Miami Herald, 05/20/00: No cooked foods, no meat, and an 18-inch-waist at 58

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No cooked foods, no meat, and an 18-inch-waist at 58

Published Sunday, May 21, 2000, in the Miami Herald

 

BY BEA L. HINES bhines

 

Wearing high-heeled red boots and skin-tight red pants and shirt,

Annette Larkins strolls into the room, totally aware that she is

stopping traffic. At 58, Larkins has a stunning figure (waist: 18

inches) and flawless complexion, and seems to glow with health.

 

She attributes her healthy good looks to the way she eats, and has

written and published an inspirational booklet that shares her story

and philosophy.

 

Called Journey to Health, it tells how her life changed when she

stopped eating meat 38 years ago. And how it changed even more 15

years ago when she stopped eating cooked food. Her diet now consists

of raw fruits and vegetables (including juices), nuts, grains and

sprouts.

 

``This isn't a lifestyle that I encourage people to jump into,''

says Larkins, who lives in South Miami-Dade's Richmond Heights. ``It

is something that most people have to gradually get into. Not

everyone can quit eating meat the way I did. But they can start by

adding more fruits and vegetables to their diet and eliminating red

meat.''

 

Born in Asheville, N.C., Larkins was reared in Detroit and moved

with her family to Miami in her early teens. She was 16 and a

student at Carver High School when she married Amos Larkins. Two

years later, their first son, Amos II, was born; their second,

Anthony, followed 10 months later.

 

``They were so close together, it was like having twins,'' she says.

 

When the boys were 10 and 11, Larkins became a professional jazz

singer, and was featured at a Miami Beach nightclub for a time. She

gave up show business for education, graduating with honors from

Miami-Dade Community College and teaching Spanish. Her resume also

lists insurance agent and computer whiz (she has built six personal

computers). And when a grandson was having trouble learning to read,

she wrote and self-published a textbook, using him as the star

character.

 

What makes this grandmother of six run?

 

``I have always been passionate about motivating individuals to make

changes that will enrich their lives.''

 

Larkins certainly knows about change; when she became a vegetarian,

her husband was a butcher.

 

``Every morning I'd cook a big breakfast, complete with grits, eggs,

toast and two meats, usually bacon and ham or sausage,'' she says.

 

But one day in 1962, after just such as breakfast, she went to the

freezer to take out pork chops for the evening meal, ``and just the

sight of those chops made me sick,'' she says. ``That breakfast was

the last meal I had that included meat. My whole life changed

between morning and mid-day.''

 

A family history of diet-related illness -- her grandmother died at

36 and her mother at 47, both of cancer, and an aunt died of

diabetes -- may have motivated her.

 

``Having knowledge of this history, I probably subconsciously wanted

to do something about it.''

 

Although she continued cooking meat for her husband and sons, she

never ate another piece. ``I didn't want to push my lifestyle on my

family,'' she says.

 

Amos Larkins breaks into smiles when he talks about his wife.

 

``I wish I'd joined her eating routine back when she started,'' he

says. ``Just look at her. . . . We can't go anywhere that people

don't follow her around and ask her questions. They think she is a

celebrity. And she is so kind, she will take however long it takes

to talk to anyone. There is no such thing as a short trip to the

grocery store for her.''

 

The pamphlet is helping her share her message; she has sold about

1,000 copies so far. (It's available at the Florida Adventist Book

Center, Miami Springs; Norman Brothers Produce, Kendall; and the

Natural Food Market, Kendall and Miami Beach, or by calling 305-238-

1169.)

 

Larkins cautions: ``Don't try to be me. You go where you can. . . .

Old habits are hard to break. But determine your goal and learn the

necessary steps to achieve it. . . . The main thing is to stay

focused.''