Just Whom Do You Think You Are?

Submitted by Lawbooks on Fri, 11/15/2002 - 06:00.

Perspectives

Who are you? Have you ever really thought about it? This query goes beyond name or employee description. I want to know; how do you define yourself? I have found that when I am involved with something that is very important or dear to me, I tend to implement that thing as part of my personality — who I am.

"My name is Summer. I am a wife and mother — a homeschooling mom — I am a writer, a Historian, a kickboxer. I am a low-carber."

This is how much my woe has become a part of my life; I actually define my very identity by the way I eat. What an epiphany! Somehow, I cannot envision myself doing this when I was on Jenny Craig or Weight Watchers. "Diets" were always something to be ashamed of, played down, hushed up... I was never passionate about rice cakes or frozen dinners. I have never introduced myself as a "Slim Fast gal."

So, why the distinction? Well, for the first time in my life, I do not feel like I am on a diet. Eating low-carb really is about making a decision—hopefully for life— to eat in a new and healthier way. It's about breaking addictions to unhealthy foods and learning to make sensible food choices. As I've said so many times before, this is hardly a diet; it's a way of life.

And I love my way of life (WOL)! I love my WOL so much that I have turned my personal website into a veritable how-to guide to get others started low-carbing. I have such enthusiasm for this way of eating (WOE) that I have converted not only my father and mother and my best friend to followers, but I have engaged my local friends and acquaintances in a local support group for low-carbers. I love this WOE so much that I am a constant presence here on this board, (hopefully) helping to steer others to stay on the LC path (or just nagging about the water ). That's how impassioned I am about this way of eating.

This passion is why I am not ashamed to order a low-carb meal in public. I invite questions about my woe and I now feel confident that I can answer criticism effectively. Indeed, I am energized by the confrontation. After all, how can one argue with success?

Who can dispute the reality that is impossible to fabricate?

My cholesterol has dropped to levels better than most teenagers': HDL: 55 and LDL 106.
My blood pressure is now 110/70.
My blood glucose is consistently within normal limits.
I have sent my PCOS (Poly-Cystic Ovarian Syndrome) into remission.
And I have cut my insulin level in HALF. Reversing diabetes is no parlor trick; how can anyone argue with that?

I feel better about myself than I have in years; my self-esteem is rising steadily and I am no longer ashamed of my body. Who can blame me for being passionate? For that matter, how could anyone following this woe NOT be passionate? What about you? Have you reached the point where low-carb eating is an intricate part of your self-expression?

Or do you still think it's "just a diet?"