Anne Lotte Molenaar (33) has had Spina Bifida from birth. As a result, she leads a predominantly wheelchair-bound existence. With all the associated health complications. She put on pounds, developed PCOS and chronic bowel problems and was a huge person in her shell. That's all different now.
''I was suffering from constipation, or from diarrhoea. That's all a thing of the past now."
Anne Lotte entered the Sit Smart Challenge because she felt she was too overweight. “I really thought: shit, I'm on the high risk side. The pounds just have to come off, but I couldn't do it on my own. With the support of the AM Lifestyle Medicine team and the other participants, it was easier. “It was a unique opportunity for me to adopt a healthy lifestyle.”
Lose weight without extra exercise
Anne Lotte does not understand that there has never been a rehabilitation doctor who warned her about being overweight and other complications. Or a dietician who could tell her what she should eat, given her health problems and obesity. “During the Sit Smart Challenge, I learned all sorts of things I didn't know. Like that something could definitely be done about my excess weight – even without extra exercise.”
Insight into my own body
What Anne Lotte particularly likes about the Sit Smart Method is that it not only provides knowledge about nutrition, but especially insight into how fundamentally different her body works as a wheelchair user. “I gained knowledge about my body and learned what the risks are of living in a wheelchair. What happens at the metabolic level. What the influence of a wheelchair existence is on your hormone balance. What you can still eat – and what better not. No one could have told me that in all those years.”
“This lifestyle is so nice that I always pick it up again”.
To see conections
Because Anne Lotte learned how her body works and what the influence of certain foods was, she was also very motivated to change her lifestyle. “I saw the connections now, between what I ate and how I felt and looked. I suddenly understood the direct connection very well. Like between my gut problems and what I ate. I suffered from constipation, or from diarrhea (something many wheelchair users will recognize), and from huge stitches in my stomach. That's all a thing of the past now."
Self-discipline
Anne Lotte certainly does not dare to call herself a super disciplined person. “No, discipline has always been my weakness. That is why I have now made arrangements with my husband. If he wants something "non-Sit Smart tasty," he'll take it upstairs. Because when it's on the table, I'll be the first to eat it. I don't have that self-control yet. For me it is therefore better to SSD as autistic as possible”.
Support from the Sit Smart Diet Facebook Group
Sit Smart Diet facebook Supportgroup Fortunately, there is a lot of support from the other participants in the Sit Smart Diet group on Facebook, where experiences can be exchanged. “If you've been through it for a while, if you need a little push in the back, then you post this. You get a lot of positive reactions and you go back to it. I am very happy about this. And when I read that others are doing well, it gives me extra motivation and energy.”
Extra motivation
And motivated, she still is. Anne Lotte also has an extra 'gigantic' motivation: she desperately wants a child. “My husband and I want a family. That doesn't work because the excess weight literally got in the way and I developed PCOS due to my high blood sugars. And of course you want to get through the pregnancy in a healthy way and also have a healthy baby in the world. That is my main motivation, being able to conceive in a healthy way”.
More comfortable in her skin
But not just yet. First, Anne Lotte wants to continue to get even healthier. “I notice that since I've been using this method, I'm much more comfortable in my own skin. For me, this means that I can manage to lose the excess pounds with this method. It also makes me feel more confident going out the door. Because since I eat Sit Smart I have much more control over my toileting. I notice that I suffer less from constipation or from stools that are too thin”.
Growing old healthy and happy
At first she found it quite difficult to really make the transition to Sit Smart eating. “In the beginning I found it quite difficult to keep it up. But notice an immediate change in my energy level and my stomach. I am someone who quickly falls back into old habits. But this lifestyle is so nice that I always pick it up again. I hope in this way to grow old healthy and happy and to see my family grow”.
