THE FLAVOR FACTS Name: Jim Butler Age: 39 Family Status: Married with two children, ages 7 & 8 Occupation: Security, telecom, safety, and facilities supervisor; Derby fire chief Starting Weight: 325 Pounds Lost: 31 in 12 weeks Health stats: · Lost 4" from waist · Over 5 % decline in body fat · Blood pressure dropped 19 points · Blood sugar dropped 15 points

FLAVOR POINT
SUCCESS STORY # 4
Jim Butler

"In the first 2 weeks
I lost 21 pounds!"

I was diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome, paralyzed from the waist down, and hospitalized for a week in August 2004. After I was discharged, things went downhill fast.

My food consumption went way up, my energy went down, and I gained 68 pounds. I felt like a slug-fat, with no energy. I was eating 7,000-plus
calories, including two or three servings of red meat per day.

I was the perfect example of how not to eat. I would get out of a meeting at 10:00 p.m. and stop at McDonald's for two or three double cheeseburgers. . . for a snack. I had to do something!

Prior to starting this program, I, as well as my whole family, would eat in order to not feel hungry. I was living to eat rather than eating to live.

I work full-time and am the fire chief here in Derby, so I'm pretty busy. I wasn't sure I'd have the time to follow a meal plan, but I made the commitment to do it. My health was at stake.

"In the first 2 weeks, I lost 21 pounds!"

To keep myself going in the beginning, I decided not to weigh myself
for the first 2 weeks. When I had to move down a belt hole, I knew it was time to step on the scale. In the first 2 weeks, I lost 21 pounds! I was very pleased at that point, and I have been ever since.

"…My eating habits have changed 100 percent. Now I eat real food."

Many people have commented on my weight loss, saying, 'You look great!' and asking me how much I've lost. Everyone asks me about the diet I'm on, and I always explain it the same way: It is a serious lifestyle change, and you need to approach it as such. You need to stay focused; if you do, and you combine a little exercise with it, the results are astounding.

"Today, I feel great. I have lots more energy, and I only expect to get more as the pounds continue to come off. I don't consider this a diet as much as I do a way to eat well."

Although I have to admit I was a little skeptical at first, I'm so happy I've stuck with Dr. Katz's program. I was a walking time bomb, and if I had gone on one of those fad diets, I think I would have given up a long time ago. Those are diets; this is a lifestyle change.