CATHERINE Burns, a Nutritional Therapist and the writer of "Food for Thought", a weekly column on health, is the developer of the highly successful Nutrifit course, an educational and fitness programme that has people changing their unhealthy ways and shedding unwanted weight. Mrs. Burn's course begins next Wednesday and now will be held in Hamilton during the lunch hour so that people can fit it in to their busy work week. The charismatic and funny wellness guru sat down with Mid Ocean News reporter Lindsay Kelly to chat about how she was bitten by the health bug and what her course can do for you.

Q: How did you get into nutrition?

A: It all started when I took a year off before going to university. I went to Uganda in Africa and worked on a volunteer environmental project for three months and then I travelled throughout East and South Africa with a friend. However, while I was in Uganda I got giardia (a parasite) and amebic dysentery (a severe stomach infection). We were on a really remote satellite camp in a game reserve and I got them both through the water source. We were sterilising the water with iodine tablets but that's not as efficient as boiling it and we couldn't boil enough water to drink. Having the two issues together left me with the most unglamorous combination of stomach issues - all the more embarrassing as we had to take a game guard with us to the "bog-pit" at night. It was reassuring to know that you weren't going to get eaten by a lion, but it's unnerving at the same time! Particularly as my guard tended to give me a running commentary. I remember one night he shouted out to me (after our fifth trip to the pit), "Ah, it sounds as if it is subsiding! Maybe soon we can get some sleep!" I think it was at that point I lost all my inhibitions when it comes to poo! Anyway, I was ill for the rest of the time I was in Africa but when you are 18, you feel you can do anything and I just carried on regardless. Towards the end of my time there, after multiple courses of antibiotics I started to feel permanently dizzy and sick.

When I got home, even though the illnesses had gone, I still had a lot of stomach problems. I saw doctor after doctor and one finally said that I just had irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and should learn to live with it. And I knew I couldn't live with that. I was 19 when I was diagnosed with IBS and I was scared of getting in the car in case I got stuck in traffic and couldn't make it to the bathroom. So I did a lot of reading and went to a nutritionist and found out that a lot of people become lactose intolerant after having giardia. (In fact, I was showing signs of being lactose intolerant before my experience in Africa but I was younger and just didn't realise what the signs were. I would throw up every time I time I ate ice cream but I thought it was down to the amount rather than because it was ice cream!) Anyway, I got rid of dairy and went through a lot of other measures to soothe and heal my digestive tract. It was then that I went from having an upset stomach twice a day, every day for two years, to feeling a million times better. I finally felt good and had some control over my body - and my life. And that's what prompted me to get into nutrition - I read more about it and went on to study it after I graduated from university.

Q: What did you study at university?

A: I studied anthropology, which included some medical anthropology that looks at different illnesses relative to different cultures. Then I went and did four years at the Institute of Optimum Nutrition based in London to become a nutritional therapist.

Q: What is the difference between a nutrition therapist and dietician - aren't they the same thing?

A: No. The way I describe it is that a dietician is there to help, not only with weight loss, but also with nutrition after significant medical issues. Nutritional therapy is more about fine tuning your health and preventive health measures. So I don't pretend to be a doctor and I don't diagnose or "treat" anything. But I can certainly help people with preventive strategies (for things like high blood pressure) and help fine tune their health - especially when it comes to migraines, irritable bowel syndrome, skin problems, hormonal imbalance - things like that. When it comes to weight, both nutritional therapists and dieticians can help you - just the routes may be slightly different. It's a little like trying to achieve flexibility through yoga or Pilates - both will get you results, but the method may differ. However, dieticians have a very clear qualification and there are many different qualifications within the field of nutrition. It's always critical to make sure that you consult someone who has a professional designation.

Q: When did you decide to do the Nutrifit Course?

A: Throughout my training, my job and private practice I have seen a lot of things that work when it comes to weight loss and an awful lot of things that don't. I spent so much time answering people's weight loss queries, but would get frustrated. There was always so much information to give, and never enough time to give it! So I just thought I want to take the best bits of what I know put it all together in a course. Also, when you put together a course, six weeks is long enough to establish a new pattern of habits with people. It helps to solidify the lessons that are being learnt.

Q: What does the course entail?

A: It's a six-week course during which people learn how to make healthy choices for the rest of their lives. A combination of nutrition and fitness. We cover fundamental aspects of nutrition such as portion sizes, but I also teach people about blood sugar, digestion, the difference between good fat and bad fat. We also look at maximising nutrient content through antioxidant-rich foods and look at the way that sleep and stress impact the body. It's a totally holistic approach to well-being and weight management. I've also created six weeks of family-friendly meal plans - just suggestions! - that make things easy. After the initial weigh-in and introductory nutrition and group training classes, then every Monday is the nutrition class and every Thursday is the group work out. And it continues that way for six weeks.

Q: This is the fifth Nutrifit course you've given since 2006. How's it going?

A: So far I've had 75 weight loss candidates go through the course and they have lost between six and 19 pounds each. I think the most powerful part of Nutrifit, and the reason why it has such good success is because during those six weeks I can really educate people about why they are making the changes they are making. For example, people think low fat is the way forward when low fat can actually be detrimental because Omega 3 fats can actually work to boost your metabolism. Instead, it's all about deciphering between good fat and the bad. I think when people actually understand why they are doing what they are doing, it becomes more motivating and the information and new habits stick.

Another success factor has been that the trainer is very good with training a group with mixed ability. And that's something I get told over and over again, the camaraderie of the group is great. It's great for accountability and it's great for making you feel better. It's fun to come to the classes and even if you are the most unfit or the biggest person on the course, it doesn't matter. You'll still be able to work out with the group; you'll just be doing it at a different rate or slightly different exercises.

Q: Who is your target audience?

A: There are two groups of people. My biggest audience is those who want to lose weight and have it stick. My aim here is to help people make permanent change. Losing weight is not easy. I think it's Oprah who says "I'm one of the wealthiest women in the world, if there was an easy way to lose weight, I would have discovered it by now and I would have paid for it." We all see her yo-yo dieting and unfortunately there is no magic bullet. Eating is a very emotional issue. I think the hardest thing is getting to a point of acceptance - where people know they have to make a lifestyle change and they are ready to do it. My job is to make that lifestyle change attractive - and Nutrifit does that. It shows you that by eating simple, healthy, natural food and by exercising regularly, you can look and feel fantastic. And it doesn't have to be hard or boring. Instead, the exercise can be fun and the food can be really tasty.

My other target group are people who want to learn about nutrition but don't necessarily want or need to lose weight. I always explain the relevance of our nutritional topics when it comes to weight loss, but as this is a holistic course, we look at much more than that. We look at how nutrition affects the whole body.

The course is also attractive for those who don't like or want to be in a gym. So I wanted to really show people that you can exercise anywhere. You don't have to pay expensive gym fees, you can exercise outside and there are a lot of natural elements you can use - like curb sides or climbing steep slopes and walking doing lunges. The walking lunges are a killer!

Q: Now, for the first time, you are holding the course during the work day instead of after work. Why?

A: I found that being a new mum, when on earth do you find time to exercise? My only time to exercise is during lunch hour and so I started thinking about how many other people must be out there that need to fit exercise into their working week.

So I developed a lunch-hour class which starts Wednesday, September 17. And the most practical place I've found that works for people during lunch is in Hamilton. For training classes, we'll be using the public green spaces around Hamilton.

Q: Do people run away from you when they see you in the grocery store?

A: (Laugh) Yes. Most people do run away from me and weave in and out of the aisle with their shopping carts but recently I ran into someone who was in my very first Nutrifit course and when I walked past her she said "Look! Look what's in my cart!" It was all the items I spoke about during our Nutrifit course and that was a year and a half ago. So that makes me feel really good to see, particularly when people's families are changing and their children are becoming healthier.

Q: What about treats? Please don't tell me it's all work and no play?

A: I think it's impossible for all of us to be good all of the time. When I was pregnant I was really worried that Chloe was going to come out with a Lays logo on her butt because I had a craving for Lays potato chips and I did give into that urge frequently! Fortunately, she came out a really healthy baby. However, when you are trying to lose weight, you have to be good 90 per cent of the time.

This allows for a few treats. Once you've got to where you want to be, then you can revert to the 80/20 rule and you have a little more room to maneuver. I do say to people though, when they cheat, cheat within the natural bracket. I'd much rather people have an organic chocolate bar than a bag of Skittles because if you are going to cheat then let's make it something that still has natural ingredients, rather than a multitude of artificial colours, flavours and a boat-load of sugar.

Q: OK, you're thin, you've always been thin - how can you help people lose weight if you have never had to do it yourself?

A: That's a good question. People have asked me that. I may have never have been overweight but I have been really ill. I know I have some funny stories about that time, but honestly, it was a thoroughly daunting and scary time, too. As melodramatic as it sounds, I felt so bad, for so long, that there were times I didn't think I was going to make it. But when you've been really ill and fixed it with nutrition, you really understand the power that it has and how it can radically change how you feel. It gives you a passion to help other people and I've got the educational background to help me pursue that passion. And just because I was never overweight, doesn't mean my diet has always been good. I used to have a sticky iced bun and a carton of Ribena every day for breakfast. Maybe some potato chips, too. I've come an awfully long way since then.

For more information or to register for the upcoming Nutrifit course, visit www.nutrifitbermuda.bm or call 505-4725.