I’m Belinda and I’m the author of a little book called Eating Upside Down. I decided to write the book and create this blog because people kept asking me how I’d lost so much weight – 94kg in fact. In truth, it’s more of an adventure tale than a simple here-to-there story because I didn’t know where I was headed at the start. It was kind of like rocking up to the airport and jumping on a mystery flight – fully exciting because there was no way of knowing what was in store – just jump on board and arrive at a fascinating somewhere – destination unknown – destination anywhere. Having good health was my only aim.
164kg is a lot of weight to carry even for a 178cm frame and at age 48 I was entering a phase of my life that makes losing weight a little tricky. My middle-aged spread had taken on oceanic proportions and my health had taken a plunge. In 2009 I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. I dutifully trotted off to the diabetes clinic at the local hospital, but the advice was abysmal: eat lots of whole grain carbohydrates, low fat dairy and lean meats. I immediately realised that these people, although well meaning, had nothing to offer. I never went back. This was the diet that years before had donned its conductor’s cap and handed me free tickets to metabolic hell. More research. The answer? Go vegan. What the!!!? I had known but one vegan in my life and I really didn’t know an awful lot about “going vegan”. So, you guessed it, more research! It was a pinch of inspiration here and a drop of scientific curiosity there that got me started. But here I was at the starting line and the starting pistol was about to fire. Medical and scientific research consensus points directly at a plant-based, essentially vegan diet as a panacea for modern lifestyle-induced health woes. A lot of people are under starter’s orders to improve their health. This blog is about helping like-minded or like-needy souls to look after themselves physically, mentally and philosophically. On your marks, get set ……
