LAKEWOOD – Seems like almost everyone, especially after the holidays, wants to lose weight.

I can’t tell you the number of times that’s been my New Year’s Resolution.

I have tried about every diet possible: Atkins, Nutrasystems, Weight Watchers, etc. Thanks to being held accountable by Julie Muhlstein at The Herald, when I worked there a dozen years ago, WeightWatchers worked the best for me.

Until now.

At the Marysville-Tulalip Chamber of Commerce Dinner and Auction in December, I was the high bidder on an item offered by Emily Countryman of Ideal Wellness in Lakewood. I had done a story on thatprogram a few years ago and decided to give it a try.

My first appointment there I told her my wife had done the 30-10 weight loss program. Emily told me the founders of 30-10 were part of Ideal Wellness but broke off and started their own business.They both are protein and vegetable diets, with no sweets or carbohydrates. Supplements make sure clients get the vitamins they need.

What makes Ideal Wellness better than the highly advertised 30-10 weight loss program, in my mind, is not only the lower cost but the lifetime of coaching. Once I reach my goal weight I no longer haveto buy their scientifically balanced food products, which cost $99 a week. They will put me on a plan of eating regular foods to sustain my weight. By the way, I’ve lost 27 pounds in six weeks, and eighttotal inches. My wife joined this week.

Once I reach my new goal, I will continue to go in to be weighed once a month. If I gain five pounds, I told them I will go back on the weight-loss program. That way, I should never weight more than fivepounds above my goal weight the rest of my life.

That has been a huge problem for me in the past. I’m a yo-yo dieter. I’d lose the weight but gain it back. Also, to help me for the rest of my life, Ideal Wellness coaches will be there to encourage me.Often times I will hit a goal, then stay there. Then get discouraged and start gaining. With a life coach, they can help push me through that wall.

The program is working much faster than I thought it would. I lost 16 pounds in the first two weeks, and 6 inches. Belly fat always has been hard for me to lose, but I lost 3 inches there and already amback into jeans I haven’t worn for years. My Body Mass Index is dropping fast, too.

I’ll admit the food, and the amount you eat, isn’t like going to a 4-star restaurant. But it does the job. And it works so well it’s easy to stay on. But I sure look forward to dinners when I can have up to 8ounces of lean meat and four cups of vegetables. It’s real food.

If you have a sweet tooth, Ideal Wellness has dessert products available as snacks that can solve that problem. There also are salty snacks, such as soy nuts, that I like.

I particularly enjoy the omelette, oatmeal and pancake mixes for breakfast and the soup mixes for lunch.

I’m not the only one who has done well on this diet. Many of the counselors who work there have lost dozens of pounds using Ideal Wellness. There are pictures all over the walls of before and aftershots of clients. And I’ve included mine in this story, even though I plan to keep going.