Have you ever been in a bookstore and walked past the diet section and seen an extremely overweight woman sitting on the floor searching through stacks of diet books? Well, for years I was that woman. I would spend my Saturday afternoons on the floor of Barnes and Noble drinking a mocha latte and flipping through diet books desperate to find a solution to my weight problem. My quest was to find the book that was going to get me thin and change my life forever. Did I ever find that book? No. Although, I found coaching instead, thank goodness.
If you’ve been following my weight loss blog the past few years, you would know that six years ago I went from being obese to healthy and thin while being coached by Handel Method Creator, Lauren Zander. Handel Group weight loss coaching was perfect for me. We didn’t just deal with eating and exercise—we looked at my whole life. I learned how to manage my mind and deal with why I was overeating. Of course, I started keeping promises around food and exercise too. I would recommend weight loss coaching to anyone. It works.
But is there a book about health I’d recommend? Now, finally I can say “yes.”
A year and half ago, I was introduced to Dr. Mark Hyman at a social event and came to know him as a friend. Unbeknownst to me, he is a 7-time bestselling author of health and diet books, as well as the Chairman of the Institute for Functional Medicine. Flash forward to this past August. As Mark was finishing the final edits on his latest book “The Blood Sugar Solution: Ten Day Detox Diet,” (on sale now) he started working with the Handel Group, and I was hired to produce and direct video content for his book release.
The first thing I did was sit down and read Mark’s new book. In the book, Mark shares different stories from some of the 600 participants who tested the detox diet in early 2013. Each participant had a profound change in their overall health and the way they felt. It cured people’s insomnia, depression, headaches and joint pain. Acne cleared up, blood sugar levels went down, brain fog went away, energy went up, diabetes disappeared, and blood pressure stabilized. 100% of the participants lost weight. If I had just read their stories on paper, it would have sounded too good to be true. But I actually got to hear them live.
On a beautiful autumn weekend in 2013, I filmed 11 participants who did The 10- Day Detox Diet during the test trial period. Each person was unique. Different ages. Backgrounds. Cultures. Occupations. It was like a beautiful Benetton ad of humanity. No two stories were the same, but the glow and gratitude were. I was engaged the entire time. At the end of each interview, we asked the same question, “If Dr. Hyman were here now, what would you say to him?” Each person had the same response. They cried. Literally, tears streamed down their faces as they tried to find the words to express their gratitude to Dr. Hyman for saving their lives. I’m serious. It was real and authentic, and everyone on the set felt it. I knew at that moment, Dr. Hyman’s detox book contained much more than a diet. It was about experiencing a deep lifestyle change.
After that weekend, I decided to try The 10-Day Detox Diet and see what all the fuss was about. Well, like the trial participants, I felt really good on the detox. And according to a few friends, I had a glow about me. I also realized something while on the diet. Even though I was thin I wasn’t that healthy. My normal diet included artificial sweeteners and processed food, which apparently is not real food. It seems obvious but I never really paid attention to it. Mark taught me if you can’t pronounce an ingredient on a label, you probably shouldn’t eat it. After I stopped the detox, I decided to continue cutting back on processed food and artificial sweeteners. I can feel the difference in my body.
And I’m not alone. Many of the people who did the detox trial loved it so much they didn’t stop the diet after the ten days but continued on indefinitely. Why? They felt better than they had in years and the food was delicious. And the results of those who continued onward: they’ve lost up to 70 pounds and still counting.
Now, I’m going to let you in on a little secret. Dr. Hyman’s book isn’t really a diet book. It’s a ‘change your life’ book. Backed by science, Dr. Hyman proves that food is medicine and if you eat healthy real food, you will heal your body and feel fantastic. AND you will naturally lose weight at the same time. “The Blood Sugar Solution: Ten Day Detox Diet”, really is the book I had been searching for all these years. It doesn’t get any better than this.
CLICK HERE to watch some of my favorite testimonials I shot that weekend.
Best,
Katie Torpey
Handel Group Weight Loss Spokesperson
Director / TV Writer
(Co-Creator, Mother UP! on Hulu.com and City TV)