Chef Becky Health Coach, LLC
My Story:
My health journey began shortly after finishing studies for my Culinary Degree. During my last year of school, I decided to focus my culinary talents in Italian cuisine. I had the privilege to do a two-month internship in Orvieto, Italy with Chef Lorenzo at the Zeppelin Restaurant. This was a great experience and I learned much about the culture and cuisine of Italy. After returning from Orvieto, I started my own business teaching Italian cooking classes. I developed a website, designed business cards, and formulated delicious Italian dinner menus for my classes. My business was launched and I was doing what I loved – teaching others (and eating, of course).
But woven into this lovely tapestry of fulfillment came increasing health issues, weight gain, and chronic pain. Walking up and down stairs became increasingly difficult, and clinging to the rail was my only relief. I had put off going to the doctor long enough, and when I finally did, his diagnosis was inflammation and “chronic tendonitis”. We can’t cure you, he said, but we can try and make you comfortable. So he gave me drugs and a brace with promises of cortisone and surgery.
As my Italian cooking classes became more and more popular, we decided to transform our home into first floor living. Plans were put into place for a first floor laundry. I could no longer carry laundry baskets back and forth from the second floor to the basement and hold the rail at the same time. So a new washer and dryer were installed in the first floor bathroom, and plans for an addition to extend the first floor bedroom into a master suite were drawn. First story living was taking shape – and I felt old.
Shortly after our laundry renovation, we took a trip to Italy. During our two week vacation we enjoyed Tuscan wine tours, gelato, and Italian cooking classes. We walked everywhere on the classic cobblestones of Europe. But at night I suffered with fatigue, leg cramps, knee pain and something new which I later learned was called restless leg syndrome. We had a wonderful vacation, but when I got home I was determined to do something about my health. After all, we were empty nesters – it was time to travel – and I wanted to travel with ease, not with dis-ease. I was determined to lose weight and get healthy, somehow.
Once home, I began with a prayer to God for healing. I needed His help to guide me. I also started a research campaign into “chronic tendonitis” and “inflammation”, determined to find an alternative to cortisone shots and surgery. Then a friend of mine came across a book on detoxing through juicing and wondered if I would be interested. It seemed the perfect thing to try – maybe I would finally lose some weight. And so on January 1st, 2012 – unbeknownst to me then – my life would take a dramatically different turn.
After a week of eliminating the main allergen foods like – gluten, dairy, soy, corn, canola, peanuts, eggs, the night shades (tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, eggplant), I was ready for a three-week juice fast – eating one main healthy meal and juicing breakfast and dinner. Because toxins attach themselves to fat, I lost fat while I detoxified; and over the next 21 days, I not only lost weight but was relieved of my chronic pain. In fact after the first 10 days, the knee and joint pain, knuckle arthritis, fluid retention, sinus allergies, heartburn, foggy brain and many other symptoms simply vanished. It was at that time I knew I was on to something. I simply couldn’t believe that food had everything to do with my chronic issues. My excitement mounted.
After the detox was finished, I added back foods – one at a time – to see which of them might be the culprits. This simple month-long exercise changed my life. I found I was allergic to gluten and dairy; and so over the next few months, I was on a quest to find things to eat that didn’t have gluten or dairy, and was feeling the best I had in years. I could walk up and down stairs without holding the rail – in fact I could run up them, I could exercise without exhaustion or embarrassment, I could sit on the floor AND get back up again without pain, my confidence level went up, and I no longer had the stuffiness, headaches, or snoring issues associated with allergies.
But while I was glad for all of this and very happy to have lost 45 pounds and 5 sizes, I also couldn’t help but think of Charles Dickens in The Tale of Two Cities when he quipped, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times ... it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.” I was an Italian Culinary Instructor – teaching eager students how to make luscious Italian dishes full of dairy: butter, cheese, cream, gelato, tiramisu; and glutenous semolina flour, to make homemade pasta, pizza, pastries and bruschetta ! I could no longer eat, or even touch any of this. What was I to do now?!
I have to admit, after about 4 months of this new way of eating I was getting concerned with what was going to happen to my new business - which was finally flourishing. I had built relationships and clientele and had booked cooking classes way into the future. While I did fulfill the engagements I had previously booked, it was evident that I would no longer be able to work with gluten and dairy. I was still reacting to the flour even though I wasn’t eating it. The cross contamination, air-borne flour, and even dough on my hands from making homemade pasta was causing painful reactions . . .”it was [my] winter of despair”. Well not despair, but a barren wasteland – for a time.
The first thing I had to do was inform my clients that I was taking a break from teaching until I could figure out how to cook again . . . gluten free and dairy free. Then I took the next year and started teaching myself a new way to cook. I took cooking classes from a gluten free vegan restaurant and I bought new gluten-free cookbooks and magazines. I was learning plenty but soon had so many recipes to try I became overwhelmed. So I began a weekly test kitchen and invited friends to help me work through my new recipes. We cooked together and then ate and critiqued what could make it better. After a year, I had over 150 new recipes and a feel for how this new way of eating worked. I was finally ready to start teaching culinary classes again. This time they were gluten and dairy free. And I found there were many, many people, quietly “coming out the woodwork” to share that they were gluten or dairy intolerant and very happy to know they had someone with experience to talk to.
The best part of my “winter of despair” was the “spring of hope” in realizing this was helping others. Many who knew me before my transformation were interested in finding out what happened to me and how they could take back their health as well. I started seeing others lose weight, and have their cholesterol numbers plummet. Then they would tell their family and friends and it became a ripple effect. It seemed as if this whole journey of mine – sometimes smooth, sometimes bumpy – had a purpose. My Italian culinary days brought me much satisfaction, but watching people’s lives become transformed through nutrition went much deeper. This was my new purpose.
So I enrolled in a health coach training program at The Institute for Integrative Nutrition, and become a certified health coach. During this time I had also continued my “Test Kitchen” and so with so many tested recipes, I decided to write and publish the cookbook, Eat Well To Live Well With Chef Becky, Supporting The Gluten- and Dairy-free Lifestyle. Now I am able to marry my culinary training and my dietary issues together to help others find transformation from their “winter of despair” to their “spring of hope”.
Are you curious about how health coaching can help you? If you are interested in coaching with me, please schedule a free initial consultation today and let's explore what partnering together could look like. Please email me at: [email protected] or call (860) 649-0261.
My health journey began shortly after finishing studies for my Culinary Degree. During my last year of school, I decided to focus my culinary talents in Italian cuisine. I had the privilege to do a two-month internship in Orvieto, Italy with Chef Lorenzo at the Zeppelin Restaurant. This was a great experience and I learned much about the culture and cuisine of Italy. After returning from Orvieto, I started my own business teaching Italian cooking classes. I developed a website, designed business cards, and formulated delicious Italian dinner menus for my classes. My business was launched and I was doing what I loved – teaching others (and eating, of course).
But woven into this lovely tapestry of fulfillment came increasing health issues, weight gain, and chronic pain. Walking up and down stairs became increasingly difficult, and clinging to the rail was my only relief. I had put off going to the doctor long enough, and when I finally did, his diagnosis was inflammation and “chronic tendonitis”. We can’t cure you, he said, but we can try and make you comfortable. So he gave me drugs and a brace with promises of cortisone and surgery.
As my Italian cooking classes became more and more popular, we decided to transform our home into first floor living. Plans were put into place for a first floor laundry. I could no longer carry laundry baskets back and forth from the second floor to the basement and hold the rail at the same time. So a new washer and dryer were installed in the first floor bathroom, and plans for an addition to extend the first floor bedroom into a master suite were drawn. First story living was taking shape – and I felt old.
Shortly after our laundry renovation, we took a trip to Italy. During our two week vacation we enjoyed Tuscan wine tours, gelato, and Italian cooking classes. We walked everywhere on the classic cobblestones of Europe. But at night I suffered with fatigue, leg cramps, knee pain and something new which I later learned was called restless leg syndrome. We had a wonderful vacation, but when I got home I was determined to do something about my health. After all, we were empty nesters – it was time to travel – and I wanted to travel with ease, not with dis-ease. I was determined to lose weight and get healthy, somehow.
Once home, I began with a prayer to God for healing. I needed His help to guide me. I also started a research campaign into “chronic tendonitis” and “inflammation”, determined to find an alternative to cortisone shots and surgery. Then a friend of mine came across a book on detoxing through juicing and wondered if I would be interested. It seemed the perfect thing to try – maybe I would finally lose some weight. And so on January 1st, 2012 – unbeknownst to me then – my life would take a dramatically different turn.
After a week of eliminating the main allergen foods like – gluten, dairy, soy, corn, canola, peanuts, eggs, the night shades (tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, eggplant), I was ready for a three-week juice fast – eating one main healthy meal and juicing breakfast and dinner. Because toxins attach themselves to fat, I lost fat while I detoxified; and over the next 21 days, I not only lost weight but was relieved of my chronic pain. In fact after the first 10 days, the knee and joint pain, knuckle arthritis, fluid retention, sinus allergies, heartburn, foggy brain and many other symptoms simply vanished. It was at that time I knew I was on to something. I simply couldn’t believe that food had everything to do with my chronic issues. My excitement mounted.
After the detox was finished, I added back foods – one at a time – to see which of them might be the culprits. This simple month-long exercise changed my life. I found I was allergic to gluten and dairy; and so over the next few months, I was on a quest to find things to eat that didn’t have gluten or dairy, and was feeling the best I had in years. I could walk up and down stairs without holding the rail – in fact I could run up them, I could exercise without exhaustion or embarrassment, I could sit on the floor AND get back up again without pain, my confidence level went up, and I no longer had the stuffiness, headaches, or snoring issues associated with allergies.
But while I was glad for all of this and very happy to have lost 45 pounds and 5 sizes, I also couldn’t help but think of Charles Dickens in The Tale of Two Cities when he quipped, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times ... it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.” I was an Italian Culinary Instructor – teaching eager students how to make luscious Italian dishes full of dairy: butter, cheese, cream, gelato, tiramisu; and glutenous semolina flour, to make homemade pasta, pizza, pastries and bruschetta ! I could no longer eat, or even touch any of this. What was I to do now?!
I have to admit, after about 4 months of this new way of eating I was getting concerned with what was going to happen to my new business - which was finally flourishing. I had built relationships and clientele and had booked cooking classes way into the future. While I did fulfill the engagements I had previously booked, it was evident that I would no longer be able to work with gluten and dairy. I was still reacting to the flour even though I wasn’t eating it. The cross contamination, air-borne flour, and even dough on my hands from making homemade pasta was causing painful reactions . . .”it was [my] winter of despair”. Well not despair, but a barren wasteland – for a time.
The first thing I had to do was inform my clients that I was taking a break from teaching until I could figure out how to cook again . . . gluten free and dairy free. Then I took the next year and started teaching myself a new way to cook. I took cooking classes from a gluten free vegan restaurant and I bought new gluten-free cookbooks and magazines. I was learning plenty but soon had so many recipes to try I became overwhelmed. So I began a weekly test kitchen and invited friends to help me work through my new recipes. We cooked together and then ate and critiqued what could make it better. After a year, I had over 150 new recipes and a feel for how this new way of eating worked. I was finally ready to start teaching culinary classes again. This time they were gluten and dairy free. And I found there were many, many people, quietly “coming out the woodwork” to share that they were gluten or dairy intolerant and very happy to know they had someone with experience to talk to.
The best part of my “winter of despair” was the “spring of hope” in realizing this was helping others. Many who knew me before my transformation were interested in finding out what happened to me and how they could take back their health as well. I started seeing others lose weight, and have their cholesterol numbers plummet. Then they would tell their family and friends and it became a ripple effect. It seemed as if this whole journey of mine – sometimes smooth, sometimes bumpy – had a purpose. My Italian culinary days brought me much satisfaction, but watching people’s lives become transformed through nutrition went much deeper. This was my new purpose.
So I enrolled in a health coach training program at The Institute for Integrative Nutrition, and become a certified health coach. During this time I had also continued my “Test Kitchen” and so with so many tested recipes, I decided to write and publish the cookbook, Eat Well To Live Well With Chef Becky, Supporting The Gluten- and Dairy-free Lifestyle. Now I am able to marry my culinary training and my dietary issues together to help others find transformation from their “winter of despair” to their “spring of hope”.
Are you curious about how health coaching can help you? If you are interested in coaching with me, please schedule a free initial consultation today and let's explore what partnering together could look like. Please email me at: [email protected] or call (860) 649-0261.
