Each month, I base this column on a foundation of principles I established in 1997 when I set out to translate my own experience with self-transformation into a road map to help others. The result is a real-life process of shedding the modern mind-sets and self-sabotage that compromise our true potential and then rebuilding our beliefs and bodies in a whole new direction. Starting with this issue, I'm excited to share the stories of individuals who have set their own course for transformation with a boost from my program.

This month, I interview Better Nutrition's winner of my Total Transformation cruise, Gretchen McLlarky, who'll share the inner side effects of her seemingly surface makeover. Next month, Amy Montgomery tells us how she shed 85 pounds and regained her self-respect. In December, we'll hear from an executive in Houston who left behind an overflowing agenda to recover a part of herself she had buried since her teens.

To kick off this new series, I sat down with Gretchen McLlarky whose own self-discipline coming into my program made mc wonder if there was anything I could do to help her. I was surprised by all of the changes she made as a result of the program, but the big surprise to both of us was her reaction to her external makeover.

Gretchen McLlarky's New Perspective

KJ: Gretchen, you won a cruise after the first time you picked up Better Nutrition!

GM: Yeah, it was pretty amazing how it happened. I entered to win your cruise at my health food store, of course, not expecting to win. When you called me personally to tell me I'd won, I was shocked.

KJ: Did the experience help you?

GM: The meal salads were a standout, with organic dark greens, goat cheese and nuts to make them really unexpectedly satisfying. I had never tasted low-carb pasta, either, which was another surprise. My favorite was the angel hair with only garlic and oil and just the bit of pecorino cheese. When dessert was served, we often thought it was a mistake; they usually tasted too good. But they were always made with one of the sweeteners you told us about during your sessions: xylitol, stevia or lo han. There was a sneaky absence of sugar and starch in the menu because we were eating chips, chocolates and almond flour-based cookies, which tasted really good. I was never hungry, and I never felt deprived of what the other people on the ship were eating.

Quitting Coffee

KJ: Was any part of the program difficult or unpleasant?