Read Chicken Soup for the Dieter's Soul Online
Authors: Jack Canfield
Chicken Soup for the Dieter's Soul
CHICKEN SOUP FOR THE DIETER’S SOUL
CHICKEN SOUP
FOR THE
DIETER’S SOUL
Inspiration and Humor to
Get You Over the Hump
Jack Canfield
Mark Victor Hansen
Theresa Peluso
Health Communications, Inc.
Deerfield Beach, Florida
www.hcibooks.com
www.chickensoup.com
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Chicken soup for the dieter’s soul : inspiration and humor to get you over the hump / [compiled by] Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Theresa Peluso.
p. cm.
eISBN-13: 978-0-7573-9890-2 (ebook) eISBN-10: 0-7573-9890-1 (ebook)
1. Weight loss. 2. Weight loss—Anecdotes. I. Canfield, Jack, 1944- II. Hansen,
Mark Victor. III. Peluso, Theresa.
RM222.2.C478 2007
613.2’5—dc22
2006033439
© 2006 John T. Canfield and Hansen and Hansen LLC
All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the written permission of the publisher.
HCI, its logos and marks are trademarks of Health Communications, Inc.
Publisher: Health Communications, Inc.
3201 S.W. 15th Street
Deerfield Beach, FL 33442–8190
Cover design by Andrea Perrine Brower
Inside book formatting by Theresa Peluso and Dawn Von Strolley Grove
W
e dedicate this book to
those who face the daily
challenges of
overweight and obesity.
Contents
My Weight-Loss Journey
Julia Havey
Phone Friend
Peggy Frezon
The Swimming Lesson
Susan Farr-Fahncke
Weighing Heavily on His Mind
Kathe M. Campbell
Diner’s Club
Tricia Finch
Sit-Ups Till Your Eyes Pop Out
Samantha Hoffman
Chocolate Is Not the Enemy
Jan Henrikson
A Can of Peas and a Jog Around the Block
Lori Hein
Take Two
Karen A. Bakhazi
You Choose, You Lose
B. J. Taylor
Whatever I Want
Perry P. Perkins
Finally, Success—A New Me!
Sandra L. Tatara
The Mirror Doesn’t Lie
Candy Killion
The Thighs Have It
Deborah H. Shouse
Where Money Meets Resolutions
Harriet Cooper
2. EATING WELL AND STAYING FIT
No Pizza? No Problem!
Aly Walansky
Morning Walk
Deborah P. Kolodji
Gone to the Dogs
Greg Faherty
Skinny Munchies
Sally Clark
Trading Fat Cells for Barbells
Suzan Davis
The Exchange Rate
Harriet Cooper
Facing the Lady in the Mirror
Barbara A. Croce
A Diet for Life—Literally
Jessica Blaire
A Skinny By-Product
Ed VanDeMark
My Own Way
Colleen Kappeler
Weight-Loss Wisdom from a Toddler
Tricia Finch
10 Tricks to Help You Stay on Your Diet
Felice Prager
RASPBERRIES &CREAM SOY SMOOTHIE
Slow and Steady
Ken Shane
Thin! Nine Years . . . and Counting!
Linda Sago
Peel-a-Pound Soup
Gary Luerding
Running from a Diabetic Coma to the Marine Corps Marathon
Guy Burdick
What’s the Point?
Ken Swarner
The Road to Self-Worth
Jacquelyn B. Fletcher
SESAME CRUSTED CHICKEN WITH DIPPING SAUCE
Stop Dieting, Start Living
Michelle May, M.D.
One Newspaper at a Time
Michelle McLean
Joint Effort
Debra Weaver
Dieter’s Block
Terry A. Lilley
Jiggles
Edwina L. Kaikai
The Exercise Bike
Ann Morrow
Weight in the Balance
Laura Schroll
Just Listen to Mom
James Hammill
Spaghetti Head
Jean Stewart
Half My Size
Suzanne Baginskie
BROILED ZUCCHINI AND FETA BOATS
The Secret
Marilyn Eudaly
Seeing Double
Selena Hayes
Drinking Herself Fat
Jennie Ivey
The Un-Diet
Susan A. Karas
It Takes Community
Pamela Wertz Peterson
In for a Penny, In for a Pound
Ava Pennington
The First Day of the Best of My Life
Charmi Schroeder
Fabulously Fighting Fit at Fifty (and Beyond)
Janet Marianne Jackson
A Second Chance at Life
Nancy Julien Kopp
A Soul-Searching, Pound-Shedding Vacation
Jessica Blaire
7 Hints for Navigating Your Local Supermarket
Tricia Finch
Monday Morning Blues
Georgia A. Hubley
My Last Twenty Pounds
Kate Baggott
Setting Goals and Reaping Rewards
Felice Prager
No More Pancakes on ThisWoman’s Shopping List!
Roberta Beach Jacobson
Beating the Genes
Lisa Pemberton
The Bargain
Delores Christian Liesner
Stroke of Inspiration
Charmi Schroeder
Couch Meets Table
Harriet Cooper
Worship Walk
Jaye Lewis
The Optimal Weight for Life (OWL) Program
Compiling, editing and publishing a book requires the energy and expertise of many people, but it begins with the support of our families, who are a perpetual source of joy and love. Thank you, Inga, Christopher, Travis, Riley, Oran, Kyle, Patty, Elisabeth, Melanie and Brian.
Behind the scenes there are dozens of talented, enthusiastic staff members, freelancers and interns who keep the wheels turning smoothly at Chicken Soup for the Soul Enterprises, Self-Esteem Seminars, Mark Victor Hansen and Associates, and Health Communications, Inc.
The vision and commitment of our publisher, Peter Vegso, brings
Chicken Soup for the Soul
to the world.
Patty Aubery and Russ Kalmaski share this journey with love, laughter and endless creativity.
Patty Hansen has handled the legal and licensing aspects of each book thoroughly and competently, and Laurie Hartman has been a precious guardian of the
Chicken Soup
brand.
Barbara LoMonaco and D’ette Corona bring their endless cooperation and incredible coordination and organization of a million details to the table, time and again.
Veronica Romero, Teresa Esparza, Robin Yerian, Jesse Ianniello, Lauren Edelstein, Jody Emme, Debbie Lefever, Michelle Adams, Dee Dee Romanello, Shanna Vieyra, Lisa Williams, Gina Romanello, Brittany Shaw, Noelle Champagne, Tanya Jones and Mary McKay support Jack’s and Mark’s businesses with skill and love.
Allison Janse, our editor at Health Communications, Inc., makes every book a joy to work on through her sense of humor and her extraordinary gift with words. The incredible creative team at Health Communications— Larissa Hise-Henoch, Lawna Patterson Oldfield, Andrea Perrine Brower, Anthony Clausi, Dawn Von Strolley Grove, Bernie Herschbein and Peter Quintal—combine their gifts to make each book special.
Thank you to everyone at Health Communications, from the production team to sales, marketing, public relations and fulfillment, who get all of our books into readers’ hands, copy after copy,with exacting standards and professionalism.
Readers around the world enjoy
Chicken Soup
more than thirty-six languages because of the effort of Claude Choquette and Luc Jutras at Montreal Contacts.
And our thanks and appreciation go out to Michelle Abramovitz, Jennifer Campbell, Katy McManus, Darcy Newman,Marsha and Stephan Oldfield, Victoria Patterson, Leslie Steinberner, Kim Howe, Kenneth Thompson, Andre Villanouff, and Suzanne Weaver for helping us select the best stories by generously giving their time and sharing their feedback.
To everyone who submitted a story, we deeply appreciate your letting us into your lives and sharing your experiences with us. For those whose stories were not chosen for publication, we hope the stories you are about to enjoy convey what was in your heart and in some way also tell your stories.
And last, but certainly not least, to our readers. You are the reason we strive for the best and continue to bring you the magic of
Chicken Soup for the Soul
.
I have to confess, I’m not a dieter. I’m one of the lucky ones who got to eat anything she wanted and be relatively inactive all of my life—until I found myself a few years away from celebrating the big “50,” weighing in at thirty pounds heavier and buying my third new size in jeans since my salad days. I had no stamina, energy, muscle tone or strength. My asthma and my immune system seemed to be in overdrive, making me highly reactive and allergic to dozens of things around me. Still, I couldn’t bring myself to count points or calories, analyze food labels, or deny myself my comfort food.
Something had to change. For me the turning point was 9/11. After seeing so many lives senselessly wasted, I wanted to be healthy and strong—to not take the gift of life and a healthy body for granted any longer. I embraced exercise and made a commitment to eating healthier. So, although I don’t consider myself a dieting veteran, I have made the journey to reclaim my health and vitality, which is what dieting is all about—or should be.