Set Backs Happen...

Ever get going on a project and everything goes to heck in a hand-basket. Well that's what happened to me in October. I had lost 30 pounds and I was walking daily and then IT happened. I developed cellulitis in my right leg.

Friday night I was tailgating at a high school football game and woke up Saturday with what seemed to be a hangover. I slept it off and felt well enough to go on a 50 mile motorcycle ride with my husband. By 10:30 pm I was getting the chills and had a horrible headache. I went to bed, hoping sleep would help but instead I tossed and turned and couldn't get warm. At 9:00 am the next morning I knew I had no choice but to go to the hospital. My leg was three times larger than it should be and I could barely walk. I was admitted from the  emergency room and placed on a course of IV antibiotics. I remained in the hospital for nine days and on IV antibiotics for an additional four weeks. During that time, I was unable to take the product but amazingly I didn't gain any of the weight back.

Why did this happen? I was doing everything right, I was losing weight, exercising and taking better care of myself. This chronic illness was one of the reasons that I began this journey.

The Sky is the Limit!

At the end of the fifth week I was thinking WOW! If a lot of determination and product could do this the sky is the limit. We bought into the program at the lowest level and started to return his product one bottle at a time.

At this point I was flipping through a product catalog and found HealthTrim - Metabolic Boost. I asked a couple people at a Genesis PURE meeting about it and liked what I heard. Doug brought some by the next day so I could get started before my shipment showed up. What a difference it made! My energy levels increased even more. I was alert even at 3:00 pm when I normally would hit a low. I got things done!!!

After about two weeks on the additional product, I can say that I lost another ten pounds. That made 30 pounds since the beginning of my journey in seven weeks. Now don't get me wrong I knew there were going to be stumbling blocks and there was no way I was going to be able to keep up the pace of losing 10 pounds every two weeks. I had already discounted the existence of a "magic bullet" when it came to weight loss. I also knew for it to stay off I was going to have to lose it at a slower pace and make permanent changes to my life.

Strength Courage Perseverance Handstamped Pendant Set
by PureRoxInPrint on Etsy.com

Gotta Take Baby Steps

Three weeks into my journey using Genesis PURE, my husband proudly told our customer, Doug, how well I was feeling and that I had lost 10 pounds and was looking forward to losing more. That's when he introduced me to Genesis PURE Green Coffee Bean with BioPerine. With the Green Coffee Bean's help I lost, another 10 pounds in two weeks.

During those two weeks, I slowly began the process of getting back into walking. That first week my goal was to walk to the corner and back, every day for the entire week. I took baby steps since I hadn't had a regular regimen since the inflammation in my legs had gotten out of control and I would have stabbing pains through my calves whenever I walked any distance. Thanks to the Mangosteen and losing the initial 10 pounds the first three weeks, I didn't experience any of my previous problems.

The second week, my goal was to walk around the block. Guess what, I breezed through it at a reasonable pace every day. I didn't have pain and I wasn't out of breath. Max began to look forward to our walks and would go find his leash anytime I put on my tennis shoes.

During the first five weeks on the product I:

• Began the Genesis PURE core products
• Gave up pop
• Cut calories to 1200-1800 calories a day (Yes even with a McDonald's stop :)
• Cut back on eating out
• Adjusted our family budget
• Added Genesis PURE Green Coffee Bean to my routine
• Started a walking regimen in baby steps. I managed to get to walking around the block by the end of five weeks

The results that I saw:

• Better mood
• Better stress management
• Regular digestion and elimination
• I am more productive and have more energy
• I lost 20 pounds
• I continue to have HOPE!

Leather Hunger Games Cuff
by Michelle V Custom Leather Jewelry on Etsy 

I Found HOPE

Product Catalogs - If you'd like on let me know

When I began using the products from Genesis PURE I was a total skeptic. Having tried anything and everything I could get my hands on and afford to lose weight and to still be in the condition I was in - let's just say I wasn't going to fall into the "magic bullet" trap. Our customer checked back in a few days with my husband and he said he'd seen a change in me but if he'd have asked me I wouldn't have admitted it. This went on for two and a half weeks, I was watching for the placebo effect.

That said I did everything in my power to give Genesis PURE a real chance to work for me. The day I started I quit my 32 ounce a day pop addiction - cold turkey! We started eating out less, in part so I could start counting the calories I was eating and the other part was to make room in our budget for the product. I did continue to make McDonald's runs in the morning for breakfast for convenience sake, anyone who knows me, knows I am NOT a morning person.

My poison of choice - I've drank it for years
photo from the website: Shopping.com

As told in The Journey, I started on the Genesis PURE core (Cleanse, Balance, Build) and Mangosteen. the core helped me with digestion but the biggest change I saw was my stress level. I began dealing with my stress differently - I didn't make myself sick anymore, I didn't eat my way through my problems and I wasn't raising my voice to be heard. We had added the Mangosteen to try and deal with the inflammation  that I was experiencing from both my weight and my Lymphedemia condition. My joints didn't sound like Rice Krispies in the morning and the swelling in my legs started to become more controllable.

Here's the core!
Liquid Cleanse, Go-Yin, Nutrition and Cell Water

One of the things that made me think this may work was that these initial products were all in liquid form. My body wasn't having to work to absorb the vitamins and nutrients that were provided. No more pills sitting in my stomach waiting to dissolve.

Changes I made to give the product a chance:

• Gave up pop
• Cut calories to 1200-1800 calories a day (Yes even with a McDonald's stop :)
• Cut back on eating out
• Adjusted budget

Initial results that I saw in the first three weeks:

• Better mood
• Better stress management
• Regular digestion
• I was more productive and had more energy
• I lost my first 10 pounds
• Finally I found HOPE for the first time in years!!

Hope Whispers by hairbrained schemes

The Journey

Live Keepsake Box
GrapeVineCeramicsGft.etsy.com

In last Wednesday's post I told you that I had lost 30 pounds and I want to share how I started the journey. It started not just as a quest to lose weight but a quest to find myself and be a healthier me.  

In the last 25 years I have gained, lost and gained again 200 pounds. I’ve dealt with major medical issues, had three babies and a lot of self-doubt. I like many people went looking for the “magic bullet.” That one thing that would just make the weight and my self-doubt just fade away. I’m living proof that the “magic bullet” doesn’t exist. I went through Weight Watchers, lost within 30 pounds of my goal weight. I was eating to the program and exercising. Somehow, I managed to gain all the weight back while I was still on the program. Then I started Phenfen, for me it was the “magic bullet.” Again I lost major weight, my doctor was very adamant that I cycled on and off it, which is probably the reason that I didn’t have any of the side effects that caused it to be recalled. Since then I’ve tried Lowfat diets, the Atkins diet, the South Beach diet, the Mediterranean diet and the Glycemic-Index diet all to no avail.

Then in September one of my husband’s clients convinced him that there was a product that could help us get healthier. At this point, the customer hadn’t met me and had no idea that I struggle with my weight, or that my husband was direly concerned for my health. He gave us the opportunity to try the product - if it worked we could replace his product. If it didn’t we could walk away and never look back. I became the guinea pig and was introduced to the Genesis PURE products. 

I began with the “Core” products that help you to “Cleanse, Balance and Build” your system and Mangosteen.  

I began to feel better and move better. More of my story - later...