Weight loss specialist Roslyn Franken likes to joke that she has "been there, done that and written the book."  Not so long ago the Ottawa author looked at herself in the mirror and felt depressed knowing she had to lose weight - and she did.

After years working as a life coach Franken challenged herself to change, something she's asked clients to do on a a daily basis in her practice as a life coach.  The process of losing 40 pounds changed her life, her career and is shared in her recently published book, The A List: 9 Guiding Principles for Healthy Eating and Positive Living.

"I learned it by doing it," said Franken, who works across Ottawa, but also consults with clients at Personal Pace Fitness at 28-5929 Jeanne d'Arc Blvd.

"I'm coaching people through a process because it's not just about the food they are putting in their mouth, it's their whole relationship with food.  Why do they eat the way they eat and how do they change their attitude and their mindset around food," she said.

"It's almost like a behavioral psychological approach as well."

She said most diets often don't work long term because people revert back to bad habits once the weight loss is achieved and the diet is dropped.   She said many people don't want to commit to making the lifestyle changes necessarily to get and stay slim.  They just want someone to tell them what to eat and how much. 

"They need to learn to be accountable to themselves," said Franken.

Her journey of discovery started when she was diagnosed with cancer at age 29.  She successfully overcame that and worked as a life coach for several year.  At the age 40 she looked in the mirror one day after years of steadily gaining weight.

"My mother had passed away the same year and it was like, you sort of get on the scale one day and look at yourself and say - what am I doing? Enough is enough!" Franken said.

She realized she had been coaching people for years how to make positive changes in their own lives and yet she was faced with her own challenge.

"How do I take everything I've learned in my school training, my masters program and my life coaching, helping people set goals and achieve goals, if I can't do this one myself?"

She eventually realized that the only way to have stable weight loss was to change her eating habits permanently.  She said simply following a diet for a while is often a temporary solution and that some diets are in fact dangerous.   Her book is set up as a workbook with exercises to teach a hands-on strategy to change eating habits.  The book also contains nutritional information, chapters about understanding calories, how to approach a trip to the supermarket and it works to reduce your chances of getting diabetes and other health problems.

Franken said response to the book has been good and she enjoys her new life helping others lose weight.  Franken will be available at a book signing Dec. 11 at Personal Pace Fitness, 28-5929 Jeanne d'Arc Blvd, from 9:30am to 7pm.   She also does private counseling and workshops on weight loss.  She can be reached by calling 613-843-0155 and more information can be obtained at her website at www.roslynfranken.com.

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