I had a million excuses in my arsenal as to why I couldn’t lose weight. “ I have had Type 1 Diabetes since infancy, I need lots of insulin, it makes me ‘bigger’”,  “I’m on thyroid medication for an underactive thyroid”,  “I have celiac (gluten intolerant) so there’s not a lot of options on what to eat”.  I could go on and on but overall I am a walking auto-immune mess.

       In January 2008, with my clothes too tight and a New Years resolution to finally lose the “baby” weight from 5 years ago, I joined the local gym.  I regularly attended classes and began making healthier eating choices; I lost 20 pounds over the following year.  I hit a plateau and struggled to lose anymore weight.  My weight fluctuated up and down over the following year with the same 5 pounds being lost and gained.  I needed to do something; I was working out 6 days week, being careful (so I thought) with my food choices.  I decided to investigate an insulin pump and found to my surprise that there are a lot of benefits.  Research showed that I would be able to avoid low blood sugars associated to working out and could have more flexibility with when I ate.  Fewer lows would equal a lower carbohydrate intake thus weight loss.  Great in theory, I’d see about reality. Eventually I went on the pump, but the scale continued not to budge.

       In December 2009 I decided that I was tired of listening to myself complain and create more excuses.  It was time to sign up for the body challenge at the gym.  Many of my friends have had success with the body challenge and I was willing to give it a try.  With my insulin pump ready to go I implemented Resolution 2010, lose the weight once and for all.

       I have known Michelle personally and through the gym but this would be my first experience working closely with her.  She introduced me to Dr. Joe’s approach to food and utilizing your metabolism to its fullest.   She encouraged me to read his book The Diet Docs Guide to Permanent Weight Loss and she helped me figure out how having diabetes and being gluten intolerant would impact my daily eating goals.  Michelle was there every step of the way with encouragement and guidance as well as her determination to help me meet my fitness goals.  After the first week of eating clean and following Dr. Joe’s plan, I lost 12 pounds without changing my workout routine at all.  I realized quickly that it was all about portion control and making good decisions with the allowances I have each day.  Michelle was in constant contact with diet modifications, as well as delicious recipes to try. as well as a never failing support system.  Week by week the weight came off and all those excuses I had created were all proven false.  Diabetes, Celiac, and Hypothyroidism didn’t stand in my way as I lost over 19% of my body weight in 8 weeks with Michelle and Dr. Joe’s help.

       I was hoping to lose a few pounds and ended up being the “Biggest Body Challenge Loser” in the history of the program.  Treating food as a friend instead of an enemy has helped me to get better control of my diabetes as well as improve my overall health.  I can’t thank Michelle and Dr. Joe enough, without them I would still be overweight and using my arsenal of excuses for a lack of weight loss, while working out 6 days a week.  If you’re serious about weight loss and getting yourself into better physical shape, there is no better way meet your goals than to do it with Michelle at FIT Happens.

If I had to sum it up in one line what the Diet Doc program and Michelle did for me it’s “made me a conscious eater instead of an unconscious eater.” I am a 40-year-old married, mother of two young children and have a full time career in Sales. When I was in my 20’s I could work out 4-5 times per week and eat whatever I wanted. I would stay in shape and really not gain much weight as long as I exercised. Well, after having two children and approaching my mid 30’s that no longer worked. I started to slowly gain weight and started to yo-yo diet. I tried Weight Watchers, Cookies, Atkins, etc. Some worked in the short term but I was never able to maintain my weight loss. Eventually, I would gain back the weight and then some. I found myself at 40 years old, fatter than I had ever been, in sizes I never thought I would wear and feeling awful. I love clothes and the fact that I couldn’t fit into any of mine was quite depressing.

January 2010 was a new beginning for me. I signed up for the 8 week Body Challenge program at Anytime Fitness, which was run by Michelle. Before the program she had us read the Dr. Joe book, which outlined the program we would be following. With this new eating program, which included “journaling” along with exercise 5-6 times per week, I was able to lose 14 lbs. and several inches from my waist, hips and arms. Although I was happy with my results I still had a way to go. I signed up for another 9 weeks of the Body Challenge with Michelle. This time I had an even better understanding of how the program worked. I lost an additional 12 lbs and again several inches from my waist, hips and arms. So in 5 months I have lost 26 lbs. I feel so much better and I finally fit into all my clothes again.

The Diet Doc program gave me a recipe that I will use for the rest of my life. It taught me how to eat, when to eat and how much to eat. It’s amazing that after 40 years I needed to be taught “how to eat”… but I did. There are a million excuses out there why not to exercise or eat right, but after this experience I am a believer in “no excuses” just do it! Anyone is capable of achieving their health and weight loss goals. Michelle is a super motivator and coach who will not allow you to make excuses. I have referred my best friend who lives in Ohio and my brother to work with Michelle and the Diet Doc program.  I would recommend it to anyone who is done making excuses and wants to lose weight permanently.

Lynne F

My name is Lurene and my weight problem is very typical. I had been struggling with my weight for about 10 years. I tried many different programs. Some of them actually worked for a short period of time, but each time I would gain it back with even more weight. I knew I needed a dramatic change, but I also knew that gastric bypass surgery was not the route I personally wanted to take. I wanted to take a journey with my weight loss. I wanted to heal my soul at the same time the weight loss would take place. I also wanted to be an active mom and be able to keep up with my energetic six year old son.

Michelle O’Toole’s program aka (The Diet Doc program) was exactly what I had been searching for.

This program is completely different from any other program I’ve tried. I am not only learning how to eat “clean food” but I am being educated on why I shouldn’t’ eat more than 40 carbs during one serving, or what happens to my blood sugar level if I don’t eat every 3 hours. Not only is the nutritional part of this program enlightening but having Michelle coach and mentor me along the way is the true key to my success. The first day I met Michelle I knew that there was something very special about her and that something magical was starting to take place at Anytime Fitness.