Hello, my name is Owen Clouston. I am the author and developer of the Mediterranean Fasting Lifestyle. I obtained my Bachelor of Sports, Sports Coaching degree in New Zealand and proceeded to build a successful career spanning over 20 years as a health care professional and personal coach working with a wide range of clients. My own experiences with the changes in the human body as we mature led me to develop a unique program. It has at its core a belief that there are no bad foods, just foods that need to be managed better. With this plan you adjust your daily choices rather than adhering to a restrictive diet plan to achieve optimal health at any age. It is my belief that a program should be easy to follow, require no special equipment and be customized for the individual that led me to develop the Mediterranean Fasting Lifestyle.
I have spent many years personally road testing several nutrition and exercise plans with various methodologies. Why? Because in 2017, after seeing my weight fluctuate between 85 and 92kg for 15 years, having to go on blood pressure medication and being told my cholesterol was over twice the healthy limit, I decided I needed to do something about it. Although I had helped so many others, I was not following my own advice. It was time to help myself.
So, I decided to use myself as a test subject to experiment with different weight loss and health orientated systems. My goal was to find a healthy way that would enable me to lose weight, improve my health, get off the blood pressure medication and reduce my cholesterol.
Did I lose weight? Yes, I did! I trimmed back to between 78 – 80kg. Unfortunately, it did not change my blood pressure situation or significantly reduce my cholesterol. In early 2018, a yearly blood test revealed my overall cholesterol had climbed to 6. Additionally, I had relaxed my attention to diet and my weight had climbed back up to 88kg. The cholesterol result did not surprise me, as this runs in our family, but is not helped by a craving and love of foods that increase it.
As a result, I decided to create my own eating plan based on continued research to find the perfect diet. After reviewing my previous attempt, I decided Stage 2 of the experiment would include:
Eating according to Timothy Ferriss' Slow Carb Diet four days per week.
Intermittently fasting for two days per week.
Have one free day per week.
Prior to the next blood test, I stepped things up and intermittently fasted for five days. The result was a resounding success: an overall cholesterol level of 5. Still high, but great for me. The downside was that it almost killed me to fast intermittently for five days straight.
In the following months, I pulled back and no longer fasted or used the Slow Carb Diet.
I did, however, shift back to eating from the Mediterranean diet as I really loved the food that is included in their plan. I did keep the one free day in place. Or was it 2 or 3? Surprisingly, my cholesterol remained between 5 and 5.5 for the rest of 2018.
However, in May of 2019, a routine blood test revealed my overall cholesterol was back up to 6. It was also no surprise that my weight was now hovering in the low 90’s. I fell victim to what happens to most people that go on diets. After reaching their goal, they pull back and as a result put the weight back on and then some. I became a yo-yo dieter.
The other lesson I learned was just how much of a psychological strain it was to diet or religiously follow any type of weight loss plan. Not wanting to give up, I went back to the drawing board. I decided that Stage 3 would need to be a solution that would:
Be effortless and easy to follow. Both short and long term.
Be effortless and easy to follow. Both short and long term.
Cause weight loss.
Reduce my cholesterol.
Something I could live with for life.
The new plan needed to be flexible, maintain the results and, as I said, be a plan that I could follow for the rest of my life. I started my new eating plan on June the 17th, 2019. In the space of 11 weeks, I dropped my overall cholesterol to 5 and lost 11kg.
Since my initial start, I have managed to keep the weight off. My cholesterol has fluctuated a small amount. I am still working towards coming off the blood pressure medication. Overall, however, I have reached the goals I set for myself in Stage 3.
Like you, I am a work in progress. Like you, I am determined to reach my goal. Why so confident? Because the Mediterranean Fasting Lifestyle (MFL) is backed by science and research.
MFL uses scientifically proven methods and techniques from medicine, science, and psychology. Not wishing to reinvent the wheel - instead choosing to create a whole new wheel. Testing and trying various aspects from a range of disciplines to provide a system that anyone can use.
To provide a simple and clear method for creating your own healthy lifestyle. One that improves health, aids weight loss, improves fitness and provides a better quality of life. Both now and forever.
The Mediterranean Fasting Lifestyle is not just about weight loss - though this will happen. It is about improving the quality of your health and in doing so your life.
