Finally Spring time!!  Even though the weather still is not warm, (at least by my standards), we are feeling some minor changes.  However, the weather is great for getting outside and exercising!  

When it comes to managing your health, diet is top priority.  However, you can't truly be healthy unless regular exercise is a part of your life too.  Diet and exercise go hand in hand.  A Whole-Food Plant-Based diet will flood your bloodstream with nutrients, and exercise will make sure everything is distributed well.  Your journey to excellent health requires that you keep moving!

We have approximately 640 muscles in our body that keeps us moving.  Our heart is also a muscle and it needs regular exercise to maintain optimal function.  Your body will "rust" out before it "wears" out, so move it or lose it!  You don't need to join a gym to reap the benefits of exercising.  The secret to success with exercising is CONSISTENCY....we need to exercise everyday for a minimum of 30 minutes.  Walking or jogging, for example, improves your balance, increases your cardiovascular capacity, and increases your muscular endurance all at once.  In order to reap these benefits, you need to walk at a brisk pace, (I don't mean drenched in sweat, but you need to at least break a sweat), to keep your heart rate up.  Your energy levels with improve, your stress level will go down, you will notice improvement in your sleeping habits, your brain will "lose the fog", etc.  Exercise has an extraordinary ability to improve your life from every angle.  CONSISTENCY IS THE KEY.  


Now, I hear what everyone is saying.....I don't have the time.  Listen to me, carve out 30 minutes for yourself....there are 1,440 minutes in a day....you MUST take 30 of those minutes to keep yourself from "rusting out"!  When you are done exercising, nothing feels better...every cell in your body will celebrate for the gift you have given it.  Besides pages of all the physical benefits exercise will give to you, this is what exercise gives you " behind the scenes":

• Encourages nervous system communication
• Boosts immune function
• Increases insulin sensitivity
• Develops positive bone turnover
• Reduces stress
• Protects the heart and blood vessels
• Stimulates the endocrine system to release healthy hormones

Exercising improves digestion and absorption of nutrients, the number of  calories expended during rest and activity, and the way your cells function.  Researchers all agree that the benefits of regular exercise unquestionably promotes health and longevity.  When exercising, you're using up calories to improve fitness and condition all the muscles in your body, especially your heart.

Of course, exercise also aids in weight management.  Muscle mass is more active, so the more muscle tissue you have, the more calories your body requires to sustain it.  Even at rest, your muscles burn calories at a higher rate than they do fat tissue.  For several hours after exercise, you get a slight elevation in calorie burn.  Working out turns you into a calorie-burning machine!!

A common mistake many people make, however, is to eat a higher volume of food when exercising.  Total calories burned during and after a workout doesn't warrant eating a large volume of food.  If you're trying to lose weight, you need to get rid of 3500 calories to lose 1 pound...people complain that they are exercising and not losing weight...the reason may be they are still taking in too many calories.  However, if you're following a WFPB diet, chances are, you don't have to worry about the calories...what could be better??

So, now the warmer weather is here, there really are no excuses not to get out there and move!  You need to do something you like so you do it consistently....if you are walking, recruit a friend to walk with you...you will keep each other accountable.  

Take 30 minutes out of your day to exercise....you can't afford not to....

As I'm sure you all know, we have more overweight and obese people in America than ever before.  Less than one-third of the US population is walking around at a healthy weight.  All that excess weight on your body puts you at risk for all kinds of chronic diseases.  For the first time in history, we are overfed and undernourished.  With limitless access to food, we are eating too much of the wrong choices and growing bigger as a consequence.  

Fortunately, I am here to tell you that choosing  a Whole-Food Plant-Based diet will help anyone to naturally lose weight, WITHOUT BEING HUNGRY!!  I know just about all the fad diets that are out there state those same words, but, I've been on every diet known to man and believe me, you get hungry, you have to measure this, weigh that, count this fat/carb/calorie, etc.  You don't have to count anything when eating a WFPB diet, NOTHING!

The "magic" is just eat as close to nature as you can.  Foods without nutritional labels and ingredients lists.  Whole-plant foods are ideal for weight loss.  They are naturally nutrient dense, (packed with nutrition), and are high in fiber and water content.  They contain the perfect nutrient profile: carbs to protein to fat.  Vegetables, fruits, whole grains and beans are high if fiber, water, vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals (remember, they get rid of the free radicals wrecking havoc on our bodies), antioxidants, and yet low in calories.  They give you the most nutritional bang for you buck!  Now animal products and processed foods on the other hand, have the highest calories and lowest nutritional density.  

Together, fiber and water make up bulk giving you a full feeling.  Research has shown repeatedly that consuming fiber helps more than any other factor when it comes to losing weight.  A WFPB diet is loaded with fiber which enables you to safely and healthfully attain your weight loss goals.  Fiber will never let you down!

There is a boat load of evidence out there showing that a diet low in fat naturally leads to weight loss when compared to higher fat intakes.  One gram of fat provides 9 calories vs 4 calories of a carbohydrate or protein.  If you eat food with a higher percentage of fat, you automatically consume more calories.  However, if you are eating whole-plant food sources that are higher in fat such as nuts, seeds, avocados, and olives, you're also getting fiber, (bonus!) and no cholesterol!!

With all the diet books, diet plans, diet pills and diet centers everywhere we turn, why is weight loss such an obstacle?  The answer is DIETS DON'T WORK, QUICK FIXES DON'T WORK.  Eating for your health does work.  When you get into a routine of choosing whole foods that are plant based, you will lose weight, feel fabulous, and never look back.  Typical "diets" offer short-term plans that have you cutting out entire foods groups, minimizing calories so much that your are constantly hungry, or eating the same food over and over and over again.  Who wants to suffer like this?  You will probably lose weight, but the second you can't take it anymore, guess what...the weight comes right back on, and most times, a few pounds more!  This is the vicious cycle of dieting...you start a plan, lose weight, end the diet, and back comes all the weight.  Statistics show that fewer than 5% of dieters are able to sustain their weight loss for more than 5 years....and that's not to mention the fact that losing and gaining weight is more harmful to your health than maintaining a higher but stable weight.

TIPS TO KEEP IT SIMPLE

• Eat only when you are truly hungry, (if you're not positive you're hungry, you're not...drink water!)
• Choose from any variety of whole-plant foods
• Stop eating when you reach the feeling of satiety
• Exercise and move your body throughout the day

That's it.  Simple.  Sustainable.  Successful.

For easy recipe ideas, just check out all the websites available to you for FREE!  As I have said before, a few of my favorites are:  straightupfood.com, ChefAJ'sKitchen.com, Allrecipies.com (when you get to this site type in Vegan recipes), etc.  There are literally loads of choices out there that are really, really easy.  Last night I tried a recipe from straightupfood.com which had beans, rice, onions, celery, tomatoes, and spices....extremely easy and absolutely delicious!  

If I can help anyone make this transition from the Standard American Diet, (SAD), over to a Whole-Food Plant-Based diet, (WFPB), please let me know...I would love to show you how wonderful you can look and how fabulous you will feel!!

Did you know that it's perfectly legal for grocery stores to sell meat with food poisoning bacteria on it?  Believe it or not, it's true...

Car manufacturers cannot sell unsafe cars, toy manufacturers cannot sell unsafe toys, but, the meat industry can absolutely put meat in our grocery stores that are full of food poisoning bacteria....the USDA states it's "the consumers responsibility to make sure the meat is handled properly"...WHAT????  They know this meat is contaminated and it gets to the stores anyway???

Because we are bombarded with all kinds of advertisements for fast, convenient foods that make food manufacturers very wealthy, and the American people very sick, we don't know about the truly healthy foods that can give us optimal health.  When was the last time you saw a commercial for flaxseeds?  Flaxseeds are without a doubt, little golden nuggets every single person should be getting into their diet EVERY SINGLE DAY!

Flaxseeds come from the plant Linum usitatissimum discovered thousands of years ago.  The benefits of getting flaxseed in your diet are nothing short of amazing; however, I cannot tell you how many people have never even heard of flaxseed before.  Here, once again, we have available to us something more powerful than any pill (that come packaged with all kinds of side effects), on the market today.  

BENEFITS OF FLAXSEEDS

1. Flaxseeds have shown to stop the growth of tumors in men with prostate cancer and women with breast cancer
2. Brings down cholesterol levels
3. Reduces risk of heart disease
4. Full of antioxidants---ranked 9th among the top 100 foods high in antioxidant-rich nutrients (this is amazing!!)
5. Improves blood pressure
6. Aids in dropping blood glucose levels
7. Full of fiber
8. One of the most potent foods high in Omega-3 fatty acids...higher than any fish out there...who knew this?

These are just a few of the benefits found in these tiny little seeds.  Where do you buy them?  Every grocery store has them...they are usually found in bins in the bulk section, and are DIRT CHEAP!!  You need to grind them up however before eating.  If you eat them whole, they will just pass through your intestines--so, you need to grind them up in something like a coffee grinder or a blender, and grind only the amount you intend to use.  When the flaxseeds are ground and exposed to air, they will start to oxidize, (picture an apple sliced and exposed to air--it turns brown), and you will lose some of the potency of the seeds.   The recommended amount is about 2 tablespoons a day--after you grind them up you will have a flour-like consistency---it will be tasteless--just mix it in whatever you are having for breakfast such as a smoothie or oatmeal.  You can also use it in baking--mix it in cookie batter, bread batters or muffin batters--anything.  Studies have shown cooking with it does not change the molecular structure, therefore, you get all the benefits as you would eating it raw. Again, all you need to eat are 2 tablespoons a day.

In my opinion, we should have billboards everywhere telling us how something so inexpensive and easy to get, has the power to turn our health around.  But, the reason we don't know about something like this is, who will benefit??  There is no big corporation out there who's pockets would be lined by society buying flaxseeds.......

Makes you wonder, doesn't it?


 

I was reading an article from Julieanna Hever, a Registered Dietitian who promotes a Whole-Food Plant-Based diet, (WFPB).  She was talking about her child being part of a sports team and one of the Moms handing out snacks.  The snacks consisted of a package of oreo cookies, goldfish crackers and what she called, a sugary juice-like liquid.  Julieanna quickly snatched the snacks out of her child's hand and put them back in the Mom's bag before the Mom realized what was happening.  Of course, her child started crying because he couldn't have the snacks all the other kids were having.  The other Mom's thought this was quite neurotic and even Julieanna's husband was annoyed with her.  

Because Julieanna is a registered dietitian, (RD), she sees the repercussions of eating this C.R.A.P., (Calorie Rich And Processed Food).  The snacks that were provided were loaded with high fructose corn syrup, trans fatty acids, artificial colorings and preservatives.  Everyone should be running from this stuff!  People accuse Julieanna of being unfair, they think kids should be kids, a little bit won't hurt.....this is so far from the truth!! Forget about 'unfair', this is literally a matter of LIFE AND DEATH.  

Eating this way has caused our nation to become sicker than ever.  We are not "winning any wars" on heart disease, cancer, obesity, Alzheimer's, strokes, etc, not to mention all the childhood issues that have skyrocketed such as ADD, ADHD, and autism,.....we are at an all time high for these diseases.  How can this be?  Eating all the processed, chemical laden foods has become 'NORMAL'.  Food manufacturers are brilliant in adding all kinds of fat, sugar, salt and all kinds of chemicals to "food" making them very tasty and addicting, (literally addicting), so people go back for more and more and more....

When children are fed REAL food, no artificial or processed ANYTHING, research has shown that's what they will prefer..when offered a cookie or a piece of fruit, they will choose the fruit.  When you eat REAL food, then take a bite of a cookie, cake, food prepared from a box, you will actually be able to "taste" the artificial-ness.  Believe me, it's true, I am living proof.  

We need to END these horrible diseases we have come to believe as being normal--CANCER is not normal, HEART DISEASE is not normal, STROKES are not normal, TYPE 2 DIABETES is not normal, ALZHEIMER'S is not normal..the list goes on and on.  I am here to tell you these diseases CAN BE PREVENTED,  STOPPED, AND most of the time, REVERSED.  However, we need to take the RESPONSIBILITY for making this happen, and it starts with not only us, BUT OUR MOST PRIZED POSSESSIONS, OUR CHILDREN! 

I don't know if you can read the caption at the top left...the food labels read:  Cheese food, Chemical Helper, Heart Disease Spread, Zero Nutrition Puffs, Colon Cancer Dogs, For Sure Diabetes Drink....This is what I call BRILLIANT!  If foods were labeled 100% honestly, that's what we would be reading....all the diseases the food in those packages can cause....it's sort of like side effects from the medications we are told to take, the side effects are usually worse than the initial problem....and the side effects are paragraphs long!  

We must start eating lots of foods that have no list of ingredients on them....take a walk around the produce section in your grocery store...no labeling on bananas, oranges, pears, apples, grapefruit, lettuce, kale, mushrooms, red peppers, yellow peppers, green peppers, eggplant, squash, zucchini, tomatoes, cucumbers, spinach, avocados, carrots, onions, potatoes, sweet potatoes, beets, turnips, etc., etc., etc.  There are no labels of any of this stuff.

There are so many websites available to us now with all kinds of plant based recipes:  ChefAJ'sKitchen.com, Fatfreevegan.com, happyherbivore.com, straightupfood.com, Vegkitchen.com, and many, many more.  It's not about eating only lettuce, the choices are endless!!  

Pick out some recipes and try them out....anything from making your own salad dressings, (much healthier than the store-bought and soooo much cheaper), to appetizers, soups, breakfasts, lunches, main courses, and, of course, desserts.  All healthy, good-for-you dishes.  

So, pack your child's lunch bag with foods that have no labels attached to them, (check out my blog from yesterday for lunch ideas), as well as your own lunch bag....you are investing in something much bigger than money could ever buy...YOUR HEALTH!!

Again, here we are with a brand new day in front of us.....another day to eat as healthy as we can.  I'm wondering if you tried the steel cut oats yesterday?  Or, maybe you had to go buy some and are going to try them this morning for breakfast...you won't be disappointed...try them!

I stated in yesterdays' blog that I would talk about ideas for lunch today.  Nothing is easier than to use left overs from the night before and throw everything into a wrap or even a pita.  I always have homemade hummus on hand, (recipe to follow), which you can use as a spread on a tortilla or pita.  Chop up whatever veggies you have in the refrigerator, tomatoes, lettuce, cucumbers, onions, shredded carrots, etc., add some left over beans or rice, maybe some corn...whatever you have on hand and wrap it up.  Never get rid of small amounts of beans or rice from dinner, save it for a wrap during the week.  You don't need much to make a really filling, tasty wrap.  They are really so easy to make and easy to throw in a lunch bag and, kids love these!  Have a small cup of soup on the side, and you have a really satisfying, healthy lunch.

My go to recipe for hummus is:

ROASTED RED PEPPER HUMMUS

2  19 oz cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed (or use your own)
1  12 oz jar roasted red peppers, including liquid
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1-3 t lemon juice
1 t ground cumin

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth.  Add a little water if the consistency is too thick.  If you find it needs salt, you can add a little bit of Bragg Liquid Aminos, or first try using a little more lemon juice, that usually solves the problem!  I divide this up into small amounts and freeze in ziplock bags...just grab a bag out of the freezer whenever you need some homemade hummus----the store-bought varieties are good, but they are usually loaded with oil---so remember to read the label.

EVERYTHING HUMMUS

1  15 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
juice and zest of 1 lemon
3 T chickpea liquid, veggie broth or water
3 baby carrots
2 heaping T chopped red bell pepper
2 heaping T chopped onion
1 t seeded and chopped jalapeno pepper
2 T chopped celery
3 T chopped peeled cucumber
1 t Bragg Liquid Aminos or low-sodium tamari
2 T cilantro or parsley leaves

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth.  This is perfect on sandwiches, as a dip, or as a salad dressing with added balsamic or any other kind of vinegar.

Both of these recipes make about 3 cups of hummus, which is quite a lot.  If you have never tried hummus before, what are you waiting for??  Trying new and different foods may surprise you....You never know what you are missing until you taste them for yourself!

It's a brand new day....no better day to start eating really healthy and feeling better than you have in a long time!  In all my previous blogs, I have given you the WHY we should eat a whole-food plant-based diet, (WFPB), now I am going to give you the HOW to get started.

As I have said previously, you can start this way of eating as slowly as you feel comfortable, or you can clean out your kitchen and jump right in.  Today we will tackle getting rid of the processed and artificial foods from your diet.  

Foods that come in boxes and packages usually have a huge paragraph of all the ingredients in that particular food, ingredients we can't even pronounce let alone know what they are.  All that processed and artificial "stuff" is adding to our extremely poor health and stalling our weight loss.  When we eat and drink artificial and processed chemicals, our bodies have to "figure out" what to do with it...if it doesn't come from nature, our bodies weren't designed to metabolize it!  So, because our body is always trying to protect us from harm, it surrounds this "unnatural stuff" with water and fat cells and "stores" it either in other fat cells, or in our organs.  The more we eat this way, the more we have "stuff" stored everywhere making it very difficult to lose weight.  

So, let's start with breakfast today.  Get rid of the sugary cereals, (not even your kids should be eating that!), and try some oatmeal.  Now, don't make a face and say, " but I hate oatmeal"....In the medical practice I work in, that's what EVERYBODY said, and they said it very LOUDLY!!  However, I started them out with just about 1/4 cup of regular oatmeal, (not the instant, artificial oatmeal).  I have no stove in the office, so I put a small amount of oats in the bottom of a mug, added hot water from the water cooler and just let it sit for a few minutes.  Once the oats absorbed all the water, I added  small pieces of strawberries, or some blueberries, or even small pieces of an apple, added a SMALL amount of raw honey, and they ate it.  

This went on for about a month....then, I decided it was time to elevate them to the next level---STEEL CUT OATS...the Cadillac of oatmeal...now, steel cut oats requires a stove because it needs to be cooked for at least 25 minutes.  Now, the texture is different and again I got, "I'm not eating that".  Well, let me report that EVERYONE LOVES it and can't believe they have been missing out all this time!!  I cook it at home and bring it in a container, split it up between our mugs, and initially mixed it with the oats they were used to,  added a little more hot water to mix it again, and then added in fruits or almonds and a SMALL amount of honey...ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS!  Now everyone has graduated to  eating just the steel cut oat version.

Now, the same people that "couldn't" eat oatmeal, are now eating steel cut oats and can't wait to get to work to eat it!  Talk about a change of heart....

This is what I mean when I say sometimes we have to just start slowly and build from there.  If I started with steel cut oats right from the get go, I probably wouldn't have had these results.  I started them with a small amount that gradually increased over time....then went to an even healthier version, which everyone now loves.

Why not try something different today....start with breakfast...if you are a coffee and muffin/doughnut/bagel person in the morning, just try some oatmeal.  If you can cook it at home and bring it with you, great!  If you have access to a water cooler with hot water, mix it at work and let it sit for a couple of minutes.  Add some honey and whatever fruit you may have on hand and you have a really, healthy breakfast.  

Believe me, that mug of oatmeal with keep you going all through the morning right up to lunch time.....and what will we eat for lunch?   Come visit my blog tomorrow to find out......

I blogged two days ago about putting the salt shaker down and promised to give you some information about spices.  You can spice up your diet with health-protective herbs and spices in just about anything you prepare...it's easier than you think.  Here are some tips:

Inflammation?  That is the buzz word researchers are talking about...Inflammation is the body's totally healthy response to injury and infection, a way of sending immune cells and key nutrients to the areas that need them most.  When we cut our finger, we get increased blood flow causing redness, warmth, swelling and pain.  That's inflammation...it helps to heal your finger.  

However, "chronic" inflammation is a whole other story.  When there is a constant production of immune cells that are never "shut off", they can do permanent damage.  This permanent damage leads to cancer, heart disease, arthritis and Alzheimer's disease, among other health concerns.  When our "inflammation system" doesn't switch off, we end up in big trouble.  

The causes of chronic inflammation can vary from person to person, but causes can include being overweight, dealing with lots of stress, lifestyle choices, smoking, diet, lack of exercise, and lack of sleep to name a few.  

The foods we choose to eat--or not to eat-- can also affect inflammation.  Eating lots of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, and omega-3 fatty acids have shown to have ANTI-inflammatory effects.  Your diet can serve as a PROTECTIVE  function.  When our bodies are nourished with the right foods, we are able to heal quicker.  No one food is to blame for causing inflammation, but your overall diet can certainly contribute.  

The following foods should be avoided to keep inflammation and illness at bay:

TRANS FATS:  These are one of the worst foods you can eat.  Anything that says hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils--this does damage to the cells in the lining of blood vessels according to the Mayo Clinic.  If you read hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oil on the label---PUT IT BACK...DO NOT BUY IT!!

SUGAR


WHITE BREAD:  White bread and pastas break down quickly into sugar and in turn lead to inflammation

CHEESEBURGERS:  Animal fats are linked to inflammation

ALCOHOL:  When alcohol is "over-consumed" it allows bacteria to easily pass through the intestinal lining leading to irritation and inflammation.

MILK:  Whole milk and 2% milk are high in saturated fat--overdoing it causes inflammation

MSG:  Remember, MSG is commonly found in Chinese foods as well as other places. 

GLUTEN:  When avoiding gluten, bloating and indigestion tends to disappear.

So, that delicious looking baked good at the top of the page probably has trans fats, white flour and sugar baked right into it.  Knowing how much havoc that can cause in your body, it's not worth the few minutes of "tasting good"....instead, reach for that big, juicy apple that gives ammunition to those immune fighting cells!

In the past few years, Americans' sodium intake has skyrocketed becoming a major contributor to our growing health problems.  High sodium intake increases our risk of high blood pressure which puts us at an even higher risk for heart disease, stroke and kidney disease.  Despite health officials nagging us year after year to cut back, we haven't been paying much attention.  The average person consumes about 3,400 mg of salt per day....according to guidelines we are suppose to be aiming for about 1,500 mg.