Our Journey So Far
Our adventure began in Copenhagen in 2015, where we met each other and shortly after moved in together in our small, charming, crooked townhouse in Brønshøj, Copenhagen.
This is where we, along with our dog Zoe, made a blended family work, renovated our home, and landscaped a lovely garden. Together, we have four grown-up children.
Prior to adopting a plant based lifestyle, I (Anne) have always maintained a fairly balanced diet, rich in both animal products and fruits and vegetables. Cycling has been my go-to mode of transportation, and I have a fondness for staying physically active. Professionally, I am a doctor, PhD, and a consultant in pathology, specializing in breast cancer diagnostics at a major Copenhagen hospital. Inspired by courses offered by the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, I have immersed myself in the study of plant-based nutrition. I am a member of The Danish Society of Lifestyle Medicine.
Before Anne entered my life, exercise was not a daily practice, and I jokingly say, ‘I had never had a sports injury.’ My preferred way of getting around was by car. I am a pleasure-seeker, once indulging in all sorts of delectable food, gourmet dining, exquisite wines, and fine cocktails. This led me to weigh 153 kg, along with slightly high blood pressure, uric acid gout, a few gallstone attacks, and emerging minor health issues. My background is diverse, involving academics, design, music, film, a 5-year psychotherapeutic education, individual, couple, and group therapy certification. I am also an executive coach, a teacher in leadership and communication, an author of six self-help books, and have trained Denmark’s business elite. I am the author of six ‘Create a Better World’ books on personal development.
The merging of our different lifestyles marked the beginning of a shared journey towards a healthier everyday life. We were both determined to make a healthy lifestyle the foundation of our relationship. Gradually, exercise became a routine, starting with daily walks, then regular and extended bike rides in the bike-friendly city of Copenhagen, followed by strength training, rowing, and yoga.
In 2016, we became acutely aware of our individual responsibilities in fighting climate change.
It was a wake-up call, realizing that it was not just up to politicians and governments to implement necessary changes; it starts with us. Initially, we excluded beef and lamb from our diet, as they have the highest carbon footprint. Over time, we phased out other meats, dairy, and eggs, leaving fish and cheese as the last animal-based foods in our diet.
Our journey was informed by extensive reading on climate change, biodiversity loss, factory farming, ecology, pesticides, global hunger, and animal welfare. It was shocking to learn about the 800 million people starving while globally approximately 80 billion farm animals are fed annually. In 2020, we came across a book on Whole-Food Plant-Based diet. Per read the book aloud and after 30 – 40 pages he put the book down and said: ‘I am done eating cheese and animal products altogether’. And so were we.
We then sought evidence-based knowledge on plant-based nutrition online and were astonished by the lack of widespread information on the compelling research supporting a predominantly or exclusively plant-based diet for personal and planetary health, backed by reputable organizations like WHO and the UN. We were also frustrated and angered by the media and internet’s abundance of misinformation, uncritical journalism, and industry-driven research aimed at sowing doubt and confusion: ‘If you can’t convince them – confuse them’, the same tactics employed by the tobacco industry for many years.
Since 2020, our diet has been entirely plant-based (Whole-Food Plant-Based), favoring organic options to avoid the environmental and potential gut microbiome impacts of pesticides. Reflecting on our journey, we have discovered a plethora of delicious, satisfying, and beautiful plant-based dishes, never feeling deprived. Instead, we have entered a new world of taste and well-being.
Embracing a plant-based diet and active lifestyle resulted in Per losing 60 kg, normalizing early prostate issues and his blood pressure (from 140/85 mm Hg on medication to 120/70 mm Hg without medication), and eliminating uric acid gout and gallstone attacks. We are both energetic, and rarely falling ill.
We have adopted more sustainable daily routines. Living in the city, we sold our car and joined a car-sharing scheme. We replaced our wood stove, aware of its indoor and outdoor climate impact (A new environmentally labeled wood stove pollutes 400,000,000 liters of completely clean air to the limit of particle pollution, just by burning one kg of wood). We are very conscious of limiting our use of air travel as much as possible, opting for public transport, carpooling, or car. We try to think in terms of recycling and a circular economy over buying new. For us, taking control and contributing to a better world for our children is life-affirming.
We regret not knowing sooner about the connections between diet, health, animal welfare, environment, biodiversity, and climate. In 2022, we decided to use our combined skills (Anne part-time and Per full-time) to establish the SHAPE YOUR FUTURE LIFE platform, aiming to help as many people as possible create a better future for themselves and our planet. There is a lot we were not taught in school or at home. There is so much low self-esteem, anxiety, insecurity, and personal psychological challenges that hinder us from realizing our potential and leading a happy, healthy, and sustainable life. Making everyday life healthier and more sustainable does not mean compromising on quality of life, but it does require knowledge to make informed lifestyle choices. We understand the challenge of comprehending all these topics, which is why we created the SHAPE YOUR FUTURE LIFE platform to share our knowledge and experiences.
We are excited to share it with you 😊
Kindest,
Anne & Per
SHAPE Your Future Life
Welcome to a Happier, Healthier, and More Sustainable Life!
The world needs sustainable solutions and simple tools that empower us to live happier, healthier, and more sustainable lives every day. At SHAPE, we carefully select, gather, and refine relevant, evidence-based knowledge, presenting it to you and your family through engaging films and articles.
With these accessible and practical tools, we all have the opportunity to reclaim our health and minimize, or even avoid, the “decline years” in the latter part of life. The right knowledge not only “adds years to your life” but also “adds life to your years.” Step by step, we can make small and significant changes in our daily routines that, without compromising our quality of life, will reduce our carbon footprint and contribute to the preservation of biodiversity and create a more compassionate world for the beings we share this beautiful planet with.
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