One of my most loved programs, the 3-Way Elimination Reset, continues to create inspiring success stories.
P.T.
What was your goal when you joined the program?
I remember telling myself one thing very clearly before I started:
“My body needs a reset.”
I’m 26 years old, work in a corporate job, and spend almost all day in an office. I’m also vegetarian and have been living with PCOS for about seven years.
Ironically, it was my doctor who first introduced me to you seven years ago. He wrote your name on a small piece of paper and said, “Follow the way Sema Hanım eats. Healing is holistic.”
Back then, simply by following your social media content, I lost around 10 kg (22 lbs) and significantly improved my insulin resistance.
This time, though, I realized I needed more than information—I needed a mentor and the support of a group.
I kept telling everyone, “I’m not going on a diet. I’m simply organizing the way I eat.”
My goals were simple:
- Learn to eat nourishing, uncomplicated meals.
- Wake up feeling refreshed in the mornings.
That was all I wanted.
How did the program help you achieve your goals?
You completely changed the way I approach meal preparation.
Learning how to batch-cook, prepare food ahead of time, and make clean eating practical completely transformed my routine.
Since I don’t eat eggs or meat, I built my meals around traditional bean and lentil dishes, adding healthy fats. I followed that basic principle throughout the program, and your recipes were incredibly helpful.
Interestingly, I never weighed or measured myself before or after the program. I wanted to—but I didn’t even own a scale or measuring tape.
What I can say with certainty is that I rediscovered something important:
I have the right to choose what I eat.
And saying “no” isn’t nearly as difficult as I once thought.
“I choose not to eat that. I’d rather eat foods whose ingredients I know and that truly nourish me.”
Living in İzmir during wild greens season, I realized how abundant healthy food already is around me. You reminded me to appreciate that richness.
What physical and behavioral changes did you notice?
I don’t know my measurements, but I no longer wake up with a swollen face or puffy hands.
I’m much better at recognizing true hunger.
I almost never feel the need to snack anymore.
My skin is glowing.
My clothes fit more comfortably.
Most importantly, I no longer feel guilty after eating. I leave the table feeling light.
Who would you recommend this program to?
I’d recommend it to anyone who wants to reset both their body and mind, change their relationship with food, feel lighter, and leave every meal feeling happy rather than weighed down.
A.A.
Hello,
When I joined this program, my biggest goal was to finally quiet the constant confusion in my mind:
“I know I should eat healthy… I know all the information… So why can’t I actually do it? What should I eat? When should I eat? Is 16-hour fasting right? Or should I eat six meals a day?”
I wanted to organize all that chaos—and then turn it into a way of life.
During the very first live session, your warm smile, sincerity, and incredibly informative teaching helped me do exactly that.
Today is the last day of the program—but it’s also the first day of my new life: a life filled with energy, peace, and a healthy relationship with both food and my body.
I would recommend this program to every woman whose busy life and the overwhelming amount of conflicting information on social media have drowned out the voice of her own body.
Give yourself this gift.
End the confusion.
Thank you for lighting my path through your weekly live sessions and the thoughtful daily emails and documents that I know I’ll return to for years to come.
You helped me find my way out of a place where I felt completely stuck.
Please feel free to share my experience with your participants—I truly hope everyone gets to experience what I did.
Thanks to you, I spent three incredibly peaceful weeks.
Your constant smile, your determination to share everything you know without holding anything back, your balanced approach, your kindness, and even the psychological guidance you sprinkled throughout the program completely changed the way I look at life and at my own body.
I believe every woman should dedicate these three weeks to herself and reconnect with the voice of her body and soul that often gets lost in the rush of everyday life.
Knowing that I can always return to one of your programs whenever I lose my way gives me tremendous peace of mind.
Thank you again.
Take good care of yourself.
G.Y.
What was your goal when you joined the program?
My husband and I used to eat very poorly. Junk food was a regular part of our lives.
I wanted us to start eating healthier, but somehow we could never actually begin.
Two things finally motivated me.
The first was our one-and-a-half-year-old daughter.
I wanted her to grow up in a home where healthy eating was simply normal, and I wanted us to eat the same nourishing meals together as a family.
The second was my husband’s health.
His blood pressure had become dangerously high and simply wouldn’t come down. He woke up every morning with headaches, and I was becoming genuinely worried.
And honestly, I felt both of us needed to lose some weight.
How did the program help you achieve your goals?
Starting this journey together made everything easier.
Our kitchen completely changed.
We began cooking healthy meals at home, and there was so much more variety than before.
What physical and behavioral changes did you notice?
For me personally, the program felt like a solid healthy eating plan.
Eliminating gluten and dairy didn’t create any dramatic changes for my own body, although I did lose weight and become noticeably leaner over the three weeks.
But the changes in my husband were remarkable.
His blood pressure normalized.
His snoring stopped.
And both of those improvements happened before the first week was even over.
To us, those were incredible changes.
When we started reintroducing foods, we realized he doesn’t tolerate dairy products well.
We still haven’t reintroduced gluten.
By the end of the third week, my husband had lost approximately 7.5 kg (16.5 lbs).
I’d recommend this program to anyone who wants to be healthier. It’s very easy to follow, and you get to discover so many delicious new foods.
Anything else you’d like to add?
Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and experience. Thanks to your recipes, we’ve discovered so many wonderful new flavors. Simply following you on Instagram wasn’t enough for me. Joining one of your programs and having you guide us throughout the journey was such a pleasure. I look forward to joining your future programs.
With love,
A.B.
What was your goal when you started this program?
As someone with Type 2 diabetes, my primary goal was to lower my blood sugar levels. Before the program, my fasting glucose typically ranged between 125–160 mg/dL under my endocrinologist’s care. During the program, my fasting blood sugar dropped to 94–105 mg/dL, and my post-meal readings decreased to 105–120 mg/dL.
Along the way, I also started losing weight without really focusing on it. I began the program at 96 kg and I’m now down to 90.2 kg. My waist measurement also decreased from 105 cm to 99 cm. Weight loss wasn’t my main goal—I simply wanted to improve my health markers—but achieving both at the same time has been incredibly motivating.
I’ll have my blood tests repeated in May, and I’ll be very happy to share our success with you.
How did the program help you achieve your goals?
This was my second time trying an elimination program. During my first attempt, I followed a similar system but kept making little exceptions and tasting foods I was supposed to avoid.
This time, something changed. The first time yogurt was offered to me and I simply said, “No thanks, I don’t eat that,” I crossed an important mental threshold. After that, saying no to every eliminated food became surprisingly easy.
Feeling truly full and enjoying simple home-cooked meals gave me a sense of comfort. In the past, I forced myself to eat foods like zucchini because they were “healthy,” but I only liked them with yogurt. This time, I didn’t force myself at all. Instead, I chose vegetables that I genuinely enjoyed eating without yogurt.
What really made the difference was the Live Simply philosophy: eating when I was hungry, stopping when I was satisfied, and nourishing myself with balanced meals throughout the day. That simple approach helped me tremendously.
What physical and behavioral changes did you notice by the end of the program?
The first thing I noticed was my skin. It looked incredible. My husband even said, “You know when models and celebrities post makeup-free photos? Your skin looks like that now.”
Then the body changes began. I lost between 3 and 7 cm in different areas of my body and nearly 5–6 kg overall.
Another surprising change was my menstrual cycle. My period started two days earlier than usual, completely pain-free, and remained that way throughout. I also used to experience itching in my genital area before my period, and that disappeared entirely.
Who would you recommend this program to?
I would recommend it to everyone—especially families with children, people who wake up every day with headaches, those who say, “I ate something and now I’m itching,” people who are already very healthy, and of course anyone who thinks, “I could never live without cheese or yogurt!” 😊
Anything else you’d like to add?
I had actually started therapy because of my struggles with food. Thanks to this program and the way you explained everything, I came very close to no longer needing it. You motivated me so deeply that when my husband asked during the first week, “So, when does your elimination program end?”—whereas in the past I would have sighed and said, “Ugh, three more weeks…”—this time I replied, “I think I’m going to keep eating this way even after the elimination is over.”
For the first time ever, I didn’t have the thought, “The program is over—now I can go back to normal.” I woke up, boiled my eggs, made my salad, and had my breakfast—even though I still missed cheese.
I used to be the kind of person who would eat everything on the table out of fear that I might not get enough. Now, when I’m at a large gathering, I wait until everyone is served, put only what I need on my plate, eat until I’m satisfied, and stop. Sometimes there’s food left on my plate; sometimes I go back for more. I eat exactly what my body needs, I don’t eat the foods I’ve eliminated, and I don’t continue eating just because everyone else is still sitting at the table.
Once I realized this, I actually started accepting more invitations because I no longer felt deprived. Instead, I felt that my plate was something special—prepared just for me.
During the elimination, I was invited out for pizza. I ate my salad and dinner at home beforehand, went to the restaurant, ordered a coffee, and said, “I’m full—enjoy your meal!” Then I quietly observed everyone eating. I realized how much mindless eating was happening. My husband had already had something to eat two hours earlier and wasn’t even hungry, yet he still felt the urge to eat pizza simply because it was there.
Growing up in a large family gave me a scarcity mindset around food. In the past, if someone took a French fry from my plate, I’d immediately get up and order another serving because I was afraid there wouldn’t be enough. Now I know I have my own space. I know I won’t go hungry, and I no longer feel the need to eat as if I have to protect my food.
I never restricted the rest of my family during the program, but I prepared meals that suited me in the evenings. My husband gave up dairy alongside me, and since we didn’t keep bread at home, he naturally ate less gluten as well. He started choosing healthier options. Except for social occasions, he stopped overeating. When we went out for coffee, we used to order “sugar-free, flour-free” desserts. This time, even when I told him, “I’m not craving it—you can have one if you want,” he didn’t order one. Thanks to you, I learned to simply enjoy my coffee. And even though he wasn’t officially following the program, he lost weight too.
I used to make desserts at home with molasses and mulberries. This time, my period came so smoothly that I realized I didn’t crave sweets at all. During the entire program, I ate only a quarter of a Züber bar—and even then, I cut it into seven or eight tiny pieces and savored every bite.
Because I shared everything I learned with my husband, he now notices when I start eating absentmindedly. Sometimes he’ll gently remind me, “You drifted off—come back and enjoy your meal.”
My therapist has been incredibly happy with my progress. She told me she could clearly see that my awareness had increased and that my relationship with food had fundamentally changed.
Now the holiday is approaching. I was just talking to my sister. The whole family will gather at my mother’s house. My nephew’s birthday cake has been ordered, my mother has been asked to make her famous börek, and my sister asked if she should make bulgur salad and puff pastry snacks for me. Instead, the only phone call I made was to my bakery to reserve a loaf of buckwheat bread for the holiday.
In the past I would have thought, “I’ll at least taste my mom’s börek,” or “I know that bakery—their cake is amazing, I’ll just have a bite.” This morning, when my sister said, “You’ll at least taste some, right?” I laughed and replied, “Unless you bring me tiramisu from Italy, I’m not tasting anything!” Now, whatever I choose to eat has to be truly worth it.
I never stopped socializing. If I knew I’d be somewhere with tempting food, I simply arrived after eating. When I went out for breakfast, I brought my own gluten-free buckwheat bread, ordered menemen, and asked for tomatoes, cucumbers, and arugula. I enjoyed breakfast with everyone else without feeling restricted or constantly wondering, “What am I going to eat here?” I had three incredibly enjoyable weeks, and I plan to continue living this way for the rest of my life.
A year ago, I also completed a program with Gözde, the sister of my dear friend Gamze Aral. Looking back, I feel like I combined the best of both programs. From her I learned healthy hydration habits, and from you I learned how to say “no,” recognize true fullness, and trust my body’s signals. Honestly, I wish the two of you would create a program together!
One more thing—I have a dog, so I already walk at least two hours every single day. But during this program, even that wasn’t enough. I found myself going for extra walks without my dog, and on the days I didn’t feel like going outside, I’d hop onto my rowing machine because I had so much energy waiting to be used.
Thank you for your incredible energy, for everything you made us feel, experience, and discover.
I’m so grateful our paths crossed. Thank you so much.
F.C.
What was your goal when starting this program?
Hello, my primary aim when starting the program was to test whether I could do elimination and understand how long I could sustain it. As a reactive hypoglycemic, I have a troubled life. Especially rapid sugar drops at night were a significant problem for me — this really eased that a lot.
How did the program help you achieve your goals?
It genuinely contributed a lot for me. It both reduced my attacks and greatly decreased the bloating in my intestines.
What physical and behavioral changes do you notice in yourself as the program ends?
It did me good — taking back control felt nice, honestly. My goal wasn’t losing weight, but I think I lost 3 kilos too. Due to the timing and my busy schedule I couldn’t exercise during this process. If I could have, a bit more weight might have come off.
Who would you recommend this program to?
I definitely recommend it to reactive hypoglycemics like me. I also definitely recommend it to those who frequently experience a “carb vs. gut” battle in their stomach. They won’t be walking around with a huge belly after this awareness. A process that can definitely promise peace of mind.
Anything you’d like to add…
First of all, thank you so much for your effort and sharing. Your especially warm and calm posts were very soothing. Since you don’t share in a bossy or dictating tone, it became a process that made it easier for me to apply what you shared.
A.A.
What was your goal when starting this program?
I’d been consuming so much packaged food and carb-heavy food lately that my real aim was to fix my eating and lose a bit of weight too.
How did the program help you achieve your goals?
I definitely reached my goals. It’s been 22 days, I haven’t quit, I’m continuing, I’ve moved away from poor eating. I’ve become someone who can’t buy anything at the market without reading labels — as elimination was ending I thought “let me eat some cheese too,” but the labels didn’t satisfy me, so I didn’t buy any cheese.
What physical and behavioral changes do you notice in yourself as the program ends?
I dropped from 71 to 68 [kg], and I’d measured my waist and belly area — 5 cm came off each. Recently, if I hadn’t reduced my water intake, even more would have come off, but I think the biggest change in me is that since I can’t eat sweets, I’ve become an olive lover.
Who would you recommend this program to?
To everyone who wants to live healthily.
Anything you’d like to add…
Everything was wonderful, bless your effort.
B.D.
What was your goal when starting this program?
Honestly, it was to understand what I was doing and why. I closely followed you on your blog and Instagram. I read your books. Then, due to my condition, I started elimination with what I learned from you to reduce inflammation (we’d even emailed — I’d actually written asking you please keep writing 😉). Then I joined the program too, so I wouldn’t be doing something wrong or leave things incomplete.
How did the program help you achieve your goals?
My mind is much clearer about nutrition now. I understand that whatever and whenever I eat, my nutrition won’t fall short. I build menus more easily now, which made me more confident in myself, and this eased my mind a bit.
What physical and behavioral changes do you notice in yourself as the program ends?
My bloating decreased by 70% — at least I don’t reach the point of pain from bloating anymore. I think I’ll need to continue elimination a bit longer. Very interestingly, I realized I never used to understand when I was full. 😉 I’m slowly overcoming the habit of finishing everything on my plate. This might sound unrelated, but today I auditioned for a solo performance at a concert, and beforehand my heart was about to stop. Then I told myself the body thinks it’s in a battle. I did breathing exercises (something I’m always a bit skeptical about), my body calmed down, and I finished the performance without my legs trembling. So I think I’m starting to understand what awareness actually means. While there, I just listened to the songs, tried to stay in the moment. I had fun, and I’m grateful for that. Also, even though I’m premenstrual, there’s incredible joy over me. A friend recently said, “there’s no one around me who says they’re doing well.” For the first time in a long while (I’m going through a very hard family period), I genuinely said “no, I’m doing well.” I feel good. These days I’m waking up without an alarm. I get up more refreshed.
Thank you so much for your effort, truly. Both Deniz Hanım and you were very kind and understanding.
Who would you recommend this program to?
I’ve already recommended it today to friends who complain about bloating and body aches. 😉
Anything you’d like to add…
It’s very clear you do this work to be beneficial to people and love it a lot. This energy transfers to us too. Looking at the program, I understood that you share most of this with us for free on Instagram too. Those without means benefit from it. God bless you, may your happiness be lasting.
N.İ.
What was your goal when starting this program?
I’ve valued healthy eating since childhood, but especially when going through emotionally hard times or under stress, I eat uncontrollably, and I never liked doing this to myself. Also, drifting 3-5 kilos away from my ideal weight during such periods and constantly having the thought “I have weight I need to lose” occupying my mind had started bothering me as something I needed to overcome. When reading who your program was suited to, the parts about chronic dieters and emotional eaters caught my attention.
How did the program help you achieve your goals?
I’m someone who loves sweets — chocolate, milk-based or syrup-soaked desserts, I’d eat them with pleasure without discrimination. At first I thought I’d definitely have a chocolate slip-up during the program, but I never had a single slip-up, and I didn’t even crave it. This is a big success for me (I might have had 3 servings of dried fruit some days by eating a serving of it).
Regarding benefits I wasn’t aware of, which I noticed as Sema Hanım explained them:
I didn’t get an allergy test, but I get a lot of sinus drainage in spring — I never experienced this.
I used to get throbbing headaches 1-2 days a week; I didn’t have a single headache during this process.
What physical and behavioral changes do you notice in yourself as the program ends?
I admit I didn’t really do portion control with anything except fruit — if I felt I wasn’t full, I ate. So I only lost 2 kilos, maybe I would have lost more if I’d been careful. I had an important exam I was studying for and didn’t want to be hard on myself. But I definitely slimmed down — my cellulite decreased, for example.
Behaviorally, my husband is used to my diets — he asks, “what time is your meal,” and I say, “I don’t know, whenever I get hungry, I haven’t gotten hungry yet.” He was surprised this was the case, saying “oh, this one’s different.” Normally I used to think I needed to eat if 4 hours had passed since my last meal, but now I listen to myself, not the clock. I eat whenever I get hungry.
Who would you recommend this program to?
I think everyone should join. I’m someone very interested in healthy eating, I research, I learn, but in this program I learned so many things I didn’t know before, and the best part is its sustainability.
Anything you’d like to add…
Thank you so much for everything, listening to you, watching your smiling eyes was very enjoyable. I hope I get the chance to join your other trainings too.
N.C.
What was your goal when starting this program?
With the pandemic period, my eating habits got seriously disrupted and I gained quite a bit of weight. My primary goal for this program was to do something for myself. A person doing something for themselves and putting in effort for themselves… Just this feeling alone feels really good. And of course, to fix my disrupted eating habits, create a life standard for myself, and lose the weight I’d gained back.
How did the program help you achieve your goals?
Your guidance and explanations were very illuminating and directive, and also incredibly motivating. I learned what, why, and how to do things. I took pages of notes in every one of our live Zoom meetings. I think the emails coming from you every morning also supported us in staying connected. From day one, I stayed almost 100% faithful to our program.
What physical and behavioral changes do you notice in yourself as the program ends?
Physically I lost about 4 kilos, but looking at my clothes and even my reflection in the mirror, it’s as if I slimmed even more than that. I feel physically very light and active. There’s no bloating or heaviness feeling at all, and this feels really good.
Behaviorally, I plan my next day every day, and every morning I don’t leave home for the office without preparing my lunch. I try to explain to everyone around me what a wonderful process this is and encourage them too. Not always, but I try to eat mindfully. When I crave something unhealthy, I immediately think about how I can make a healthy alternative of it. And now I read the label of everything.
Who would you recommend this program to?
Especially those with autoimmune conditions, but I think everyone who wants to incorporate healthy eating into their life should try this program. I was actually someone with a relatively high level of awareness who knew relatively well the concepts of right and wrong in nutrition, but I struggled to take action and sustain it. This program was a great source of support for me to be able to take action and maintain continuity.
Anything you’d like to add…
First of all, thank you from the heart for all your effort. It was a program better and more beneficial than I expected. I believe I got the maximum benefit for myself. Of course this is just a beginning, and I hope I can continue afterward too. But your approach of “get back up from where you fell and keep going exactly the same” gave me a lot of strength going forward. Thanks again for your guidance, your sincerity, your smiling face.
With love….
N.C.
Due to the stomach issues I was experiencing, my doctor recommended I eat gluten-free and sugar-free. I was thinking about how I could do this more properly. I had questions like how I should plan my meals. One day I saw on your Instagram page, which I’d followed for a long time, that you’d be opening the “3’lü Eliminasyon” training, and I happily chose to join. My expectation from “3’lü Eliminasyon” was to gain knowledge about how I could run the gluten-free and sugar-free process I’d already started on my own more healthily and correctly, by eating or not eating certain things. Also, I wanted to experience more of this lightness I felt in my stomach (which I’d started feeling with gluten-free, sugar-free eating). It was one of the most beautiful steps I’ve taken for myself in my life. What I learned from you created joy in me as if I’d found the missing piece of a puzzle. So much so that I started talking to people around me about you and about gluten, sugar, and cow’s milk. What I explained convinced them too — some of my friends gave up sugary and packaged food, bread, and started having salad for breakfast during this process.
How did the program help you achieve your goals?
First of all, I was enlightened about why we eat gluten-free and what gluten and sugar do to us. Then I got informed about what I could change in my current eating pattern to feed my body with healthier foods. I learned to check the labels of products sold under the name “gluten-free” or “healthy food.” I gained knowledge about how to plan my meals in terms of quantity or content. Healthy alternatives and recipes helped me a lot on this front.
What physical and behavioral changes do you notice in yourself as the program ends?
I could summarize this process as my perspective on eating changing. I used to act on things like “what did I crave today” or “I’ll eat that at this time.” I realized I saw eating as a kind of self-comforting tool. Yet the purpose of eating was to nourish my body. Now, eating with this perspective is a different experience. For example, I now plan my meals ahead of time. When eating something, I eat with the feeling that I’m doing something healthy and good for my body. And of course, continuing to experience that lightness feeling in my stomach is priceless. I continued losing weight during this process. I started thinking about eating with more mindfulness. Even if my phone is on the table, I don’t open and look at it — I’m trying to give up my habit of eating while watching something.
Who would you recommend this program to?
I recommend this program to everyone, but especially to people with stomach and intestinal complaints like me. To those who can’t find that lightness feeling inside them no matter what they eat, to those confused about what to eat.
Anything you’d like to add…
I thank you from the heart for your contribution to my life… I congratulate you along with ourselves, dear Sema Hanım. The knowledge you presented in the program’s content is very valuable, and the documents you sent by email guided me — I read all of them with curiosity. Of course I’ll have things to read again for guidance. Thank you again for opening this program from which I learned so much from you, and for the knowledge you share on Instagram. This isn’t a farewell, I’m still following..
Lots of love..
T.O.
What was your goal when starting this program?
Last summer was very hard for me — I lost my father. Three months before that, my father-in-law too. Afterward, unfortunately, other problems followed one after another. And I’d lost control of my eating. I was at the final stage of emotional, psychological eating. Right when I decided to finally take care of myself, Sema Hanım’s program came to my rescue once again. Since I’d previously joined the full elimination program, I already knew I’d get good results. Endless thanks again for this opportunity.
How did the program help you achieve your goals?
That compassionate tone of voice, eyes that look with love, combined with rich, wisdom-filled content, brought me to my goal step by step, preparing me along the way. 🙂
What physical and behavioral changes do you notice in yourself as the program ends?
Physically, first of all, my face definitely slimmed, and my pants got looser. 🙂 We weren’t supposed to look at the scale, but I couldn’t resist and looked 🙂 3.5 kg gone. Behaviorally, in for a penny doesn’t mean in for a pound anymore 🙂 and my hand and mind gravitate toward the greens and healthy foods that have re-entered my life.
Who would you recommend this program to?
Everyone should join, regardless of being thin, overweight, old, young. I even wish teachers would take it in schools and explain it to their students, because young people can turn their noses up when it’s their mothers explaining it. 🙂
Anything you’d like to add…
Thank you so much for this program you prepared with thought and a lot of effort. I’d taken the full elimination program about 3 years ago. I enjoyed this one even more. Honestly, I struggled more with the other one. I think it’s because coffee and eggs weren’t excluded, but of course it could also be because I’d already experienced it before. And I’d like to add this too — endless thanks for constantly renewing the program’s content and conveying your new experiences. Seeing you again, being together, was priceless. 🙂
