Lorri's diet story
Bob Greene does not like the word diet. His approach requires exercise, a minimum of five days a week. He tells Lorri she must stop eating two to three hours before going to bed, she must drink six to eight glasses of water daily. Alcohol is forbidden, and for now he does not want her to weigh herself. But that's just the start. Greene feels there are issues of self-esteem to work on. Lorri first met Bob on his turf in Santa Barbara. He told her low self esteem can lead to emotional eating, and is the reason so many people can't lose weight or keep it off. So he and Lorri will explore, as he says, the truth of her life. After struggling to control her weight during high school, a year later she finally got in great shape when she joined the army. But somehow that slipped away as she settled into her marriage and life as a mother. For the next 12 weeks Bob has Lorri follow instructions on his Web site, "Get with the Program,” and they will trade e-mails and phone calls. After exercising, dropping late night eating and adding breakfast, in no time Lorri's clothes were fitting better. Two weeks later Bob checked in. The nuts and bolts were all on track, but as for the truth of her life, he won't push her for now. But something was going on -- just ask her husband. He says that she’s gone a lot now, and doesn’t do things he used to like her doing.
Lorri, the former wallflower, was on strike. In sorting out her priorities as her coach had suggested she do, Lorri demanded her husband step up to the plate. But one month in, the new order had taken a toll. Her husband complained that her new commitments were taking time away from him, and that he was used to being the center of her life. Meanwhile Lorri was on a roll. Now exercise was a way of life. And at a party with friends from the Diet Challenge, despite Bob's advice, Lorri couldn't resist weighing herself. In two months she'd lost nine pounds and two dress sizes. By June, she was down an impressive 26 pounds, more that halfway to her goal.
In the summer, Lorri met up with Bob Greene twice. She told him she'd found her old self, which has made her more playful at work with her boss. By July it was full steam ahead. Lorri donned a bathing suit for the first time in 10 years. In August, she was down a whopping 36 pounds and getting compliments from friends and family. And no one was more impressed than Bob Greene...who spoke to Lorri after an event at The Mall of America. But in their third meeting, Lorri still struggled to talk about what going on at home. Her coach knows that long term success may depend on her ability to resolve her issues with her husband.