Living Magazine Winter 2018 doTERRA Living Magazine | Page 12

Lifestyle Changes FOR A BETTER LIFE 2018 SLIM & SASSY ® COMPETITION GRAND PRIZE WINNER | KEN YOSHIMOTO Ken had struggled with wanting to lose weight for quite some time. As he started his dōTERRA business, he decided it was time to make a change in his health and lifestyle. It was shortly after joining dōTERRA that Ken learned about the Slim & Sassy Challenge. Ken wanted to live a healthier life so he could fully enjoy activities with his children. He set challenging goals and decided now was the time for changes. How do you think the challenge of losing weight is different for you? I never believed at my age (58) I could really lose weight. I had tried so many times and did the yo-yo exercise. Perhaps, I caught lightning in a bottle, but once I started seeing improvement, my motivation kept increasing. I actually had a lot of fun with the Slim & Sassy Challenge Facebook Group. I learned so much from everyone. I owe so much to all my challenge friends. What was your greatest motivation to keep going during the challenge, and after? My Slim & Sassy Challenge Facebook Group friends were a big motivator. My own family thought this was a passing fad and didn’t really take me seriously for the first month, but as I started finding success and changing my habits, my wife started to adopt some of my eating habits. Experiencing success is a great motivator. Over the last decade I have lost so many friends and family prematurely. Health issues related to lifestyle took many of my dear friends. I recognized that even though I was reasonably healthy while being overweight, when I tried to help my friends they wouldn’t listen. Why should they? I didn’t look very healthy. I recognize that my ongoing health journey is just as important for my family and friends who need to be healthier as it is for me. Before I started the Slim & Sassy Challenge one of my daughters and my son-in-law asked me to join their team for an obstacle course run—the Spartan Beast Run. I laughed that I would die, but my 12 / WINTER 2018 LIVING MAGAZINE daughter urged “Dad, you have nine months to prepare!” It may have been crazy, but it was a good motivator to change my lifestyle. None of us knew the event we signed up for was the Spartan World Championship in Lake Tahoe. Our first Spartan Race experience was the World Championship where the weights are heavier and the obstacles are more challenging. Committing to this goal helped me keep my healthy lifestyle changes. On September 29, we completed the Spartan Beast Run with 34 obstacles over 14 miles and endless mountain climbs and we had loads of fun doing it. The positive attitude developed into my lifestyle carried me through that event. Finishing the race was significant, because eight years ago my doctor told me to never run again. Armed with a new healthy lifestyle and the wonders of essential oils, I can run and climb over walls and obstacles and do things I couldn’t even do when I was younger. I worried that I would have to be carried off the course, but as we finished, we all decided it was so much fun we wanted to do more races. We had to be the best smelling team, too, with the essence of Deep Blue ® Rub and Lemongrass and AromaTouch ® ! Who are your biggest supporters and how do they help you? Throughout the Slim & Sassy Challenge, the Facebook group friends were my biggest supporters. So many people answered essential oil questions and I learned so much. They were always there to hold me accountable and it was such a positive experience. Now, I am helping a few friends in their own journeys to health. That keeps me motivated as I help them. Many of my coworkers and friends also keep me motivated, because they are excited that I look 15 years younger and so much healthier. My family is always supporting me, too, now that they know this is my new life and they like it.