S i m o n e ’ s S t o r y
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For me, Low Carb (also known as Banting in some parts of the world), was life changing. After many years of being told it was normal for a young mum to be tired and achy all the time, and a very long battle with medical professionals who were baffled at why my bloods were “normal” but I still felt like I was permanently jet-lagged. I was eventually diagnosed with Fibromyalgia, a chronic pain disorder. I knew that I was never going to want to be taking pain medication all my life, and I eventually decided it was time for me to take matters into my own hands. In March 2015 I was, totally by chance, introduced to the term Banting. I planted that word in my head and went about my business for a further few months before the penny dropped and I realised I really did need to make changes to my nutrition. Being a chocoholic, sweet-tooth, carb addicted woman. I knew in my heart of hearts this was not helping my health.
I did some research about “Banting” and stumbled upon a programme called “The Real Meal Revolution”. Based in South Africa, back in 2014 this programme had been developed by a professional Chef, a Professor in Exercise Science & Sports Science and an ex sugar addict. Everything I read about the facts around why “Banting” was a good nutritional lifestyle option resonated with me and I knew I had to make the changes.
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On the 4th June 2015 I signed up to a 12 week program and threw myself in. My life changed within 4 weeks. My daily chronic pain reduced, my headaches and migraines fell away, my energy levels increased, my bloated belly went down, I was sleeping better, I had a “glow” about me that was noticeable to many people. It profoundly changed my life. It changed my career, my passion, and my desire to help people. For 13 years before my diagnoses, I was a Bodyworker and worked on people with deep tissues/sports massage and reflexology. I had a busy practice, and I loved my job. In 2014 I took a year out to work on my health. After I did The Real Meal Revolution program, I knew that my career path had to change. I had to absorb all this information and spread the word so that EVERYONE knew it was possible to feel well by changing their nutrition and lifestyle.
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I retrained, I read many books about the subject, I followed the experts, I discovered more, and I continued with cooking and baking for myself and family. I learned so much about the process of changing one’s lifestyle, the challenges, the ups and downs, and the psychological barriers.
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In September 2017 I proudly managed to get a job working for a private company who had the commission from NHS England to roll out a prevention programme called the National Diabetes Prevention Programme (NDPP). It was the most amazing job, I was pushed outside my comfort zone beyond all imagination, publicly speaking to large groups of people on a regular basis. Educating them on nutritional and lifestyle changes that needed to be made in order for them to reduce their risk of developing Type 2 Diabetes. I was able to share my passion for Low Carb approach to a wider group of people. To educate them on what was happening in their body when they ate certain foods and give them a choice on dietary approaches that would help their health! It was my dream job. People were so grateful for my help and support and it was just so rewarding.
In September 2019 I decided to go back into the private sector and use my skills as health & well-being coach and to further my studies to support people. I was part of the clinical team at Prolongevity (www.prolongevity.co.uk). But one thing I discovered whilst working in the NHS and beyond was that people really struggled with food addictions, emotional eating and the struggle to reprogram habits and mindset. It was something I felt ill-equipped to help people with at the time.
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I have since trained in helping people try and remove addictive behavior around food. Whether it is binge eating, emotional eating or sugar addition. I also went back to my roots and trained with Professor Tim Noakes' team to become a Nutrition Network Advisor. My observations over the years, whilst helping many people, was that there was an immense fear around the idea of eating foods that we have believed are “bad” for us, will give us a heart attack or make us sick and fat. It was one of the reasons I decided to create NoFOMO Foods, to create healthy sugar-free, junk free versions of the foods people feared missing out on. It is this fear that stopped them on their health journey. I also believe that education is key to helping people understand WHY they are making the changes, it allows for better decision making when confronted with food choices.
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I am so excited to be able to help more people on their journey to better health!
You can listen to my story with Fabulously Keto Podcast here
