What the video of her story.

What the video below to hear their story.

Watch this quick video and see how the CHIP program produces amazing results for people who are willing to make some safe, simple lifestyle changes..

It’s never too late to take charge of your health!  You owe it to yourself to check out CHIP for your own peace of mind and for those you love.

Attend a Free Information Session to learn more about CHIP, register for the program and schedule a HealthScreen:

October 18 at 6-7 pm

Kelowna Lifestyle Center, 1130 Springfield Rd.

October 19 at 6-7 pm

Kelowna Lifestyle Center, 1130 Springfield Rd.

October 22 at 6-7 pm

Kelowna Lifestyle Center, 1130 Springfield Rd.

Fees

$295/person ($275)*

$475/couple ($440)*

returning alumni free lectures

*early bird

Limited seating, register early!

Call for information:

Larry – 250-764-8638

Susan – 250-712-2006

Gerry Bakker – Kelowna

I had a heart attack in 2003 that,  statistically ,  should have killed me. My odds of surviving were 50/50. I knew this statistic from previous study and I was horrified at the possible consequence of the predicament I found myself in. I was confused and upset because I had done everything right – I thought. I had  faithfully  eaten the Canadian government approved “Heart Smart” diet – I had kept thin – sort of – I never had any pains or big medical problems. I never smoked and I only had a shot of booze on birthdays. I was always careful. I had no hint this was coming and then BAM!!! I was on the floor – dead – almost.

I was in the middle of the first battle of my life where I knew I was no longer in control. I’ve had my trials and tribulations in life but I always felt in control – there was always tomorrow to finish what I couldn’t finish today. There was always a sense of security knowing that I was healthy and able to cope with whatever came my way. I always slept well knowing I’d wake up in the morning and that I’d done whatever I thought I should have in the previous day to justify my existence. I had always “known” that I was going to be at least 80 before I would have to deal with any of this personally. I’d made it to 48 years of age without a hitch – I was almost immortal – I thought.

Suddenly there was a good chance that there was no tomorrow and there was a realization that everything I had come to take for granted didn’t count for anything anymore. Everything I knew previously now had no place in this situation. Everything I believed about myself had no meaning. I was completely cut loose – adrift – wondering if I’d ever go home again. For 3 and 1/2 days I waited in a hospital be for the angiogram that would show the doctors and myself how badly my pump had been damaged by this event. For 3 and 1/2 days we cried, we worried, we prayed. These were some of the longest days of our lives. We shared our collective pain and my pain was magnified a 100 times in the eyes of those who came to see me – possibly for the last time – in my life. We worried – how would my family survive without me? How would we pay the bills? What would life be like without me?

Not knowing was awful – it was the worst – it seemed to suffocate all hope, all life,  out of all of us. We all knew that from this point on that nothing could be taken for granted and that each moment might be my last. We felt compelled to say our part and make peace with whatever had been put off for whatever reason in the past. We all groped for a sense of meaning and reason for the struggle we all found ourselves in. We said what we had to say to each other and then we sat there waiting …… waiting for the judge’s proclamation and the inevitable executioner’s next blow. Those were dark days. Waiting for news – any news. All I could say or pray was “God have mercy on my soul” it was simple and there wasn’t anything else left to say. God knew my heart – I simply didn’t need to dress it up any more than that.

I finally had the angiogram and discovered that I had 3 blocked arteries around the left side of my heart. They were blocked 90, 80 and 70% – thankfully they weren’t completely blocked but my heart was complaining as it struggled to get enough oxygen to breath and faithfully pump blood throughout the rest of my body. I suddenly felt hopeful – maybe a pill would fix it – maybe a stent would fix it – at least I wasn’t going to die yet. And then they declared – you need triple bypass surgery – immediately. They stepped back expecting a big scene – I expect – but I just laid there grinning from ear to ear – I felt like I had won the lottery. All I could think is – god is good – thank you.

When I returned to the room and my waiting family they must have thought I was on happy juice because I was literally jumping for joy. I felt relieved – the unknown didn’t own us anymore.

A number of people have asked me “Weren’t you scared of dying?” My answer to all of you who ask this – no – I am afraid of surviving – the pain and struggle of surviving was much worse than the peace I experienced dying. In the 2 weeks that I spent on the cardiac ward I witnessed more suffering than I could have imagined – many of these people were surviving but their existence was hideous. In the subsequent months of painful and pitiful recovery after open heart surgery I personally experienced even more physical and emotional suffering than I could have imagined.

Life has changed a lot for my family and I. We still struggle from day to day with all of those normal things that everyone else struggles with but we do it with a thankfulness that we are all still together. We also realize that our time is probably shorter than planned and therefore more precious – hopefully not taken for granted as much as it once was. We also changed a number of things that we have control of in order to improve our odds for a pain free life with as little physical suffering as possible. I spent the next  8  months reading, recuperating and getting very upset that most of what I suffered could have been prevented by a change in diet and exercise.

Nobody told me and I can assure you that I would have listened if it had been spelled out to me – I’m not stupid and I didn’t think I was ignorant about health issues but now I know I was because nobody told me and because I believed all of the self serving propaganda delivered by every special interest group representing different food industries. I became so incensed by this realization that I published a new website dedicated to educating the public about just how gullibly we are being led to slaughter and how 90% of the physical suffering that we experience in North America and Northern Europe can be avoided. 80% of the world’s population are too poor to be able to afford the kind of calorie and protein intense processed foods that we eat which result in over 20 leading killer diseases that only the affluent suffer from and yet those poor people lead long healthy lives never bothered by osteoporosis or diabetes or heart attacks. All of this scientific knowledge is supported with factual research and no doctor I’ve asked can refute it – the evidence is clear – we all need to take better responsibility for our lives and personal health welfare. The most startling thing to me was how easy it is to do – we all just need a reason – mine is simply that I don’t want to suffer like this again if I can help it.

The next challenge was how to get the education that I needed to change my lifestyle. Most of the books I had read were great but they had some very exotic recipes with foods not available in our area. The books also showed me what was wrong with all of the boxed foods sitting on store shelves – too much salt, too much sugar, etc. When my wife and I first started visiting grocery stores to try to buy great tasting food that was healthier we literally sat down in the grocery isle and cried – we cried out of frustration – there didn’t seem to be anything that met our new healthy criteria. We felt doomed.

Fortunately, we had several friends that had attended a mysterious set of classes called CHIP (Coronary Health Improvement Project) and they raved about the way it had changed their lives and how they had learned all about the food facts and easy recipes for successful lifestyle changes that we were struggling to put together ourselves. They showed us how we could dramatically improve our health in as little as 6 weeks and how easy it was for them to accomplish.  We decided to give it a try and attended the CHIP program’s evening classes for a month with the hope that if 21 days sets a habit then an extra 7 days would probably set it in place with us for life.

The classes were amazing – easy to do – watch an informative video for 30 minutes and then discuss it and share ideas on how to implement what we learned into our lives. This was followed by a great tasting meal served by our hosts and after the meal we were asked – what was in it? That in itself was a great education with lots of laughs and memorable observations regarding the meal and how easy it was too prepare and how it would help us maintain or improve our health. On the way out of the door after each session we would receive the recipes for the great meals we had just received. This technique spread over 4 weekday nights 4 weeks in a row provided us with what we needed most – a sustainable menu of 16 NEW family meal favorites.  Every family has their favorite 5 to 10 meals that get rotated throughout the month – making for easy meal planning for mom. This was our replacement meal kit to comfortably take us from a state of ignorantly unhealthy to the new and gloriously informed and healthy lifestyle change that didn’t cost us more or make us go to strange places for food. We could shop in the same old places we did before but now we knew where to find all those great foods we had previously walked right by without noticing.  Without the CHIP program we would never have figured this out before we would have given up in frustration.

Change is hard – sometimes – but with the CHIP program it was easy – much easier than we had thought.

It is now over 6 years since we first took that CHIP program and I am pleased to say we are still using what we learned every day and my family’s health has improved beyond our wildest imagination. As an example, I lost 30 pounds, I stopped snoring, my blood work shows my previously stressed and atherosclerotic arteries have stopped complaining and may actually be reversing/healing the damage previously done by my previous lifestyle choices. People who have not seen me for 10 years say I look younger and better than I ever have – they weren’t aware of my traumatic event. Friends of mine who have followed my lead now look 15 years younger than they used to and report feeling better than they can remember ever feeling. Other friends of mine who didn’t follow my lead have consistently shown marked signs of aging, obesity and physical stress – replacing knee joints and hips joints or suffering from unexplainable back pain. Others have developed diabetes, lost vision in their eyes and other avoidable problems. The longer I live with my CHIP program lifestyle the more I see the benefits of its simple lifestyle changes in my own life and in the lives of others who choose to follow it or ignore it.

I challenge anyone, who may have the good fortune of reading my testimony to CHIP’s importance in my life, to make a commitment to change their lives for the better by simply attending a CHIP program – the program will give you the tools you need to permanently change your life for the better and probably reduce your physical suffering significantly. It worked for me and 1000’s of others.

When people understand more clearly the cause/effect relationship between diet & exercise and disease, they become increasingly motivated to make changes. CHIP informs, motivates and then supports the needed changes.

More than 20,000 graduates from four continents know how CHIP changes lives. A few simple, painless and deliberate lifestyle choices can make all the difference in the world. What are the results of adopting the CHIP lifestyle?

• Reverses and normalizes diabetes
  Half of Type II diabetics can be off their insulin within 8 weeks. Oral medication can also be reduced and sometimes eliminated.
• Reduces stroke risk
  CHIP decreases the risk of stroke which is often more disabling than a heart attack.
• Normalizes blood pressure
  Most persons being treated for hypertension can decrease and sometimes eliminate their need for medication.
• Lowers cholesterol 10-20% or more
  This means a 25-50% decrease in your risk for a heart attack. Persons being treated for high cholesterol can usually decrease and sometimes eliminate their need for medication.
• Decreases the risk of osteoporosis
  Following the CHIP lifestyle can markedly reduce the risk for this major cause of disability in later years.
• Improves digestion
  Many experience less discomfort and more regularity.
• Lessens depression
  Increased exercise and better sleep usually help lessen depression.
• Lowers weight
  That’s right, eat like a horse and still lose weight – for a lifetime, not just a few months.
• Enhances the overall quality of life.

CHIP participants attend classes that meet four days a week for four weeks. Class lectures are dynamically presented by Dr. Hans Diehl in a compelling video series complete with superb graphics, illustrations, and humorous stories. Local presentations provide for live interaction, heart-healthy recipe samples, and lots of fun.

Week 1
Modern Medicine: Miracles, Medicines, & Mirages
The limitations of high-tech medical approaches in dealing with lifestyle related diseases.

Portrait of a Killer: Onslaught from Within
Atherosclerosis, the culprit, in many lifestyle diseases.

Stalking the Killer
Reviewing the risk factors for coronary heart disease.

Eat More and Weigh Less
Basic guidelines for healthy, sustained weight loss.

Week 2
Going Up in Smoke
Smoking—the most controllable risk factor for coronary heart disease.

The Magic of Fiber
The role of fiber in preventing and reversing lifestyle diseases.

Reversing Hypertension
Changing the major risk factors for high blood pressure.

Disarming Diabetes
Lifestyle factors that can arrest or reverse diabetes.

Effective Cholesterol Control
Dietary factors that prominently affect blood levels of cholesterol.

Fats in the Fire
The role of excessive fat intake in lifestyle diseases.

Week 3
Fit at Any Age
Benefits of regular exercise in preventing and arresting disease.

Boning Up on Osteoporosis
Causes and prevention of this so-called ‘disease of aging’.

Lifestyle and Health
Clinical studies that demonstrate how lifestyle choices are related to health.

The Optimal Diet
Positive dietary guidelines for the prevention and reversal of Western diseases.

Week 4
Diet and Cancer
Dietary factors in the development and prevention of common cancers.

Atherosclerosis of the Mind
The importance of adaptability in achieving and maintaining optimal health.

The Gift of Forgiveness
How a spirit of forgiveness enhances emotional and overall health.

Building Self Worth
The development, preservation and role of self worth in a healthy person.

• Free Information Session—An opportunity to learn about the program, ask questions, register and sign up for HeartScreen #1.
• HeartScreen #1 (Pre-Test)—Includes a review of medications, fasting lipid profile and blood sugar, lifestyle assessment, height, weight, blood pressure and a heart healthy breakfast.
• 16 Video-CHIP Lectures—Classes meet four days a week for four weeks. Dr. Hans Diehl is the dynamic lecturer in this compelling video series complete with superb graphics, illustrations, and humorous stories. Local presentations provide for live interaction, heart-healthy recipe demonstrations with samples, and lots of fun. Participants receive a textbook, workbook, notebook, CHIP bag and water bottle. Here is a list of lecture topics during the 4-week program.
• Applied Nutrition Workshop and Shopping Tour (optional)—Teaches valuable grocery shopping and cooking skills.
• HeartScreen #2 (Post-Test)—Measures the changes in lifestyle, clinical outcomes, and medications over the 30-day period.
• Graduation—A celebration of progress with a special meal, diploma, CHIP pin and kitchen knife.
• Alumni Organization—Meets on a regular basis for learning, inspiration and encouragement.