I want to apologize…
It’s taken me a minute to realize that I haven’t let you in on what I’m doing. Some of you are new to the blog, but many of you have been around for years, reading these posts, seeing my recipes, watching me help my family go plant-based, and now I’m talking about weight loss and coaching and I never explained why!
You know how sometimes you’re too close to a situation to see clearly and it all makes sense and seems obvious to you until you talk to someone else about it and they’re completely confused? That’s what happened to me. I’m all gung-ho about my weight loss coaching, telling people that I’m a certified coach, offering to help, and when we talk I realize they don’t know what I’m talking about. Not really.
It’s easy to get it when I say, “I’m a doctor.” You know that means I went to medical school and residency and I take care of patients. But a coach? Coach of what? How do I help?
I’m going to be more clear. So I’ve decided that the best way to explain what I’m doing as a coach is to tell you stories. Fun, right? For the next several weeks I’m going to tell stories about people I’ve helped in their weight loss journey so you can see the lasting impact that coaching can have on weight loss.
Let’s start with my story…
After my first baby…
Ever since I can remember and probably at least since puberty, I was overweight. I don’t recall any time in my adult life when I was at a normal, healthy weight. All through high school and college I struggled with weight, negative body issues, shame, and self-hatred. It was tough. I tried crazy metabolic diets, Weight Watchers, whatever I thought would help.
I was a dancer in both high school and college. I was always the biggest girl on the stage. Moving and performing were pure joy, but putting on the tight-fitting costumes wasn’t a fun experience.
Things didn’t improve when I got into medical school. I lived alone and studied my days away. Snacks were an easy way to break up the monotony and keep from falling asleep on the books. Medical training also taught me to eat whenever I had a chance even if I wasn’t hungry because I wouldn’t know when the next chance to eat would be. Residency was even worse. The constant snacking and “I deserve it” eating became an ingrained pattern.
After training was over and I had my first baby, I was almost 200 pounds. I was exactly the same weight I was when I started the pregnancy. Trying to breastfeed and stay covered was hard because I was pretty big up top. I wanted to be one of those pretty young moms pushing a stroller, looking fit and energetic, but in reality, I was exhausted, heavy, and uncomfortable in my own body. When I started avoiding being in any pictures with my daughter because I hated how I looked, I knew something had to change.
I lost 60 pounds in 6 months. After a lifetime of living in a body that didn’t feel comfortable, I finally felt full of lightness and energy! It was exhilarating! I wanted everyone I knew that struggled with their weight to have the same success and feeling I had – but when people asked me how I lost the weight, I didn’t know how to explain. No, I didn’t do a diet. No, I wasn’t starving myself or exercising to exhaustion. No, I wasn’t taking pills or shots. People looked at me sideways when I said I was only eating when I was hungry and stopping when I was full. Yes, but how? And what else?
After four babies…
I didn’t know how to say it then, but what had changed was my mind. I was thinking about food, my body, what I would and wouldn’t do around food in a completely different way than I had my whole life. For the past more than 14 years that I’ve kept off this weight, I knew my mind had changed, but I didn’t know how to give that transformation to someone else.
So I became a certified life and weight loss coach.
Now I’m able to help other women make decisions about their life and weight that get them unstuck. I help my clients see how their thinking is creating the life they have now. Coaching allows me to help my clients create the results they want in their life and reach their goals. I get to use all of my physician’s brain and my coach training to help people to find the health and wellness that they want. It’s a wonderful place to be!
If you know that what you need to get to your weight loss goal is a transformation in your thinking, I can help! Email me at drandreachristianparks@gmail.com and let’s set up a consultation. I can help you get a jump start toward your goal in one hour and we can work together to reach that goal!
Come back next week to learn about successful weight loss on chicken wings and pizza…
Here’s your video help for the week!