Debbi Lawrence is passionate about three things in her life. There’s her husband, Don, of course. There are her eight bunnies that have their own special room in the Lawrence’s home just a mile from Lake Michigan on the north side of Kenosha, Wisconsin. And there’s her dream. A dream most people her age would have wrapped in brightly colored memories and put in the attic long ago.
At the age of 40, when most world-class athletes would have set aside their Olympic aspirations, Debbi is the third-ranked female race walker in the United States, and has been to three Olympics.
Never mind that she’ll be racing against athletes who are almost half her age. “I’m still competitive,” she points out. “I can still hold my own. And I’m taking the steps I need to reach my goal.”
“You know how they say you have to walk before you run? Well, I was just the opposite. I ran in high school. My senior year, I was fourth in the state in the mile, and that same year, set the girls’ mile record at my high school with a 5:08. That mark stood for 10 years.”
“When I graduated, I wanted to stay in Kenosha, so I went to Gateway Technical College. They didn’t even have a women’s track team, so I ran with the men’s team.”
Debbi’s resume reads like that of your normal everyday elite world-class athlete:
U.S. Race Walking Indoor Champion 1992, ’93, ’94, and ’97; among the top three finishers at the Olympic Trials in 2000; currently ranked third in the United States at 20 kilometers; placed fifth in the 1998 Goodwill Games in New York City, and so on and so forth.
Of course, what makes this level of performance even more remarkable is the age at which she’s doing it, a fact she tries to play down. “I’m lucky,” she says. “Part of the reason I can still compete is the sport I’m in. Walking is not running. Or swimming. Or playing basketball. You can stay competitive in walking long after you’ve passed your prime. Besides, if Michael Jordan can even think about playing professional basketball at his age, I can walk competitively at mine.”
One of the ways she overcomes the age issue is to train with male competitive race walkers who are in their 20s and preparing for races of their own. “The last thing they want is to be shown up by some woman twice their age,” Debbi laughs. Needless to say, she tries to show them up. “I think I push them as much as they push me.”
“All that pounding my legs were taking running was taking its toll. My knees started falling apart. I knew I was going to have to quit running. How would I fill the void? By that time, I’d done two things that would answer the question. I transferred to the University of Wisconsin, Parkside, which is also in Kenosha, and most importantly, I met Don. He was a runner who’d become a walker, and I thought he was so cute with that funny little stride he had to do. Anyway, he and my coach convinced me to try competitive walking.”
Debbi reaches into one of her bunny condos. “They call us the bunny experts of Kenosha,” she says as she pulls out Mabel Precious, a cute little mini lop who’s blind in one eye. She strokes the thick black and white coat as Mabel lays her ears against her back and cuddles against Debbi’s arm. “You know what really got me excited about going to Australia in 2000? It wasn’t that it was the Olympics or the pageantry or competing against the world’s greatest athletes. It was seeing the koalas and kangaroos.”
Debbi loves animals. She’s also a vegetarian. And, yes, the two are connected. “My vegetarianism is an animal compassion issue. I love animals, all animals. I don’t have the same emotional attachment to fruits and vegetables.”
Of course, meat has important vitamins and minerals that may or may not be readily replaced by eating the world’s flora, and every vegetarian, especially the vegetarian athlete, understands the importance of getting them into your diet in some way, shape, or form.
“You can’t just fill a blender with whatever’s in season,” Debbi says. “You have to be very careful about what you eat, and you have to take supplements to help fill in the gaps. Of course, supplements are wise for everyone, whether you’re a vegetarian or not. But athletes, especially world-class, competitive athletes, have to be careful about what supplements they take. The wrong ones can do as much, if not more, harm as not taking any at all.”
Elite athletes have high expectations for themselves. In 1992, at the Barcelona Olympics, Debbi learned how to put them in perspective.
“My parents actually went to Barcelona. They had chosen stadium tickets over the less expensive road tickets because they wanted to see me finish the race as opposed to watching any other portion of the 10k.”
“It turned out to not be such a good race for me. I went out early with the lead group, and at 5k, was thinking I wouldn’t be able to finish. My teammates, whom I had beaten a month earlier to win the Olympic Trials, were passing me. I just wanted to quit.”
“There was a hill that led into the stadium. As I approached it, I thought if I could just make it to the top, my parents would get to see me finish, which was the reason they bought the more expensive tickets. As I entered the stadium, I got goosebumps throughout my body. I was in 26th place, and in the true spirit of the Olympics, the crowd cheered me on as if I were in first. They were on their feet, cheering, and did the same for the athletes behind me. It was the most incredible experience.”
“That experience of not wanting to quit has stayed with me throughout my other Olympic endeavors. I would have never experienced it had I stopped before that hill in Barcelona.”
Like most world-class athletes, Debbi is associated with several sponsors, but her relationship with The AIM Companies™ is a very special one. AIM products form the nutritional cornerstone of Debbi’s training regimen. “I’ve concentrated on natural products because they’re so important to my success,” she says. “Imagine someone who walks 12½ miles as fast as they can not having the right shoes. Chances are they wouldn’t last half the race. The same is true for the right nutrition.”
Her training diet is strictly balanced to 30 percent protein, 30 percent fat, and 40
percent carbohydrates. When her trainer first proposed it, the fat requirement startled her. “30 percent is a lot of fat,” she thought. “I was afraid I wouldn’t be walking around the track, I’ll be waddling around it.” But, as her coach pointed out, the fat content gives her the endurance to walk every one of those 12 miles as fast as she can.
A typical daily menu around the Lawrence household includes oatmeal, protein powder, a bagel, olive oil, soy milk, honey, V-8 juice, and AIM BarleyLife™, AIM Just Carrots®, AIM RediBeets®, AIM PrepZymes®, AIM Proancynol® 2000, AIM Bear Paw Garlic®, AIM Herbal Fiberblend®, and the most recent addition, AIM Frame Essentials™.
“Okay, I’m sorry if this sounds like a commercial,” she says, “but AIM’s products are great. Take AIM BarleyLife™. It helps balance my system before and after I work out.”
“Exercise creates acids in the body, and BarleyLife™ neutralizes those acids. The AIM RediBeets® and AIM Just Carrots® help me maintain the healthy iron-rich blood I need. And the other AIM concentrates promote overall joint, muscle, and cell health. The overall benefit has been a huge boost to my immune system and muscle recovery.”
It must be working. At the 2001 World Track and Field Championships in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, in August, Debbi was the highest American finisher in the 20-km walk, beating a number of women who have yet to see their 30th birthday, to say nothing of their 40th.
“People are always saying you’ve got to be young to be vibrant,” she says. “You have to be young to be competitive. I don’t buy that. I’ve found my fountain of youth, and I don’t have to quit competing just because everybody says so.”
“You have to throw out your belief system,” she continues, the passion in her voice growing. “I don’t care if you’re racing around the track or after the kids. Change your diet, exercise, take the right supplements, and you’ll feel better.”
And if there’s anybody who knows about keeping up with a bunch of kids, it’s Debbi Lawrence.
Teaching and reaching out to others
By Dr. Yu-Shiaw Chen, AIM Chairman’s Club Member
Stony Brook, NY—From her earliest days as a child in Taiwan, Dr. Yu-Shiaw Chen recalls helping her mother take care of her grandparents and younger siblings. By the age of five, she was already demonstrating entrepreneurial and leadership skills by tutoring her younger sisters, and by eight, she was cooking for the entire family.
Yu-Shiaw’s strong sense of responsibility and devotion to others are traits that have followed her throughout life-eventually leading her to the prestigious rank of Chairman’s Club at AIM.
Bringing honor to her family
A good student, Yu-Shiaw attended a very highly ranked all-girls high school in Taipei. She brought honor and pride to her family when she eventually went on to earn a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in botany from the National Taiwan University.
After graduation, she joined the ranks of her alma mater as a faculty member and taught plant physiology for five years, while co-authoring a laboratory manual for her students to use.
But Yu-Shiaw’s mother had always encouraged her daughter to go abroad, expand her horizons, and pursue advanced study. Yu-Shiaw dreamed of coming to the United States. Then, one day, just as she was making these plans, her mother died in a tragic traffic accident.
Determined to fulfill her responsibility and bring further honor to her family, Yu-Shiaw remained in Taiwan for two more years, putting her own dreams on hold, while she continued to take care of her family.
Early dreams fulfilled
Finally, in 1976, Yu-Shiaw was offered a scholarship to attend the Mount Sinai School of Medicine at the City University of New York. It was the opportunity of her dreams! Now married with a child of her own, Yu-Shiaw eagerly accepted the position and prepared for the move to New York, where she eventually earned her Ph.D. in biochemistry.
Her work as a biomedical research scientist was fulfilling. During these years, Dr. Chen authored no less than 19 papers that were published in scientific journals, and worked at two prestigious biotechnology companies-all the while, adjusting to American life as a working wife and mother, and maintaining close contact with her family and culture in Taiwan.
Her ‘scientific’ discovery
In those early days as a research scientist, Dr. Chen began to hear more and more about a green barley product. At first, her sister in Taiwan mentioned the product, and she asked Dr. Chen to find this American product and send it to her. She located several jars of the ‘funny-looking green barley powder’ and sent it off to her sister in Taiwan.
Then, one day while working in the research laboratory, Dr. Chen’s boss came into the lab with a jar of green barley. He handed the jar to Dr. Chen and asked her to analyze its contents. After extracting the active ingredients of the green powder, Dr. Chen was simply amazed by the results.
“The results showed very strong antioxidant activity,” said Dr. Chen. “I was very excited and eager to show my boss the results.”
Coincidentally, Dr. Chen began to hear personal testimonies of others that used the product. Even her sister said to her, “You keep sending this green barley product to us, and now, you must try it for yourself!”
Her first steps
At that time, Dr. Chen was experiencing some difficulties with anemia. And it’s no wonder-Dr. Chen was extremely busy with raising a family, working full-time, authoring research papers, and keeping close ties to her family in Taiwan-all the while adapting to life in America.
When Dr. Chen read about the high iron content of green barley, she began taking it immediately, and elected to drop her daily iron pill. Three months later, at her doctor’s visit, her physician was in for quite a shock! Her hemoglobin count was significantly improved. She did not need to return to the doctor.
Looking at the great results, Dr. Chen began to ponder the contribution she was making in life. She recalls thinking: “I could spend the rest of my life conducting superb lab experiments and writing scientific papers, but what kind of contribution am I really making to mankind? Am I really helping anybody?”
Vegetarian lunches…and more!
With this realization, Dr. Chen quickly expanded her educational horizons in the area of nutrition, earning her certificate in nutrition from American Health Science University. She began to focus on diet and lifestyle changes along with the AIM products.
Nutritional counseling and coaching has become a highlight in Dr. Chen’s outreach. She also teaches Chinese fragrance exercises where she has an opportunity to meet with others who are interested in new approaches toward improved health.
Almost everyone, with whom she comes into contact, receives an invitation to one of her ‘famous’ vegetarian lunches. At these monthly lunch meetings that she hosts in her home, Dr. Chen begins by serving a refreshing drink of AIM BarleyLife® or the AIM Garden Trio®. Not only does this capture everyone’s attention, but it has become the perfect way to get everyone talking about good nutrition. “The results have been phenomenal,” claims Dr. Chen.
Ever the teacher, Dr. Chen has taught AIM Teleclasses™ and has also conducted nutrition classes for her local community school district. One of her most popular classes is a 10-week weight loss course.
But teaching and counseling is not enough for Dr. Chen. She also travels widely to do public speaking about lifestyle and nutrition. Even her sisters in Taiwan participate by arranging public speaking engagements for her when she visits her native homeland.
Wherever she goes, Dr. Chen attributes her success to others who are eager to learn more about nutrition-and about the AIM products. “AIM has provided some very important tools, from the excellent products, to the AIM Teleclasses™, to the methods for building downline. I couldn’t have done it without the AIM company,” she notes.
Giving thanks!
Above all, Dr. Chen feels most thankful for her AIM directors and downline, for their endless support and encouragement; and, for her husband, Kenneth Hsieh, who has been there for her since the very beginning.
But she says, “Being an AIM Member for 12 years and becoming a Chairman’s Club Member is a great achievement, but I’m not going to stop there. My mission is still to improve as many people’s lives as I can through nutrition and education.
Dr. Chen is planning to write a book about her nutritional counseling experiences, and we all look forward to reading it. But for now, Dr. Chen continues to bring honor to her family-her AIM family-as a distinguished Member of the AIM Chairman’s Club!