Have You Made The Shift To Healthier? Share Your Story

I've lost about 145 pounds over the past 4 years. This has been accomplished by removing most of the junk food from my diet (allowing for the occasional treat) and, in the past 18 months, eating vegan about 80% of the time. In terms of exercising I haven't done anything extreme...just walking a couple of miles at least 3 days per week. I am forever grateful for the cereal/granola recipe from Snack Girl - I eat it 5 days per week for lunch! I also use Snack Girl for healthy eating tips & reviews. Thank you for your commitment to the Snack Girl blog - it has made a difference in my life!

Julie

I have been "doing" WW with my daughter. She is in Florida, I am in Pennsylvania. I often send her recipes and ideas that I see in your emails that I think she would love. Thank you for your beautiful recipe pics....always tempted to try things after I see them. We have both been steadily losing weight and are always encouraged to read and hear about others! your blog is awesome! thanks

Carol Grimaldi

I've lost about 20 pounds since April. I had lost the same 20 pounds about three years back but had gained it back after working various shifts at a new job I started. I wanted to have more energy though so I knew I had to start eating better and in addition to portion control I found that LoseIt was a tremendous aid! At first I set a small goal, 5 pounds and when I accomplished that twice, I moved the goal up to 10 pounds. Calorie counting is so convenient with that app. I also exercised between 3 to 4 times a week during the summer and bought a watch that counted the calories burned during my workout. I've slowed my workouts down however would like to continue to do about 3 times a week (life gets in the way but I have to make it a part of life and that's final) Also, I am really happy that I found this blog. It has very useful tips and yummy recipes. I do cheat, don't get me wrong but it's all about portions and how much one cheats. Thanks so much.

Nat

I lost 82 lbs with weight watchers on the road to 100. I'm 30lb less then what I used to consider my happy weight prior to gaining a bunch of weight. Its amazing the things that I can't eat anymore due to the life change I have gone through. I can longer eat the cakes and fried foods like I used to, after a few bites the sweetness and grease bothers my stomach. I have also had to go from whole milk to 1% because the full dairy is way to much. I have discovered a list of new veggies to eat. I just cooked Bok Choy for the first time and loved it. This journey as I refer to it has been so uplifting, I feel the best I have in years and at 43 how wonderful it is to say this is the size I was when I was 28. I still have steps to take but everyday is better and better at this point. I have learned many new trick with Snack Girl through your blog and follower comments so that thank you Snack Girl you helping me on my journey.

Niosha

Eating healthier? Check. My wife and I have greatly reduced the amount of take-out meals and snack food around the house (empty calories and a lot of sodium).

Lost weight? Check. Additionally, she is using Weight Watchers and I am using LoseIt. I lost almost 90 pounds (and she has lost more.) I have maintained my losses for 20+ months, and still counting.

Managed a tricky habit? Check. I used to enjoy parking my butt in front of the TV. Now I wear a Fitbit and that reminds me to get walking more. My record non-stop walk is 18.5 miles (carrying a 40 pound pack) in 6.5 hours. My record over 16 hours (with an 8 hour break for sleep) was 27.5 miles. I LOVE walking, and now I generally get 2 miles completed by 5am.

Trevor LaRene

I've been a healthy weight most of my life and I have been diligent with regard to exercise for the last 20 years. However, I still wanted to learn more about nutrition. To this end, I started on www.caloriecount.com one year ago July. I have become much more aware of nutrients in the foods I eat. I now track at least 14 categories of nutrition on a daily basis and I make sure to balance my exercise with food intake. My select "cheat" days are well-earned and averaged out with the other days that are chock-full of healthy choices.

Mark

I reached my self imposed goal at Weight Watchers tonight. 63 kg-138 lb (actually 62.6 kg) I have lost 9.6 kg-21 lbs. I'm in Australia, we speak metric. I have shared your website with my friends at WW and tried many of the suggestions. Thank you. I love that fruit is Pro Points free and I can still indulge in my glass of wine with dinner. I walk my dog 5 km-3 miles every day, sometimes twice. She's also very fit. Keeping track is my greatest ally. I have a smartphone app called Value Diary that works in Points, very handy.

Special Kay

I am eating healthier than I was before. I have an illness called Wegener's and I had to make the switch in order for my body to heal. It is a challenge for me to lose weight, because I am on Prednisone. I still eat balanced meals. Not eating high fructose corn syrup is the biggest change because it is in a lot of products. I enjoy your recipes and I get ideas. I keep track of what I am eating through myfitnesspal.

Jamie

Ever since I met you at the Kasper store in Lee where I worked, you changed my life. I went back to weightwatchers and am enjoying hearing from you each weekday on this E-mail. I pretty much always cooked healthy, meaning REAL food, not processed, but I always ate too much of it too. If you eat 2 and 3 helpings of good food, you can still gain weight. That's what I did this summer...I kind of went crazy with the portion control, but have started again this week. I need to lose another 20 lbs and am determined to do it. Keep up the wonderful work you are doing here. You help so many people who otherwise would fall along the way. When I open my E-mails and see snack girl,it makes the day brighter!

Barbara

I started WW in June and am down 28 lbs. I have been overweight all my life and just the small steps that I have taken to watch portion control, eat healthier snacks and exercise have made a huge difference. Your recipes have been inspiring, especially ones challenging me to eat foods that I wouldn't normally like. I still have a long way to go, but, I love the tips that I get from your site. Thanks for giving us some inspiration!

Kerri

I had lap band surgery almost 3 years ago. Initially my loss was great but I really could not take any more band tightening so I have decided to go the traditional route and it has been great. I am right at 100 lbs lost and my tools for this have been My Fitness Pal, and Snack Girl. I also recently joined TOPS for that added accountability. I am 64 years old and more determined than ever. I love the healthy choices that you share with us. I have always really enjoyed cooking and you would think that making those choices and coming up with the ideas would be almost natural, but it surely is not, so the gift that you give to me personally is just great and I thank you Lisa. What is amazing to me is that I do not feel deprived in any way and just in the last 5 weeks I have lost another 14 lbs. The tools that I am using make it very easy for me to make the choices that are right for me.

Karen Nicholl

I actually just finished writing a 3 part series about my journey to health on my blog. Here is a link to part one because there's no way I could fit it all in here:

http://aninside.blogspot.com/2013/09/its-process-part-1.html

I don't do it perfectly, but for me it is about progress, not perfection.

Erin @ An Inside Job

I would like the cereal/granola recipe PLEASE!!!!!

Teresa

I had cancer about 4 1/2 years ago. It was in my tonsils and I couldn't eat for months, well at least it was really painful to eat. I ate just enough to keep the feeding tube out. I also drank lots of Carnation high calorie drinks. I am clear of the cancer now which is the great news. But there was an unintended side-effect.

After my taste buds came back and my mental state changed to where I wanted to eat again my whole diet changed.

Before: Typical American Diet, lots of fats, salts and convenience foods. High blood pressure, extra weight etc..

After: Eat mostly plant based foods, have completely eliminated meats and dairy (except for some occasional cheese). I lost 50 lbs from the cancer treatments and have gained 10 back, I'm now at my ideal weight. I'm off the blood pressure medicine and feel great.

Another great side effect, my kids (10&12) have sworn off all fast food and haven't eaten it for 2 years now. My wife is a pescatarian. We are all eating healthier than ever!!

Thanks for your great articles and recipes we make them often at our home. Keep up the blogging, it does get lonely but many people are on the other side, reading.

John

I joined Weight Watchers in March of this year, and to date, have lost 33 pounds. I'm not anyone's poster child for weight loss, nor am I a radical follower of any methodology. But, as my 50th birthday approaches, I needed some parameters to become healthier. I am a firm believer in behavior modification and good habits, and that's what Weight Watchers has done for me. By developing better habits, I can live every day without over-thinking or more importantly, obsessing, about diet/weight loss/exercise. Plus, there is nothing that's off-limits to me - I have a little bit of what I want, but track it to keep me on the straight and narrow for later. I shop healthier and told my family they could adjust or cook for themselves:). I would say that they are 99% satisfied with my new cooking style and have also become healthier, whether they wanted to or not! Also, I cheat every Saturday; whether it's fast-food or a big, sinful dessert, I have what I want and then get back on track (no WW pun intended) the next day. This has been paramount to me not feeling deprived. And finally, I stay inspired through WW emails, Snack Girl updates and FB posts from my meeting pals. The biggest thing that I've learned is that "the only place success comes before work is in the dictionary".

Lydia

Have lost 52 pounds with Weight Watchers. Am working on keeping it off. Your blog really helps - love that you include WW points but focus on healthy eating. Found an exercise I actually like and will do almost 2 years ago - Zumba. Am focusing on eating as clean and healthy as I can.

Mary Anne Bennett

After trying to lose weight for many, many years and after many, many pills, diets and plans I simply cut "white" foods out of my diet - sugar, flour, white rice and potatoes. I lost 5 pounds very easily and then I plateaued and couldn't budge. I am a retired senior citizen so because of years of yo-yo dieting and my age my metabolism had slowed to almost nil. I did continue to eat clean and healthy for the most part and in January added a weight management supplement that has helped me lose another 10 pounds and several inches - 2 pant sizes and I love using Snack Girl recipes! Now I am working on the next 10 pounds. It is a slow go but I will persevere and keep on doing what I am doing. I will get there!

Muriel Holladay

Thank you for your wonderful blog!!

Robbin Seal

I started counting calories and exercising March 15, using LoseIt! and going to the gym in the morning. I have lost 30 pounds and am now at my goal weight. I get up at 4 am to be able to do this; the gym is across the street from where I work, so I commute in, work out and take a shower, then go to work. I pack my lunch so I'm not tempted to go out and go overboard! I love LoseIt, and Snack Girl, you have helped SO much with your terrific recipes and encouragement! I also REALLY appreciate products that you debunk that claim to be healthy that are not. Please keep up the good work!

Melissa Peterson

For the health of our family and the environment we converted our diet to organic, this after reading Michael Pollan's Omnivore's Dilemma. More recently we have made a committed effort to a more plant based diet. We do eat meat and dairy but very little. I find that this helps us to eat the fruit, grain, vegetables that we really need to for a healthier diet. It took a little while for my family to acclimate and I had to lay out some serious ground rules but we are there! I love to follow Snack Girl both for ideas and to see a committed, entertaining and competent person spreading the word about food and health, keep it up!

mcdmd

I was sick in the hospital a few years ago and the doctors couldn't figure out what was wrong. When I got better, I decided to start eating healthier. I stopped drinking soda and cut out eating fried foods and junk food.

This blog is awesome for giving healthy alternatives. My favorite was the baked sweet potato fires. They are so much more tastier then actuall fries.

Making the decision to eat better is hard at first, but gets easier the more you do it. But it pays off,

you can feel the change in your body. You have more energy and feel happier.

Michele

Hello there!

First off, I would like to say that I really enjoy your posts, tips and suggestions.

I started my fitness and weight loss journey back on May 2011. I have lost 20lbs from making lieftstyle changes, no fad diets here! I went from weighing 183lbs to 163lbs. My lifestyle changes consisted of limiting my sugat intake, cutting back on "my love".....BREADS! In addition, incorporting 5-6 days exercise with the assistance of my then, Beachbody Coach Tiffany. I followed all beachbody workout programs along with one day of Zumba.

I have managed to keep the weight off for 14 months thru diet and exercise. Making healthy lifestyle changes and being active. In addition, I have become a coach for Beachbody. Paying it forward!

Thank you Snack Girl!

Heather

Snack Girl helps me with KID friendly recipes and food ideas. I started here when I did Weight Watchers a few years ago. I realized I need to eat more of a raw vegan diet (lots of raw fruits and veggies, raw nuts and seeds) so I'm doing better eating like this, and I don't have to count points.

But in the mean time, my son (12) needs a different diet. Snack Girl is perfect for that. I love reading about the ideas you use with your own kids.

Jennifer

First of all, it is commendable that the people posting here have taken control of their weight. To keep it off or further lose weight, I am in favor of a diabetic diet that limits all sugar and other carbs and focuses on veggies and various types of protein. There are even some breads that have limited carbs. Lacto-fermented veggies and yogurt are a great aid in losing weight while helping to keep weight down and offering probiotic and vitamin boosts. Since flu season is coming up, probiotics can possibly help fight it. Donna from "Cultures Food Life" has some great recipes and advice.

http://www.culturedfoodlife.com/tomatoes-with-sixty-five-mi…

I_Fortuna

Wow!!! Where do I start. I have always been an overweight person. From little school all the way up to college. It has been a VERY hard life being overweight. From missing parties and graduation as a teen, to having several embarrassing moments through my life. I definitely do not wish it on anyone.

It was 4 yrs ago that something in my head went off. My mom had been diagnosed with breast cancer. I was pre-diabetic, I had a wonderful boyfriend of 6yrs (who loved me for who I was) but I was just not happy with myself. It was a very sad time in my life. I wanted to be happy for once in my life. I thought to myself, does my boyfriend really find me attractive, do I want to end up sick by the age of 30 and do I want to raise unhealthy kids later down the road?

I then weighed 250 pounds and am now 150 pounds. Through lots of hard work and lots of sweat and tears, I was literally able to realize my long life dream. I lost 100 pounds and I did it by myself. Started eating healthy (looking at your amazing site for new recipes) and exercising regularly. I am now a healthy 31 year old pregnant with my first child. Got married last yr. I have a husband that helped me along all those obstacles and have a mom that is now healthy.

If can say anything to anyone in need of help is: I was someone that LOVED eating and I still am. I won't say that it is never hard. It is at times but the reward you get from losing weight is TOTALLY worth it. It will always be a battle with me and food. It is just up to me now to choose my battle. Believe me that when you work hard for 2 yrs at losing weight, you know which battle to choose. Food does NOT OWN me anymore. I am never going back to that dark place that I was at.

THE ONLY THING I REGRET OUT OF ALL THIS, IS TO DOING IT SOONER (don't wait if you are unhappy, the only person that can help you is YOURSELF).

Eve

Love your blog. That's not to say that I would eat every recipe, but that what makes it great, something for everyone. Have deleted so many in the past that claimed to be "healthy" only to find them not to my liking. Keep up the good work.

Sue

I have enjoyed your website, read most days using your ideas and shortcuts where applicable to OZ along with my own, I am certainly healthier, fitter and enjoy food more than ever

thanks from down under

TRICIA BARTLETT

I joined Weight Watchers about 2 1/2 years ago and have lost about 60 lbs. I reached my goal weight this past December and have maintained my weight loss ever since. I've never been so dedicated to diet and exercise. Things have finally "clicked" for me (not that I don't still struggle sometimes). This past summer my husband and I have begun eating a mostly vegan diet with an emphasis on clean eating. I've been following Snack Girl for a few years now and it has been a tremendous help in my weight loss efforts. I've relied on the product reviews, I've scrapped my daughter's Lunchables in favor of making my own, I've enjoyed the snack ideas, and mostly, I've just been inspired by the fact that I'm not alone in this journey. Keep up the great work!

Cristy

I've taken the time to cook. I keep a low cal soup on hand at all time (usually freezing half the recipe for later use) and have it for lunch. I make sure I have protien with each meal & snack to help keep me feeling full. I make a point to have at least one fruit/vegetable with each meal & snack. I eat three meals & two snacks each day. I have 3-4 breakfast that I like & are healthy and rotate them. I have educated myself on calories using Loseit! And keep a loose count in my head as to the calories in each meal. I know 1700 calories are what I need a day to maintain my weight and act accordingly. I know my weight can fluctuate as much as 5 pounds, but don't stress over it, instead I adjust my calorie intake as needed.

R

Last May I finally found the inspiration to go back to Weight Watchers to lose the weight I'd gained since achieving lifetime status 7 years ago. It took some time to do it but I gained everything that I had lost and added four pounds. Commenting to a friend, "I gained everything back plus 4 pounds", to which she replied "and you will be successful this time too!" For the first time in years I believed what she said was true. The plan was different than I had remembered, fiber doesn't count nearly as much as it used to - and carbs are the definite no no when looking for lower point foods but it's worked for me with a little diligence and persistence. I'm back yo lifetime and getting into a size 6. It's still a little tight, but I am getting there.

TheHungryMa

Snack Girl,

I have been following you for a few months now getting some healthy cooking and eating tips along the way. Last July, I got really sick, and in a nutshell, I became intolerable to fat overnight. Partially because I was forced to do so, I have been on a no- to low-fat diet for over a year. Since then, I have lost 32 pounds and feel great (except for after I eat certain foods). Your site has been a great help to teach me some healthy food alternatives that can omit fat from my diet.

Best,

Krys

http://kryscooks.wordpress.com/

Krys

Back in 2007 I was forced to go on disability due to several health conditions. At that time I lost about 15 pounds and almost all my muscle. After seeing doctor after doctor and finally being forced to go on numerous prescription medications, I decided to see a naturopathic doctor. It was recommended that I change my diet to a healthier one, for example, by dropping all food or drink with sugars, especially white sugar. They also recommended that I eat a handful of raisins before or during exercising-especially workouts or walking. The natural sugars in the raisins gave me the extra energy and Snack Girl gave me the opportunity to have tastier and healthier snacks and meals. And because I didn’t really like raisins, I experimented with infusing organic Flame raisins (the red grape) with different flavors and Java Raiz was born-coffee raisins, mocha coffee raisins, cinnamon and mocha cinnamon-which are all natural and organic. Thank you Snack Girl for all your ideas and scrumptious meals along with the support you have offered all of us to become healthier.

Linda Griego

I have been getting the Snack Girl e-mails for several months now and really enjoy the tips, etc. 7 weeks ago, I started a medically supervised weight loss/lifestyle change program at our local hospital. It combines supervision by a doctor, coaching by a registered dietician, classes with a behavior modification professional, group sessions, and a meal replacement called Health One. The classes/group sessions will last 20 weeks and then we transition into another group where we can continue to receive support for as long as we like. There are also weekly weigh-ins. I currently have 4 MR shakes a day along with 2 cups of fruits and 3 cups of veggies. I am able to incorporate many Snack Girl tips into this program. This is it for me. The program incorporates what I feel have been the winning weight loss strategies for me and works on behavior modification vs. just losing weight. Definitely different from other programs and it is making a huge difference in my health. I'm down 19 lbs. and feeling good about my new lifestyle.

Pam

Snack Girl, I hope all these comments keep you going for a very long time. You are such a help to a lot of people. Keep up the good work. Love hearing these stories as I think people feel they are not alone.

Sue

I began eating healthier about 4 years ago. I greatly decreased processed foods from my diet, but I am not completely successful yet. I made a switch to almond milk and green smoothies, which I love. I lost about 30 lbs. with this change and feel better than ever. I need to add more exercise to my life to reap even more benefits. I love this site!

Caroline