Real Like Me Food Doesn’t Have to Be Boring
Day 17 of 100
Hey everybody! How are you? It is Carla and I am winding down after a full Saturday. What are you doing? As you come on be sure and drop a heart, a comment or a thumbs up. Let me know you’re on live with us. As you can see, I’m kind of naked. No earrings. No necklace. No rings. I started taking everything off and it’s like “Oopsie!” and I’m not putting it back on. You get me real and in the raw just like the real food I eat. Sometimes, it’s good just to relax, isn’t it?
For those of you that don’t know me. My name is Carla Gardiner. I’m known as the Fiery Grandma because I work from home leading women to have more fun, learning how to gain the confidence to look good, feel good and do good while updating their outdated wardrobe using $5 jewelry. If you are 50 or over and just need to get out that rocking chair and have more fun, come on along. If you’re under 50 and you need a mentor, I have 20 years’ experience in networking. I can show you how to make money while learning how to accessorize. Yep, I’m your girl because I know how to have fun and build a business at the same time.
On today’s video, I promised to tell you more about my healthy weight loss journey the how and why I started and all the good stuff.
Tonight, I went out to dinner with friends after our convention. At dinner, everybody asked the same question. So, I thought I would just address it right here. When I decided to change my eating habits and lifestyle, to go sugar-free, eliminating processed foods and eating real food I thought just like so many of you. At first, I thought “Oh my gosh so “What do you eat?” Everybody wants to know what I eat when I eliminate what we think are our only choices – refined, processed foods.
Here’s the thing, food doesn’t have to be boring when you are losing weight. What it really boils down to is this, EAT REAL FOOD. I eat any kind of meat I want to. I have bacon 3 or 4 days a week. Fried eggs and butter 3-4 days a week. But the key is portion control, and not getting out of control. I don’t weigh my food. I know a lot of people do. It’s not for me. I don’t have time for that and I’ll bet neither do you. I eat real meat, real fish, real eggs. But I do go by this rule of thumb.
I’m going to give you a little secret. See this hand? 
That is a portion, it ends up being about 5-6 oz of meat, just as many berries and then doubles of veggies. I use a salad plate, I no longer eat on a dinner plate because here’s what I found, everything in moderation. When I first got started, you have to remember, I had to unlearn everything that I had learned my whole life. For 60 years I have been taught about dieting and weight loss. None of it is true. You really should get either on Netflix or PBS and look at.
Oh, that was what I want to do for you. I promise I will get the list of the documentaries that I watched. It will blow your mind. Prepare to learn the truth about the foods I eliminated and why you should too. This education made it a whole lot easier to swallow or not swallow. I also learned the difference between cage-free eggs and free-range eggs. Big difference. They charge you an arm and a leg for cage-free. All that means, are you guys ready for this? This is going to make you mad because it makes me mad. What cage-free eggs are? They’re chickens that their feet at some point can touch outside of the cage. It doesn’t mean they are outside of the cage. How disgusting is that? If you want organic free-range where they aren’t actually fed grain, they are outside pecking and hunting for bugs and worms in the ground. Those are the chickens you want. Those are the eggs you want. Yup. Its amazing what I have learned and how my health is improved. 
(oh Teri, if you’re still on here I have good news for you dear. I don’t snore anymore and I don’t quit breathing at night anymore. Yay! It’s all because I’ve lost weight. No more high blood pressure. No more sleep or poor sleep, we need sleep. No more acid reflux. So many things are gone) It was all related to weight and the processed foods that caused inflammation in my body. No more cereal. No more grains. No more. No more health issues and that was reported by Richard. So, you know I am not just pulling your leg. The first thing hubby noticed was that I didn’t stop breathing during the night anymore.
It’s pretty amazing I thought it would be really hard to actually cook real food and time consuming but it’s not. It takes the same amount of time to cook meat and vegetables and cut up some fruits on your plate. The same amount of time as it takes you to prepare hamburger helper or some garbage like that. We’ve been saving money on groceries, so much money. We buy what we can eat and nothing else. We shop around the edges of the store. It’s so much cheaper. With this Instapot challenge … you guys, she’s in the middle of a challenge right now but I’m sure she’ll be doing another one. And if she does, I will share with you. If you are interested in knowing more about it, I’ll share her link because I love the flavor of this food, I am telling you. Trust me when I tell you if I can cook using the Instapot, so can you. It’s so much healthier. Your heart will love you. Your body will love you. Your knees will love you. Here’s another thing I just remembered. Do you remember, those of you who know me really well, remember before I move from California, I had that frozen shoulder and lost the mobility in this arm? Check this out. The mobility is back. Look, straight up I can actually go straight out and I am touching the wall behind me. No physical therapy. It’s all from getting rid of the garbage causing inflammation that was traveling up into my joints. When I wake up in the morning, my hands are not gnarled and stiff. No more swelling either. So, there are so many benefits to deciding to change how and what you are eating. You just have to want to.
(Yeah, they are Teri. The toxins are leaving my body. It’s so funny because Teri, you know, you and I have done weight loss products before. There’s always that detox period, right? And you know the effects of that detox. I didn’t have any of that with this. Nothing.)
Here’s another thing, I don’t have a gallbladder. So, I seriously didn’t think I could do dairy. I didn’t think I could handle all of these real healthy fats. Do you know what? Not one issue. My nails are growing better. My hair is growing by leaps and bounds. It is healthier. No split ends. My skin is better. I mean, what is not to like about what this way of eating is doing for me? I’m really excited for Tuesday to get to meet Leanna, my nutritional therapist. She made minor tweaks to my portions and food pairings and it made a big difference. So, basically that’s my weight loss journey to date in a nutshell. I’m still not at goal yet. But, one thing is for sure I’m not ever going back. I’m not ever going to eat sugar, processed foods, grains or legumes again. I know 100% for sure that my body and health are better for it. A friend had a smoothie tonight for dinner and just looking at that, thinking of the sugar in that thing, made my stomach hurt. They wanted to know, what would you do when you crave sweets?
First of all, remember, I don’t eat after 6:30 PM. Nothing, not even a berry. The one habit that was hard for me to break – licking my fingers when cooking. I stopped doing that. There are extra calories on everything you put in your mouth, including the stuff on your fingers. Don’t do it. Instead, I just keep a paper towel by me or rinse my fingers off. No more licking. Nothing. I don’t eat when I’m not hungry. That right there is the KEY to eliminating cravings, that and satisfying your body with nutrient-dense real foods.
You know what guys? I have to show you. Hold on. I’m going to take you with me and show you. Check this out. It’s not good news. Can you see over there? See that heavy equipment? That whole field and the one next to it sold. They are moving dirt, leveling out, putting in water pipes. Who knows how many homes are going in over there? I’m going to take you to the back fence. See the progress that I hate? Now, I can’t see so I hope you guys can see. Look at that? They are getting ready to build outback. That beautiful field where the farmers always had stuff going on, where the geese came in, bye-bye. Such a bummer, right?
So, I am going to let you go. Next report will be tomorrow night. I’m probably done reporting on the weight loss journey for a while unless you guys have specific questions. I’ll happily share my resources with you. Nothing is for sale, just sharing my story.
Anyway, for those of you who have been messaging me wanting to know when is my next live sale So, my next live sale will be on Tuesday night at 7 pm MST. Brand new pieces. You must see this jewelry. It is pretty fantastic, great quality and value. The new releases that are coming out, oh my gosh. So, if this information was valuable to you feel free to share it with a friend. Putting on my jammies and kicking my feet up while calling it a day. Thank you all for reading and sharing. If you have any questions about how I am eating, what I do, just drop them in the comments below. Now it’s time to gain the confidence to look good, feel good and do good but most importantly go have some fun.
"Very well put. I've been with a health and nutrition company for over 26 years and I understand exactly what you are going through. I shiver to think what my health might be today at age 68 had I not stuck to my guns as far as practicing what I preach. Yes, I fall off the wagon regularly but my daily routine life reflects taking care of my health. That way I can keep up (somewhat) with my 7 grandchildren. You keep it up, Carla". 
"For most people the thought of venturing out there in pursuit of your dreams, in a place outside of your comfort zones is just what stops them. But I could sense your excitement not resentment in going against the competition. In planting your stake and truly making a difference in the clients experience. That's ultimately what matters, the rest just falls so easily into place. Thanks for that reminder"! 
Carla, I’ve got to say that I LOVE your focus on the joys and challenges facing women over 50. I’m definitely in that camp! I’ve been inspired by your candor, practical ideas, and refreshing determination to joyfully tackle life. The hours we’ve spent on the phone, in person, and through social media have enriched my life immeasurably. YOU are one Fiery Grandma, and I love your style! 
I have known Carla Gardiner for 6+ years. We met at a business training for bring business online. She is a business women at heart and willing to do the hard things to make the results show up. I have watched her run a business, work a job and take care of her family. She is a go getter when it comes to putting in the work to build her business to the level of being able to enjoy her grand kids.
She is the example that age is not a limit it is a tool for sharing knowledge to those she empowers to use their own skills and talents. Excuses are fuel to push her to learn and apply. I have seen her scared to death about implementing new technology and rock it out despite the learning curve.
I love watching you grow into your greatness Carla! Don’t slow down. 
"Carla, you are a model for me to follow. I love your site. And, I like what you have to say - very kind, very gracious. I have to say though that nothing in my life has ever been crystal clear". 
"I've known Carla for 5+ years and can tell you that she has lived every bit of this and more. We shared tears and laughs and hard work....you will enjoy getting to know Carla."
