Carole Baskins Diary

Thinking Fat Thoughts

Do you ever wonder why some people can eat anything and not get fat, and yet if you even think about cookies you put on 10 pounds?  I believe the key in this statement is the word think.

 

From an early age I was taught to obsess about my weight and appearance by the example set forth in my family’s women.  They were all notably beautiful but they worked hard at it;  always dieting, exercising and never being really satisfied with the way they looked.  Some people are influenced by the opposite extreme and grow up trying hard to NOT look like their family.  In either case, these perceptions are often instilled in us while we are children and so we accept the beliefs, no matter how flawed.

 

At five feet seven inches I weighed 212 pounds in 1998 and decided that I had to do something different.  I tried every diet imaginable and have amazing will power (having given up smoking and drinking years before) but every time I would find a plan that would allow me to lose weight, I would drop a few pounds and then level out.

 

By 2007 I had managed to stabilize at 165 pounds and was consuming 1100 calories per day on a low carb, high vegetable protein diet.  I ate 6 small meals per day.  I drink a gallon of water a day.  I was playing tennis three days a week, working out at the gym three days a week and had been doing so since 1997.  I was swimming AND roller blading five days a week.  My biggest complaint was that I had no time to work because all I had time for was dieting and working out.  Despite this, my weight crept up to 168 pounds, but now I had really discovered the power of The Secret.

 

Considering the fact that thoughts become things, I decided to change the focus from being fat to being thin.  Instead of moaning to myself that “no matter what, I can’t lose weight” I decided to image myself thin.  Every morning, when I pray the Prayer of Jabez, I see myself slender and beautiful.  I know that I can attract anything that I want and believe that I am attracting this into my life.

 

Throughout my day, instead of thinking that I “cant have” what I want to eat, I say that “I only want what is good for me and will allow me to be the best I can be.” I have found that just this tiny shift has had amazing results.  I don’t feel deprived.  I don’t suffer cravings.  I don’t have the desire to reward myself with some forbidden food because I managed to lose a couple pounds.  (Ever done that?)

 

I have dropped the tennis and swimming and have more time.  I have dropped to 158 pounds and am continuing to drop to my desired weight of 140 pounds.  It didn’t take sacrifice and it didn’t take more work.  All it took to have what I wanted was the clear image of what that looks like and the belief that it is happening.  To receive the body I wanted, all I am doing is keeping my thoughts in harmony with that picture and belief.  What do you believe is possible for you?

 

I've been writing my story since I was able to write, but when the media goes to share it, they only choose the parts that fit their idea of what will generate views.  If I'm going to share my story, it should be the whole story.  The titles are the dates things happened. If you have any interest in who I really am please start at the beginning of this playlist: http://savethecats.org/

 

I know there will be people who take things out of context and try to use them to validate their own misconception, but you have access to the whole story.  My hope is that others will recognize themselves in my words and have the strength to do what is right for themselves and our shared planet.  

 

You can help feed the cats at no cost to you using Amazon Smile!

Visit BigCatRescue.org/Amazon-smile

 

You can see photos, videos and more, updated daily at BigCatRescue.org

 

Check out our main channel at YouTube.com/BigCatRescue

 

Music (if any) from Epidemic Sound (http://www.epidemicsound.com) This video is for entertainment purposes only and is my opinion.

When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change

 

I wrote and posted this online:

 

Howard was 52 and was kind, funny, attractive, gregarious and financially secure.  He was a semi retired banker, a Harvard MBA with a law degree, who had been blessed with many friends and who had enjoyed the company of beautiful women that he had really liked, but he had never married.  It was always his desire to find his soul mate and marry, but it had just never happened.  He had never even lived with a woman.  Now he was thinking it might never happen and being discouraged he had not dated in a year.  He sat down at his desk and decided he would try one last thing; he would “put it out to the Universe” that he was ready to find her…

 

Six months earlier I had broken up with a man who would rather see me dead than let me leave the house; for fear that I would leave him.  Why did I always attract the dangerous sort?  From the time I was 15 my life has been a continuous series of abusive relationships with men.  I had always been attracted to the charismatic, womanizing, death defying sort.  They were always dead broke or incapable of supporting themselves.  I loved the adventure, the intrigue and the challenge of staying alive but it came at a terrible cost to my health and my sanity.  At the age of 41, I didn’t know how much of either I had left.

 

I had always had trouble with my weight and given how little I eat and the way I eat, I had finally decided it was all in my head, and went to see a hypnotherapist.  It was in this semi somnolent state that I discovered I always seek out the same relationships.  Waking, I decided to make a conscious effort to change my choices in men.  If he seemed daring, cavalier or dark, in any way, I would avoid him and seek out someone who was kind, funny and financially secure…

 

When I first saw Howard he was dressed in a plain grey business suit and was stiffly walking up the ramp to a fundraiser for a new initiative to save tens of thousands of dogs and cats from being euthanized in our county’s shelter each year.  I remember thinking to myself, “I could sure loosen him up a bit!”  Hearing my footsteps behind him, he turned and kindly asked if I was attending this same function.

 

He was everything I had never looked for in a man.  I was everything he had never looked for in a woman.  The night we met was November 1, 2002.  Six months later we moved in together.  We were engaged a year after meeting and married two years after meeting.  We have found all that we wanted in each other and together our lives are far more abundant than they were before.  I have never been so happy, so satisfied or so thrilled to be alive!

 

Howie is my best male friend.  He is my business partner.  He has helped me find ways to make the sanctuary self supporting.  He has been loving, attentive, fun;  a real joy to be around.  We understand The Secret and we are co-creating a beautiful life together.

 

When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.  We both changed the way we looked for love and romance and found what we really wanted.

 

I've been writing my story since I was able to write, but when the media goes to share it, they only choose the parts that fit their idea of what will generate views.  If I'm going to share my story, it should be the whole story.  The titles are the dates things happened. If you have any interest in who I really am please start at the beginning of this playlist: http://savethecats.org/

 

I know there will be people who take things out of context and try to use them to validate their own misconception, but you have access to the whole story.  My hope is that others will recognize themselves in my words and have the strength to do what is right for themselves and our shared planet.  

 

You can help feed the cats at no cost to you using Amazon Smile!

Visit BigCatRescue.org/Amazon-smile

 

You can see photos, videos and more, update

I always win

I am not boasting here, but stating a frame of mind that I have had since I was a child, and it has served me well.  I was fortunate to have parents and grandparents who always told me I could achieve anything and as a result adopted that belief early, but it doesn’t matter when you start.  Anyone can change the way they think.

 

I remember being five or six years old and watching a kid’s program on T.V.  The hero was vanquishing all of the villains using a walking cane that had a lion’s head grip that shot darts.  I could see myself carrying that cane and liberating the good from the evil.  I never lacked for imagination, but most kids don’t.

 

At the commercial break the announcer said, “You can win the treasure chest of toys including the walking cane.  All you have to do is mail in your name and address to win.”  I believed him.  I thought all I had to do was mail in my address.  What did I know of contest, odds and such?  So I did.  And I won.

 

From that day forward I was convinced that whatever I wanted to win was mine.  As a teenager at a roller-skate-athon  I was raising money for MS and out of a hundred or more people entered into a raffle pulled my own name from the hat.  Not feeling that was fair, I dropped it back in and someone else drew my name.  Still feeling that I had somehow improved my odds unfairly, I threw it back in and asked someone else to draw and again, my name was pulled.  It wasn’t until I took my one ticket out and asked that they draw again that a different winner was pulled.

 

I don’t know what kind of odds that amounted to either, but it certainly reinforced my belief that I always win.  As a result I won’t play the lottery, because it somehow feels like I have an unfair advantage, and I don’t like the way that feels.  I got rich anyway without feeling bad about it.  In fact, I feel great about it because even though I always win in business, I strive for Win Win situations.

 

Maybe you have never won anything in your life, but it is only because you haven’t convinced yourself that you always win.  If a six year old can do it, so can you.  Every day tell yourself, “I always win!”  Feel it.  Expect it.  In no time you will be experiencing it.

 

I've been writing my story since I was able to write, but when the media goes to share it, they only choose the parts that fit their idea of what will generate views.  If I'm going to share my story, it should be the whole story.  The titles are the dates things happened. If you have any interest in who I really am please start at the beginning of this playlist: http://savethecats.org/

 

I know there will be people who take things out of context and try to use them to validate their own misconception, but you have access to the whole story.  My hope is that others will recognize themselves in my words and have the strength to do what is right for themselves and our shared planet.  

 

You can help feed the cats at no cost to you using Amazon Smile!

Visit BigCatRescue.org/Amazon-smile

 

You can see photos, videos and more, updated daily at BigCatRescue.org

 

Check out our main channel at YouTube.com/BigCatRescue

 

Music (if any) from Epidemic Sound (http://www.epidemicsound.com) This video is for entertainment purposes only and is my opinion.

I just joined the Science of Getting Rich program and posted this testimonial:

Learning to Walk...again

 

I left home at the age of 15, but I must admit it was because of my own misperceptions and not because of anything my family did.  I had the benefit of being raised by people who taught me early to read, The Power of Positive Thinking, Psycho Cybernetics, Think and Grow Rich, etc. and they always told me that I could accomplish anything I set my mind to.

 

I had taken up with a man much older than me named Jim, who was 6 foot 4, weighed 230 pounds and who was both an alcoholic and drug abuser.  He showed up at my door in W.Va. and said he wanted to go to Disney World.  (From the future: Actually there was a span of time between the two, but I shortened it for this letter) Jim had taken and failed his driver’s license test five times.  I told him I would drive us there. My plan was to drive him back to Tampa, where his family lived, rather than Orlando where Disney World was, and for most of the trip I had him fooled.

 

When it came time to make the last leg of the journey though, Jim was drunk but he was onto me.  He had turned around in the seat and was hitting me, screaming at me, and in this case, more importantly blocking my view.  I missed the stop sign and drove into the path of a car, twice as big as the little import I was driving, that was doing 60 miles an hour.  The impact into my door crushed my car in half and threw me out through the windshield.

 

I woke up the next day in a hospital with doctors telling me that two of the bones in my neck had been broken and that I would never walk again.  They were telling me I would need a rod implanted in my spine just so that I would be able to sit up in a wheel chair.   Dumbfounded, I couldn’t speak.  This couldn’t be my life.  Some may have called this denial, but it was the unwillingness to accept this that kept it from becoming my reality.  Jim and some of his friends helped me escape the hospital where I was listed as a Jane Doe.  I didn’t want to be a burden to my family and wouldn’t tell anyone who I was.  They took me to Jim’s family where I was bed ridden.  I would throw myself onto the floor and using my elbows drag myself around the room.  I used the furniture to pull myself up and was growing stronger every day, but I couldn’t walk.  I didn’t want my family to know about my condition, but somehow my grandfather found out and he came to take me to a chiropractor.

 

With the help of the chiropractor and my strong belief that I could accomplish anything, including the ability to walk again despite a broken neck, I was soon walking.  I didn’t know about The Secret back then.

 

I didn’t know that I was bringing all of the bad experiences into my life because I was focusing on how bad things were.  I didn’t know that I brought healing into my life because I was focusing on the image I could see in my mind’s eye of me being able to walk again.  I was being thankful for the fact that I was alive and that I was improving every day.  It was that crystal clear image of what I intended to be and thankfulness to God for what I had that made me whole.   I didn’t know what it was called.  It would be thirty years before I would understand it.  Now that I know The Secret Law of Attraction I want to share it with everyone.

 

I've been writing my story since I was able to write, but when the media goes to share it, they only choose the parts that fit their idea of what will generate views.  If I'm going to share my story, it should be the whole story.  The titles are the dates things happened. If you have any interest in who I really am please start at the beginning of this playlist: http://savethecats.org/

 

I know there will be people who take things out of context and try to use them to validate their own misconception, but you have access to the whole story.  My hope is that others will recognize themselves in my words and have the strength to do what is right

Tippi Hedren Invites Me to Go Boating With Her

The Secret has always worked in my business life, but I am just now learning how to apply it to every aspect.  I didn’t know what it was called, and I wasn’t sure how it worked, but I knew that if I could see the end result I wanted and feel it, like it was already here, I would be amazed at how it would come about.  When I first watched The Secret, I realized that this was not just because I am so blessed, but rather something that anyone could do.  As a result I have been sharing it with everyone who will listen.

 

Sometimes you have to be careful what you ask for, because I think God has a sense of humor.  I have never cared about material things, but I know that in order to accomplish all that I intend to accomplish for the betterment of society, I have to have financial security.

 

Financial security is a hard thing to really see in your head, so I borrowed from Jack Canfield’s advice and pictured the lifestyle that goes along with it, as a way to bring it about.  Again, I don’t have any desire for the jet set lifestyle, but was attempting to find a way to picture enough money to ensure that I can continue to provide for my family, for the sanctuary that is home to more than 140 lions, tigers and other big cats, and especially the funds needed to change the laws so that animals are treated with more compassion.  So, I pictured the island home, the yachts, the planes, the cars, the celebrities…

 

Within a week, a movie star that I have only met twice called me and invited me to be her guest at the home of one of her supporters.  She offered to have someone come for me in a private plane.  When I went online to their website to find out a little more about them, I saw the island house I had pictured, with two yachts and a seaplane tied up on the beach.  Once I arrived I saw a Bentley and a Porsche in the garage and some of the nicest and most generous people I have ever met.  I was half tempted to pinch them, just to see if they were real.

 

They treated me to a lovely dinner cruise on their yacht and asked me to spend the night in their resort.  They were so hospitable and wanted to help in any way possible.  It was obvious that they know and practice The Secret.  I was able to spend some quality time with the celebrity that I barely knew and now we are all working together to create some better legislation.  This is such a small example of the power of the law of attraction and it makes me smile every time I think about the level of detail that was all manifested in such a short period of time.  Carole Baskin, Founder of Big Cat Rescue

 

From the future:  As I was reading this story today, it reminded me of a funny moment that I don’t appear to have ever recorded.  While spending the night with Tippi’s donors, she caught me in the hall, with a look of utter distress on her face.  She had been wearing skin tight pants and when she needed to relieve herself, she had gotten the zipper in front jammed.  She was so embarrassed to ask for help, but it was becoming an emergency, so I was the person she felt least awkward to ask for assistance.  Tippi is a tiny little thing, so I got down on my knees in front of her to try and free the zipper without ripping the fabric.  She was telling me to “Hurry up!  Can’t you do it any faster?!” and the more distressed she got, the louder she got, until she had drawn the attention of the donors to what looked to be a lewd scene in their hallway.  We were able to explain and got the zipper un stuck in time.

 

I've been writing my story since I was able to write, but when the media goes to share it, they only choose the parts that fit their idea of what will generate views.  If I'm going to share my story, it should be the whole story.  The titles are the dates things happened. If you have any interest in who I really am please start at the beginning of this playlist: http://savethecats.org/

 

I know there will be people who take thing

Roxanne the Dog Dies

 

Dear Jamie, 

 

Your mom will tell you that I died peacefully in my sleep on the night of March 11th.  I knew this would be a hard transition for you and I didn’t want to see you cry.  I just acted perfectly normal and decided to step out while my body was sleeping.

 

Someday you will see death for what it really is.  It is just like walking through a door.  We are just as alive on the other side, but we keep coming back to the game, because we love it so.  We pick out a costume and a role often get so into the part that we forget who we really are.  I am back in the game already.  You just haven’t recognized me yet.

 

Your mom buried me outside the fence, under the Bougainvillea bush, in keeping with the tradition you guys have of bringing life from death.  I live again in the fuchsia flowers, but that is just the life that springs from my old costume.  My real essence is in the wind on your face and the thoughts in your head.  She thought that given your propensity for symbolism, that it made sense to bury me outside the fence, because I used to jump the fence all the time, when my body was younger.

 

I taught you how to care deeply for others by my escapades.  Those lessons were tough, but they made you tougher.  I served a purpose in your life as a little girl, but you are so grown up now, and I am so proud to be your friend.

 

We have so much work to do now.  There is so much joy and abundance ahead of us.  You will recognize me in a passing stranger, in an awe inspiring sunset, in an injured creature that finds their way to you, in a clever thought that you may think is your own.  We are not confined to these costumes, even while we are wearing them.  I am everywhere, just like you are in your dream state and like you will be in your waking state as you awaken to all that you are capable of.  I’ll always love you, Roxanne

Cousin Scott Smith DUI Email from Mom to me: Last night a deputy called to tell me that Scott Smith had been picked up on DUI and wanted the deputy to call because I knew "someone" who could get him out of jail - probably, he was thinking of Chuck. The deputy said there was nothing anyone could do to get him out of jail and I told him that I understood that and thanked him for calling. No matter if it is a relative, drunks belong in jail if they are so inconsiderate that they will get behind the wheel. I didn't call anyone and just went back to bed. I will call Mari later in the day and see if she knows about it. If she can't find him, she will worry. Kerry left Scott and moved to Lakeland to be near her job about a month ago. They have been seeing each other and trying to reconcile if Scott would straighten up but this looks pretty hopeless. Just thought you would want to be updated. A couple of other pieces of depressing news: MJ is sick with 103 degree temperature and a lot of lung congestion. There is a lot of flu going around. I am keeping close watch on her and keeping fluids near her bed. Love, Mom Momma Jacquie Loses Her Mind Mom said that when she went to pick Momma Jacquie up for church she was wearing every bracelet and necklace she owns, which is a substantial amount of weight, pants, knee high boots and no bra or blouse. She thought she was ready for church. The next day she had no recollection of it. I hope Jamie puts me out of my misery before I become this sort of a burden to her. From the future: My mother continued to care for my grandmother until her death in 2014. Before BigDaddy had died in November 1997 he told us that we needed to watch over Momma Jacquie because he thought she was losing it back then. It was a ten year decline. It’s like a long, slow death.I've been writing my story since I was able to write, but when the media goes to share it, they only choose the parts that fit their idea of what will generate views. If I'm going to share my story, it should be the whole story. The titles are the dates things happened. If you have any interest in who I really am please start at the beginning of this playlist: http://savethecats.org/ I know there will be people who take things out of context and try to use them to validate their own misconception, but you have access to the whole story. My hope is that others will recognize themselves in my words and have the strength to do what is right for themselves and our shared planet. You can help feed the cats at no cost to you using Amazon Smile! Visit BigCatRescue.org/Amazon-smile You can see photos, videos and more, updated daily at BigCatRescue.org Check out our main channel at YouTube.com/BigCatRescue Music (if any) from Epidemic Sound (http://www.epidemicsound.com) This video is for entertainment purposes only and is my opinion.

Sarabi was euthanized today due to a very aggressive cancer

 

 

I was away and Jamie had to make that call.  I think it may have been the first time for her to have to do such a heart breaking thing.  I wrote the following the the volunteers after the blood work indicated it was cancer and we had to euthanize Sarabi.

 

You hear a lot of backyard breeders saying that they are breeding Barbary Lions to save them from extinction, but it isn’t true.  Many years ago, when the King of Morocco first came up with the idea of bringing the Barbary Lion (AKA Black Maned Lion or Asiatic Lion) back from the edge of extinction, he sent a group called Wildlink to the U.S. to look at 327 captive lions who were reported to have traits of the Barbary Lion.

 

Of the 327 likely candidates only three were considered pure enough representatives of the species to use for a captive breeding program.  There were two males chosen and Sarabi, our lioness was the only female selected.  She is a representative of 14 of the 17 Barbary traits, making her the closest living relative to the cat that is now extinct in the wild.  Before the program ever got off the ground the King fell sick and his family had no interest in saving the cats who once were used by the Romans for entertainment in the coliseum.

 

We don’t believe in breeding cats for lives in cages so we never bred Sarabi, but because she may someday be called upon for her genes, we did not spay her.  She would cycle in and out of heat and did so for many years.  This last time didn’t seem any different than before until she came out of heat and wasn’t hungry.

 

She was started on antibiotics but two days later was not improving.  After an emergency consultation with three vets it was decided that we would open her up to spay her and see if there was anything else going on, such as an impaction, that was causing her to act nauseous.  It was after dark before Dr. Stacie Wadsworth, DVM and Dr. Elizabeth Wynn, DVM could wrap up their day work to come to the sanctuary.  The wind had begun to howl.  The next morning we would discover that 14 people in central Florida  had been killed in the squalls and tornadoes that spun out of those raging winds.

 

Thanks to Dr. John & Sherrod West and Richard and Debbie Boensch we have a small cat hospital on site.  Since Sarabi was too big to transport into the clinics of either of our vets (394 lbs) we were fortunate to have our own safe place for surgery and recovery that had been built with huge doors that would allow the rolling transport to roll right inside.  Scott Lope and Cathy Mayeski saw to it that the hospital was fully stocked with all that we would need and made sure that everything was clean.  Jamie and Justin Boorstein rounded up flashlights, radios and emergency gear to make the big move from Sarabi’s half acre enclosure on the other side of the lake to the cat hospital.

 

I sat with Sarabi and tried to assess her condition.  She kept giving me the image of “poison” but insisted that she hadn’t eaten poison.  She acted like she just couldn’t get comfortable.  Sometimes she would dry heave, but only briefly, and then she would lay as close as she could get to me, with only the wall of her cage separating us.  She rolled her belly up to me as if to say that this was where the pain was, and I could feel the heat, but did not touch her for fear of inflicting more pain.  (Not to mention the fact that having my arm inside the fence would have been a really stupid thing to do.)

 

Scott did an expert job of anesthetizing and I was amazed at how well trained our staff has become in emergencies like this.  On radio command they all emerged from the darkness:  The transport truck backed up to her cage, the golf carts surrounded it, she was lifted onto a blanket and hoisted into the transport by half a dozen volunteers, while some held lights and others carried the drugs and tools.  In no time she was being brought into the bright lights of the cat ho

2006 Annual Report

 

(Bo Derek was at the 2007 Fur Ball so this image is out of sequence. )

 

Big Cat Rescue’s Mission Statement:  Big Cat Rescue’s dual mission is to provide the best home we can for the cats in our care and educate the public about the plight of these majestic animals, both in captivity and in the wild, to end abuse and avoid extinction.

 

Advances:  Big Cat Rescue qualified for the Combined Federal Campaign’s National book and was certified by Independent Charities of America as one of the Best in America.  This means that any government employee in the country can choose Big Cat Rescue from their 2007 gift guide next year to receive auto-deducted donations from their paychecks.  We have been longstanding members in the local campaign but this will expand our exposure from the sun-coast area of Florida to the entire United States.

 

In January Ringling Bros. Circus announced in the Tampa Tribune that they had dropped tigers from their new show and that if the format was successful they intend to drop the big cats from their other acts as well.  The UK announced the end to tigers and other big cats in traveling shows. Jamie traveled to Guyana, South America to help set up an eco-tourism lodge to save jaguars, ocelots, jaguarundi, margay and others in their native habitat.  She began camera trapping and instructed local Amerindians in how to change the film and mail the results to us.  She has been camera trapping in the U.S. as well and has participated with wildlife offices to help catch poachers.  Read more about what we are doing to save cats in the wild at http://bigcatrescue.org/conservation.htm

 

Big Cat Rescue was welcomed into the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) bolstering its global Member Society network. WSPA now has 692 affiliated organizations in 142 countries and there are only 50 US members and most are Humane Societies. The WSPA is the world’s largest federation of humane societies and animal protection organizations. Through direct field work, campaigning, legislative work, education and training programs, WSPA strives to create a world where animal welfare matters and animal cruelty ends. We are proud to be inducted into this membership.

 

Animal Care:  Thanks to oversight by our Operations Manager, Scott Lope, and the devotion of more than 100 well trained volunteers, the cats continue to thrive.  Our enrichment program has advanced from once a week per cat to twice to three times per week per cat. Thanks to Jen Ruszczyk coming in before work, after work and on weekends, 57 of our 142 cats are now in the operant conditioning program with expertly trained volunteers. Thanks to Dr. Wynn, DVM and Dr. Wadsworth, DVM, our cats have been healthy and Cheetaro the leopard was neutered and Zabu the white tigress was spayed.

 

We rescued a Jungle Cat hybrid and reunited him with his owner.  Scott Lope and some volunteers rescued a local neighborhood from a marauding python and found a home for him as well.

 

Staff and Volunteer Training:  Sharon Marszal went to eBay school and then trained Bridget Bolger as her replacement. The intern and volunteer programs continue to evolve and this year included interns from Canada, Wales, CA, MA, NY, OR, PA, & VA.

 

We hosted Tom McCarthy of the Snow Leopard Trust as he shared breathtaking photos of snow leopards that he has been studying in the wild for more than 15 years.  We support the Snow Leopard Trust through our gift shop sales of items made by the local villagers.  Big Cat Rescue is the second largest retailer for Snow Leopard Enterprises, despite the fact that many huge zoos are also retailers.  We hosted Snow Leopard Trust’s CEO Brad Rutherford subsequently and entered into a co-branding campaign where we sell, and allow the Snow Leopard Trust to sell, our Snow Leopard Screensavers with all of the proceeds going to snow leopard conservation. We shipped 100 of the screensavers to them as our donation and we continue to off

Weight Loss

 

The following is the diet that I follow every day.  I have been on it for more than a year.  It doesn’t bother me to eat the same thing every day and it lets me be able to ascertain exactly what is in my diet.  Howie and I eat out every one or two weeks, and sometimes I don’t have the Tofu and Broccoli available (because my daughter cooks it for me a week in advance) so I will pick up a 12 pc pack of sushi at Publix.  There is rice on the sushi, but maybe two tablespoons in all.  I use the one little packet of soy sauce that comes with it.  It is usually tuna and chopped veggies in the little rolls.  When we eat out, I eat fish, dry, steamed veggies and sometimes rice.  Rarely I will have a piece of bread or a glass of red wine.  I never eat sugar or deserts of any kind.

 

I roller blade 30 minutes a day 5-6 days a week (6-8 miles) and work out at the gym with weights for half an hour, three times a week.  I walk the sanctuary every day for an hour.  I play tennis for an hour three times a week and in the warmer months will swim laps for 30 minutes 5 times a week.  I have not been playing tennis for the past couple of months and that is part of why I am gaining weight.  Just the time lost in the pool in the colder months is enough to make me start gaining weight as well.

 

I eat six or seven times a day. First number is calories/carbs   8:00 Matol protein cake 160/15 and glass of Headstart 62/15  http://www.matol.com/corpo/HBoutique/wpCatalogue4200_niv3.aspx?lang=EN_US&item=03720315&E=3    10:00 Matol protein candy bar 150/15 http://www.matol.com/corpo/HBoutique/wpCatalogue4200_niv3.aspx?lang=EN_US&item=03720415&E=3   12:00 Salad with 1 tablespoon of low carb (1 gram) dressing, no croutons 170/1 plus whatever is in lettuce, onions, broccoli, snap peas and 4-5 grape tomatoes 30/5 ?  2:00 Matol peach mango drink 90/4 http://www.matol.com/corpo/HBoutique/wpCatalogue4200_niv3.aspx?lang=EN_US&item=03720335&E=3   4:00 Matol yogurt berry drink 130/14 http://www.matol.com/corpo/HBoutique/wpCatalogue4200_niv3.aspx?lang=EN_US&item=03720505&E=3   6:00 Tofu patty, plain and steamed broccoli dry (sometimes asparagus instead) tofu patty  80/0 & broccoli  25/2  8:00 Matol cocoa (if I am hungry and usually I am not) 120/7 http://www.matol.com/corpo/HBoutique/wpCatalogue4200_niv3.aspx?lang=EN_US&item=03720325&E=3   10:00 Matol fibersonic (just for the fiber) 120/32 http://www.matol.com/corpo/hBoutique/wpCatalogue4200_niv3.aspx?lang=EN_US&E=2&item=031S

 

I drink a LOT of water, and no other drinks, except for three times a week I have a plain cup of coffee with soy milk.  40/11   The breakdown of those items is calories/carbs and then a full description online at the links beside each item.   If I eat everything above in a day I consume 1177 calories and 120 carbs but it is rare that I would consume all of that in one day.

 

I hate having to spend so much time exercising just to keep from gaining weight on such a low calorie diet.  I think it is a huge waste of time, but if I don’t I just pack on the pounds.

 

I am anemic, hypoglycemic, a free bleeder, and going through menopause, so I pass out if I don’t keep my blood sugar up.  9 years ago I weighed 212 lbs and did no exercise and was on Clariton because I couldn’t breathe without it.  I was sick all the time and suffered from horrific headaches.  I hardly ever have a headache now and have not taken any sort of prescription medication in the past 9 years.  I have always taken vitamins and take glucosamine for my joints (back and knees).  I can’t walk without it.

 

What is really amazing is that I haven’t had a cold in more than 9 years and am in otherwise excellent health. I feel great most of the time. I am 45 years old, 5 feet, seven inches tall and weigh 162 lbs but would like to weigh 145.  When I went on the Matol diet, a year ago, I dropped down to 145 lbs, but have ballooned back up to my current 162.

 

I can’t eat meat.  It is hypocritical of the message that