Oldies But Goodies

One of the great things about building a wardrobe that includes classic pieces is that you can wear them for as long as they last.

This Jones of New York Country jacket is from my last thin phase about ten years ago. It is embroidered in white upon a black background. 

The shoes are about ten years old also. They are by Sam & Libby, and they aren't even married anymore.

The black pants are from Chico's. The red zipper trimmed clutch bag is by Nine West via Ross.

Mr. Mickey took me to dinner at Wellington's a couple of nights ago. That was the last time I ate. I am going for my five-year colonoscopy today. As usual, I am giving you way too much information to encourage you to get all of your screenings and have all of the tests we need at this time in our lives. Mr. Mickey and I have both had cancers and other health-related issues in the past, so get all the screenings and tests our Physicians schedule for us.

How I lost more than forty pounds and healed my body.

Taken at a Victorian Bed and Breakfast in North Carolina.

At the age of fifty-four, I was frumpy, fat, and very unhealthy.

The pictures above were taken about three years ago before I started eating natural, unprocessed foods.

The picture below was taken last month.

I have maintained this weight for over two years. Hundreds of people have asked me how I lost weight and reversed my health problems. The simple answer is that I changed my choice of foods. My health and stamina returned to the levels of my early thirties in just a few months. I will turn fifty-seven this September.

My gentleman friend and I are very active socially, which means we go out to eat and attend lots of parties and functions. As you know, special food is always a part of these social situations. Most of the food served in restaurants and sold in grocery stores in America is highly processed, heavily salted, with lots of added sugar and butter or other fats. This is also why many of my friends started to gain a lot of weight as soon as they came to America.  

After reading the book "Eat to Live" by Dr. Joel Fuhrman, I realized that nothing in my daily diet was high in nutrition or provided a sufficient energy source. That's why I was always hungry two hours after I ate!  

I started eating the breakfast described in the post here and at the top of this page under Recipes. Breakfast for me is at about six in the morning. I am often just starting to feel hungry at about one in the afternoon. I have a large leafy green salad with lots of steamed, roasted, or sauteed vegetables at about two in the afternoon.  I use unsalted vegetable broth for cooking instead of butter or oil. My salad dressing is an aged balsamic vinegar. There is no oil, croutons, bread, or cheese served on or with this salad. That's normally my last meal of the day, and I never feel hungry at night. I drink hot tea, water, and occasionally a glass of wine.

This is my diet 95% of the time. I still eat whatever I want when we go out to dinner during the weekends. (I do not eat red meat or pork.) 

It is a simply healthy way of eating, and I never feel that I am missing anything. I don't count calories or go to the gym. The fact that I feel so much better and have so much more energy serves as my motivation to continue to eat like this for the rest of my life.

I hope that by sharing my story, I have given you the motivation to learn more about food and how it can make you feel great or miserable.

The Final Sailing Trip

Many of you have written to ask how my gentleman friend is doing after the boating accident. He has recovered amazingly well! 

Mr. Mickey will be seventy-nine years old in June. Three years ago, he had a stroke, which left him in ICU for almost a week. He is also a diabetic with very high blood pressure and other health problems starting to slow him down. After the stroke, we both embarked upon a healthier eating journey. (Thanks to the book "Eat to Live.") 

I am telling you all of this to share with you that it's never too late to change the eating habits that might contribute to your poor health. 

We have both lost about forty pounds since changing our choices of food a couple of years ago. Mickey has almost reversed his diabetes, and his blood pressure is at the perfect level, corrected with only a fourth of the medication once required. The other health problems have vanished.   

A few weeks ago, after the boating accident, he very nearly drowned; he is back to wanting to go somewhere special every night and laughing and telling stories non-stop. 

This past week he completed the last of his follow-up visits with his physicians here in the states. In only a few weeks, his broken ribs and kneecap, along with numerous lacerations and deep bruises, have healed. His physicians were totally amazed by his speedy and complete recovery at an age when most men would have had a much longer and more difficult time after such severe trauma. They all agreed that his food choices have contributed greatly to his rapid recovery.

If you missed the first post sharing the misadventure, here it is again...

My beloved gentleman friend, Mr. Mickey, has had the same group of friends for most of his life. For more than thirty years, they have gotten together for lunch a couple of times every week. They have enjoyed countless ski vacations, tennis trips, and Caribbean sailing trips aboard a chartered catamaran Captained by a member of this group of lifelong friends.

The group spends the week sailing from one harbor to another, creating great memories to share again and again.

Along the craggy shores of the British Virgin Islands, there are vacation homes and villas for those who prefer to enjoy the view from the land.

A smaller dingy boat is used to deliver the men ashore

where there is no dock in a shallow harbor.

The men occasionally stop for a sip of something cold late in the afternoon.

As the sun starts to descend into the horizon, it's time to make their way into a harbor for dining in one of the many nice restaurants dotting the shores along most of the larger islands.

Casual attire is perfectly acceptable for fine dining in the islands since the sailors often arrive cold and wet from their ride aboard a dingy from their sailboats and catamarans.

As the tides shift and in certain harbors, much larger waves suddenly start rolling in with little notice. A calm and peaceful shore can become a dangerous and even deadly place to be in a few seconds.

The evening quickly changed from sharing a wonderful meal and joking with friends to clinging to life.

The group boarded the dinghy to make their way back to their temporary home aboard the catamaran. Suddenly a much larger wave rose up from the darkness flipping the small boat end over end violently dumping all five men into the sea. Mickey and one other man remained trapped beneath the upturned dinghy. The other man was able to free himself and make his way to shore. One of Mickey's arms had become entangled in the towing line so he could make no such escape. The tides washed the small boat back and forth on the rocky beach dragging him trapped underneath. His strength was gone, and the pocket of air trapped beneath the boat was vanishing quickly. A final desperate gulp of air, seawater, and sand allowed him to yell for help one last time. The other men finally realized he was still trapped beneath the boat and were at last able to establish a footing in the raging surf to pull him to safety.

Trembling with shock from their injuries and the trauma of what had just happened, the group knew right away that Mickey needed immediate medical help.

After a day spent in an island hospital getting wounds bandaged and x-rays of broken ribs, it was time to make the long journey home alone for further medical attention from his own physicians and specialists here in the states.

Mickey's daughter and I picked him up at the airport at midnight on the following day. She told him through her tears, "You are grounded!"

The fellows will be telling this story for years to come, but I think perhaps Mickey will choose to stay home when they embark on their next adventure.

Change your mind... change your life.

This really awful photo was taken in the summer of 2010. As you can see, I was fully immersed in my frumpiness.

Summer 2010

My reason for posting this terrible photo is to prove that even small changes in what you eat, how you dress, and how you view yourself can make a lot of difference in your life. After seeing this and the other photos taken on the same day of a woman I hardly recognized, I started making small changes every day. Within three weeks, I began to see a difference. Within six months, I had lost almost forty pounds!

Summer 2012

I stopped thinking of myself as invisible and old, which subconsciously allowed me to stop caring about how I looked. A positive attitude is so essential. I started going for more walks and eating only vegetables, seeds, nuts, and whole grains, along with a few fresh fruits. (Read the book "Eat to Live" by Dr. Joel Fuhrman for more information on what to eat and why.) I stopped wearing loose-fitting dull clothes.

I still weigh 143 pounds at five feet six inches tall. Yet, I am 58 years old in the photo above, and I am so much happier than I was even in my thirties and forties.

I don't do any special exercises, but I try to walk more and sit less each day. I don't eat meat or processed foods.

I am sharing all this with you as an example. (There are so few of us over fifty gals in advertising.) I want to show you that even small changes in your life can make you much healthier and help you feel better about yourself. I also want to encourage you to go out and enjoy all that life has to offer. My fifties have proven to me that life really does get better.

I sincerely hope that you will make a firm commitment to yourself to be the most positive, happy, healthy person you can be. You deserve it!

Jazz Up Your Salads!

Do you get tired of eating salads? So would I, if limited to just leafy greens, but they are among the most nutritious foods we can eat.

Leafy baby greens are almost always the largest portion of my lunch or dinner, but I also have steamed, baked, sautéed, and fresh raw veggies. Baked sweet potatoes are full of nutrients and a great addition to any meal, but I also enjoy having wild rice, quinoa, or other grains. A portobello mushroom cap, zucchini, green beans, asparagus, and squash are also included here. Beans and lentils are an excellent source of protein, and they keep you feeling full for longer.

During the summer of 2011, I was facing serious health problems along with numerous possible surgeries. A dear friend suggested I read the book "Eat to Live" by Dr. Joel Fuhrman. By changing my food choices and taking a few walks every week, those health problems have been reversed, and I have lost more than forty pounds.  

After reading my Power Porridge breakfast recipe, many of you have asked, "What do you eat for the rest of the day?" I have a combination of the pictured salad and vegetables for a late lunch every day with an occasional glass of wine. Water, almond milk, green tea, and wine are my only beverages. I rarely eat dinner, but I try to choose an entree close to this salad and vegetable plate when I do. By adding a variety of vegetables in season, you will always be able to enjoy an evolving selection of flavors and textures to add to your salads.

I like to create a full of flavor veggie stir-fry to serve as the base for my soups and salads. Start by adding some chopped sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil and rosemary to a thick-bottomed sauté pan. Add chopped onions and mushrooms on medium-high heat until the onions start to get tender, add whatever chopped vegetables you want, and turn down the heat to medium. Add chopped garlic near the end of the cooking time to keep it from becoming bitter. The combination can be used as a seasoning base for cooking vegetables or making soup. I use some unsalted vegetable stock instead of oils to keep stir-fry from sticking. When the sautéed items are tender, I spread them on a beautiful plate to cool while cutting up the fresh vegetables such as cucumber, tomato, celery, and sweet red pepper. I use organic baby greens, triple washed, and layer them over the cooled sauté. I top the salad with the fresh chopped veggies.  

Notice that I do not use any dressing, cheese, bread, croutons, or crackers. I add a little aged balsamic vinegar and good olive oil.

Below: those are cannellini beans and hemp hearts with sunflower seeds atop lightly steamed fresh organic broccoli, frozen organic peas, organic red pepper, sliced avocado, and cherry tomatoes, all on a bed of organic baby lettuces. I have some variation of this type of meal almost every summer afternoon.

For me, being healthy means eating this way 95% of the time. If I am a guest in a friend's home where they serve chicken, I enjoy it along with everyone else. At my next meal, I return to eating plant-based, non-processed factory packaged foods.

Frumpy No More

This is me in 1998, forty-two years old, five feet six inches tall, and weighing two hundred pounds. Those pants are a size 18.

My life was crumbling, and sadness oozed from every pore. I hated my job but was too deep in debt to start over in another. My then-husband was having an affair with a much younger and more fun woman. I was grieving for the children and family I would never have. In short, my life was a big mess! I cried every single day... sometimes all day long. 

When I hit rock bottom, I decided to change everything that I had the power to change. I started to eat more vegetables and fewer heavy late-in-the-day meals. I started walking. At first, I had difficulty walking to the end of the block. Soon, I was walking for a couple of miles every day. The weight started to come off, and I began formulating a plan to survive this difficult time. 

After the marriage ended, I moved to the New Orleans area. Of course, that was not the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, but it was an immensely better life than the one I left behind in Virginia. I made new friends and joined two gyms. My walks turned into five-mile runs, and my time in the gym filled the massive void in my life. 

This photo was taken at the peak of my bodybuilding obsession. I'm forty-five in this photo, weighing one hundred and thirty-five pounds. I'm still an empty shell of a human, but at least I look better!

In 2003, I left New Orleans and returned to my hometown in the mountains of east Tennessee. Some bumpy roads were still ahead, but I was home with my family and owned a successful business.

I'm telling you my life story for a reason. I hope you will read this and say if she can do it, I can! 

Change it if you are unhappy with some part of your life or body. Take little steps every day. Soon, you will be running (if not literally, then figuratively). Think of food as the fuel it is. Don't let it be your comfort and your entertainment. If you want to be healthy and thinner, you must make wiser choices about the foods and quantities you eat daily. The other twenty-two hours a day are worth making a few changes in your food choices.

The photo above is a more recent photo taken just before my fifty-sixth birthday at one hundred and

forty-two pounds. Those pants are a size 4!

My life truly began at fifty. I've never been happier or more healthy than I am right now. Not that being thin is the answer to all life's problems, but when you can sleep well at night without being in pain or struggling to breathe, you can make better choices during your waking hours. Sometimes, things are better than they seem after a good night's sleep.

I hope my story touches the lives of people going through something similar. I share fashion tips and my personal tragedies and triumphs, hoping to inspire you to improve your life. 

Happier and Healthier

The person you see in the first photo is very unhealthy and unhappy with her body image on all levels. That's me in the Spring of 2011.

Spring 2011

Fast forward a year to the second photo. After I lost more than forty pounds!

Spring 2012

I was about to outgrow size 12 pants in the first photo. In the second photo, I'm comfortably wearing size 4 pants. 

In 2010, I averaged two migraines per week. I rarely have a headache now, and the inflammation of joints that caused pain with every movement is gone. A backache that kept me from enjoying working in my flower gardens is gone. I no longer take medications of any kind. My lab test results are now perfect. 

Everyone who sees me for the first time in a few months is amazed at my transformation. Of course, the first question is, "How did you lose so much weight so fast?" My answer is always, "Read the book "Eat To Live" by Dr. Joel Fuhrman" to learn what to eat and why.

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I have continued maintaining my weight since 2011.

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While researching the world's healthiest foods, I found many of them in what I have for breakfast every morning. This is a hot cereal breakfast that keeps me from thinking about food until late afternoon. I'm sharing the recipe along with my story in hopes that I can inspire you to be a healthier, happier, more energetic person.

Susan's Power Porridge Breakfast

1 cup of hulled, organic barley (soak overnight and cook for one hour). Use filtered water.

1/4 cup of organic farro (cook for 40 minutes)

1/4 cup of brown organic lentils (add to the farro and cook for another twenty minutes)

1/4 cup of old-fashioned organic rolled oats (cook for about 10 minutes.)

2 Tablespoons brown flax seeds (I grind them in a coffee grinder) Stir as soon as you add these ground seeds.

2 Tablespoons sunflower seeds and sesame seeds

2 Tablespoon of raw organic pepitas (no shell pumpkin seeds)

2 Tablespoons natural raw walnuts

2 Tablespoons raw pecans

1 tablespoon of turmeric

1 tablespoon of Red Star Nutritional Yeast (Not brewer's yeast.) It supplies B vitamins.

Add cinnamon, ginger, allspice, nutmeg, or ground cloves to taste.

4 Large dates (pits removed) cut in half, then diced

1 sliced banana and 1/4 cup of blueberries or any fresh fruits you like.

Cooking instructions: Cook the barley in a separate pot uncovered. Add as much cooked barley as you want to the cooked farro, lentils, and oatmeal. The other items are added as desired until warmed through. Put in a bowl and add the fruit. You can save any extra to warm up for another breakfast.

 (You may find these items on Amazon.com or BobsRedMill.com if unavailable in your area.)

Packed with high nutrition, this breakfast will help you feel satisfied well into the afternoon.

It's been more than twelve years since I began this journey. I haven't had so much as a cold since I started eating this breakfast, followed by a sizeable vegetable-loaded salad late in the day. I drink water and eat fresh, in-season fruits and vegetables daily.

I still share a dessert with Mr. Mickey occasionally and have a glass of wine with food. But, 90% of the time, I eat whole-natural foods that have not been processed in any way other than perhaps being steamed. So, mostly, I just wash, chop, and enjoy. 

Countless people have asked me, "How do you continue to keep the weight off?" This is my secret!