Losing 93 pounds inspires Cookbook Diet

Evelyn Rhines wants 50 people to sign up for a workbook that she has put together and is promoting, called Cookbook Diet. It’s hardly a diet, but rather a life-changing road map that helps people find their way to a healthy lifestyle. Rhines unveiled a draft of Cookbook Diet at an open house held January 6 in Minneapolis.

Rhines, 36, is proof that a new you for the New Year can come true. The former high school athlete has endured seven reconstructive surgeries, a bout of depression and a job loss that all had roots in her poor eating habits and less-than-heart-rate-increasing exercise efforts. Her bad habits resulted in her weight ballooning to 225 pounds on her small, 5’4” frame.

Her doctor told her she was on her way to diabetes. She disagreed and found a new way to find her old self. Through a program called Fat Vanish — which includes no supplements or drugs and doesn’t even require a gym membership — Evelyn found her way back to a healthy 132 pounds and, more importantly, has kept the 93 pounds off for the past year-and-a-half.

“I didn’t have an actual weight goal in mind when I started the program,” Rhines recalls. “I just wanted to get healthy. This whole experience has really picked up my self-esteem. I am more energetic, and I don’t feel sluggish anymore.”

Rhines now eats five small meals a day and exercises almost every day — only because she really enjoys working out, not because she has to.

Those aren’t the only changes in her life. In addition to a new full-time career in the financial services industry, Evelyn has partnered with the creator of Fat Vanish to design and sell Cookbook Diet — a shortcut to the Fat Vanish program. Cookbook Diet includes healthy recipes and coaching advice to teach people how to find their way to a healthier lifestyle.

Evelyn stresses that the weight loss won’t happen fast, just as it doesn’t go on fast. However, with a commitment, the changes are healthy and habit forming, which is why the plan works.

“What impressed me the most is how fast she lost the weight,” said Debbie Gorman, a friend of Evelyn’s who attended the open house. “She is much healthier, but also much more watchful to make sure she keeps the weight off.”

“I’m just amazed at how much weight she has lost,” said Lore Malone, a former client of Evelyn’s who also attended the open house. “She is half her [former] size.”

“Half her size” is right. Evelyn can now fit both of her legs into one pant leg of her old pair of jeans that she keeps around as an inspiration to keep strong her commitment to a healthy lifestyle for many New Years to come.

For more information on Cookbook Diet, visit www.CookBookDiet.com.

Felicia Shultz welcomes reader responses to fjubratic@comcast.net.