Tuesday, April 29, 2008

What's Wrong With This Picture? Some of my observations...



Check out the woman who forgot to put her dress on over her trashy slip. Her BFF should have told her! Boobs, belly button and undergarments (if any - we can hope) on full display. What self respecting woman would do this? Oh wait, they wouldn't. I can't imagine what kind of event they are attending, with the fashion statements displayed in this photo, complete with beer bottles and flasks. Any guesses?

Of course, my real objection to this photo is the pig in the tee shirt. First of all - COVER THAT UP! Again, what person with any self respect would display themselves in this pathetic and sad way? He's no victim, though - he's the one doing the damage with that ignorant message on the shirt. His message is clear - if you 'beat' the disease called anorexia, you'll look like him. Better to keep starving yourself than try to beat the disease. Shameful.

Heidi Diaz sends the same sort of message with Kimkins. Best to diet-coke-fast off the pounds, take laxatives daily so 'potty problems' don't mask weight loss, trick your body into feeling too queasy to eat, berate yourself for an extra 'finger grab' of salad, whatever it takes not to look like the guy in that picture. Better to hide behind lies and phony photos than be who you are. Shameful!

Friday, April 25, 2008

The Disorder Next Door

SELF magazine has an interesting article called The disorder next door. Their conclusion? Over 6 in 10 American women have disordered eating, and another 1 in 10 has an eating disorder.

This was covered this morning on the Today Show. I found it odd they had Matt Lauer do the interview. Maybe this is unfair, but it felt like having me cover a wrestling match. LOL! Here's a link to the interview:

SELF poll reveals 65 percent of American women are disordered eaters

Here's an excerpt:

The online SELF survey garnered responses from 4,000 women ages 25 to 45 to a detailed questionnaire about their eating habits and found that most disordered eaters fall into one or more of six categories. "Calorie prisoners" are terrified of gaining weight, tend to see food as good or bad and feel extremely guilty if they indulge in something that’s off-limits. Secret eaters binge on junk food at home, in the car — wherever they won’t be found out. Career dieters may not know what to eat without a plan to follow; despite their efforts, they’re more likely than other types to be overweight or obese. Purgers are obsessed with ridding their body of unwanted calories and bloat by using laxatives, diuretics or occasional vomiting. Food addicts eat to soothe stress, deal with anger, even celebrate a happy event; they think about food nearly all the time. Extreme exercisers work out despite illness, injury or exhaustion and solely for weight loss; they are devastated if they miss a session. Like Marsh, who Bulik describes as a calorie prisoner and an exercise addict, many disordered eaters piece together a painful mix of destructive habits. Others may shift between categories over the years, ricocheting from restricting to bingeing to purging, for instance.

Even more frightening, the SELF survey reveals that an additional 10 percent of women suffer from outright eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia, meaning that a total of 75 percent of all American women — three out of four — eat, think and behave abnormally around food.


Gulp. I looked around the SELF website and found some interesting articles and tools there. Take the SELF Magazine eating disorder quiz. I did and the results were UGly. (Ugly with a capital UG, get it?) My reaction? Well DUH! I have probably fit 5 of the 6 categories mentioned above at one time or another - often most of them all at once. The one that spoke loudest to me was the 'career dieter.'

So now what will SELF do with those results? My challenge to them is to show people how to get healthy about eating and their weight, instead of reverting to the regular glossy coverage of how it's so much better to be skinny than fat, with a side order of implications that if you're fat it's because you don't want it bad enough.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Do you have adrenal fatigue?



Life is pretty demanding, and constantly elevated stress hormones can take a serious toll on the body. Check out some of the following sources for information about adrenal fatigue if you are experiencing symptoms like these:

  • Fatigue
  • Feeling tired despite sufficient hours of sleep
  • Insomnia
  • Weight gain
  • Depression
  • Hair loss
  • Acne
  • Reliance on stimulants like caffeine
  • Cravings for carbohydrates or sugars
  • Poor immune function
  • Intolerance to cold

Adrenal fatigue assessment
Adrenal fatigue — the effects of stress and high cortisol levels
Adrenal Fatigue Screening Quiz

It seems like for every site with adrenal fatigue information, there's a product they assure you will help. However, this site offers some practical advice:

Recovering from adrenal fatigue: How your body can overcome chronic stress and feel energized again

Thursday, April 17, 2008

Angry About Kimkins


In case anyone has forgotten why people are so angry at Heidi Diaz for the crash diet that is Kimkins, TheTruth has some important reminders - Heidi's own words.







Truly scary diet advice - this woman is teaching you what it takes to be as successful as The Kimmer.


Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Friday, April 11, 2008

When Reading Internet Articles - Beware of Manipulation

One good outcome from the Kimkins disaster is that a lot of people have gotten much more discerning about things they read. Is the material education or manipulation? Is it the truth? What's in it for the author? Is the author a real person? Who is making money off this article, or the product it casually mentions in the closing lines?

Here's one brand new 'article', spreading across the internet like a virus. It is created by the accused fraud, Heidi Diaz of Kimkins fame. I started to do a phrase by phrase commentary but it got too ugly and snarky for me. When it comes down to it, this article was written by a career liar intent on making you feel bad about yourself in order to motivate you to hook up with her dangerous crash yo-yo diet plan. See how convincing she can be? There are some real hard truths in there. Mixed with big fat whopping lies, and really powerful manipulation. If you aren't on to this woman, she can be quite convincing. And even if you are on to her, it's still easy to forget as you read her persuasive words that she's:

  • Not a successful dieter at all
  • Not a low carb diet expert
  • Not honest with herself or her clients (have you seen the deposition videos?)
  • Not interested in promoting healthy weight loss
  • Not capable of taking her own diet advice
  • Manipulating potential customers by acting like she's got all the right answers
  • Destroyed her health trying to do the plan she's selling
I can't imagine what is missing her soul that she's not hiding under a rock, trembling in fear over what's coming for her as a result of her actions. Instead, she's still out there marketing under various names.

As intelligent consumers, we often will research products on the web to find out more about what we're considering purchasing. A year ago there was nothing readily findable on the web but glowing articles and reviews of Kimkins. I remember reading them and thinking - wow, I can't find anything bad about this plan! Now I'm aware that the articles I was reading weren't really articles, they were spam. The reviews I was reading were lies. The blogs I was reading were affiliates - often the same affiliates over and over. The photos were faked. It was really a brilliantly engineered scam, designed to solidly lock up the top hundreds of spots of search results. If it weren't for the work of empowered and outraged consumers, this would still be the case for Kimkins today.

Unfortunately, it isn't just Kimkins that's like this. Deceptive and relentless marketing can really drown out the truth. In Kimkins case, it took thousands of hours of work by people rallying together to get the truth raised up so new people can find it. That work has to continue, or the truth will sink again. In all likelihood, the vast majority of scams are in the same golden position Kimkins was in last year.

We have to be so suspicious of what we read about services or products we are considering. There is a lot to be gained by the scammers wanting to separate us from our money.

___________________________________________________________

Are You Faux Dieting?
08th April 2008

If you look anywhere it seems these days, there's a revolt of "faux". Faux fur. Faux Louis Vuitton. Faux paint treatments. Faux Monet. Well, technically I suppose that's a poster, but you get the idea. With so many alternatives to the real deal, it's unfortunately becoming second nature to accept second best.

What about faux dieting? Are you guilty? Quiz yourself on the following and see if you can give yourself a truthful "yes" (hey, without crossing your fingers!)

Ask yourself:

1) I've got a diet strategy for family gatherings rather than playing it by ear (or urge).

2) I've never saved calories or carbs from meals so I can drink alcohol later.

3) I don't confuse 15 carbs from high nutrient veggies with 15 carbs from sugar free chocolate candies.

4) I've never pretended 400 calories of fried chicken was the same as 400 calories of broiled chicken & veggies.

5) I always make a whole hearted full time 100% commitment to my weight loss plan.

Ahem, so how did you do? How quick are you to forgive yourself for a relapse? Nobody is suggesting we flagellate ourselves for a cheat -- planned or otherwise. But in this era of pop psychologists who diagnose 15 year problem marriages in 15 minute TV segments, we're all too quick to gloss it over.

"Well, I tried." Yep, you tried. You've been trying for years, what else is new? When are you going to suck it up and finally do it? If you can't be honest with yourself, who can you be honest with? Think about it.

It boggles the mind to hear the excuses we give ourselves for remaining fat and undisciplined. What's even scarier is that we're believing it! Or do we? Try these on for size:

"I was losing too quickly and experts recommend only losing 1 or 2 pounds a week so we don't deprive ourselves of nutrients."

Oh really? So your splurge was on organic fresh spinach salad with organic free range chicken? Yeah, didn't think so.

"I really like this low carb thing, but I want to keep my calories up so I started having faux cheesecake or chicken wings with bleu cheese dressing."

Oh, please spare us. Did you also order some celery sticks for the dressing so you could faux the vaguest semblance of nutrition in that scenario? I'd have to say one of the strangest "starvation mode" stories I've ever heard was from a mom who ate the rest of her kid's Klondike ice cream sandwich because she felt her calories were too low that day. And, uh, yes, that mom is still "trying" to lose. Stay tuned.

"I want to be a good example for my daughter (son)."

Good! You can start by quit finishing off their left over Kraft macaroni & cheese, buying trans fat soaked Cup of Soup, sneaking mashed potatoes and gravy off their plate when they aren't looking or announcing "Just one won't hurt," as you order a triple burger super combo on the way home from soccer practice. With a diet soda, of course.

Now, what exactly about "dieting" is a bad example?

What's wrong with showing your kids some self restraint and making healthy choices? If you're a low carber, there's no law lurking in the universe that you must eat carbs. Serving yourself a plate of grilled salmon, mixed greens salad and steamed broccoli florets with ginger dressing is nothing to be ashamed of.

"My grandmother will freak out for sure if I don't eat (take your pick) the 100 year old family recipe potato salad, Aunt Sarah's chocolate cake, my sister's famous garlic cheese bread ... at the family picnic this weekend."

The final nail in the coffin may be, "And your sister is going through a divorce so be sure you don't upset her."

Ask your grandmother if she's going to pay for your insulin when you develop obesity induced diabetes. Hopefully she can explain to your kids why you couldn't get life insurance with a BMI of 43 and died prematurely due to heart disease. Obesity related, of course.

When are we going to quit lying to ourselves? Excuse me, fauxing?

"I don't want my daughter to develop an eating disorder by watching me diet."

A candidate for the Mom Hall of Fame! Odd they have no qualms about parking their kids in the waiting room of a bariatric surgeon while they get a Lapband consultation. Or sitting patiently at the pharmacy while mom picks her diet pills. Or watch them count calories, fat grams or points with military precision at every family meal (don't forget to drag out the food scale).

If you're serious about weight loss, do it. But don't make excuses. Quit fauxing.


------

Heidi Diaz is the owner of popular Kimkins.con weight loss website and an expert in the low carb lifestyle.

This article is free for republishing. OF COURSE IT IS!

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

Calling Kimkins Members in San Diego County

What Bamagal said here:

If you are a former Kimkins member and you reside in San Diego County, John Tiedt would appreciate hearing from you at your earliest convenience.

Please email John or use the Contact Us form on his website.

If you know of any former Kimkins members in San Diego County, please be sure to let them know that John Tiedt is looking for their assistance.

Everyone can help by spreading the word. Thank you very much for your help.

~*~*~*~

For those who may not already know, John Tiedt is the lawyer handling the Kimkins Class Action Lawsuit. I do hope that all former Kimkins members will consider joining the Kimkins Class Action Lawsuit, if you have not already done so. There is strength in numbers.

If you have already joined the Lawsuit via email, please be sure that you get your affidavit to John as soon as possible. Remember, if you need any help with completing this, be sure to watch the helpful video.

Thank you!

Monday, April 7, 2008

Here we go again...

Heidi Diaz is still dispensing unqualified, hazardous advice.

These comments from Heidi Diaz were posted today at Kimkins, and quoted at LCF:


Re:"I'm a Kimkins Newbie" Challenge 2008! 2 Hours, 15 Minutes ago


Kimmer:
"I don't believe in starvation mode (you can read more in my blog). The whole point of gastric surgery or Lapband is to drastically cut calories. There was a woman on the Joy Luck Club (Today Show) recently who lost 125+ lbs after gastric surgery. Her surgeon was on the show with her. She is now a size 2 and described what she eats: 2-3 oz of protein first, then a small amount of veggies. If she's full after a few ounces of protein, she passes on the veggies. Her example of how many asparagus she could eat was 2-4, plus a multivitamin."

"Last night I heard part of the show "I Can Make You Thin" on TLC. He also mentioned that metabolism is not rigid, it's flexible and rises and falls according to activity level and personal "build in" metabolism. This is what I've said for years. When you reduce calories your metabolism drops, but not drastically. When you reach goal and begin eating more, your metabolism will raise, but people need to eat less at goal. This is a shocker for some people. They didn't "break" their metabolism -- their body may be 50, 100, 200 pounds lighter. A 125 lb body needs much less "energy" (calories) than a 325 lb body."

"Dr. Johnny Bowden is respected in the diet industry. He wrote in an article suggesting women can lose and maintain on 1250-1400 calories a day -- men 1800."

"Don't force low calories, just eat clean ... eat according to appetite. Be sure to take a good quality multivitamin (I like Centrum). Dr. Oz on Oprah suggested splitting the multivitamin in half because our bodies don't process a mass dose of vitamins all at once."

"The "tons of energy" is ketosis. Ain't it great!"


I'd love to hear from people who have had weight loss surgery. Tell me, is this an accurate portrayal of how you are supposed to eat long term? What health effects are you warned to expect? How closely are you monitored? For how long are you monitored? What is the expected regain rate?

I'm really puzzled at how the respected Dr. Johnny Bowden's opinion that people can lose at more than 1200 calories a day can in any way be considered supportive of Kimmer and her 500-calorie bootcamp plan and her Kimkins 'how low can you go' Experiment? I wonder if he'd appreciate her twisted application of his knowledge this way? (I think I'll go ask him!)

How flexible does Heidi Diaz metabolism appear to be after decades of crash/binge dieting? Her Kimkins Experiment of 1 is a dismal failure, so why is she giving advice?





UPDATED:
Here is a link to real information about eating after WLS: Heidi, Heidi, Heidi

Thursday, April 3, 2008

Is Aspartame Safe? Depends On Who You Ask.

Dr. Briffa discusses this topic on his blog:

New review catalogues the myriad of ways aspartame can mess up your body and brain

Tellingly, whether a study finds for or against aspartame seems to be intimately related to, err, who paid for it. In one on-line review of the evidence finds that while 100 per cent of industry-funded studies conclude aspartame is safe, 92 per cent of independently funded research and reports identified aspartame as a potential cause of harmful effects.

Isn't that just awful? That corporations with deep pockets, lots of attorneys, and money on the line, can skew data when our health is at stake?

I believe that aspartame is bad, but I still use it sometimes. Why? Inner brat, I guess. I occasionally want something sweet, without going off plan. A little voice says that the studies that reveal problems are based on consuming thousands of times the amount I consume. As more evidence, both anecdotal and scientific, becomes available, I'm getting more and more put off.

So then what? I absolutely can't stand stevia. So I reach for Splenda, despite figuring that one day the evidence will be available that proves it, too, is dangerous. I know there are sites that say it's dangerous now. I'm reluctant to believe because I don't want to be without it.

Do you consume NutraSweet? Splenda? Sugar alcohols? Any other sweet substitutes? I'd love to hear what you're using.

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Way to go, Manuel!

Check this out!!!

'World's Fattest Man' Drops 570 Pounds

The world's fattest man loses half his body weight - but still weighs almost 50 stone

World's Fattest Man Leaves House

I have followed Manuel Uribe's story for a long time now. I'm shocked and excited that he is not dead. He has lost over a quarter ton - not with risky bariatric surgery or a dangerous crash diet, but the Zone diet. Sane, healthy, controlled carb. WTG!

I wish this man all the best for continued success, health, and a happy life with his future wife. He has far to go, but has come very far indeed. I am deeply impressed.