritual and emotional issues of living with stress, grief or loss, so many did not even have the basic knowledge of nutrition and how to proactively take care of themselves. We are dealing with some serious epidemic issues that can be easily remedied with mere diet and lifestyle changes.

Because of my history with a child with special needs (a rare genetic difference), I have more knowledge in that area than most want to hear. I spent 8 years in conversations with specialists, seeking the most researched, the most natural, the most clinically proven avenues to possibly show improved absorption at the cell level. When your child is small and not thriving, you are all about absorption. It is so KEY for people to understand that we are not “what we eat” .

“We are what we absorb”.

Right now the industry is totally unregulated. The organization Natural Products Foundation (formed by some of the leaders in the nutritional industry) is making great strides to self-police and test and report their findings. This is helping to get rid of the “bottom-feeder” companies that do not have the science, the validity, the efficacy of their claims. It is amazing how many products they find on the shelf that do not even contain the ingredient listed!!

After we walked through our own physical challenges, stemming from stress and grief, I sat in conferences for the past 5 years listening to some of the most advanced biochemists and researchers in the area of anti-aging and nutrition. It has been such an empowering experience for us personally, that I decided to continue to share it more with my talks and career.

One of the most recent findings is from Dr. Layman, who won the 2009 National Leadership award for nutrition and metabolism research. This means he is the GO-TO guy for metabolism in this country. He has over 90 peer-reviewed articles, and 22 years of clinical trials to test a weight loss program. Using sedentary women, over age 60, he PROVED, with the right combination of proteins and a macrobalanced (portioned controlled) diet, we CAN raise our metabolism back to our 20s and burn fat, EVEN WITHOUT EXERCISE.

This is causing the fitness experts to have a fit. Of course he recommends 30 minutes a day of walking, yoga or pilates. Of course he recommends they get up to 60 minutes a day, for optimal performance. But for those who are disabled or injured or working in a sedentary environment,  it is still possible to lose an average of 5 lbs per month.

I am seeing medical doctors, once they understand this program and Dr. Layman’s findings, they are getting very excited.

So along with my Optimum Weight Support Group, I am scheduling as many group trainings and informational sessions as possible. For those who are proactive and want to TAKE CHARGE of their own health and future, this is great stuff. The  choice really is ours!

But those who were enjoying blaming their situation on heredity (35%) or their doctors or their upbringing…well,not so good.

They are going to have a hard time watching the rest of us get skinny.