Testimonials & Success Stories
SHIFTing Thinking
Meet Carlos
I may be 74 but I Feel 34!
I have been overweight all my life. I’ve lost weight many times, mostly through starvation or fear and sometimes badgering induced upon me by my weight loss program. I have never been able to keep any weight off for more than a year. MODA is different. Tony talks to members whereas other programs I’ve been on talk down to members.
I have been able to lose 55 pounds and no longer need any of the medications that held me hostage for the last twenty years.
Tony taught me how to eat REALLY well, no dieting, calorie counting or crazy restricted portions. He teaches sustained weight loss in an easy-to-understand way. MODA allowed the opportunity for my wife to be part of the process and she has lost weight too—25 pounds and kept if off almost three years—not to mention she’s off her medications. We eat better and, in many circumstances, more than before, and we have a clear understanding of what is processed food and what is real food. Tony cuts through all the nutritional confusion and has a gift of teaching that makes it fun to learn. He doesn’t judge, he’s here to guide us.
I’m approaching my third year of maintaining my weight loss without any fluctuations.
In fact, over a year ago I had was in what could have been fatal accident. Even though I am over 70 years old I was able to recover at twice the rate of guys half my age. The doctors were amazed and they attributed my speedy recovery to my overall health prior to the accident. I may be 70 but I feel like I’m in my thirties. From my wife and I: A big thank you for giving us the opportunity to truly enjoy our retirement. Mucho gracias!
Carlos & Sofija Durney, Toronto, ON
Retired Tradesperson
Meet Lorne
MODA is About Looking after My Current & Future Self
I never would have thought I would look forward to getting up early Saturday morning to listen to nutrition information. I am hooked to the MODA Saturday sessions with Tony; it’s a highlight of my week. The MODA program opened up my eyes about food, nutrition and weight management. I now question everything I eat and rightly so.
I have achieved my weight loss goals and maintained for almost two years—something I could never do on other programs.
The MODA way of eating and living has become contagious with my kids and grandkids too! It brings me so much joy to see our whole family reap the rewards of a healthier lifestyle.
Lorne L., Toronto ON
Litigation
Meet George
MODA Helped Me Avoid Going Back to Being Overweight Again
I have had a weight problem since I was 7 years old. I was the one at school that the other kids called “fatso.” I had to buy clothes in the “husky” section of the department store.
When I was in high school I tried jogging. That didn’t work. When I graduated university I joined a gym and started working out. I did this for most of my adult life. That didn’t work. When my doctor told me I had high blood pressure and I would have to take medication to prevent organ damage I knew I had to do something.
I joined a weight loss group in June 2013 and started to learn what I had to do to get myself to a healthy weight. The person who taught me what I needed to know was Tony Vassallo. His straight talk about eating real food and eliminating processed foods helped me to drop 40 lbs. over the next 6 months and in November 2013 I achieved my goal. I continued attending the group and maintained my weight for the next year. At this point I thought that I knew all I needed to know and that I had this weight thing beaten. I let other priorities take over and stopped attending the meetings.
Eighteen months later I looked at the scale to see that my weight had bumped up by 15 lbs. I was headed back to where I didn’t want to be!
In April 2015 I reconnected with Tony as he launched MODA Nutrition.
It took me a year of making excuses before I started attending his workshops on Saturday mornings but it was a great decision because now I am back to my goal weight and have been maintaining that weight for over two years
I know now that I can’t allow complacency to settle in again. If I do, I know that I will gain weight. If I stay connected with Tony and the support of fellow MODA members, I know I will be able to keep doing the things I need to do to keep the weight off and to stay healthy. Thanks Tony.
George Murray, Toronto, ON
Sales Executive (Manufacturing)
Meet Kevin
I was very physically active in my twenties and thirties
I was very physically active in my twenties and thirties. With the correct amount of diet and exercise, I was able to maintain a healthy weight for most of that time. But in the last ten years, as the weight continued to creep up, I lost my way. In the past, I was able to sweat it off but that was working anymore. A work colleague was able to lose 60 pounds without any exercise under Tony’s guidance and he highly encouraged me to contact Tony.
After some procrastination, I finally reached out and Tony was kind enough to meet me at a location near my office for a consultation. I was skeptical of the approach and whether or not I could do this. I figured “What do I have to lose?” I was done feeling this way and deep down inside it did seem to make sense. I committed to personal sessions with Tony and we kept in touch between sessions via email. I followed his program fairly religiously; I mainly focused on getting rid of processed foods, eating much more whole foods and actually ended up eating more food on a daily basis! I found his food variety and recipes included in the program very helpful.
Due to Saturday commitments I was not able to attend his workshops; however, with his remote support I was able to gradually lose 40 pounds in 6 months without being hungry or “dieting”!
I’ve stayed to the program’s approach to food on a regular basis and have kept it off for two years and counting without struggling.
Tony is very genuine and his program definitely works. I’ve learned a great deal from Tony about myself and my relationship to food. I firmly believe I can keep it off. I’ve kept in touch with Tony to help stay on track and learn new healthy meals. Thanks to MODA, I’m back to a healthy weight. I have a vitality I have not experienced in a good dozen years and am rediscovering all outdoor activities with friends and my spouse I could not do before. Thanks Tony!
Kevin K.,
IT professional
Mississauga, ON
Meet Jim
A Story of Relapse Turning into Recovery
For me, like so many people, maintaining a significant weight loss is a constant struggle. Five years ago, with the help of a men’s weight loss program, I lost over 175 lbs. Nearly half of my 370-lb frame disappeared in about 15 months. Little did I know at the time, this would be, by far, the easiest part of my journey.
In the ensuing two years, the realities of life gradually took over in ways I could never have imagined. The resulting stress from a failing business while providing constant care to a parent slowly dying of dementia led to a 70-lb weight gain. It took me almost a year to even realize what was happening.
It took another year of denial to finally ask for help
That’s when I made the call to Tony and admitted I needed help. I attended my first MODA meeting in April 2017 and knew immediately I needed to be here. I signed up that day. While the basic elements of the program were familiar to me, there were several key differences from what I had done previously to lose my weight. I quickly learned that losing weight the second time is much tougher. Attitudes and mindsets change. My goals are different now. I have different priorities then I did when I first began this journey.
MODA focuses on living a healthy lifestyle in a sustainable way that accommodates life’s daily obstacles.
Through Tony’s guidance and the support of my newfound MODA family, I have been able to lose 50 lbs of that 70 lbs I had put back on, notwithstanding a few bumps along the way.
Thank you, Tony. Thanks, MODA
Jim Crosby Oshawa, ON
Project Manager
“Change the way you look at things
and the things you look at change.”
― Wayne W. Dyer
More MODA Testimonials
John Hubbard
Insurance & Risk Management Executive
“I’ve known Tony for several years now and have always enjoyed his genuine passion for all things nutrition and lifestyle. He’s got a very real world approach and is constantly coming up with new ideas, researching better ways and means. Tony traveled the road of weight loss, has truly been “there” and is doing the right things now moving forward. He is a sharing individual who believes in collaboration and I find his approach very entertaining and easy to follow, understand and execute.”
Vince Gambino
Engineer
“Tony is always at the top of his game whether it be sharing creative tasty and nutritious recipes or for laying out effective strategies on how best to handle challenging situations.
Through MODA, Tony’s passion for health and wellness and his genuine care stand out. This is the reason why I am committed to sticking to what we’ve started. The success I’ve experienced speaks for itself. Keep up the good work, and thank you Tony. You make a difference! As a result of the program I’m back to maintaining a healthy weight and have kep it off for over two years.”
Robert W.
Accountant
“While every program works, none are as sustainable as MODA. I Came to MODA as a maintainer so I can stay a maintainer.” *maintaining 50 pounds lost for over 5 years
Meet Ian
Making Myself The Priority
I've been a MODA man for 6 months and am proud of myself for making the decision to join the community. Understanding, accepting and living the 9 pillars, along with Tony’s pragmatic, honest and authentic approach to this lifestyle change (NOT a diet!!) have been fundamental to my success. The program is what you make of it, and help from Tony and members of the group available as you want.
I’m down 50lbs already because quite simply, I take time to care about what I’m eating.
I’m very confident my I’ll achieve my goal weight in the coming months….which is when the real work will begin!
Ian, Toronto ON
Management Executive
Enzo Adesa
Security & Risk Officer
“Tony’s food variety ideas and program accountability help make sure I keep off the 60 pounds I lost. I’ve been maintaining my healthier weight for over5 years.”
Drew Goursky
Photographer
“Passionate. Knowledgeable. Caring. These are the three words that best describe Tony Vassallo. Tony’s commitment is why I am here today – his support through my personal transformation allowed me to achieve my health goals and his advice and personal touch is ensuring that I continue on the path that I set out on. I owe Tony my deepest gratitude – and my life. – His program has helped me keep off the weight and I’ve learned a great deal from Tony and his guest speakers.”
Meet Steve D.
Reversing The Weight Gain Creep
While I was able to maintain a healthy weight in my twenties, things began to change in my mid-thirties (kids and advancing my career both played a role I’m sure). The weight continued to creep upward into my forties and was impacting how I started to feel, not to mention being concerned about my health. I reached out to Tony of MODA who was referred to me by a good friend who was able to lose weight and keep if off under his guidance.
Tony customized a solution that was a blend of one-on-one support at my office and occasional
This worked out well for me as I learned a great deal in our sessions and from the MODA member emails while the workshops provided accountability and the group gave me a better understanding of the journey from others on a shared path.
Tony opened my eyes to what weight loss really is. My prior mindset was drastic food reduction, calorie counting and lots of exercise. He showed me it’s about changing the food I eat and the impact that processed food has on my health and how it caused me to gain weight.
Through Tony’s commitment to educating his clients in a very easy to understand way I learned the specifics of processed food and the addictive nature and the lengths the food industry goes to make people crave more. In fact I’ve learned so much that many people are coming to me for advice. I was pleasantly surprised how much I could actually eat and lose weight.
I was able to lose 50 pounds in under a year and kept it off for 3 years and counting. I’ve kept in touch with Tony to help stay on track.
As a result of the program I’m much healthier and happier. It’s impacted the wellness of my whole family. I have a much brighter future thanks to MODA Living. Thank you Tony.
Steve D.
VP Security Services
Toronto, ON
Age: 45
“Change the way you look at things
and the things you look at change.”
― Wayne W. Dyer
Inspiring Words About Tony
In his time with the Harvey Brooker Weight Loss Program for Men
Tony was the Director of member development at the Harvey Brooker Weight Loss Program for Men for over 3 years.
You were a very real part of my 18 months losing weight. I certainly respected your level of knowledge and enjoyed the fun/interesting ways in which you presented your material. T.M.
I’m sure you know how great an influence you have been on me in my journey, and I will never forget it. Thank you. B.R.
You are a big part of why I was successful and I always enjoyed and found the information you provided very informative and very useful. L.M.
You are an inspiration and in the perfect job!! D.S.
You have personality and charisma…you are an entertaining speaker. You bring added cache, because you are seen as a knowledgeable speaker in the matter of personal weight loss and nutritional knowledge. B.M.
If it wasn't for you I wouldn't be where I am today…Over 100 Pounds Lost & Healthy! - Thanks a Ton Tony! G.S.
Your coaching and information is what has helped me get to the point of my path that I am at and working on the future. P.S.
You have made a big impact on my life. S. H.
Tony your style and content are the added value that made things better. You have my utmost respect and support. S.M .
I am deeply appreciative for your help to me, to beat something I did not know how to tackle. J.V.
For me, you were the most inspiring person. P.D.
I credit much of my success to your insight, enthusiasm, and food knowledge, especially during the early days of my journey. N.C.
You have made a big impact on my life, Your presentations are the best. S.H.
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“I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.”
― Nelson Mandela
