Even bad cold can’t knock Parks off track

Not even a bad cold could throw Cathy Parks off track as she prepared to head into the fourth month of her healthy lifestyle challenge.
Parks was home sick from work on Friday, but she said she’s still sticking to her meal plan, and although she doesn’t have a lot of energy, she’s keeping up with her exercise plan at the gym.
And she said it’s paying off in pounds lost. “I’m down 41 1/2 now,” she explained. “I’m pretty pleased.”
Parks added that she is starting to see a difference in her appearance, but not as much as she was expecting. “I haven’t noticed it as much in my clothes as I thought I would,” she said. “I’m probably down a size.”
Still, she says she sees a difference in her face, and she is always getting positive comments from others who tell her they can’t get over how much she has lost. She added she especially meets a lot of people at the gym who offer their congratulations and encouragement. Parks said that their comments are always appreciated. “It gives you that little extra ‘oomph’ that you need.”
Her diet hasn’t gotten boring yet, either, she said, although she and her nutrition counselor
haven’t made a lot of changes. Parks said they probably won’t do anything drastic until her weight loss hits a major plateau, and so far that hasn’t happened.
She added that Terry, her counselor, thinks her weekly cheat meal may actually be what’s keeping her from hitting a plateau, because it fuels her metabolism and keeps her body from thinking that it’s losing too much weight. Although she knows there’s a plateau coming in her future at some point, Parks said she is content with her meal plan for now, and in the past couple of weeks she has been trying some new things.
One day she and her mother got together and tried out a bunch of Simply For Life recipes, including cabbage rolls, stuffed chicken breast and chicken fried rice. Parks said that she tries to make meals all at once when she has time, and then package and freeze them in individual portions for later. She always has soup made, and has pre-cooked chicken on hand to add to veggies or recipes.
“I never don’t have chicken in my fridge,” she said. “I always have it cooked.”
With plenty of food prepared, she’s ready for the coming weeks. “It’s great. I have enough stuff in the freezer and I’m ready to go.”
However, she got to use some of the food she had prepared right away, as her brother, who is also on the Simply For Life meal plan, stopped by shortly after she finished cooking.
She said he was amazed at the variety and taste of the food she served for dinner.
“I gave him one of the stuffed chicken breasts and he said, ‘I’m allowed to eat this?’ And I said, ‘You’re allowed to eat that!’” she explained with a laugh.
Parks said people often assume that when you diet, you don’t get to eat good food or things that you like, but that’s a misconception. “You just have to know how to make stuff so that it’s good for you,” she said.
As spring arrives on the Miramichi, Parks also said she is planning to start walking outside as well as going to the gym. Although she says she is not much of an outdoors person, she likes badminton, and walking on the track at James M Hill Memorial High School.
However, she added her trainer, Mark, has even more ambitious plans for her. “Mark says he wants to get me jogging outside this summer,” she said. “And biking. I haven’t biked much since I was a kid!”
Parks said that overall she is really amazed at how her challenge is going, and how long she has been able to stick with it. “Sometimes it really blows my mind it’s been that long,” she said. “I’m two and a half months into it, and that’s pretty crazy.”

Weight loss plateau made for tough week

It's been a tough week, said Cathy Parks on Friday, but today she's back on track and looking forward to some new experiences in her healthy lifestyle challenge.

Parks has now lost 35 1/2 pounds on the diet and exercise plan she started in January. Last week she hit her first plateau.

"I didn't lose anything last week — I didn't go up or down, which was actually a little frustrating," she said. "I knew the first time I didn't lose it was going to bother me. It got the better of me for a few days."

The plateau left her in something of a funk, she said. It was hard to keep motivated, and she even allowed herself an extra cheat meal — although she added her personal trainer, Mark, made sure she worked it off.

Then one day at the gym, she ran into a woman she knew from church. She said Parks was her incentive to keep working at getting fit, and that she often asked herself, "What would Cathy do?"

After that, Parks said, it was a lot easier to keep going. "I owe a lot to her," she explained. "She brought me around."

Parks said her church family has been great at encouraging her. She added that another acquaintance from church had told her she looked as if she had lost three sizes. When Parks said she had only lost one, the woman said, "Well, you're losing it in all the right places."

At the gym, Parks has started doing an exercise her trainer calls walking lunges on the treadmill, doing a sort of squat with each step. She said she hadn't been doing to the exercise for a while because they hurt her hip, but now she's building up her endurance. The lunges are especially hard on the tops of your legs and your butt, she said.

"We have a deal, though," she added — every time she does walking lunges, Mark has to do them with her.

Parks said her rapport with her trainer is a big help to her. "Mark and I get along very well," she explained.

Parks is also starting a new meal plan, with some different recipes, this week. She doesn't cook much, she said, so she was getting a little bored with the old one.

On the weekend, she said, her mother was coming over so the two of them could experiment with some different recipes, and she was planning to visit her brother, who is also on a Simply For Life meal plan, on Saturday. Her brother is more adventurous than she is when it comes to cooking, said Parks, so she was hoping to learn some new tricks and ideas from him.

And she knows he won't let her get off track. "He said, ‘we're both doing the same thing, so you're not gonna cheat while you're here.'" she explained.

But overall, things are going well, and she's glad to be doing the program. "I'm still plugging away," she said. "I feel great now. There's not comparison between before and now."

the diet and exercise plan she started in January. Last week she hit her first plateau.

"I didn't lose anything last week — I didn't go up or down, which was actually a little frustrating," she said. "I knew the first time I didn't lose it was going to bother me. It got the better of me for a few days."

The plateau left her in something of a funk, she said. It was hard to keep motivated, and she even allowed herself an extra cheat meal — although she added her personal trainer, Mark, made sure she worked it off.

Then one day at the gym, she ran into a woman she knew from church. She said Parks was her incentive to keep working at getting fit, and that she often asked herself, "What would Cathy do?"

After that, Parks said, it was a lot easier to keep going. "I owe a lot to her," she explained. "She brought me around."

Parks said her church family has been great at encouraging her. She added that another acquaintance from church had told her she looked as if she had lost three sizes. When Parks said she had only lost one, the woman said, "Well, you're losing it in all the right places."

At the gym, Parks has started doing an exercise her trainer calls walking lunges on the treadmill, doing a sort of squat with each step. She said she hadn't been doing to the exercise for a while because they hurt her hip, but now she's building up her endurance. The lunges are especially hard on the tops of your legs and your butt, she said.

"We have a deal, though," she added — every time she does walking lunges, Mark has to do them with her.

Parks said her rapport with her trainer is a big help to her. "Mark and I get along very well," she explained.

Parks is also starting a new meal plan, with some different recipes, this week. She doesn't cook much, she said, so she was getting a little bored with the old one.

On the weekend, she said, her mother was coming over so the two of them could experiment with some different recipes, and she was planning to visit her brother, who is also on a Simply For Life meal plan, on Saturday. Her brother is more adventurous than she is when it comes to cooking, said Parks, so she was hoping to learn some new tricks and ideas from him.

And she knows he won't let her get off track. "He said, ‘we're both doing the same thing, so you're not gonna cheat while you're here.'" she explained.

But overall, things are going well, and she's glad to be doing the program. "I'm still plugging away," she said. "I feel great now. There's not comparison between before and now."

Fraser looking forward to outdoors activities in spring

The Legislature is back in session, and for Bill Fraser, Member of the Legislative Assembly, that presents some new obstacles where his healthy lifestyle changes are concerned.
“The challenge this week has been the Legislature’s back open,” Fraser said, which for him means long periods of sitting and difficulty getting snacks and meals at the right times.
However, he added, he’s finding ways to adapt.
Fraser said he always used to eat in the cafeteria at the Legislature, which offered some healthy options, but not as many as he needs for his diet plan. Now, instead of getting lunch at the cafeteria he brings along a salad, as well as snacks like oranges, grapefruit and vegetable sticks. That way, he makes sure he always has a meal or snack available when it’s time for him to eat.
“It seemed to go pretty good,” he said, after his first week back in the legislature. And he’s still losing pounds, he added. “I’ve got 37 off now, and that was as of [last] Monday.”
To make sure he gets plenty of exercise, Fraser said he always tries to arrive early for work, so that he can take a walk downtown. And he also likes to walk after the Legislature’s done for the day. The other day, he said, he went for a walk to a restaurant downtown after work to pick up a healthy dinner — a wrap with chicken and vegetables.
“If I’m not in a hurry, I’m going to try to leave my car at home,” he explained.
Fraser said he likes to walk, and he’s looking forward to spring.
“Now that the nice weather’s here it’s going to be better,” he said.
He mentioned that he had hoped to try cross-country skiing this winter, but so far he hasn’t had the chance. However, as the weather gets warmer, there are other outdoor activities that spark his interest.
Fraser said he is looking forward to revisiting the trails at French Fort Cove, which he hasn’t walked in a while.
“I wouldn’t mind trying biking sometime,” he added, saying that he has a brand new bicycle he has never used. However, he stressed that he’s not quite ready for that yet, and when the time comes, he intends to start slow, and on flat terrain.
“You don’t want to try to conquer the mountain the first day,” he said with a laugh.
Fraser’s outdoors activities aren’t meant to replace his gym routine, however — he still works out almost every day, and he has altered his weight routine a little to keep things interesting. He said he has also heard that a gym in Miramichi is having a new vibration machine installed that can be used as a supplement to exercise, and he’s eager to try it when it’s ready.
Besides diet and exercise, Fraser is also in the midst of a two-week detoxification and cleansing program. He takes herbal capsules morning and night that he says will help cleanse the liver, kidneys and major organs of the toxins that build up from unhealthy eating. He has heard, he said, that everyone is supposed to do this kind of detoxification twice a year, but this is the first time he has ever done it.
“Actually, I feel pretty good since I started taking them,” he said.
The purpose of the detoxification isn’t to lose weight, he said, although you might lose some along the way as the toxins are flushed out. Instead, it’s to improve your overall health.
“To make your body a little more healthy,” he said.
As well as the herbal capsules, he takes a fibre supplement — an odorless, tasteless white powder that dissolves in water or coffee. He takes two to three tablespoons each day to help with the detoxification process.
Fraser also mentioned that he plans to attend the Wellness Strategy meeting the Miramichi Wellness Committee is holding March 28, and he hopes other Miramichiers will do the same and add their input to the new strategy.
The meeting is at the Douglastown Community Centre from 9 a.m.-3 p.m.
He added that you have to register ahead of time because space is limited. The contact number is 627-7539.
“I would encourage people to attend,” Fraser said.

Fraser passes halfway mark - drops additional 6 1/2 pounds

With another six-and-a-half pounds dropped since last speaking with the Miramichi Leader, Bill Fraser seems to be well on his way to reaching his goal of losing 50 pounds.
Since starting his healthy lifestyle changes more than a month ago Fraser has dropped a total of 30 pounds, with the past two weeks having been especially significant.
Fraser is not only continuing to lose the weight, but now he’s beginning to notice an increase in his strength and overall energy.
“I’m feeling much better,” he said. “I don’t get tired now if I go up a set of stairs like I used to. I used to avoid the big steps at church (St. Michael’s Basilica), but I don’t anymore.”
In fact, Fraser said he intentionally takes the steps now, just because he can. He said he’s also increased the amount of weight he’s lifting at the gym by 15 pounds and increased the distance in miles he’s able to cover in 30 minutes on the bike from 1.5 to 2.5.
“I don’t just stay at the average speed,” he said. “I have to increase my speed to the fastest I can go for as long as I can handle, or for 30 seconds. Whichever comes first.”
While Fraser said this was all well and good, but the biggest change he’s seen is on the cross-trainer, where he’s managed to increase his speed from 2.8 to 4.2.
However, the past two weeks weren’t entirely rosey, with Fraser having a bit of a scare early last week.
Fraser said he missed his weigh-in in Miramichi last week because of the snowstorm and when he was weighed in Fredericton it showed he had gained one pound.
“I was a little bit discouraged the first week,” he said. “But it turned out good.”
However, Fraser was told the initial weight gain was likely muscle building up and when he next weighed in, his weight, once again, was down.
Having March Break off proved to be an experience on its own.
Fraser said while he didn’t go to the gym all week, he did make sure to go for a 45 minute walk every day.
He added the time off gave him the opportunity to cook for himself more often as well, which he took advantage of and tried a couple of new foods, one of which he didn’t even know existed.
“I tried Asian pears for the first time,” he said. “I didn’t even know they existed, but they’re good.”
Fraser said he’s beginning to acquire a taste for seafood, baked salmon in particular. He’s also started taking a multi-vitamin and eating three tablespoons of Salba, a natural grain full of essential nutrients, a day.
As for snacking he said he’s keeping with his plan and only eating healthy foods.
“I keep a vegetable tray in my freezer at home all the time,” he said. “I find I don’t even have any cravings for the bad foods like I used to.”
Over the next two weeks, Fraser has plans to introduce a new exercise to his routine — cross-country skiing.

Snow days tough, but Parks staying on track

Things are still going well for Cathy Parks as she heads into the seventh week of her healthy lifestyle challenge.
"I have 32 1/2 pounds off right now, so I'm pleased with that," she said. "I'm definitely noticing it more now, with my clothes, and a lot of people have come up to me and said they can tell I've lost weight. That's nice to hear."
Two weekends ago she made a trip to Halifax to visit her sister, she said, and going into it she was a little worried about sticking with her meal and exercise plan. "Driving down I was thinking, 'I wonder how this will go...'" she said.
She finds it's harder to stay on track when she's away from Miramichi and her usual routine, but as it turned out she had no problems.
"I just had my regular cheat meal and other than that I was a very good girl," she said. "It went really well, so I was glad."
In order to keep herself from getting off track, she made sure to eat the same things she would normally eat, bringing along healthy foods. Among these were Smartpop popcorn and almonds, so she would have something to snack on if they went to the movies. Her sister also helped, she said, making sure Cathy had what she needed.
Parks added she's also making good progress with her exercise routine. "The gym's going really well."
She said she's trying to always spend a few more minutes on the elliptical machine — even though she hates it, she knows it's good exercise. She has also been trying some of the other machines at the gym, including the stepper.
"Mark (the trainer) keeps switching it up," she said, adding that the varied routine makes it easier to stay with the program. She said that she has problems with her shoulder and knee, and the trainer is also very helpful in making sure she doesn't put too much strain on these joints.
All in all, she said, she really likes going to the gym. "I enjoy going every day, and that's a huge bonus."
As she continues with the meal plan, she said she is finding it's easier to make healthy food choices when preparing meals, and she's beginning to be more creative in her cooking. "I'm getting a little more adventurous in what I make," she said.
And she's also discovering new favourite foods she never dreamed she would like. "Cottage cheese," she said. "Whoda thunk it? There's not much taste, but it's a texture thing for me."
Her coach at Simply For Life even suggested mixing cottage cheese and tuna, but Parks said she isn't brave enough to try that just yet.
Another thing she is trying to develop a taste for is green tea, which she says is really healthy, so she tries to drink a cup every day.
During the recent wild weather she discovered another challenge to staying on track — snow days.
"Oh my word," she said. "Snow days are hard. I find as soon as the snow starts to fall, my cravings go up."
The break in routine is one of the biggest problems, she said, and her old habit of always stopping by the grocery store on days when her office is closed due to weather. However, she was able to overcome temptation yet again.
"It's no great secret," she explained. "I had nothing in the house that I can't have. If it's not there you won't be eating it."
The cupboard that she once filled with junkfood has found a new purpose, she said. Where once there were sweets and chips, they have now been replaced by healthy cereal, natural sweetener, olive oil, spices and salba — which can be added to yogurt or cereal.
"It's just funny when you look up there now compared to before," she said.
Parks added that she's really feeling the results of the lifestyle changes she has been making. Eating the right foods and the right portions has helped a lot, she said. "Before I just felt heavy all the time," she explained. "I definitely feel better. I just feel all around better."
And she's not the only member of her family making those changes — she said her brother, Kurt, has also started the diet and exercise plan. He has been on it for three weeks and has lost 28 pounds so far.
"He's doing amazing," she said. "I'm more excited for him than I am for myself."

'Motivational Corner' helps Fraser keep on track

Bill Fraser says he’s now lost 23 1/2 pounds since starting his healthy lifestyle changes one month ago.

He has had his pants taken in, too, because he has also slimmed down 2 1/4 inches.

This week was going well, he said on Thursday, but the week before had been challenging.

First, he had to attend two events where the meal was a buffet laden with off-limits items like french fries, potatoes and sweets. Still, he was able to resist most of the bad stuff, having a salad instead.

“I didn’t do too awful, awful bad.” he said. His only real cheat, he added, was a glass of wine at one of the dinners.

The other challenge he faced was having a hard time getting to the gym.

Normally he would go before work, he said, but early-morning meetings kept him from getting there. However, he said, it all worked out, because he discovered that he enjoys going to the gym at night.

“When I go home, I’m relaxed and I’m ready to go to bed,” he said, adding that he finds he has much more energy to do his workout after dinner than on an empty stomach first thing in the morning, and it also helps burn off some of the carbohydrates he ate during the day.

From now on, he said, he’s going to go to the gym at night whenever possible. This week he will be starting his new exercise program, which involves doubling his weight routine, and he said he’s looking forward to it.

During the course of this challenge, he continued, he has been having a lot of new experiences, especially with trying different foods.

“I’ve been experimenting over the past week with some new foods,” he said.

At a restaurant last week, he said, he ordered a chicken breast and it was served with a side that looked like potatoes. When he asked the server, he found out the side was actually radishes cooked in olive oil — an acceptable vegetable on his meal plan. They were quite good, he added, with a similar texture to potatoes but with a better flavour.

He has also developed a taste for fillet of sole, which he had never tried before starting this plan. “I find it quite nice.”’ Fraser said that variety is very important, because you have to make sure you don’t get bored.

Lately, instead of the usual broccoli- cauliflower mix for vegetables, he has been substituting things like peppers, mushrooms, onions and baked sweet potato.

Another thing he has learned in the last couple of weeks, he said, is to avoid eating carbohydrates later in the day. The meal plan limits carbs — like whole wheat bread, or brown rice or pasta — to one meal a day, and Fraser had been eating them at suppertime. His counsellor, however, said it’s better to eat them at breakfast or lunch so that you have an opportunity to work them off during the day.

Fraser added he has also found some new ways of keeping himself on track. In his office, he has what he calls his “motivational corner,” where he posts the newspaper articles following his progress and other items that encourage him to keep on even when things get tough.

In the same corner of his office is his fridge, which is always stocked with healthy foods.

“Make sure you have the right food available. That’s key,” he said.

“It’s important to make sure you plan ahead.”

Besides the fridge, he said, he also keeps a package of almonds in his vehicle, and takes an apple or orange with him if he thinks he won’t have time for his regular snack. That way he doesn’t end up eating too much because of being so hungry.

It helps to keep problem foods unavailable, too, he said — if it’s not right there, you’re less likely to eat it.

“I guess my tip of the week for everybody is to make sure you have more healthy choices available, and try not to have too many unhealthy foods at home,” he said.

He is also encouraging local businesses to try to make healthy snacks available to their employees.

Many workplaces have already started adding healthier options to the usual vending machine full of pop, chips and chocolate bars, he said, but more should be doing the same. “It’s just to have an alternative,” he said.

Buying smaller clothes “a good feeling”

“I’m down 25 pounds now,” said Cathy Parks, finishing up the fourth week of her new diet and exercise plan. She added she lost 7 1/2 pounds just in the past week. “That was pretty great — I was speechless.”
The week before, she said, she had been discouraged to discover she’d only lost 1 1/2 pounds. “It’s hard when you’re not seeing it,” she said. “I’m definitely a lot happier this week.”
Her meal plan, which has evolved as she moves through the program, now features a wider variety of foods, and allows for a “cheat meal” each week. Meals are more flexible, she said, and she can have more protein and vegetables. There are a lot of recipes to choose from, too, she said.
She knows, however, that once her weight loss starts to plateau her diet will become more strict as she enters the fat-burning stage.
Parks said she is still enjoying her exercise program, too. “It’s going really, really well.” She said her trainer, Mark, is great at motivating her, and Darrel, the owner of the gym, always calls her “Slim.”
“They’re both great — they’re really great,” she said.
And she’s seeing the results of her efforts, she added. Recently she took a shopping trip to Moncton with a friend, and tried on some new clothes. She came home with a pair of jeans that were a size smaller than the ones she’d worn before. “That was a good feeling,” she said.
She went on to say that she encountered a lot of temptations on the Moncton trip, but managed to resist. She followed her meal plan all day and used her cheat meal for dinner at Montana’s. However, she said, she felt guilty anyway and went to the gym on Sunday, which is usually a day off for her.
Parks also mentioned that there were a lot of restaurants in Moncton that offered Simply For Life-compatible menu options, but she wishes there were more in Miramichi that do. Presently, she said, she only knows of two local restaurants that have Simply For Life meals.
“It’s really tough when you go somewhere to eat,” she said. “If you have some options it’s just so much easier.”
At the time of the interview she was planning to spend a weekend visiting her sister, niece and nephew in Halifax. Parks said she knew it might be a challenging trip as far as her meal plan was concerned, but her sister was supportive. “She said, ‘don’t worry, Cathy, I’ve got everything covered.’” Parks said she’ll also be bringing food with her on the trip so that she can stay on track.
Support from other people is beneficial to her, but she says she has discovered her experiences are also encouraging other people. She often runs into people who say they have seen her story in the newspaper and that it gave them the incentive to make healthy changes in their lifestyle, too. “They always say what an encouragement Bill and I are,” she said. “That’s good to hear.”
She added that she admires Bill Fraser, who is also participating in this project, for being able to manage his diet and exercise plan while keeping up with his busy life — travelling and often eating out, he doesn’t have the benefit of preparing his own meals or planning ahead. “I think the world of Bill,” she said.

Fraser getting more energy, new experiences from lifestyle changes

By Wendy Patterson
patterson.wendy@miramichileader.com

Miramichi-Bay du Vin MLA Bill Fraser said he knew ahead of time that staying on his diet and exercise plan while at a conference in Regina, Sask. would be tough. But all in all, he said, it wasn’t that bad.
“I had a few mess-ups,” he explained. “But for the most part I didn’t do too too bad.”
The first couple of days of the conference were easy, he said. He took healthy snacks with him on the plane, and most of the food at the conference fit into his meal plan.
One setback came when he worked through break and missed his regular snack. Therefore he was very hungry at the reception later in the day and ate several hors d’oeuvres. The meal that night was healthy, but he couldn’t resist the chocolate cheesecake they served for dessert.
However, he said, he spent extra time in the hotel’s gym in the mornings to make up for cheating. He worked out for two hours every morning, from about 6-8 a.m., doing cardio and weights and using the eliptical machine. He also took the stairs down from his room instead of using the elevator.
Since returning from the conference, Fraser has met with his trainer to officially begin his fitness plan.
“I love it,” he said.
His usual schedule involves 10 minutes of cardio to warm up, 30 minutes of weight training, and another 30 minutes of cardio to finish. He goes to the gym four to five times a week, and he is continuing on with other healthy improvements like parking farther away from buildings and taking the stairs.
Fraser said his trainer told him the trick is to pace himself and to avoid overdoing it.
He added that the box squat is hard on his legs, and the shoulder press is a little difficult, but he likes the weight machines. “And I don’t mind the eliptical.”
When using the eliptical machine, he said, he goes in sets — starting at a moderate speed for four minutes, then going much faster for 20-35 seconds, and then slowing down again.
Now that his first few weeks are complete, Fraser is starting on his new meal plan, which he said will give him a lot more variety and some new foods so he doesn’t get bored.
And he said he finds he is doing a lot of things he never did before.
One morning, after walking 15 minutes to a restaurant for breakfast and back, he saw that the snow was piling up on the roof of his house. So he borrowed a ladder from his neighbour, climbed up on top of the house, and shoveled the snow off the roof for some extra activity.
“I find since I’ve been going to the gym, I have more energy and I’m not tired and sleepy through the day,” he added.
He said he’s still losing weight, too, having taken off another eight pounds for a total of 16 since starting the program.
“My pants are getting quite loose,” he said, saying that if this keeps up he’s going to have to get them taken in.
He said he’s discovered that the main thing is to not get discouraged and give up. “When you get off track, get right back on it,” he said. “It’s important just to continue on and get right back to it.”

16 pounds in two-and-a-half weeks “a good start”

Things are going well for Cathy Parks as she heads into the third week of her healthy lifestyle challenge.
In her first two-and-a-half weeks, she’s lost 16 pounds, and she says she’s sticking with it.
“I find the weekends hard,” she said. “I think it’s because I have no structure on the weekends. Saturday I find is my worst day.”
She added that Saturday seems to be the toughest day to deal with cravings — for things like chocolate, cheese, pop and butter that aren’t included in her Simply For Life meal plan. She has to keep track of everything she eats, as well as how much water she drinks and how much exercise she gets, in her journal.
“Knock on wood — I haven’t cheated yet,” she said.
“It’s hard going to other people’s houses,” she explained, since they often have tempting foods available. “But I don’t want other people to change,” she continued. “And I do have a very good friend who’s doing Simply, too, so that’s good.”
The first couple of weeks, she said, are a “cleanse,” to clear your system of all the bad stuff you ate in the past, so you start out with a much stricter menu.
However, it isn’t about starving yourself, she added. “I fell like I eat more now than I ever did.”
And now that her cleanse is over, she said, she is allowed to treat herself to one “cheat meal” one night a week, although she said she doesn’t really know if she wants to cheat, since the meal plan’s going so well.
Her physical activity program is also off to a good start, she said. “The gym’s going well — I actually look forward to going. Mark (the trainer) really puts me through my paces.”
She added that the trainer helps keep her on track and encourages her in her workouts.
She does cardio and weights Monday to Thursday, just cardio on Saturday, and takes Friday and Sunday off.
For her 30 minutes of cardio each visit, she’s learning to use the elliptical machine. She hated it at first, she said, but it’s a much better workout than the treadmill, even though she likes the treadmill better.
The strength training she does is mostly on the machines at the gym.
“I don’t mind the ab ones,” she said. “Because they have a great outcome. But I don’t like the leg extensions.”
She added that she also finds it frustrating that she can’t tell that she’s losing weight. “For 16 pounds I thought I would notice more,” she said. “But other people notice.”
She also said that her memberships to the gym and Simply For Life are for a year, and she plans to go all the way.
“It’s nice to have back that control,” she said. “I felt so out of control for so long — it’s nice to have that back. I even feel better.
“It’s a good start,” she said.

Cathy Parks

Cathy Parks

Cathy Parks, an avid vocalist, found out about the project from a friend who was also singing in the annual production of The Living Christmas Tree at the Newcastle United Baptist Church, she said. She immediately thought it was a great idea.
Parks said her main goal in this challenge is to lose some weight. “I’ve struggled with weight my entire life,” she explained, but she added, “Just to be healthier — to me, size doesn’t matter. I just want to be comfortable in my own skin.”
She said she has tried other weight loss programs before, as well as dieting on her own, but found she never got lasting results.
She’s looking forward to starting this new program, she said, though she knows it will get tough at times. Her biggest challenge, she feels, will be getting enough physical activity.
“Getting up to go to the gym,” she said, but continued, “Anything new is usually a struggle at first.”
She also thinks it will be a challenge to stay away from what she calls her vices — good quality chocolate and fast food top the list.
“I eat out a lot,” she explained. “Mostly out of convenience.”
Working at the RCMP firearms registry and staying active in the community, she leads a busy life, so taking time to prepare her meals ahead will be a change, she said. But she’s got a plan to conquer the obstacles in her path.
She has already purged her cupboards of problem foods — chips, chocolate, pop and regular sour cream have all been given away to friends and coworkers. “Out of sight, out of mind,” she said.
The friend who first told her about this program has become her workout partner, and the two plan to hit the gym every day after work.
Parks added she’s a little nervous about being in the paper — though as a vocalist she is used to performing in public, this is a different sort of situation. Nevertheless, she said she’s excited.
“I’m overwhelmed at the moment. But I’m excited about the result.”