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Glad To Be A Big Loser

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By JOYCE McKENZIE The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 23, 2008

Updated: 01/21/2008 08:34 pm

THONOTOSASSA - Ask family members, friends and acquaintances about Sharon Tournade: They might easily describe her as one big loser.

Although some would find such a characterization highly offensive, Tournade delights in the portrayal.

Since Sept. 26, 2006, the 54-year-old Thonotosassa resident has lost 97 pounds. Back then, she tipped the scales at 240; today, the 5-foot, 3-inch, woman weighs in at 143.

"I battled my weight all my life, but you learn to accept it," Tournade said. "But, I also isolated myself because I was always ashamed of how I looked."

It wasn't until her doctor told her she had high blood pressure and was a candidate for high cholesterol and diabetes that she openly acknowledged the health risks associated with her obesity.

"I knew I had to lose weight, but how was I ever going to lose 100 pounds?" Tournade would constantly ask herself.

In desperation, she turned to her cousin Darryl Shumacher of Plant City, who lost 120 pounds through the Wellness Seminar for Weight Control. Its founder and facilitator, Rena Greenberg, also once fought the battle of the bulge.

The two-hour session combines hypnosis with behavior modification. Participants leave with a packet of reinforcement materials, including an at-home reinforcement hypnosis CD, and may return for unlimited hypnosis sessions for one year.

After one session, Shumacher said, he was able to shed the unwanted pounds without a struggle by following a few basic principles Greenberg ingrained in his subconscious mind. They included eating right, eating less and doing more.

"Ninety-eight percent of the participants learn to lose weight without feeling of deprivation or denial in one session," said Greenberg, who has presented the programs in more than 70 hospitals since 1990.

There is a one-time registration fee of $79.99 with no reservations required. However, participants may register in advance for $69.99 by visiting the program's Web site at www.easywillpower.com.

Admittedly skeptical about a program that involves hypnosis, Tournade reluctantly agreed to accompany Shumacher to a seminar at University Community Hospital. To her surprise, she was impressed with Greenberg and her technique in helping people lose weight.

"She relaxes you with her real-soothing voice, but you're aware of everything she says," Tournade said. "She tells you to put all the bad food you eat on the table and then shove it all off. Then she tells you to replace them with fruits and vegetables and to imagine yourself craving that food."

About a week later, Tournade and her husband, Richard, were doing their grocery shopping when suddenly she realized their cart was mainly filled with fruits and vegetables - items she despised for more than 50 years of her life.

Sharon Tournade found herself no longer wanting to follow her longtime routine of no breakfast; her midmorning potato chip break; the daily lunch trek to Wendy's for a chicken sandwich, fries and a Coke; and her typical evening feast on pizza or Kentucky Fried Chicken.

Instead, she opts for a breakfast of Cheerios sprinkled with bran and covered with a cup of low-fat milk. Her midmorning treat is a banana, and her midday meal consists of a cup of soup and a half sandwich on whole-wheat bread.

For dinner she eats a salad, a grilled chicken breast and steamed vegetables. Sometimes, she even has a bite or two of dessert. During and in between meals, she drinks lots of water.

"Just like she Greenberg said, I've found my inner voice, and I've learned to trust it," said Tournade, who has not visited a fast-food restaurant since she began her new eating regimen.

For the first four months after attending the seminar, she and her husband awakened at 6 a.m. every day to walk two miles before work. Every night, they rode their bikes.

She then joined Shapes Total Fitness in Temple Terrace, where she worked out two hours a day, five days a week. Now that she has reached her target weight, she goes to the center two or three times a week.

"My doctor now tells me he ought to send all his patients to me," Tournade joked.

Erika Koehler, Tournade's personal trainer at Shapes, concurred.

"From the very first time I met with her, Sharon was one of the hardest-working people at the gym," said Koehler, who featured her client as June's member of the month. "Anything I asked her to do, she did."

Tournade, who went from a size 26/3X to a size 10, plans to keep on doing what it takes to maintain her weight.

"One guy I know recently walked by me and didn't know me," she said.

Shumacher, who's also eating the things he used to avoid altogether, is proud of Tournade's success.

"The thing everybody needs to know about this program is that it's easy. She Greenberg plants the seed, and you grow the flowers," he said. "There are so many radical options for losing weight out there, but I highly recommend trying this one."

Sarah Litchfield, Tournade's co-worker at Allegra Print & Imaging, described her associate's weight loss as "amazing."

"She's had a complete attitude change, and I don't see her going backward," Litchfield said.

Richard Tournade said he used to attend company functions by himself because his wife was too embarrassed about her weight to accompany him.

"Her self-image has really improved, and she's actually helped me to get in shape," said Richard Tournade, who has dropped about 20 pounds by changing his eating habits and exercising more. "We started out walking together, but now I have to ride my bicycle to keep up with her."
Greenberg said Tournade's success with the weight loss program embodies the message she tries to get across to all her participants.

"Sometimes those who are most skeptical do the best," she said. "I really try to instill that we need to accept ourselves as we are and then we can make the decision to connect with our deeper resources to make the changes happen."

IF YOU GO

WHAT: Wellness Weight Loss Seminar

WHERE: Auditorium at University Community Hospital, 3100 E. Fletcher Ave.

WHEN: 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Feb. 13

HOW MUCH: $79.99 at the door or $69.99 with online registration

INFORMATION: Visit www .easywillpower.com

Reporter Joyce McKenzie can be reached at (813) 865-4849 or jmckenzie@tampatrib.com.

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