In this episode of Intermittent Fasting Stories, Gin talks to Deborah Ventrice from Bristol, RI.

Are you ready to take your intermittent fasting lifestyle to the next level? There’s nothing better than community to help with that. In the Delay, Don’t Deny community we all embrace the clean fast, and there’s just the right support for you as you live your intermittent fasting lifestyle.

You can connect directly with Gin in the Ask Gin group, and she will answer all of your questions personally. If you’re new to intermittent fasting or recommitting to the IF lifestyle, join the 28-Day FAST Start group. After your fast start, join us for support in The 1st Year group. Need tips for long term maintenance? We have a place for that! There are many more useful spaces beyond these, and you can interact in as many as you like.

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IF is free. You don’t need to join our community to fast. But if you’re looking for support from a community of like-minded IFers, we are here for you at ginstephens.com/community.

Deborah is an interior designer and a business owner. When she was a child, she suffered from lymphedema, which caused her body to retain lymphatic fluid and made her body unrecognizable. She was teased relentlessly by the other kids, and doctors only offered low calorie diets as a solution. After hospitalization for a severe illness, the lymphedema resolved itself, and when she went back to school, the other kids didn’t recognize her. From that moment, she became aware of the importance of how you looked when it came to social acceptance. She ended up with a focus on body building and athletics, and maintained her muscular body for most of her adult life.

After witnessing the fall of the World Trade Center buildings on 9/11, Deborah realized that she had PTSD, and her therapist helped her connect her current feelings with the way she felt as a child. Understanding those connections helped her work through those feelings.

After going through surgical menopause, Deborah began gaining weight rapidly. She had maintained around 130-135 for most of her adult life, but suddenly found herself around 165. Out of desperation, she tried a low-calorie high protein program, but she knew that the ultra processed foods were not going to be the best option for her body, even though she lost weight rapidly. She knew it was unsustainable.

Deborah found IF in January of 2021. At first, she wasn’t fasting clean, but when she made the transition to the clean fast, it changed the whole experience for her. Initially, she lost more weight than was right for her body, because she became scale-focused and enjoyed the lower numbers she was seeing. Eventually, she recognized that she was at a lower weight than was sustainable, and she regained enough weight to end up back in a healthy weight range for her body.

As she approaches semi-retirement, Deborah remains steadfast in her commitment to intermittent fasting and healthy living. Since there is a family history of heart disease, she went through a round of testing and her cardiologist called to give her the good news that her heart is extremely healthy, and she credits it to her healthy lifestyle. Her final advice to listeners is to be honest with yourself about your personal struggles and to start with clean fasting. She encourages listeners to openly share their stories to support and help one another.

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Get Gin’s books at: https://www.ginstephens.com/get-the-books.html. Good news! The second edition of Delay, Don’t Deny is now available in ebook, paperback, hardback, and audiobook. This is the book that you’ll want to start with or share with others, as it is a simple introduction to IF. It’s been updated to include the clean fast, an easier to understand and more thorough description of ADF and all of your ADF options, and an all new success stories section. When shopping, make sure to get the second edition, which has a 2024 publication date. The audiobook for the second edition is available now!

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Do you enjoy Intermittent Fasting Stories? You’ll probably also like Gin’s other podcast with cohost Sheri Bullock: Fast. Feast. Repeat. Intermittent Fasting for Life. Find it wherever you listen to podcasts.

Share your intermittent fasting stories with Gin: gin@intermittentfastingstories.com

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