Meet Elise! She’s a comic and actor in Los Angeles, and her story is as inspiring as she is talented. Elise made the choice to change for HERSELF. Tired of accepting outside circumstances as the norm, she made the decision to behave in a way that felt best for her… with no excuses and no apologies.
HOW HAS YOUR PROFESSIONAL LIFE AFFECTED YOUR NUTRITIONAL AND SELF-CARE CHOICES?
When I moved to LA I put on weight. Part of it was not biking everywhere like I did in Chicago in addition to working out, but a great deal of it was stress due to my marriage. I was told in order to book roles I should get fatter since I would only be cast as the “fat friend”. So I put on more weight. After a while I decided enough was enough and it was time to lose the west coast weight. Even though I was eating healthy and working out nonstop I still wasn’t dropping weight. I started to feel like this was the best I could do. This was how I looked.
HOW HAS YOUR PERSONAL LIFE AFFECTED THOSE CHOICES?
I would schedule cheat days and those would be the days I hung out with friends then indulge on everything I was denying myself the other days. Wine, chocolate, salt. My body was probably like “wait….ah! How do I…?!” Oy.
WHAT EVENT(S) INSPIRED YOUR CHOICE TO CHANGE?
I was married. It was bad. Then it got worse and worse. Then scary. Before my divorce I would drink wine to help me cope. I would eat healthy and then binge on crap. After my divorce I started suffering from anxiety. It was especially bad the week before my period. My throat would feel tight and I had a hard time swallowing. I tried medication but it made me very tired and I didn’t feel it helping at the root of the problem. So I went into exercise overdrive… doing cross fit and biking almost every day, but still nothing was changing. I felt like well maybe this is it. You just need to be satisfied that this is your lot and be content. Then I realized ever since my divorce I stopped accepting limitations everywhere else. I biked 545 miles from San Francisco to Los Angeles. I performed at amazing new venues. I did volunteer work; bringing my dog to nursing homes to visit with Alzheimer’s patients and the elderly. Why did I just accept that my body couldn’t change? I loved my new yoga studio where Shahada teaches. I heard about her cleanse and thought ‘what the heck?!’ I’ve tried weight watchers, other kinds of cleanses, can’t hurt to try! Man… not only did it not hurt… it was AMAZING!
WHAT CHANGES HAVE YOU MADE INTERNALLY?
Since the cleanse I eat clean. I cook everything. I still occasionally have wine with friends but not that often. PMS week used to be the challenge week, but now my cravings are a lot less severe and I breathe through them! I can pass right by chocolate and bags of chips in the grocery store and feel nothing. They’re like exes I’ve gotten over. I don’t even check their Instagram accounts. I sleep a heck of a lot better! I drink water and sometimes tea. My anxiety has all but disappeared. My throat doesn’t tighten and I feel so much better! I like to make a bunch of soups and smoothies, so that I have meals I can quickly heat up or drink. It also helps with my crazy schedule to have these on hand. It’s easy to turn down an unhealthy option when you have these little to go healthy meals.
WHAT CHANGES HAVE YOU MADE EXTERNALLY?
I haven’t really made any changes. I still hang out with friends I just eat healthy. When I travel I make my own granola rather then eating the plane snacks!
HOW DO YOU SEE YOUR CHOICES HELPING TO SHAPE YOUR FUTURE?
I hope to share this info with my nieces. I want them to feel healthy and strong as they grow up. As women we’re always being told what we look like is never enough. I want them to never accept limitations and just continue to be the amazing people they are their entire lives! Feeling good is a huge part of that. It’s certainly given me more confidence and in general helped me just feel better.
WHAT IS YOUR ADVICE FOR ANYONE LOOKING TO MAKE A HEALTHY CHANGE IN THEIR LIVES?
Do this cleanse! You will swear! You will cry! You will pull your hair out! Then you will feel amazing! Also beets are your friends. Every part of your body will thank you for introducing them to beets. Especially your bum.