1. What is “The Road Less Traveled with Food”?
It is a multi-faceted, four-phase program designed to help you stop overeating and live more happy, joyous and free—if that is your desire. A spiritual program at its core, it incorporates education about the biochemistry behind the overeating cycle and supports you in making changes in belief, thought and behavior patterns that no longer work for you.
Based on over 28 years of attempting to do this myself, this approach is what works for me. It is how I pull myself out of my overeating cycle if I’ve allowed it to take over my life, once more.
In Phase I, The History, Education and Preparation Phase, through five weeks of weekly classes and daily readings and writings, we will look at our history a bit, while learning more about this approach and preparing for Phase II, The Action Phase.
During Phase II, you can incorporate what you have learned, on a daily basis, if you are inspired to join me on the road less traveled with food and by Day 28 you too will feel more happy, joyous and free!
If you wish to continue on into Phases III and IV, you will receive continued support as you become more solid on this path, while enjoying your blessed life more and turning your focus to creating a life that you love. With food in its proper place, and with more energy you also will be empowered to successfully face and release other blocks besides overeating that you become aware of, without returning to old behavior, thought and belief patterns that you already know don’t work for you.
Since overeating can be a complex issue, we hit upon many aspects, so that we can have a greater life experience and long-term success!
For instance, if we just focus on the food, then it is more like a diet and when the weight is off, then what? What will motivate us to continue on this path? And even if we release our excess weight but we still believe we are somehow unworthy of love, or think all day long about our little resentments, or avoid making other life changes that we know our Inner Guidance is leading us to make—and as a result feel crummy—the probability that we will go back to old behaviors with our food, in an attempt to feel good, remains high.
So, through this program;
~We address our biochemistry and what we eat.
~We create a positive, balanced daily plan that we follow in Phase II and beyond.
~We have the support and positive energy of our group.
~We practice holding more positive, creative and productive thoughts.
~We choose beliefs that work for us and find new and healthy ways to deal with emotions, relationships and all of life as it is showing up for us, today.
Basically, on the road less traveled with food we aim to cover it all!
2. How much time will this take?
That is up to you. For now, I encourage you to take things one day at a time and know that you will be inspired as to how long to continue on this journey.
The guidebooks I have created, thus far, provide you with weekly class formats for the next year and daily readings and writings for the first three phases of this program.
During Phase I you will learn more about this approach and decide if you think it may be helpful to you. During this time there is no pressure to change the way you eat. You can, of course, begin to implement any changes you feel inspired to make and/or you can relax, take in the information that I’m sharing with you and test it out for yourself.
If inspired to move onto Phase II, where the real fun and your new life begins—you will have naturally developed a willingness to make some changes around your eating habits—for at least 28 days.
By the end of those 28 days you will be experiencing amazing rewards! Believe me—I would not be doing this if I did not feel good! I LIKE TO FEEL GOOD! That’s what all addictions are about—bottom line. They are always an attempt to feel good. And if you join me on the road less traveled with food—I believe you will feel way better than you do when you are ingesting your trigger foods and battling with overeating and weight!
To support you, as you become more solid on this road less traveled with food, in Phase III, I continue to provide you with daily readings and writings, and weekly class formats, for 10 more weeks so that you can reach day 98 on your non-addictive food plan. This also will allow you to give and receive support with group members that have continued on as well.
Due to the fact that this approach requires changes in many areas of our lives, so that you are set for at least one whole year, Phase IV provides you with weekly class formats for this period of time.
Potentially, today can be the beginning of a whole new life for you! I want to be able to support you in any way that I can as you make the changes that you feel guided to make, so that you can live more happy, joyous and free for the rest of your life!
This is not a quick fix! We’ve all been there—done those—and we know by now that quick fixes don’t last long term! This is an approach that is designed to help you stop overeating, feel closer to the God of your understanding, live more happy, joyous and free and create the life of your dreams! Big changes may be required in all areas of your life, including your belief system, the way you think, the way you deal with your emotions, and the way you relate to others. This will take as much time as you choose to give it! This is your life! You are worth all the time you need!
3. How quickly will I lose weight?
That is completely up to you.
For me, it usually takes me a couple of months to release my excess weight, when I follow my food plan, after a period of overeating. This is in part due to how much weight I need to release and my willingness to exercise and weigh and measure my food.
Even if you join me for Phase II and stop ingesting your trigger foods, volume may be a deciding factor in how quickly or slowly you release your excess weight.
If your extra weight is still serving a purpose in your life, you can choose to release it slowly, as you work on releasing the reasons that you are holding onto it. Meanwhile, through following a non-addictive food plan, for your particular body chemistry, you will better nourish your body, mind, emotions and spirit and balance out your blood sugar levels. As a result you will feel more happy, joyous and free within 28 days.
You can decide the rate of your weight loss, but the miracle you will experience is that you will no longer feel powerless and out of control with your overeating cycle. You will have taken back the power of choice with your eating.
4. Do you really think I can do this approach and be successful with it—lose my excess weight and keep it off?
Absolutely! There is no doubt in my mind. That is why I am putting this into print.
Remember, this program is easy for your spirit or soul! You can do this! You can stop overeating and live happy, joyous and free for the rest of your life, if you desire to. This is just one way to do so and if you are willing to try this approach and practice it, one day at a time, for the rest of your life, you need never overeat again, really.
In “ego,” “inner child,” “old brain” and “resistance” modes—which you will learn more about as we go—you may have trouble, but our aim will be to inspire this whole team of rowdy players to buy into this approach so that they too can be more happy, joyous and free! How does that sound?!
5. Can I do this method alone?
I have written this in such a way, where you can do this alone if that is what you choose to do. I will always encourage you to do what you believe works best for you. This is your life!
Meanwhile, why not consider giving yourself the gift of love, support and connection with others? You don’t have to do this alone. Most of us have turned to food often out of a deep sense of loneliness and isolation. You are not alone in this. In the U.S., today, 67 percent of us struggle with being overweight or obese, apparently!
Personally, I believe that it is best to do this program with two or more other people. If you do not live in Southern California, within a couple of hours driving distance from me and are unable to attend or create a “Road Less Traveled With Food” class in your area, I encourage you to connect with me somehow and attend a group such as Overeaters Anonymous, Food Addicts Anonymous, or Compulsive Overeaters Anonymous, while you are completing these guidebooks.
I cannot stress this part enough! I have seen repeatedly that those who have the strongest, long-term recovery, and thus, the most happy, joyous and free lives, are those who participate in a weekly group and stay connected with others who are doing the same!
Recovery-oriented groups and social support are key factors in the process of recovery. Connecting with those who share similar challenges and are finding and living a shared solution is so POWERFUL! It is so spiritual to reach out and let others in. There is a beautiful giving and receiving that happens when we do this and it uplifts us all. Any addictive process isolates us and I believe we are not meant to recover from any addiction or harmful behavior pattern alone. It’s helpful to be there for others and to allow others to be there for us. It lifts our recovery process to a higher level! Groups are powerful in strengthening recovery. That is why Alcoholics Anonymous has been so successful.
Being with people, at least once a week, where we feel understood and accepted as we are is so healing. In groups that understand the biochemistry behind the overeating cycle—everyone is clear that the members are not bad or weak—but share a biochemical sensitivity to refined substances. As members move beyond overeating to new, more fulfilling and productive lives—it is enjoyable and inspiring to share stories with one another, root each other on, and start to feel better about ourselves!
Let me add that I support you in choosing wisely regarding recovery groups. Just as in all of life, some groups or group members are healthy, loving and supportive and some are afraid and show up as controlling. Sometimes there is a belief system in place whereby you need to follow the direction of those who have long-term recovery, without question, whether it feels right to you or not. There are lots of rules and if you do not follow them—your sponsor will drop you, etc.
I personally do not see the need for this type of approach. You are a child of God—an expression of God! Even if I’ve experienced more periods of recovery than you—it is not my place to tell you what to do and attempt to make you feel bad, shame you and punish you if you don’t do it.
This is your life! You are an adult and responsible for how it goes. You are intelligent and can learn about the biochemistry behind overeating and how it relates to how you are feeling. You can look at your own experience and decide if your way has been working and if you are willing to try a different way with your eating. You can change the way you eat and the way you live your life—with the help of God and others. Meanwhile, it is an inside job in many ways.
I am here to support you along the way, but I am not going to attempt to control you. No thank you! That is a losing battle that I am not willing to participate in! I trust that you are wise and healthy enough to use what you gain here to your benefit.
If you are leaning in the direction of doing this yourself, please, at least contact me and let’s see how we can get you some extra, healthy, loving support.
6. I already know what I “should” eat. How is your program going to help me?
You are going to read in my bio how knowing and doing were two different things for me many times! Often we do know what we “should” eat and how we “should” exercise, but actually doing it?!!!! That’s the tricky part!
This program is designed to help you with this! My intention, through these guidebooks is to give you a full year of understanding and support so that you can create for yourself the experience of having a firm foundation. Hopefully, if you take this one day at a time, within a year, you will be on a roll, creating and living the life of your dreams and feeling like there is no way you would ever trade it in for a return to the dead end, going nowhere fast, path of overeating and gaining weight again!
And this is where a group can be helpful as well. Doing this with others may help you transfer your “knowing” what to do to “doing” it, if you are committing weekly to other group members to do so. There is power in commitment and groups of like-hearted and like-minded people!
I know that my commitment to my non-addictive food plan has been strengthened immensely by the two women who attended my first class in November of 2003 and still meet with me weekly. Other than loving to stay on it for the benefits I get in all areas of my life, I also think of Donna and Marjorie, whenever someone says to me, “Oh, you can have just a little piece of cake, can’t you?” It is beyond just me now. I want to support them and you in this new way of life, and I cannot do that if I am overeating, carrying excess weight and miserable.
7. I have a child who needs help with their eating and weight too. Can this program work for them?
My intention is to expand this program into a more simple form that helps children as well. For now, if you get solidly on this road less traveled with food, by the end of Phase II you will be able to help your child in many ways. It all starts with you! As you love and take care of yourself, you model for them how to do it and you have more energy to be there to help them.
David, my six-year-old son, recently gave me a sticker of a character from Sponge Bob, Patrick. He looks like a very happy star fish.
As he handed it to me, he said, “Here momma. You can have this. See how happy he is? He’s like you, momma!” And I cannot tell you how grateful I felt that David is experiencing a happy momma. I promise you, that if I were still overeating and heavy, my self-hate and depression would block me from being able to be this for him.
Not only will you benefit from following this approach, but your children will be so blessed as well.
8. What makes you an expert in this field?
Overeating and trying to stop happens to have been a major part of my human experience. When you read my history, you will see that I was an expert in overeating, gaining weight, trying to stop and not being able to! Now I am an expert in no longer being stuck in my overeating cycle and eating and living in a way that allows me to experience more happiness, joy and freedom in my daily life!
For now, I know, without a doubt, because of my own experience, that there is a natural and simple way to stop overeating and live more happy, joyous and free and I feel a deep desire to help others break free of the bondage of their overeating—if that is something they would like to do. I love life and I believe that it is meant to be about much more than eating and our weight! It is my intention to do all that I can to help others in this area, while I also stay on the road less traveled with food.
I received my M.S.W., from the University of Chicago, with the intention of helping overeaters, like myself, break free and did my internship at The Rader Institute. If you are interested, I do include my resume’ in Phase I, so that you can learn more about my educational background. Much of what I have learned, though, has been through studying many books and articles and testing things out for myself.
My heart’s desire is that I use my life for good and this is one way that I know I am able to because I know how hard it is to stop overeating without accurate information. I also know how wonderful life can be once we break free and I desire to help you and others create the same experience for yourselves.
9. How do I know if I am ready for this program?
If you are afraid that you are not yet ready to do this program, know that Phase I is designed to help you get ready.
In a sense you need not be ready to give up eating foods that trigger you to overeat yet. Maybe you never will be, and that’s fine too. This is your life! Right now, I just encourage you to keep an open mind and be willing to learn more about one possible way out of the bondage of your overeating.
Meanwhile ask yourself:
~Are you ready to stop living in the darkness and hopelessness that comes from overeating and not knowing how to stop?
~Are you ready to say good bye to gaining weight and looking in the mirror, puzzled, asking yourself,
“How in the world did I get here again?”
~Are you ready to stop wasting days feeling powerless and out of control with your eating and weight?
~Are you ready to move beyond overeating to living a happy, joyous and free life?
~Are you recovering from another addiction—but now finding that the same pattern is happening with your eating and weight?
~Do you want to feel more on purpose and on track?
Once you understand how the overeating cycle works, I believe you will be given the Grace and power of choice to choose something different for yourself! If you decide to participate in this program, you are a courageous soul and you are opening yourself up to receiving many blessings and miracles on all levels! I cannot wait to see what you and the God of your understanding are going to do with your blessed life once you are no longer in bondage to overeating! The possibilities are tremendous!
10. But, what if I have more questions?
Breathe, relax, trust the process and know you will answer them, for yourself, in Divine Timing!
Simply, if you would like to release weight and live more happy, joyous and free, why not find out about one possible way to do this and decide for yourself if it is a good way to go for you?
What have you got to lose, except maybe some old habits, excess weight, depression and lack of self-love?
And, for any other questions, please call me at (760) 842-1114 or email me at
kathy@kathybowesonline.com
