I know from where you are coming Jean W.

I have been fat since I was in the 8th grade (actually the 7th). Me and my five sisters were always overweight. I think it was my Dad's "secret weapon" for all of his daughters to be less attractive to boys at that age and thereby not get pregnant as teenagers. Well, it worked!!

However, as I became a woman, I tried EVERY diet on the face of the earth——from the "monotony" diet, grapefruit diet, Teen TOPS, Weight Watchers, hypnosis and on and on.

When I became a physician, with my science background, I finally found THE PERFECT DIET. It happened to be the Cambridge Diet USA. I assiduously read the literature and the cited articles and references. I read all the articles and research by Dr. Alan Howard. Then, I put all of this in combination with my fellowship training at Columbia's Institute of Nutrition and found Dr. Howard was on to something.

As you can see, most other diets fail because of the metabolic imbalances and the nutritional deficits. Fasting is cool, but there is no nutrition in that. Weight Watchers has become corporate and just wants to sell you stuff. Any way, I knew that if I remained true to sole source of Cambridge, it would do the trick——and it did!!! I haven't been below 200 pounds for a sustained period of time since 1974. But, here I am still below 200 (barely) and it's been a year.

Why I am participating in The CHALLENGE (posted above) is I have always wanted to get down to 147 pounds. I don't know why that particular number has stuck in my head, but that's my goal.

No one envisioned that I would become a doctor but here I am. No one thought I would find someone who would love me enough to marry me, but we've been married for almost 46 years. I never thought I would have children, but now my two children are exceptional and wonderful adults. Now, I want to achieve that last goal---147 pounds.

I am betting that my remaining Cambridge will take me there.

I also learned that it's really not the Cambridge, in and of itself, it is the MINDSET!!! So, here we go.