So, I used to make croissants for a living.

I ran a small bakery, actually — but the croissants were really the stars of the show. They were cosmic; people would stand in line to buy them by the dozen. I loved them, too… especially toasted with extra butter and jam. They were, in fact, my primary fuel, along with coffee (of course!).

You would think that running around a hot kitchen all day, serving customers, and dealing with the general chaos that is food service, would burn enough calories to keep one in relatively good shape. Unfortunately, it became clear to me with the addition of twenty five extra pounds (on my 5’0″ frame), that was simply not the case. I was unhappy about the weight gain, but I chalked it up to an occupational hazard.

Then, a funny thing started to happen. I would get these strange customers that would bypass the croissants and other sweets, telling me they were trying to cut back on bread. Or they would ask if I carried anything gluten-free. I would smile and shake my head, trying not to roll my eyes. What a crazy fad, I told myself.

Then life happened.

I got a new (office) job. My boyfriend proposed, and I started planning a wedding… and thinking about having a baby. Although it wasn’t an immediate concern, I knew that I wanted to have the best chance of having a healthy pregnancy when the time was right. Having a healthy body composition would be an important aspect of that.

While few things can be said about the health benefits of office work, once I wasn’t surrounded by baked goods all day, I started to realize that I felt kind of… well, like I overdosed on bread. I didn’t want to think about another muffin, or cookie, or croissant. I started to wonder if there was any credence to the hold-the-bread movement. Enter Mark’s Daily Apple.

I devoured everything on Mark’s site, and right away I felt an intrinsic truth to it. It was simple, and it made sense. I was impressed with the number of scientific papers cited, which soothed my skeptic’s mind. I jumped on board, with only a few days of post-grain haze. And while it’s been far from smooth sailing — my now-husband and I have had some rather… lively discussions about “food groups” and “everything in moderation, including junk food” — the results speak for themselves. I’ve lost approximately 30 pounds this past year, while decreasing my body fat percentage from over 30% to 23%. And I can see the beginnings of abs! (They’re so cute!)

In addition, I have consistent energy all day (unlike some of my grain-eating office mates…) and my self esteem had really taken a boost. I’ve even started working out in leggings, something that would have have inconceivable before I started this. The success I’ve seen has given me the confidence to make more positive changes in my life, including yoga and meditation, which have allowed me to manage my stress and be more emotionally observant. Some days I feel a little too crunchy-hippie for my own good.

And while I don’t have good news to report (yet) about a little bundle of joy, my doctor was impressed at the progress I’ve made with my health (her computer threw her an error when she’d typed in my weight, thinking she’d made a typo!). I’ve become a lot more open-minded when it comes to different ideas about optimizing health; I’ve realized that even something that I’ve dismissed earlier as a “silly fad,” might actually bring be closer to my goals. I’m hopeful for the future, and I feel like I have a leg up on whatever life throws at me.

P.S.: One more revelation: baked goods really don’t taste all that good. 🙂

Allison

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