Finding THM
Three years ago, I ran across the Trim Healthy Mama (THM) program in my Facebook feed. Intrigued, I ordered the book, received it a few days later, then got to reading! I read enough to understand what I had to do…and the rest as they say is history.
Having tried every diet out there, understanding and following the THM plan was a cakewalk for me. If you’ve ever done a low carb diet, or a low fat diet, or a low fat-low carb-low calorie diet, then you can do THM. See, unlike those other plans where you pick one, and suffer, while feeling deprived, THM gives you the best of all three worlds. It is none of those plans…yet it is all of those plans. It encompasses the best aspects of each of them, to create this wonderful amazing and ultimately easy to follow plan, that nourishes and heals your body…and in the process, you shed unwanted unhealthy weight! It is not a diet! Not in the conventional sense. Diets are torture. Diets deprive you. Diets are..well, hard. THM isn’t. Does it require some changes? Well duh! yes of course. “If you don’t change, you won’t change” The changes require you to swap out the bad stuff for good stuff. But for everything, that’s “taken away”, you get an equally delectable replacement.
I lost 50 lbs in the first 7 months of eating this way, with absolutely zero deprivation, and have been maintaining ever since. That’s 35 months of maintenance y’all. And it has been easy. See the first thing you have to change is your mind set. You cannot look at this as a temporary thing. Something you do for a little while, then resume your old ways. You have to make a permanent change, adapt a different lifestyle that you can live with. I can live with this. I can and do enjoy this. This is totally sustainable, doable, livable!
Things I’ve learned in the past three years
- Stalls happen. Expect them, be patient and they’ll eventually pass.
- Don’t bank on what the scale says. It will tell you one thing… while your too large pants are falling off in public. Let your clothing be a barometer.
- Don’t create patterns or get in a food rut. Your fat burning ability will go in that rut with you. Not what you want. Keep changing it up. This will also keep you from being bored.
- Always be prepared. Have something ready or handy to ward off temptations. Spend some time on weekends prepping somethings, that way when the sweet tooth monster rears its ugly head, you’re ready for him. Unless you’re good at winging it. I am. I can throw some stuff together in a jiffy to satisfy whatever craving I might have.
- Keep an open mind. Ladies, I am 55 years old. For 53 of those years, I DID NOT EAT VEGETABLES. I ate lightweight salads, but no real veggies. Today I am proud to say, I even eat okra…like on purpose..for real… if you know me, you know I have or rather had a deep seated aversion to all things veggie! Especially that little disgusting slimy green pod known as okra. Fortunately or unfortunately, I read chapter 17 (Affordable Super Foods) where Pearl and Serene talk about the wonderful benefits of this pod, so I stepped out (way out) of my comfort zoned and started creating smoothies where I would add it. you can hide it..trust me on that!
- Be willing to try something at least once…. and if you don’t like it… fix it to your liking. What I have found to be the biggest obstacle, is the right sweetener. If you find the right one, everything else falls into place.
- Follow the guidelines. Pearl and Serene (the authors of the book and the plan) have given us guidelines… but they’re not diehard rules. You have parameters, with room to play – stay within them and enjoy the ride. Don’t get hung up on the details, or the numbers.
- We are all individuals- so don’t compare your journey to anyone else’s. We are wired differently, we have different issues, some of us are more damaged than others. If someone is losing faster than you, it’s because their metabolism is in a different place than yours. Work yours, fix yours. Don’t worry about them or theirs. Be the best you that you can.
- Get out of your own way. Seriously. Take away the excuses as to why you chose not to be good to you. We tend to put everyone else’s needs ahead of ours, but at some point we have to matter too. We have to take care of us…so that we can continue taking care of everyone else.
- Age is not a factor. This works no matter your age. Note I said I’m 55 and totally menopausal.
- Last but not least, believe in yourself. YOU CAN DO THIS…YOU REALLY CAN. THM rocks!
May God continue to bless Pearl and Serene for coming up with this extraordinary plan, that affords us such food freedom and has changed so many lives.
Drill Sergeant out
