Elena Lost 84 Pounds

An Interview With Elena About Her Weight Loss Journey

How did you meet or find Dr. Katsura?

“I think it was sometime back in August-September 2011 that I saw commercials on TV about dietMD Hawaii. I was intrigued with the before/after pictures and became interested. I thought and thought about it but hesitated going – I checked out the website but I still didn’t make the appointment. Then I believe in January 2012, I finally made the decision and built the courage to make an appointment.

What was your weight/state of health at the time?

Almost 7 years ago – I was a hefty 302 lbs back then, with 5 kids and a long marriage of 22 years. Back in 2006 was the year I turned 39, almost 40! I thought it was time I make a change and get healthy. I wanted to live longer and be healthy for my family – plus fight aging. I wanted to ‘grow old gracefully and HEALTHILY’. So I worked hard to lose weight

I lost 22 lbs during this time. 2 years later, I was near my goal of 140lbs @ 5’8″. I was 147lbs. I did lots of walking/jogging and went from a size 24/26 plus size womans, down to a size 10. But things went downhill from there. First, about the program itself.

One thing – even though I lost weight, I didn’t really learn about about zero carb/high protein as Dr. Katsura’s program does. That was a calorie counting program, in my opinion. I ate a lot of junk food – a bit at a time.

My marriage was in trouble – I turned back to food to cope and deal with it – and I stopped exercising. By the time I got to my first appointment with Dr. Katsura, I was 224 lbs.

How did you know it was time? What brought you to really WANT to lose weight?

I did a lot of reflection back then. If I was going to really get healthy, especially considering that I went through major surgery to get there the first time – then I needed to do this for MYSELF first, and the reason of doing it for my family came second. I was tired of going up and down the scale, and I looked in the mirror one day and said to myself, I need to change me… myself. I need to make a commitment to myself to get healthier, and stay healthier. How could I be a better person on both the inside and outside if I was hiding behind my weight, and was a slave to junk food. I needed to and wanted to emerge a brand new person with a brand new attitude.

What was your experience with the program, Dr Katsura and his staff?

When I met Dr. Katsura, I found that he was a friendly and informative doctor. I thought I was a failure at eating right, and being healthy. Nonetheless, he was patient with me and explained things to the point during my appointments. Iryn, one of his nurses, was also a high school classmate of mine, and she recognized me from the beginning. She was very understanding and we spent some time talking about what I was going through during my appointments. She helped me to gain the confidence I needed.

The rest of the staff was also very friendly. I liked the way they would make comments about how I was starting to look ‘different’ because of the weight coming off of me, and how they had to look twice because it was one of those, ‘is that you?’ kind of deal. That helped my self-esteem again.

What were the results you got?

I wasn’t on the accelerated program, so I saw Dr. Katsura every couple of weeks, as opposed to every week. I saw Dr. Katsura for approximately 3 months from Jan 2012 – Mar 2012. I believe I was about 160 lbs by then, in 3 short months. I was down to a size 10 again! My confidence sky-rocketed in 2012. I came out of my shell again. I loved life again.

I always remembered what Dr. Katsura taught me about zero carbs and high protein. That helped me. I’m now 140 lbs and a size 6. I can even fit my teen daughters jeans! LOL!

Both my husband and I are working on our marriage. We both are eating healthy, and he works out with weights a lot and is looking good!

How do you feel about that?

I’m extremely happy with who I am today. I love the results that I have gotten from the program, and the eating habits I changed were from Dr. Katsura’s program. Last year, my co-workers were calling me ‘skinny minnie’… and now they’re calling me a ‘barbie doll’. LOL! I also got most of the girls to think healthy and have encouraged a lot of them to go on diets and watch what they eat. One of them is making an appt to see Dr. Katsura soon.

What did you learn?

I learned a lot about myself. I learned that even when the tough gets going, I shouldn’t turn to food to cope and deal with it. I learned to stay in control of myself and my emotions. I learned that I can have some carbs every now and then, but not a whole lot. I learned what moderation is. I learned how important vitamins are – especially B12 for energy – and water I learned that being happy and healthy on the inside attributes to the glow and self-confidence on the outside.

How are you feeling physically? What are you now able to do in your life, and how do you feel because of losing weight (and/or knowing you can keep it off)?

Now, I can keep up with my kids! When my son was playing baseball and my daughters playing softball, I remember just sitting on the sidelines watching, snacking on junk food and of course, gaining pound by pound.

Now, I would never do that again… I take every opportunity to exercise and get up on my feet – walking is the best for me. I plug the earbuds in, play some energetic workout music, and I speed walk.

I also love to dance! I would never have had the confidence to get up on the dance floor and dance before – now I’m usually the first on the dance floor! I used to dance the hula when I was a child – I’m thinking about joining again as an adult.

I also started zumba dancing last year before I left home… now that I’m back, my daughters and I will start it again soon! One thing I have not yet done yet though, is walk on the beach in a bikini!

Why would you recommend dietMD Hawaii/Dr. Katsura?

I recommend DietMDHawaii and Dr. Katsura because he changed my life – for good. Unlike other programs – I was taught how to eat right and make good food choices – not just count calories. Dr. Katsura has helped me to turn my life around and I’m on the road to a beautiful future with my husband and children!

What would you like to say to others considering the program?

I was lost on the roller coaster of emotional eating and watched my weight go up and down. I was on the road to self-destruction by my unhealthy habits. When I went to Dr. Katsura and started the program a year ago, I lost 64 lbs in 12 weeks and went from a size 18 to a size 10! A year later, and I have a total of 84 lbs lost and now a size 6 – and even the 6 is now feeling loose! I love shopping and I will never have to shop in the ‘fat plus size’ womans department anymore! Thank you Dr. Katsura, Iryn, and dietMD Hawaii! You helped me to change my life and put me back on track to a healthy, happy, and fun road ahead!