Healthy Weight Loss

Lose Weight Healthily

Nowhere is there more confusion in the “information age” than about weight loss. Two-thirds of America is overweight or obese, and there are 1.5 billion overweight people worldwide (400 million of them obese) according to the Framingham study. According to research just released in 2007, even many of those who are normal weight (especially those who do not exercise) are overweight on the inside—their organs marbled with fat, putting them at higher morbidity risk than overweight people who exercise regularly.

And of course, the saddest statistics of all are related to children, with a well documented epidemic in childhood obesity in the U.S., with other countries following behind.

MY PROGRAM: THE GREEN SMOOTHIE CHALLENGE! My program is not a “diet.” It’s a focus on good nutrition for life that will have incalculable positive effects on your long-range health.

A nice benefit is that you will lose pounds and inches, rather quickly, but your motive is important—and the motive is HEALTH. I don’t even have to tell you that the very word DIET creates a psychology of deprivation—your mind, body, and spirit will eventually rebel and gain the weight back you lost in a measuring and counting situation of calorie suppression or protein/carb obsession.

There are LOTS of ways to lose weight. There’s only ONE way to be healthy–through eating whole foods. And weight loss is an inevitable byproduct of making that committed shift to whole foods.

My program, then, is a positive approach to weight loss, and this is the maintain weight loss for life: focus on what TO eat rather than what NOT to eat. If you read The China Study, you’ll know that vegetarians eating whole foods actually consume more calories than other people. They eat plenty of fat, too—unrefined, saturated, energy-giving fats in nuts and good oils like coconut and olive. My raw-foodist friend Ruth says she eats 3,000 calories a day. She is thin and beautiful, with lots of energy (marathoner in her mid 50’s) and pretty skin.

Again, long-term weight loss is achieved ONLY when you emphasize health and nutrition—not obsessive calorie counting and appetite suppression. When you eat 8-10 raw fruits and vegetables (especially above-ground vegetables, particularly greens) every day, other things are bumped out. Use of my recipes will ensure you’re getting whole grains, nuts, seeds, good fats—everything you need to feel satisfied, decrease cravings for bad foods, and see your energy level go through the roof while losing weight. Eat what you want within the 10 points below. Few people overeat whole foods, because they don’t mess up the body’s metabolism and cause unhealthy cravings. Eat until you’re satisfied three times a day—not two, and certainly not five or six.

Important new studies in the past decade regarding leptin, the master hormone, reveal that we should eat three meals a day—not more (no snacking). Snacking is detrimental to your metabolism, and your body needs the breaks from eating to rest, repair, and metabolize fat. This idea of three meals, while it’s longstanding tradition and common sense, is counter to prevailing diet fads during the past decade of eating five small meals a day.

And the emphasis of many diet programs (Atkins being the worst of the bad) on eating protein, especially animal flesh, while it may be one way to lose weight, is destructive to your overall health. You do NOT need 20% protein in each meal, and “perfect proteins” (animal flesh that closely matches human flesh) are not the same thing as “good” proteins. Animal flesh is acidic and causes all the modern diseases, including cancer, heart disease, and autoimmune diseases (see The China Study). Dr. Robert O. Young purchased chicken from every grocery store in Utah Valley where I live and determined that 95 percent of it had cancer. And soy protein is also not good for you (see http://www.westonaprice.org/soy-alert).

This is a simple 10-point program called THE GREEN SMOOTHIE CHALLENGE for losing weight that will simultaneously nourish your body’s organs that you need to support you, your whole life (8 do’s and only 2 don’ts). Comment on my blog about how this makes you feel, and if you lose weight! See if you don’t lose weight just as fast as you would on the Atkins Diet, and feel and look better:

1. Drink 8-12 glasses of water daily (between meals, not during). Start with two glasses of water when you first wake up, since you wake up dehydrated. For that first water in the morning, add a teaspoon of Sole. Read about the importance of getting mineral-rich salt in your diet.
2. Drink 1 quart of green smoothie daily—drink as much as you want!
3. Eat 8-10 raw vegetables and fruits daily (with most of those being vegetables including plenty of greens).
4. Eat freely of whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds—soak them whenever possible for maximum nutrition.
5. Eat 1 oz. or more of coconut oil daily (dramatic evidence has documented its positive effect on weight loss and thyroid support). I spent many hours finding the best price on the highest-quality, organic, unrefined virgin coconut oil.
6. Add kelp, dulse, nori, or seaweed to a green smoothie, soup, or salad every day (to nourish the thyroid, critical to metabolism)—or, it’s easier to add green drink with greens, kelp, and probiotics to your water.
7. Take a good probiotic daily, and digestive enzymes with any meal that isn’t mostly raw(available at any health food store, or through the wholesaler www.azurestandard.com).
8. Avoid processed sugar, white flour, animal flesh, and coffee/soft drinks (including diet drinks) or other stimulants using NutraSweet (aspartame) and caffeine.
9. Eat three meals daily that are 60% raw or more—have a salad or green smoothie FIRST in the meal to provide enzymes and help fill you up. Avoid snacking (if you must snack as you’re transitioning to three meals a day, have a green smoothie as a snack). Eat freely of all the recipes in my collection but keep the treats to once a day, after a meal. Eat until you’re satisfied.
10. Break a sweat once a day, 5-6 days a week—do both aerobic and weight bearing exercise, and push yourself. You can keep your workouts short if you employ intervals as described in Body for Life. Do what’s fun! (Tennis and kickboxing are my favorites—what are yours?)