For some people, losing weight the healthy and permanent way is rooted simply on “lifestyle change.” Easier said than done? That’s what Cohen’s Lifestyle Program adheres to and espouses.
By Alex Y. Vergara
Losing weight isn’t just about doing strenuous exercises, practicing portion control, taking diet pills, starving one’s self, or even totally eliminating certain food groups like carbs and limiting one’s fare to fats and protein. Sometimes, none of these measures work on certain people. Or if they do, the effects are at best temporary
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For not a few people, losing weight the healthy and permanent way is rooted simply on “lifestyle change.” And that’s what Cohen’s Lifestyle Program, which celebrates its ninth year in the Philippines, adheres to and espouses. Losing weight without diet pills, exercise programs and swearing off carbs completely sounds too good to be true, but that’s what Cohen’s Lifestyle Program, as developed by Dr. Rami Cohen, intends to teach those who sign up.
In essence, the Cohen Diet is anchored on lifestyle changes designed to balance the hormones that have caused weight gain in the first place. Instead of asking patients to totally avoid eating certain food groups, Dr. Cohen designs personalized diet programs that combine certain foods, including their exact amounts.
Right food combinations
The right food combination is believed to trigger the body’s natural ability to release fat as a source of energy. Thus, with the right food plan, the body doesn’t only shed weight, but vital organs like the liver and kidneys are also freed of harmful toxins that disrupt their natural physiological functions, which eventually lead to disease.
Since the program is personalized, there’s no one-size-fits-all approach. It’s important for those who sign up to undergo the Cohen Lifestyle Program’s blood test (not blood type). The result of such a test will be Dr. Cohen’s basis for designing a customized food plan.
It is in preparing and adhering to this food plan that the real challenges lie. A typical Cohen Lifestyle Program costs P60,000. It could go up depending on how long the client needs “support” and how much weight he or she needs to lose.
Not a few people who sign up usually lose at least 80 pounds in eight to 10 months. The Cohen Lifestyle Program provides individual support from six to 12 months, the usual time needed to allow the patient to adopt to a new lifestyle.
Part of this new lifestyle, apart from preparing and adhering to a particular food plan, includes drinking at least eight glasses of water a day and not eating beyond 12 midnight when the human growth hormone responsible from sapping fat is at its weakest.
Before and after
During a recent press conference, Barbara Young, CEO of Cohen Lifestyle Centre in the Philippines, reintroduced the Cohen Lifestyle Program. As a Cohen practitioner herself, Barbara lost 90 pounds 11 years ago. She has since maintained her weight by religiously sticking to her program.
Young also introduced three more recent success stories in the persons of Ian Montenegro, Dr. Mary Anne Tangcangco and Marian Remo. Before undergoing their respective Cohen Lifestyle Programs, these three women, apart from being obese, had various health and emotional issues.
One was even bulimic and had polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), while another suffered from sleep apnea. After shedding off excess pounds, they not only succeeded in getting rid of their old (huge) clothes, but also the various ailments and issues they were suffering from.
In the case of Mary Anne, she also tried various fad diets and fitness routines, from Pilates to aerokaebo—which combines aerobics, karate and boxing. She lost weight when she was younger, but later, especially when she got a bit older, gained it all back.
Apart from being on the heavy side since she was a child, Mary Anne also had to deal with the death of her mother whom she was very close to. Like countless people with weight issues, the bereaved 189-pound practicing internist found refuge in food. When she started doing the Cohen Lifestyle Program, she wasn’t only taught how to eat properly. She was also initially discouraged from undergoing strenuous exercises.
“Cohen is a lifestyle,” said Mary Anne, who’s now down to 128 pounds. “It changed my perception of food. It’s all about eating the right kinds of food without depriving myself of nutrition that my body needs. If we are to correct the way we eat, we can correct our entire body as well. We can’t just exercise and eat bad food. It won’t and will never work.”
After years of weighing close to 200 pounds, Ian, a human resource manager, also had bad knees and was suffering from insomnia and sleep apnea. She also had low self-esteem and, for obvious reasons, dreaded shopping for clothes.
Health and other issues
It came to a point that she needed to invest in an expensive machine to help her manage but not totally address and eliminate her sleep apnea. It also didn’t come as a surprise that her blood chemistry results were far from ideal. She also suffered from sinus congestion and shortness of breath.
“Confronted with my medical results and my insecurities, I called Cohen Lifestyle Centre for an appointment,” she said. “After the session, I knew that it was the right program for me. Instead of buying an expensive machine for sleep apnea, it made more sense [for me] to go into a sustainable diet program that would not only address my weight problem, but the other medical conditions I had.”
From all indications, she has made the right “investment.” Now weighing 111 pounds, or, in her words, “my healthiest self,” Ian continued: “Actually, it’s the mindset that’s difficult to change, but the lifestyle change was not as tough as I thought,” referring to her determination to stick with the program and find time to prepare her meals.
There was even one Christmas season when Ian had to attend a couple of Christmas parties with her own baon, pre-cooked meals she herself prepared based on her Cohen Lifestyle Program. After learning about her situation, her hosts were quite supportive.
Marian, a businesswoman, wasn’t only overweight, she was also bulimic and suffering from PCOS. She’d tire herself in the gym only to binge on junk food later.
“To lessen the guilt, I’d throw up after,” shared Marian, whose lack of self-control and messed-up eating habits made her, at one point, tip the scales at 213 pounds. No matter how difficult it was at first, she eventually made a conscious effort to change her lifestyle and mindset. Her commitment to her Cohen Lifestyle Program eventually paid off. She has since slimmed down to 121 pounds and is cured of her PCOS.
“I initially had to give up salt, sugar, carbohydrates, oil and dairy, but I didn’t lose sight of my main goal, which was to lose weight as well as cure my polycystic ovarian syndrome,” she said.
It can be fun, too, as those who signed up with Cohen are taught or given tips on how to prepare their meals. The Cohen Lifestyle Center is also connected to Meals on Wheels, a food delivery business that cooks and delivers customized Cohen meals to clients.
Begin again
“If you miss a Cohen meal or deviated from the program, you just need to go back again,” said Barbara. It won’t be the end of the world!
On why Cohen doesn’t recommend exercise, Barbara said that the program doesn’t completely discourage patients from exercising, but it’s best that those starting on it postpone any strenuous activities, as their respective bodies would need all the strength it could muster as the person adopts to a new food plan.
“It’s important for those who undergo the Cohen Lifestyle Program to listen to their bodies,” she said. “Including exercise in your daily routine may be too much for the body to handle.”
Apart from undergoing a blood test, the prospective client is also required to undergo a number of other tests such as a thorough medical exam. He or she is also requested to present a complete medical history. Unfortunately, not everyone can undergo the program. Those with compromised kidneys, for instance, and “high liver measure” are deemed unsuitable for Cohen.
Again, said Barbara, such precautions are necessary because Cohen may tax an unhealthy person’s body. If you’re health is already compromised because of certain conditions, it might put your life at risk if you go into this program. For obvious reasons, pregnant women and lactating mothers can’t likewise undergo the Cohen Lifestyle Program.
For more information, visit www.cohenlifestyle.com.ph. The Cohen Lifestyle Centre is located at Medical Plaza Makati and has a branch in Davao.
