Testimonials
The following testimonies were received from people who have benefited from the earlier publication of Sue’s book, ‘How to Stop Dieting and Stop Living’
This course is not just about weight loss it is about FREEDOM. As you read these stories, don’t just see the numbers; look at what is going on inside.
(For visitors outside the UK a stone is fourteen pounds; a kilo equals 2.2pounds.)
Val’s fantastic story ‘I will never have to go on a diet again.’
From my mid teens I was in a constant struggle to keep my weight down. At first, when I dieted, I would lose weight without too much trouble, just by cutting down on “fattening” foods, but gradually I began to put on more and more weight and when I did lose it, I would lose less and less.
I became trapped in this cycle of what is commonly known as “yo-yo dieting”.
I was unhappy at being overweight but I was also unhappy when I was losing the weight on a diet because it was such a struggle to deny myself the foods I loved. Inevitably I would cave in after so long and when I had put the weight back on I didn’t think there was any way to lose it again except by dieting, which I hated. I felt like I was in a constant battle and it was ruining my life. I would lie in bed at night sometimes, after yet another day of out-of-control eating, and panic because I was getting heavier and heavier and I just didn’t know what to do about it.
By the end of May 2007 I was at an all time high of 14 stones. I summoned up all my will power and managed to lose 9 pounds but somehow just felt that the task was going to be too great for me once again. Then at the beginning of July I heard from my Mum about Sue’s book, “How to Stop Dieting and Start Living”. I ordered the book immediately and read it in just over a day. Everything that Sue had written made so much sense and I was so excited. I identified so much with the reasons she had overeaten and just knew that this book was an answer to prayer. At first I felt nervous about letting go of all my strict rules to lose weight and giving myself permission to eat anything without feeling guilty about it but amazingly as soon as I did this my cravings for things like chocolate and crisps and other “forbidden foods” disappeared! The biggest help has been learning to submit my appetite to the Holy Spirit and relying on Him to help me to realise when I have eaten enough food at each meal to satisfy me. I have been amazed to find myself actually leaving food on my plate sometimes because I knew that I had had enough! Of course, I have had my ups and downs, and it hasn’t always been easy, but so far I have lost 3 stones 5 pounds, and even when on holiday I lost a couple of pounds simply by following the book’s principles! At Christmas, which was a big test for me, I did not overeat and even lost ¼ pound. (At Christmas 2006, I put on 5 pounds in one week!) I feel so much happier now, and I cannot describe how wonderful it is to know that I will never have to go on a diet again because the Lord has set me free to eat under His guidance. I re- read Sue’s book regularly because I need to keep “renewing my mind” to think God’s way about how to eat and not with my old “diet mentality”. I give God all the glory because He has worked a miracle in my life and set me free from my disordered eating so that I can enjoy the food He has provided in a way I never have before!
Anne‘Not only, but also...
It was the Sunday before I was due to go to the doctors to ask for help to lose weight. Ifelt God was telling me to switch on the TV and watch Songs of Praise. I could hardlybelieve my ears when I switched on and heard Sue describing how she had felt. It wasexactly what I was feeling. Coincidence? I don’t think so! Could God really be interestedin my weight? I straight away found the website and ordered her book.
Now, two months later, God has helped me not only to lose over one stone, but also to:
Give over control of my eating to Him
Eat food I really enjoy without feeling guilt
Enjoy my food far more than I did before
Experience an amazing sense of freedom
Get rid of the anxiety and frustration I was feeling
thanks , Sue, for sharing how God helped you. He is certainly helping me
Gwyneth: ‘I feel such a sense of freedom’
New Year’s Day started with the usual depressing weigh-in and measurement of my vital statistics with the good intentions of yet another diet followed by the train of thought; Oh what’s the point!!!;
A few days later, I had an email from a Christian online bookstore I had ordered from in the past with their New Year offers, and I ordered Sue’s book ( the title instantly grabbed my attention!) I started reading, and when I got to Sue’s weigh-in in I started to laugh out loud the exact same weight as my New Years day Weight (14 st 1 lb). I reckon God was trying to tell me something!
As I read on, although I knew I was an emotional eater, the triggers and reasons seemed so much clearer, as well as the absurdity of letting food rule me in this way. I especially found the bit about lusting after food to be a revelation. When I thought and prayed about this, I knew this was exactly how I acted, and yet when we think of lust in the sexual context as Christians, we are appalled! I immediately asked God for His forgiveness and His help to overcome this.
I feel such a sense of freedom the first thing I did was throw my bathroom scales out. I used to weigh myself EVERY morning and, depending on how that went, determined my mood for the day. I am enjoying my food so much more and thinking about whether I'm actually hungry and what would satisfy me. I feel as if I've lost weight but don’t want to get weighed yet, but I have measured my waist already it is 3 inches smaller!
I feel so excited about this new lifestyle and I know this time God will honor me as I honors Him and be obedient in this area of my life.
Chris: (small group leader) ‘I don’t have to weigh my food any more.’
Four of us at church did Sue’s course in the 12 weeks before Christmas (not the best time to do it!) Between us, we lost 34½lbs and through sponsorship raised £172 for Tearfund.
During the course, we had an away-day when 3 of us revised what we d done so far, did a meditation and had a time of prayer. We were all very excited about the course and learned so much about ourselves, as well as losing weight.
Thank you for the brilliant course...I felt real freedom knowing that Ill never have to diet again.
I even put away my kitchen scales because I don't have to weigh my food any more!!
Ruth: ‘I am amazed at the freedom I have been given.’
I have now completed the 12 weeks of the course and have found it a real help from the diet side of things as well as a real blessing spiritually. I believe that I have been relearning to place my self-worth and security in God and not to rely on myself when it comes to matters of food. I have only lost a small amount of weight, but still feel much better in myself and am amazed at the freedom I have been given when it comes to eating! I was so pleased that I didn't put on any weight over Christmas and New Year, but just stayed the same.
Sue: Free after 35 years of yo-yo dieting
At the age of twelve, I was taken to the doctor with some medical problems, and it was suggested I needed to lose some weight, so with the help of my mum and a diet of sorts, I did start to lose weight.
I did very well despite at times feeling like I was missing out on goodies other kids seemed to be having, but I continued and had some success.
Unfortunately, as the years went on, so did some of the weight, so in my teens I decided to start dieting on my own.
And so began the start to 35years of yo-yo dieting every diet you can imagine, with some not very healthy ones. Yes, I lost lots of weight at times..... and gained lots of weight too, and so on and so on.
Then in 2007 I weighed in at my heaviest 15 stone 7 lbs , [ I'm 5"2 tall] Also my blood pressure had started to rise, and I was fed up thinking I would have to go on yet another diet. I had prayed that God would help me, as I often had done before, and show me a way that I could lose weight with His help. This time, I was feeling desperate; I couldn’t get any bigger; I was feeling very unhealthy. Then one day, a visiting preacher to our church said he felt there was someone struggling with something in their life. I knew it was me and my struggle with dieting , so after the service, I spoke with his wife, who said she would pray for me, and then we exchanged emails. A few weeks later, she emailed me to see how things were, and she told me of a book she thought would help. That book was Sue Prosser’s "How to Stop Dieting and Start Living"....that was it, I had to get that book! As I read it, it felt like I was reading about myself. I downloaded the 3 Ebooks off the website, and set out on the 12-week course that goes along with the book. The daily readings gave me such encouragement and still do. Plus, there was nutrition and exercise advice too, so much help. Since September 2007 when I started the course I have lost 16lbs weight, and 7 inches all over. I've also dropped a dress size. I may have lost more to date, I'm not sure, as I am no longer a slave to weighing myself, and only do so about every six weeks, then sometimes I just go by how my clothes feel. ALL this is with God’s help, and through following the principles set out in Sue’s book. I then emailed Sue Prosser and said how excited I was by her book, and asked when she would be in my area to do a seminar, and I ended up organizing one at our church! More than thirty came along and really enjoyed Sue’s testimony and her helpful advice. Out of those people at the seminar, fourteen people are now attending the 12-week course, which I am leading, and hopefully, they too will be free from dieting as I am. I am still on the journey, but I am enjoying it and learning so much. I'm so happy that for the first time in 35 years, I am off the dieting cycle, and looking forward to the future as I am walking free of dieting.