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Copyright © 2013 Nutrifrontier Limited All rights reserved. Published by Kevin Richardson Notes to the Reader: No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopied, recorded, scanned, or otherwise, except as permitted under U.S copyright law, without the prior written permission of the author. The statements found within the pages of this book have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information with regard to the subject matter covered. If a product or treatment is recommended in these pages, it is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. The information contained herein is meant to be used to educate the reader and is in no way intended to provide individual medical advice. The publisher and the contributors are not engaged in rendering medical advice. All information contained in this book is received from sources believed to be accurate, but no guarantee, express or implied, can be made. Readers are encouraged to verify for themselves, and to their own satisfaction, the accuracy of all information, recommendations, conclusions, comments, opinions or anything else contained within these pages before making any kind of decisions based upon what they have read herein. The author of this e-book is not a licensed practitioner of medicine; therefore, the techniques, ideas, and opinions here are not intended as a substitute for proper medical advice! The information provided here is solely for informational purposes only. If medical advice or other professional assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought. The author does not accept any responsibility for any liabilities resulting from any health decisions made by purchasers of this book. The words contained in this text which are believed to be trademarked, service marked, or to otherwise hold proprietary rights have been designated as such by the use of initial capitalization. Inclusion, exclusion, or definition of a word or term is not intended to affect, or to express judgment upon the validity of legal status of any proprietary right which may be claimed for a specific word or term. Individual results may vary.


Table of Contents Introduction ............................................................................................................................................. 4

Perceptions Perpetuate The Problem .................................................................................................... 8

Why Diets Don’t Work ............................................................................................................................. 11

The Starting Point Of Weight Loss ......................................................................................................... 14

Think Of Food As Fuel For The Body ...................................................................................................... 17

Foods To Reduce Or Avoid ..................................................................................................................... 22

How Good Intentions Are Sabotaged ................................................................................................... 28

The Value Of A High-Fibre Diet ............................................................................................................... 32

Nutrition 101............................................................................................................................................ 38

What You Should Focus On ................................................................................................................... 44

Weight Loss Tips .................................................................................................................................... 45

Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................... 51


Introduction

There is no more significant health issue today than the issue of body

weight and obesity. There's no doubt about it, as a society, we are

steadily getting heavier all the time. It seems that despite the

information we have about the dangers of carrying around all those

excess pounds, many of us are guilty of exactly that.

No matter how you slice it, shedding body fat comes down to two foundational principles that you

have no doubt heard before: diet and exercise. By diet, I'm referring to the meals you consume on

a daily basis, not one of those dangerous and ineffective fad or crash diets. And by exercise, I'm

not suggesting that you need to spend an hour a day at the gym either. But if you begin eating

healthier foods regularly, while mostly avoiding problematic foods and you get even a little bit of

walking, cycling or jogging in, you will most assuredly, lose weight.

Today's rapid-paced society with its abundance of choices, constant distractions and time

pressures means that for the huge majority of people, grabbing a quick bite to eat trumps

preparing nutritious meals from scratch. Somehow we have managed to get away from any

semblance of healthy eating in favour of all those convenience foods that are put in front of us at

every turn.

They satisfy our immediate hunger and cravings and save us time – so that we can continue to

function in a productive way, day after day. But all this convenience comes at a huge price. We are

getting fatter and fatter all the time. This leads to a higher degree of various illnesses affecting far

more people, resulting in skyrocketing medical and insurance costs and greater mortality rates.

Let's face it, when you're in a rush and hungry, what are you going to do?

It's easier to led (or misled) by the predominant advertising and hit the fast food drive through, or

grab one of those convenience foods from the freezer. You're probably focused on a bunch of

other things on a daily basis like work issues, clients, kids or ill parents to worry about what to eat


or to feed your family. Something has to give. You've got to try to make up some time somewhere

and it seems that freezers, microwave ovens and fast food outlets seem like the perfect answer.

But in reality they are anything but healthy and undoubtedly contribute to excess body fat.

Long ago, excess weight wasn't an issue at all. Though people ate all kinds of foods and desserts,

they just didn't pack on all those extra pounds. That's probably because they were far more active

– often working in the fields, or doing other physical work – and burning off calories from sun-up

to sundown. Times have changed. Nowadays, it's far more likely that you work at a sedentary job,

sitting behind a desk for most of your working hours. So you probably don't have the opportunity

to burn a large number of calories while you work.

These are challenging times we live in for anyone who would like to shed a little or a lot of extra

weight and keep it off for good. And while you may be excused from falling into the habit of

convenience, but if you want to reduce your level of body fat, you need to change your ways. If

you want to lose weight healthfully and permanently, you need to take conscious control –

starting today.

This means that you need to be aware of everything you consume and make choices that are far

more healthy than convenient – although you need not spend hours on end in the kitchen to eat

better in order to lose weight. As an example, handy and healthy green salad mixes are now

readily available in most grocery stores today. And it just so happens that fresh salads (any

combination of raw vegetables) are the best food to consume in abundance for healthy and long-

term weight loss.


Today’s Average Diet Is Root Cause Of Excessive Weight Gain

Obesity can – and often does begin at an early age.

Approximately one in three children today could be categorized

as obese. When you think about it – this statistic is quite

alarming. Since obesity often leads to major health problems like

diabetes and heart failure, this condition needs to be reversed

and the earlier in life it begins – the better.

As a society, we are overfed but undernourished. While there is a huge selection of healthy food

available – at least in the Western world – there's a huge number of people from all economic

classes who shun these healthier options in favour of foods that cause them serious harm and

added weight such as soda pop, margarine, butter, white bread, sugar, and pasteurized milk and

cheese. Manufacturers are only too happy to provide these items in more sizes, flavours and

packaging because we keep buying them up in huge quantities.

But you can't really call these items “food” because they are essentially void of any nutritional

food value whatsoever. These and others are junk foods that are high in calories and highly-

deficient in nutrients and fibre. Those who consume those “garbage can” foods while remaining

largely inactive are holding onto the recipe for disaster. Sooner or later, there will be a price to be

paid. So the sooner you limit (or eliminate) these kinds of damaging things from your diet (and

that of your kids) the sooner you can back to a healthier and lighter body.

It is predicted that if the current trends continue and the standard North American diet remains

the same, by the year 2050 almost all adults will fit into the categories labelled “overweight” or

“obese”. Overweight can be as little as five pounds more than you should be, based on height. To

fall into the obese category means that one third or more of your total body weight is fat. Obesity

is a huge problem today, with a two-fold increase in mortality and costing the economy in the

United States alone, more than one hundred billion dollars per year.


Being overweight is often the result of a combination of factors including genetics, degree of

regular physical activity and food and drink choices made as snacks and meals. Since you cannot

change genetics, blaming what you've been given is futile an unproductive. But you certainly can

become more physically active and make better choices about that which you consume.

Almost ninety percent of calories of the typical Western diet of today are derived from highly-

refined foods, oils and animal products. And approximately forty percent of calories come from

sugar or refined grains – both of which are depleted of healthy, life-sustaining nutrients. This in a

nutshell is the root of the problem. But a dramatic reversal in the amount of refined food and

animal products consumed, in favour of fresh vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts and seeds could

completely turn around the collective state of our health and lower the average body weight to a

much healthy, slimmer level.

Refined foods are highly-processed, so that whatever healthy elements – like fibre – may have

been originally present and no longer there. Take rice for example. Brown rice has very little

processing, and is therefore closer to the original product supplied by nature.

On the other hand, white rice has gone through a series or processes before packaging, rendering

it a refined carbohydrate with far less food value than it was its original form. There is zero fibre in

dairy products, meat, or in any food made with white flour. If you expect to lose weight, you must

significantly reduce your consumption of fibre-deficient foods like white bread, white rice and

regular, white pasta. The colour alone ought to be a clue.

Fibre is a key component of reducing excess weight and maintaining

optimum health. Dairy products and meat just don't contain any fibre and

all refined products have undergone a process where the fibre was

removed. The truth is that healthy, nutritious foods are also very rich in

fibre, while foods associated with weight gain and illness are mostly fibre-

deficient. Those who tend to consume the highest levels of high-fibre

foods on a regular basis seem to be the slimmest and healthiest too.

Optimum body weight and better overall health seem to go hand in hand.


Perceptions Perpetuate The Problem Since being overweight has become so commonplace, many have simply

gotten used to it. They continue along for a period of time, eating

whatever they want and not getting much in the way of exercise – without

any major health issues. But eventually, there's a wake-up call and a health

problem presents itself.

Those health issues are unavoidable and inevitable, given the standard diet and lack of movement.

Unless they're motivated to make significant changes, they will continue to gain even more

weight, since they continue to refuel with the same problematic foods, while not doing much to

burn off those extra calories.

Many live an illusion. They think that whatever is sold in stores has passed innumerable health

standards and is therefore acceptable for human consumption. While some standards exist, you

may be surprised to realize just how many toxic substances are produced by manufactures, openly

sold by retailers and accepted by consumers as food. But it's a case of buyer beware because there

are untold products with questionable ingredients being scooped up around the clock. Your best

protection is awareness and a good rule of thumb to follow is to be highly-suspect of any

packaged food product and to always read labels.

Make most of your purchases in the fresh produce aisle. Frozen fruits and vegetables are also

sound purchases and according to the experts, every bit as healthy as fresh fruits and vegetables.

But do think twice about many of the highly-processed foods sold in cans, cartons, bottles and

bags. These products dominate store shelves and are often tempting. Just be sure you know what

you’re getting before you buy.

Another prevalent perception that is self-defeating is the belief that minor changes to one's

regular diet will not readily produce favourable weight loss results. This thinking is another by-

product of the times. We want instant gratification and if we can't get it from one source, we'll try

something else that looks promising. What this kind of thinking results in is frustration – not to


mention all that wasted time and money. People would rather hold out hope that there's a pill, a

shake, or a diet plan that will give them instant results without the need to get more physical and

make better food and meal choices. But such a pill doesn't exist – nor will it ever exist. Excessive

weight gain doesn't happen overnight and you shouldn't expect weight loss to be that quick

either. The real culprit of body fat accumulation is that we get too little exercise, yet consume

large amounts of low-nutrient and high calorie foods every day.

The fact is, if you don't get active, the fat keeps building, unless of course you give up things like

refined carbohydrates and cooking oils that pack those pounds on. You cannot avoid being

overweight if you are getting a large percentage of your calories from refined carbohydrates and

fat because that means you're consuming mostly low-nutrient foods. The dietary key to weight

loss of any amount is to completely shift from eating mostly low-nutrient foods to eating large

amounts of nutrient-dense foods. This is the underlying message here and one that can easily

trigger weight loss that is both relatively fast – and permanent.

But again, it's easier to overlook reality and avoid making the initially tough choices that will lead

you to greater health and a slimmer, trimmer body. Most will continue to gobble-up those fat-

packing, disease-causing foods and turn the other cheek rather than face the harsh reality that the

very foods they're addicted to are the foods that are making them fat. It appears that given the

option, the majority of people would prefer to never even hear about the dangerous food they're

eating out of fear that it will somehow diminish their dining pleasure.

It goes back to our days as children. Had we been given accurate information at an early age, and

not the industry-generated propaganda that so any of us were exposed to, it would be easier to

make intelligent food choices and lose the weight, we never would have gained had this

foundational conditioned been put in place. If we were taught the importance of good nutrition

based on sound science and not the garbage we were fed about the four food groups, there were

be fewer overweight adults today. We routinely give our kids the things they want, without really

thinking about it.


It seems as though sugary soft drinks and breakfast cereals, junky snack foods like potato chips,

corn chips, cheese twists, and prepackaged chemically-laced baked products like cakes, donuts

and cream-puffs have become the norm. Kids want it and we adults supply it – probably a lot more

than we should.

I'm not saying that we shouldn't get to indulge in a treat now and then, but it shouldn't become a

daily or weekly thing. If we really investigated the effects of the ingredients contained in these and

other manufactured foods, we would realize that by making it a routine, we're enabling the

establishment of poor health habits with potentially devastating consequences. We wouldn't want

our children smoking or taking drugs. Yet we're providing them with a whole host of ingredients

that are questionable, to say the least.

Another perception is that optimal health and real weight loss is just a pill or beverage or new diet

plan away. But this is false hope and often the result of accepting advertising without thoroughly

investigating a product or offer before investing in it. It's easier to believe that you're going to be

okay despite the poor choices and excesses that have become somewhat of a standard.

The reality is that reaching your ideal weight and enjoying optimal health is a “cause and effect”

thing and we need to address the cause if we want to experience the desired effect. As far as

one's diet is concerned, to shed the extra fat, you simply must eat predominantly natural,

unrefined foods that are both nutrient and fibre-rich. Do this over a stretch until it becomes a

habit and you'll find that you desire unhealthy food a whole lot less than before.


Why Diets Don’t Work

Almost every adult over thirty who feels they are overweight has

tried at least one diet in their lifetime. Some have tried many

different diets and continue to hold out hope that the perfect diet

for them will come along son and life will be rosy. And God knows,

there's no shortage of diet plans and programs – with more

emerging every single month.

The diet industry in the United States alone is a forty billion dollar per year industry – so don't

expect it to end anytime soon. What is a blessing to those product creators is a problem for

consumers because inevitably, most buyers won't get what they desire most and that is, quick and

sustainable weight loss.

You see, what most diet plans and programs out there do is they limit the portion size of meals. On

the outside, this seems like a perfectly logical thing to do. The problem is that as humans, we are

anything but logical and emotions are the controlling forces of our lives.

Since most of the foods the average would-be dieter consumes are calorie-rich problem foods to

begin with, cutting the amounts you get means that you're only going to feel deprived, suffer

hunger and strange cravings that may or may not make any sense to you. If you're getting smaller

portions of the foods you're used to eating – but those foods are low in nutrients – you're not

giving the body what it needs and you'll never feel satisfied.

This emptiness might be sustainable for a while and you may even lose some weight. But

eventually, it will bother you to the point where you've had enough of the deprivation. Since the

foods in your diet remain unchanged and unhealthy, when you're done with dieting for the time

being, you go back to the foods you know, crave and love with a vengeance. To satisfy the

emptiness and to console yourself after making such a sacrifice, you the reward yourself by

gorging on the very foods that made you overweight in the beginning.


Confusion abounds when one seeks to find a way to melt away the extra body fat. The vast

selection of diet books, plans and reducing programs is enormous, often leading to confusion.

After all, there are some complex and contradictory choices out there and enough desperate

people to enable this industry to thrive, year after year.

One would think that if any singular diet plan worked like a charm every time for whoever

followed its gospel, then word would spread and this one diet plan would reign supreme, while

rendering all others are redundant or ineffective. But such is not the case and many of the diets

out there are downright dangerous.

I think it's fair to say that most diet plans don't work – at least for the long term. Many do work

temporarily. But any wins are met with crushing defeat when one finds that the weight they

gained back was even more than they lost, leaving them with more of a weight problem then

before they sacrificed, suffered and spent the money.

High protein diets that are low in fruits and unrefined carbohydrates are dangerous because they

increase the risk of colon cancer. Heck, if there's even a slight risk that a diet can be harmful to

your health, you should avoid it at all costs. You can also forget about those canned diet shakes.

After all, who's going to want to stick with that plan for months on end? And counting calories or

following any complicated formula just doesn't work. You can't stay on a diet plan forever –

particularly if you feel like you're missing out.

Diets are not the answer.

But some people are so desperate to lose massive amounts of

weight that they opt for surgery or drugs to deal with the problem

and that exposes them to even greater danger. But there is a way to

lose all the fat you want, without any downside. It takes effort as all

meaningful things in this world do.


But even a slight effort persisted in can pay some handsome rewards and the changes can easily

become permanent, so you'll never have to consider another diet plan for the rest of your life.

The key to permanent weight loss through a dietary approach is to mostly eat foods that have a

high proportion of nutrients to calories. This means you're taking in plenty of nutrients with

comparatively few calories and it is achieved through an all-natural diet of primarily plant-based

foods like vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts and seeds.


The Starting Point Of Weight Loss

If you really want to lose weight – you can. I'm talking anywhere from ten to

one hundred pounds or more. You weren't born with the extra body weight

you're carrying around – you acquired it through your diet.

Let's face it – it's grade-school easy for the average person to pack on those

extra pounds and you don't have to go very far to do it. If the pantry and

refrigerator is empty, all you have to do is make your way to the nearest

convenience store, gas bar, pharmacy or coffee shop.

There you will be presented with a vast array of food products that will most build more fat on

your body. You can get soda pop, chips, crackers, Doritos™, Cheetos™, chocolate, candy, pastries,

donuts and more easily and quickly. But none of these will help you and they can only make

matters worse. Even some of the products at the health food store and not particularly healthy, so

you have to be careful and cognizant of the lurking dangers, wherever you are.

The point is, it's pretty hard to steer completely clear of the temptations all around. Sometimes it

seems like the world is conspiring just to keep you where you are weight-wise – or add to the

problem. But you have to be strong and defiant. Resist those things you know are not good for

you.

It really comes down to your intentions. Is your weight loss goal a passing fancy, like a New Year's

resolution... or is it something you're going to go after, no matter what?

What happens from today onward is essentially based on your level of commitment. If your

commitment is wavering, chances are you'll make an exit at the earliest possibility. But if your

commitment is rock-solid, consider your weight loss goal already accomplished because for all

intents and purposes – it is.


Once you make a firm decision to get healthy and lose the extra weight, you've taken the first and

most important step. Until this time, it's only a possibility. But with a firm commitment that

possibility turns into a probability. And then eventually that probability becomes inevitable. Stick

with it and refuse to give in to excuses.

Give your body a fair chance to get used to this new, healthy and slimming way to eat and never

feel hungry again. Changing your regular diet to one that is far better for you requires your total

commitment and a commitment is something you stick with no matter what.

Slimming Down Naturally And Permanently

Slimming down naturally and permanently is possible by changing

your diet alone. But you'll achieve better results, faster if you combine

this new way of eating with a regular exercise program. When you

combine a healthy diet that's high in nutrients with aerobic exercise,

you've got a one-two punch that will transform your appearance, how

you and others feel about you and most importantly – your overall

health and well-being.

If you eat the way most people do, you're eating too much of the wrong foods and you're not

getting enough of the nutrient-rich foods nature provides. Poor nutrition leaves you tired and

lethargic. It makes you less productive at work and kids less-effective in school and more

hyperactive than they should be.

Mood swings, poor self esteem, feelings of isolation and increased stress can all be the result of an

inadequately nourishing diet. Left unchecked for too long, it's easy to transition from being a little

overweight to being obese and that's where several serious issues come to the fore.


Did you know that illnesses caused by obesity leads to more lost workdays in America than any

other single affliction? It's true and yet, the madness continues.

As a society, we're getting fatter by the month. So it's up to each one of us to say – enough is

enough and to get a handle on our individual weight before it spirals out of control and leads to

serious illness or early death.

The answer is one that I want to continually drive home: the way to lose extra fat for good is to eat

your fill of good-tasting, highly-nutritious food and to minimize those foods that have little value

to the body. Optimal nutrition helps you lose weight reasonably quickly and keep it off without

feelings of deprivation or hunger. You'll have all need. But instead of feeling tired from eating a

large meal – you'll feel energized and satisfied. Add a regular program of exercise into the mix and

you'll be on your way to a whole new life and you'll never look back because the change feels so

good.


Think Of Food As Fuel For The Body The body has specific requirements for optimal functioning. When you eat

to nourish the body, you're living a healthier life and you'll automatically

lose any excess fat you've accumulated – if you stick to healthy eating and

don't fall back into old patterns. There are foods that promote good health

and slim figures and there are others that damage your heath and increase

your increase body fat.

So it's important to know what foods to choose and what foods to stay away from at all costs. For

optimum weight control and better overall health, you should avoid as much as possible foods

that are nutrient-poor.

This is crucial when deciding what to buy at the grocery store and what to prepare at mealtime.

The more effective you are in selecting and eating foods with adequate nutrients, the less desire

you'll tend to have to consume foods that are mostly just empty calories.

Foods that provide little to no nutrients deliver poor quality fuel into your magnificent human

engine. But when you eat lots of fibre-rich and nutrient-rich foods, these health-inducing natural

wonders fill you up and satisfy you when you eat enough of them, so you'll be less tempted to

reach for the junk foods. When you don't get your fill of life-sustaining nutrients and fibre, the

brain sends signals telling you to eat more or to overeat because the body hasn't gotten what it

needs.

With enough fibre and nutrients from the foods you eat, the body's requirements will be met from

both a nutritional (vitamins, minerals, etc) and a physical (bulky fibre) perspective. When these

natural needs are fulfilled, the desire to consume more food shut off or at least, turned down

substantially. When you eat the right foods and you don't just shovel it in like there's no

tomorrow, the brain will send signals when the body has had its fill. But when we eat too fast, we

tend to miss the early signals and end up stuffing ourselves and feeling uncomfortable.


Eating right is the key and that means mostly nutrient-dense foods that provide a high quality fuel.

Whole, natural foods – vegetables, fruits, beans, nuts, seeds and whole grains – this is what should

make up the majority of your diet. It's these foods that are straight from nature that deliver the

biggest nutritional punch. The less processed food is – the better it is for you because you're

getting a higher degree of nutrition and fewer calories.

So in essence, you're fuelling the tank without adding to any fat stores. But when you eat refined

carbohydrates like white bread or white pasta – you are excluding from your diet the very

essential nutrients the body needs to thrive and you're getting mostly empty calories instead,

which only adds to your waistline. Processed foods like these and others have had their health-

giving qualities removed. The fibre and nutrient-rich outer cover has been removed from the

wheat kernel to produce white flour. What has been cast aside was the most nutritious part and

what is turned into “food” is empty from a nutritional point of view.

True whole grains are significantly different from processed foods. That's why the closer you can

get to the food as nature has provided it in its raw and unprocessed form – the better it is for you.

After it's been refined, it lacks the fibre, vitamins and minerals to truly satisfy one's appetite, so

the tendency is to eat more and more.

But hold on! Think about what you're eating.

These are essentially empty calories. You're eating more and not giving the body what it needs and

when that happens, the results are never good. Weight gain is an obvious result. But this way of

eating over a period of time can also lead to much more serious health issues like diabetes, heart

disease and cancer.

Processed carbohydrates like white breads, pastas, cakes and pastries are seriously deficient in

fibre, vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients – all of which were stripped from the wheat in the

processing. Those foods might satisfy the taste buds, but they are nutritionally depleted. These

foods therefore have no beneficial attributes as far as the body is concerned, yet use its resources

to process and assimilate these foods. The net result is a loss of nutrients and energy in exchange

for a moment of gratification.


With white flour and its associated products, nature's vital nutritionally-sound packaging has been

removed. All that remains is empty calories – essentially a “non-food” product – and yet it is

consumed every day by massive numbers of people. With the fibre gone and most of the minerals

too – these foods are absorbed too rapidly, causing a surge of glucose in the bloodstream. When

this happens, the pancreas is forced to pump out insulin at a faster rate to keep up. And carrying

around extra body fat also places an added demand on the pancreas and this overload often leads

to diabetes.

According to Dr. Walter Willet, chairman of the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard School of

Public Health, refined grain products like white bread should be reclassified as belonging to the

sweets category of foods because the effect they have on the body is basically the same.

Eat far less processed food and cut it out altogether if you want to maximize your health and

wellness. Instead rely of whole foods, as natural and unprocessed as can be found. Start your

shopping in the produce aisle and choose plenty of raw vegetables, fresh fruits and dried beans.

Shape your meals around the natural, nutrient rich wonders of vegetables

– particularly dark leafy green vegetables as these are the most

nutritionally-packed foods on the planet. You'll be getting plenty of fibre,

phytonutrients, minerals and vitamins every time you choose foods like

kale, spinach, romaine lettuce, Swiss chard, collard greens, broccoli,

watercress and the like. Mix in a variety of dried beans like pinto, black,

red and white kidney, garbanzo beans and others – along with a healthy

mix of fresh fruit and watch the fat melt off your body.

To reach your ideal weight and to stay there permanently, you simply must direct your attention to

the nutritional quality of the foods you're eating. What makes you healthy makes you thin and

what makes you slim also makes you healthy.


That's the secret to permanent weight loss – eat predominantly healthy, nutrient-dense foods and

minimize anything else – especially processed and refined foods including cooking oils.

Ninety percent of your diet should be based on unrefined plant foods. Nothing else comes close to

delivering the nutritional payload and light calorie total of garden-fresh fruits and vegetables.

Eating more of these foods and much less of any other helps to free you from the bondage of

being overweight in a safe, all-natural way. You really don't need anything else. Commit to this

kind of healthy eating for two months without wavering and you will see real results in the area of

weight loss. Of course, there will be numerous additional benefits as well, like having more energy.

Today’s Beauty Has Never Been Better

Thousands of years ago, it was probably an advantage to have a

little extra body fat. With food scarce, having fat stores the body

could draw from helped people survive – particularly through long,

cold winters. But with today's plentiful abundance and diversity of

food that is widely and readily available, storing extra body fat

serves no purpose and is a significant disadvantage when it comes

to one's health.

Today, there's a clear and irrefutable link between being slim and living a longer life in a healthier

state, just as there is a link between obesity and a shorter life. If you continue to load up on high-

calorie, empty foods – you'll find it impossible to lose weight and achieve optimal health. You need

to increase your intake of nutrients and you can’t do that by eating more or less of dead foods that

are severely void of nutrients.

The good news is that you don't need any special diet or reducing program. All you need is the

commitment to eating far more nutrient-dense foods than any other kind. It's also important to

mix those nutrient-dense foods, so you get a good variation of taste and nutrition.


With modern technology, improved shipping methods and better refrigeration, you and I have

immediate access to the world's bounty of healthy, life-sustaining natural foods. That's where

healthy weight loss begins – with your shopping cart at your nearby grocery store. It's a wonderful

time to be alive.

In any supermarket, you can find a huge array of fresh fruits and vegetables from all over the

world. It's the largest variety of high-quality, nutrient-dense foods in human history – and it's ours

for the picking. So it's never been easier to add a diversity of nutrients to our diet from such a

vibrant variety of life-giving foods. Even the selection of frozen vegetables has risen dramatically,

providing additional – and equally nutritious – options, making menu planning even easier.

One foundational dietary factor for optimal health and body weight is to understand the nutrient

density of your diet. You simply must eat more fibrous, nutrient-packed, natural foods and only a

small amount of foods that have a poor nutritional content. Superior nutrition is the real key to

long-term, sustainable weight loss. You simply eat all you want of the right foods – so you never

feel cheated or deprived. And as your body gets used to eating in the way nature intended – any

cravings for junk food items seem to fade away. Cravings are no longer much of an issue when you

make this foundational switch in your diet.


Foods To Reduce Or Avoid Natural, organic foods straight from nature are the best

foods you could ever eat. If you've ever had a vegetable

garden, or grown your own tomatoes from a container on

the balcony or back deck, you know exactly what I mean.

When you can enjoy the luxury of beautifully-ripened, fresh-

picked produce, and eat it raw in a salad, wrap, or sandwich –

you're getting the ultimate in freshness, taste and nutrition.

The next best thing is something most of us rely on and that is buying fresh produce from a store

or farmer's market. The thing is... the fresher, purer and less impacted by human interference

these foods are – the healthier they are for you to eat. From the plant to the dinner plate is best. In

terms of the worst foods to eat, all you have to do is consider the degree of processing, refining,

adding, or manufacturing that has been done to it, before the product appears on store shelves.

If it's farm-fresh, organic produce, the item for sale is probably as close as you're going to get to

having it picked right from the tree or vine. But if it's boxed, canned, bottled, bagged or otherwise

packaged – you must investigate further in order to discern the amount of processing the product

has undergone and therefore, how much or how little food value remains. Fresh is best – that's

why you often see leading restaurants stressing the freshness of the ingredients they use.

As far as foods to avoid, there are some that are obvious – others not so much. Refined

carbohydrates, most baked goods and condiments are hugely detrimental to anyone intent on

maintaining optimum health and an ideal weight.

Soft drinks and prepackaged fruit drinks are something you should steer clear of altogether if you

want to lose weight. There is nothing of any value in these manufactured products. Same thing

goes for candy and most items sold as snack foods today like donuts, cakes, pastries, potato chips,

corn chips, cheese twists, sugared popcorn, pretzels and assorted other items.


Zero food value and a ton of calories. If you're serious about seeing significant weight loss,

completely eliminate all of the above for eight weeks and don't forget to load up fully on

nutritious foods instead.

The big surprise to many is the mention of condiments. This includes all those commercially-

prepared jars of toppings like ketchup, relish, mustard, mayonnaise, salsa, refried beans, salad

dressings and lots more. Many of these items can throw a monkey wrench into the most well-

intentioned weight loss effort. The best thing to do is to avoid all commercial condiments, sauces,

dips and the like and make your own from ingredients like seeds, nuts, dried currants, raisins,

dates, garlic, tahini, fresh lemon juice, balsamic vinegar, water and almond milk.

Stop using regular white pasta. Instead, when you want to prepare pasta as your meal, choose

whole wheat or brown rice pasta instead. Make your tomato sauce from scratch and load it with

healthy vegetables like onions, garlic, celery, zucchini, carrot, mushrooms, red or yellow bell

peppers and a little jalapeno pepper, or cayenne pepper powder. And serve your healthy pasta

with a big bowl of garden salad.

Now you've got a meal that's a healthy alternative to the usual plate of white pasta with

prepackaged sauce. It is said that low-fibre carbohydrates like white pasta and white bread are as

damaging to the body as white sugar. When you begin to see it this way, you realize that these are

foods you simply must stay away from if you want to your ideal target weight to be sustainable.

If it's too much to give up white pasta altogether, make it only rarely instead of weekly. Better yet,

use only a small portion and toss it into a large pot of homemade vegetable soup. That way, you'll

get your pasta fix – along with healthy vegetables like carrots, cauliflower, zucchini, mushrooms,

tomatoes and spinach – without packing on a lot of extra calories. Then gradually switch to whole

wheat or brown rice pasta.

Look out for other ways that white flour sneaks into your diet. It's not just spaghetti and white

bread – there are pancake mixes, bagels, croutons, bread sticks, donuts, cakes and other items

too. Being aware of these products that can ruin your plans to lose the extra body fat is one thing,

but you need to remain vigilant because it's easy to forget and slip up. Before you know it, your


back to eating the way you used to and that won't get you to the point you want to be.

Place all refined grains into the group of foods that you consume only sparingly. Fill the void with

whole, natural foods with an emphasis on vegetables – particularly dark green veggies like

spinach, broccoli, brussel sprouts, kale, watercress, parsley, Swiss chard, plus collard, dandelion,

mustard greens as well. Doing this ensures that any refined grains you do eat, represent only a

small percentage of your total calories.

Constantly question the food value meals as you plan to prepare them. Substitute problematic

ingredients with healthier alternatives whenever possible and you'll stay on the fast track to fast

and sustainable weight loss. If you remain focused on the goal of optimum health and an ideal

body weight, you will quickly see how many of the everyday foods that have become habitual are

causing more harm than good. It's easier to eat a nutritionally-deficient diet than a healthy one

because foods that pack on the pounds are everywhere you turn.

If you're not careful, it's easy to fall into the trap. Despite the advertising messages that portray

cookies as a healthy indulgence because they contain a little dried fruit, you need to uncover the

truth for yourself. Since ninety-nine percent of cookies, bagels and pastas are made from white

flour, they cannot be very good for you. Manufacturers might add a little whole wheat flour or

even colouring to make an item seem like a healthy choice. Don't be fooled. It's as though

manufacturers are preying on widespread ignorance and masking the underlying problems of

processed foods in order to sell more products and pad their profits.


The Problem With Processed Or Refined Foods

Food supplies both nutrients and calories and all calories have

to come from just three elements: carbohydrates, proteins or

fats. Nutrients are obtained from non-caloric food factors like

vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals and fibres, and are

absolutely vital to good health and proper functioning.

For lifelong health and wellness and effortless weight control, you want to ensure that you're

getting a high proportion of nutrients to calories. Refined products are nutrient-deficient. When

you eat these processed products, you are essentially filling up on empty calories.

That's why you need to mostly avoid refined products for the most part and instead eat large

quantities of highly-nutritious foods instead. When you do this, you'll lose the extra fat and keep it

off as long as you eat mostly healthy foods. As a bonus, you'll feel better, sleep better, have more

energy and enjoy a longer, healthier life. That's a huge payoff and it begins by severely curtailing

your consumption of processed or refined food items.

Refining removes much of the nutrition from otherwise acceptable foods. In fact, so much of the

real food value is destroyed that many governments mandate that manufacturers add some

synthetic vitamins and minerals back into the product. They then label such products as

“enriched” or “fortified”. But what this really means is that the raw food has been stripped of its

essential nutrients in their natural form.

Refining/processing reduces the amounts of literally hundreds of known nutrients contained in the

original or raw product. But only a small percentage – five to ten percent gets added back through

fortification. So for manufacturers to claim that a food has been “enriched with _______” (fill in

the blank) is essentially a weak claim at best, but undoubtedly one that fools many consumers into

thinking they're getting a healthier product than they really are.


As a consumer, you've got to on your toes and careful about any

packaged foods that you buy. Some breakfast cereals that are

sold as “whole grain” products, may be so overly-processed that

they are severely lacking in nutrients and the very fibre that

makes true whole grains such a healthy food item.

Question everything. Read product labels. Look for advertising pitches designed to skirt the real

issues and slant claims that help producers sell more product.

Watch out for the deceptive practices used by manufacturers and learn all you can about the

authentic nutritional values of various foods you consume or have in the past. By changing your

ways and sticking to healthier eating, you will easily maintain a healthier, trimmer and slimmer

body and all the other benefits are simply bonuses.

One basic guideline to remember when grocery shopping is this: the less processing involved, the

better it is for you. For this reason, coarsely-ground, gritty whole grains are superior to their

powdery, finely-grained counterpart. Coarse whole grains are absorbed more slowly and therefore

help to stymie the appetite. Bulky, fibrous foods also help keep arteries and capillaries clear, so

healthy blood can flow freely and distribute essential nutrients and fresh oxygen to all the body's

cells and organs. But ingesting processed foods causes a less than desirable effect in that it

depletes the body of existing nutrients, creating a nutritional deficiency.

Eating, digestion and assimilation are processes that require energy and nutrients. If these

combined processes consume more of these assets then they deliver – you're operating at a

deficit. You're using the body's resources and getting nothing back in return.

In fact, these processed foods are robbing the body of the very nutrients it has stored. Ultimately,

there can be no positive outcome from this kind of eating. Instead, it ensures that you age faster

and remain undernourished – causing you to want to eat more to feel satiated.


Fats consumed are quickly converted into body fat. As you consume fatty foods, it tends to

stimulate the appetite, so you continue to eat more and more of these problem foods. When you

combine fats with refined carbohydrates, it can only lead to an increase in the accumulation of fat

on the body. If one wanted to create an imperfect storm – a combination of foods that would

surely lead to obesity – it would contain butter, white flour and refined sugar -- fat, empty calories

that provide no redeeming qualities and essentially poison the body instead.

Refined foods perpetuate a swift and excessive rise in blood sugar levels, which in turn, sets off a

surge of insulin to drive the sugar out of the blood and into the cells. This added insulin also

promotes the storage of fat on the body, ensuring that those fat cells swell in size. As more and

more fat accumulates on the body, it interferes with the delivery of insulin to the muscle tissues.

When this happens, the pancreas, sensing that the glucose level in the bloodstream is excessively

high and therefore pumps out even more insulin.

Overweight people secrete as much as two to three times the amount of insulin as do those who

are at a healthy weight. These higher levels of insulin mean that fat accumulates on the body more

efficiently and this cycle continues. Overweight people tend to get heavier as time goes on –

increasing their body's “set point”. Refined fats (cooking oils including olive oil) and refined

carbohydrates (white flour, sugar and all associated products) ensures that fat-storing hormones

are overproduced and compounding the weight control problem.

This spiral of weight gain continues and most people remain oblivious to the causes, until they

recognize the dangers in the food supply and make the necessary changes that will break this

dangerous cycle.


How Good Intentions Are Sabotaged

Most of us have wanted to shed at least a few pounds at

some point in our lives. So even though we set out with good

intentions, achieving satisfactory results that remain are

largely illusive for the most part. This is what keeps the diet

and weight loss industry thriving. They know we'll be back for

more because it just seems so difficult to lose the fat and be

free of it for good.

Though most weight loss programs are ineffective over the long haul, it's not the programs that

are the principle source of the problem – it's us. Most people know that salads are healthy. Of

course, I'm talking about fresh green salads that are made up entirely of fresh vegetables like

romaine lettuce, spinach, carrots, green or red onions, sweet red bell peppers, tomatoes, sprouts,

watercress and other mixed greens – not the mayonnaise-laced potato salad or coleslaw, or

predominantly oil-soaked white pasta with token vegetables thrown into the mix.

Fresh green salads deliver multiple foods in their natural, raw state. They may contain mixed

greens or spinach that's been rinsed and packaged – but other than that – there's been no

processing or messing with what nature has supplied. But the real problem is not with the salad

itself – but with the dressing that's usually poured on in generous amounts.

Most commercially prepared salad dressings are high in fat. They're loaded with calories – empty

calories at that – and are mostly void of fibre. So what begins as a low-calorie, highly-nutritious

bowl of fresh salad is quickly transformed into something else with all that fattening oil and you

sabotage your weight loss plan, even though it appears that you're eating the right kind of food.

Salads are great to eat – most dressings are not. It's easy to add five hundred calories of liquid

crap by opening that bottle of dressing and pouring it on.


Most commercial blends are high in oil content and oil – even the often touted as healthy, olive oil

– is rich in calories and low in nutrients. The simple solution is to make your own salad dressings

from healthier ingredients and without any oil.

Salad dressings aren't the only common way good intentions are easily sabotaged. Sauces, dips

and spreads can scuttle any weight loss plan just as easily.

Once again, it's all those convenience foods that contribute to one's weight problem. Let's look at

one popular dish as an example – Fettuccine Alfredo. How would most people prepare this dish?

They would simply buy a package of white pasta and a ready-made jar of Alfredo sauce and

combine the two after cooking the noodles and warming the sauce.

They may or may not add cheese on top before serving. We've already covered the issue of white

pasta, so no need to reiterate. But it's a real problem and so this typical dish is already starting out

poorly for the weight-conscious among us. Another huge problem comes to the forefront in the

jar of sauce. Chances are it's loaded with butter (one hundred percent fat) and cream (far more

fattening then the eighteen percent indicated on the package).

It's probably also thickened with white flour and Parmesan cheese. So you've got one a

nutritionally void, food” item smothered with a super-fat combination of fats and more refined

carbohydrates. It's a disaster on a plate and a heart attack waiting to happen.

Just as butter is one hundred percent fat – so too are oils. Oils simply add fat to an already

expanded waistline. What this means is that you get lots of calories from just a little bit of oil. Just

one tablespoon of oil translates into one hundred and twenty calories. Olive oil is one of the most

fattening, calorie-dense foods that can be stored on the body very quickly. What's more is that it

can pack on even more calories per pound than butter.

Fresh, raw vegetables in salads, plus plenty of fruits (at least four servings) and beans every day –

plus regular exercise – inevitably leads to weight loss that is effortless and permanent. The secret

to salads is to use healthy, homemade dressings.


Sometimes simple is better.

Try squeezing a fresh lemon over your salad, or add a few splashes of your

favourite flavoured vinegar. You can also make your own sauces, toppings,

soups, dips and spreads. Simply use healthy ingredients nuts, seeds, dried fruits,

soy or almond milk and blend them together. For a more savoury taste, use

garlic or onion and some spices without the dried fruit. It's surprisingly easy to

create healthy toppings that make getting those greens easy.

Maximum nutrition is the key to weight loss, so to ensure that you're getting enough of what the

body needs, be sure to eat huge amounts of raw foods. That's the best starting point and the

easiest way to get lots of raw, mostly green veggies is in a salad.

Whole fruits can be eaten at any time and are particularly effective as the morning meal. If you eat

several different fruits and at least one large salad everyday – you're well on your way to a higher

level of health and wellness at a lighter weight than you previously recorded.

You should also eat plenty of lightly-cooked green vegetables like broccoli, brussel sprouts,

spinach, kale, collard greens and Swiss chard. You should also consume a lesser quantity of starchy

vegetables like sweet potatoes, potatoes, parsnips, squash and others – plus some whole grains

like brown rice, rolled or steel-cut oats and quinoa. Oh yes and don't forget the legumes like lentils,

split peas, pinto beans, black beans and chick peas (garbanzos).

Cooking methods are important too.

If you use cooking oils at all – do so sparingly. Oil makes even the most nutritious of foods less so

and slathering it on in endless amounts kind of defeats the purpose of healthy eating altogether. If

you routinely use oil when you cook, or you splash it on your salads, you probably won't lose

weight as effectively as you could if you avoided all oils completely. Sure, it's a topsy-turvy way of

thinking – completely different from the way most people are accustomed to cooking. But I'm

here to help you get results and one proven way to put an end to using oils.


Raw foods (dark, leafy green vegetables) are the runaway winners in terms of nutrient-density.

But let's face it, most of us favour cooked food over raw. Just be aware that cooking diminishes

nutrient values, so the less actual cooking involved, the more nutrients that are retained. Steaming

is undoubtedly the best cooking method. You could also roast vegetables in the oven, sauté them

in a pan on the stove, or combine multiple veggies and stir-fry those in a wok. Again, beware of

any oil that you use and don't be afraid to try cooking with other options instead, like wine,

vegetable broth, water or freshly-made carrot juice.


The Value Of A High-Fibre Diet

Fibre is essential to life. Despite the fact that it's a vital nutrient, the typical

diet is deficient in fibre. A deficiency here can cause serious health

problems from the relatively mild and temporary constipation to

hemorrhoids, varicose veins, diabetes and even cancer. Multiple studies

confirm overwhelmingly that a diet high in natural fibre offers significant

protection against heart disease and cancer.

Eat enough of the right kinds of foods and you will be protected in a way that synthetic

supplements cannot. If you listen to the advertising messages and media programs, you may think

that taking supplementary fibre is enough, but the truth is that these supplements cannot

replicate the value of getting it directly from nature. Supplements simply do not capture the

essence of a diet rich in these protective plant foods.

You just can't beat the nutritional power of fresh raw vegetables and fruits. Loaded with vitamins,

minerals, phytochemicals and fibre – green vegetables are the healthiest foods on the planet and

the more you fill up on these healthy greens, the less you'll be tempted to indulge in empty foods

that burden the body and deliver zero value.

Eat plenty of salads or mixed raw veggies every single day. Mix and match the ingredients that you

use so you get a broader range of variety and nutrients that were grown in different soils of

varying degrees of fertility. By combining a broad range of raw ingredients, you stand the best

chance of covering all the bases and providing for your body in a way that will pay off for years. A

healthy, slim body is not created by luck or good genes but is the result of wise choices and

positive actions.


How Consumers are Mislead

No one should blame themselves for being overweight. What we can blame, at least in part, is the

twisted way that food contents are measured and have been forever. In place is a system that

measures nutrient to weight ratios instead of nutrients to calories. It's a perfect system for those

in the food industry because it keeps the truth away from consumers by masking just how

nutrient-deficient many foods are.

For example, it makes dairy products like milk and cheese seem less fattening than they really are.

Everyone has seen two percent milk. Maybe you buy it every week – or were raised on it. When

you hear the term “two percent” it seems reasonable to expect that the two percent means that's

it only contains two percent fat. When measured by weight, it could be claimed that two percent

milk is ninety-eight percent fat-free. This is due to its high water content that makes milk heavy.

But if you look at it from the standpoint of calories – fully thirty-five percent of the calories in two

percent milk is actually fat. Everybody thinks they're drinking two percent fat milk. Would they

consume as much if they knew the truth – that so-called “two percent” was really thirty-five

percent fat? I highly doubt it and so do milk producers. That's why this charade continues and the

consumer is left in the dark.

Similarly, low fat cheese isn't really “low-fat” at all. But

producers get away with playing numbers games that the

average consumer is simply unaware of. It's nothing but a

strategy to hide the truth about how poor quality some

foods including most dairy products actually are. Yet “dairy”

is one of the four major food groups that billions of people

were taught as children to be a fundamental of basic

nutrition.


What a pile of baloney! Yet these myths persist and people keep getting heavier and heavier and

sicker and sicker. Don't wait for the government to change things. With big industry and its

massive manipulative power, about the only thing you can count on is for misrepresentation to

continue. The only real solution of course is to arm yourself with this knowledge and use it to

create a safer diet for you and your family.

It's not just the dairy industry. This numbers officially presented hide the true fat content and this

practice is rampant in the fast food industry. Somehow I doubt that regular customers to such

establishments care much about nutritional values and fat content, but the standard way of

presenting these details certainly masks the ugly truth.

Take the Burger King Double Cheeseburger, served with ketchup on a white bun. Using the

standards in place, it can be accurately declared as eighteen percent fat or eight-two percent fat

free based on weight. But in truth, when measured as a percentage of calories – that eighteen

percent fat shoots up to a whopping fifty-four percent fat. Oh and, the hamburger patty by itself is

actually sixty-eight percent fat. The way foods are measured is clearly deceptive, you if you're

interested in staying healthy and slim, you need to be aware of the forces that may very well be

conspiring against you.

Vegetables and fruits are the two kinds of foods with the strongest connection to human

longevity and better overall health. That's because they are loaded with life-giving nutrients and

comparatively few calories. Raw vegetables contain the most powerful anti-cancer properties of

any type of food. Those with a near vegetarian diet for life simply do not suffer heart attacks

anywhere near the same degree as the general public who typically consume meats and dairy at

most if not all meals.


The number one killer – heart disease – is almost entirely preventable by consuming a diet rich in

natural plant foods, with only ten percent of less calories from meats, cheeses and other animal

products. The evidence is overwhelming, but why haven't we all heard this over and over again?

Cheese contains more saturated fat and more hormone promoting substances than any other

food. In fact, cheese is the primary source of saturated fat in the diet. It contains ten times the

saturated fat of chicken and the fat-to-calorie ratio of most cheeses is over fifty percent. That

means that more than half of the calories you get from eating cheese is saturated fat. Even “low-

fat” cheeses are actually very high in fat.

Over the past forty years, cheese consumption has increased by more than two hundred percent

and that's mostly due to fast foods like pizza and nachos and ready-made dips and convenience

foods like Alfredo sauce and nacho cheese sauce.

Along with butter, cheese contains the highest levels of content and may be a primary source of

dioxin exposure. Yet cheese is promoted as a health food. Manufacturers push it as a source of

calcium, though it's a particularly foolish choice to turn to, according to Dr. Joel Furhman, who is

frequently seen on PBS and who has authored a number of books on healthy eating.

In fact, just this morning I spotted a banner ad on a hugely popular website proclaiming the

following message – “A wedge of immunity... cheese provides protein which helps build

antibodies”. Most people seeing this kind of message probably don't stop to analyze it. Even if

they did, would foundation of information would they base this analysis on? The myth that cheese

is good for you continues and we're buying up more of it than ever.

Clearly other interests – particularly those that are profit driven – have long gained an upper hand

over the health of the general public. What I suggest is not to take my word for it – or anyone

else's for that matter – until you at least investigate these myths that continue to be fed to an

unsuspecting and generally unhealthy population.


It's time to wake up and take charge and of your health and your weight and the best place to

start is by eating plenty of nutrient-dense foods. These foods will help you drop the fat without

feeling like you're making a huge sacrifice because you can eat until you're satisfied and you won't

have to worry about calories. You don't have to give anything either. But if it's low in nutrition, you

should only eat it occasionally and not in huge quantity.

If you're tempted to try one of those “low carb” diets, you may want to think again. According to

Dr. Furhman, the one thing the body needs more than virtually any other substance is

carbohydrates. The brain cells and muscles are designed to be fueled by carbohydrates. But it's

those carbohydrate-rich foods consumed in their natural state that he's refined to and not the

over-processed refined carbohydrates that far too many people consume in excess.

Natural, unrefined carbohydrates are low in calories and high in f ibre and far superior in terms of

body fuel than fatty, processed carbohydrates or animal-based products. There's a popular myth

out there that you've got to eat meat so that you get adequate protein. I heard this for years when

I switched to a vegetarian diet.

The truth is that plant foods deliver plenty of protein. Another myth is that unless you're eating

meat, those proteins are somehow incomplete. Another bogus claim concocted by the other side.

You simply don't need to mix and match protein. If you eat any combination of natural foods, you

will get enough protein. This means that adding a large quantity of raw or steamed vegetables to

your daily menu, rest assured that you will be receiving plenty of protein.

Forget about the scales... the constant “weigh-ins”... and the deadlines you're trying to beat.

Healthy, permanent weight loss from a changed dietary foundation can take time. Some people

lose fat faster than others but I suspect this is in relation to the nutrient balance of their diet prior

to beginning a plan based on the nutrient density of foods.


Limit your eating to meal times. If you are one of those people who love to constant snack on

anything and everything, it’s time to reform your ways by eating more of the healthier foods at

mealtime. If you must snack – raw veggies (without fattening dips) are the best choice, followed

by fruit. Continuous eating means that your body is constantly processing. Give it a rest and you'll

stop undermining your weight loss efforts.

When you're used to eating low-nutrient foods, it leads to a hunger that

is toxic. The more unhealthy foods you eat, the more this problem is

compounded. You're always hungry because you're not giving the body

what it needs. When you're not getting enough vitamins, minerals and

phytonutrients, you are agitated and uneasy. You don't feel right unless

the digestive tract is constantly in processing mode.


Nutrition 101

What is lacking for most people is not the desire to lose weight, but a

lack of factual information. Misinformation abounds regarding all

kinds of alternative health issues, but when it comes to healthy

weight loss, there's no end to it. There's so much conflicting

information out there that it's difficult to make sense of it all. It's

much easier to throw your hands up in frustration and go back to

your old habits and eat the way far too many people eat.

Here's an idea: if you want to eat more healthfully, look at what the majority eat and go in the

opposite direction. The average diet is refined flour and sugar – causing people to continually gain

weight. When the majority of calories come from white flour products, sugar and oils, a lifetime of

health problems including obesity is a very real possibility. Clearly the diet most people subscribe

to means undernourishment in the mildest sense and an early death at the other extreme.

What percentage of people eat with the intention of nourishing the body by getting most of their

calories from nutrient-rich foods like vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts and seeds? I think it's safe to

say that number is significantly small. Most people just don't eat this way, yet in a general sense,

our lives are ten to twenty-five years shorter than they should be. I maintain that the underlying

cause is the misinformation that's been programmed into us from an early age.

So let's start to set the record straight.

Significant Point Number One: Fats contain nine calories per gram

Significant Point Number Two: Proteins and unrefined Carbohydrates contain four calories per

gram (less than half the calories of fat)

Significant Point Number Three: All calories come from protein, carbohydrates or fat.


All plant foods are a mix of these three macronutrients and all are essential to a healthy diet. Plant

foods also contain and abundance of micronutrients (vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals, etc.).

Leafy green vegetables are approximately fifty percent protein, twenty-five percent

carbohydrates and twenty-five percent fat. Legumes are about fifty percent carbohydrate,

twenty-five percent protein and twenty-five percent fat. Fruits and starchy vegetables are

predominantly carbohydrate – though they do contain some protein and fat too.

What this all means is that when you eat healthy foods – you automatically get enough of all three

macronutrients – protein, carbohydrates and fat. What tips the scale and causes most to become

overweight is that even if they eat some of these healthy foods, they still get too many total

calories from white flour products, sugar, oil and animal products. Do not fear eating foods that

are rich in unrefined carbohydrates and do not fear eating fruits due to the natural sugars they

contain. Unrefined carbohydrates are essential and fruit satisfies the body's natural sweet tooth

while providing essential nutrients and plenty of fibre too.

When you eat high-carbohydrate food like fresh fruit of cooked black beans, you can eat larger

portions and get your fill – as still keep your caloric intake low. The high-fibre content of unrefined

carbohydrate-rich foods fills you up so you feel satisfied and won't crave any more. So as long as

you restrict the artificial, refined kinds of carbohydrates and sugar, you will be on the path to real

and sustainable weight loss. On the other hand, when you eat meats, dairy products and oils,

you're consuming calorie-dense food, so it's hard to get your fill without also packing on a bunch

of extra calories.

Healthy fats are part of an optimal health package. But unfortunately, it's the unhealthy fats

(saturated and trans fats – often labelled as partially-hydrogenated oils – are the worst offenders)

that are widely consumed in mass quantities. It's time to eat less fatty foods routinely consumed

and to replace with ground flax seeds, walnuts and more leafy greens.


One dangerous area for anyone watching their weight is oil. Despite what you may have heard, oils

– even olive oil adds too many empty calories to the diet and the effects can lead to obesity,

disease and premature aging. Refined oil is amounts to one hundred and twenty calories per

tablespoon, so if you cook with oil, it's easy to see how it boosts caloric intake, while offering no

food value in return.

What you should do for healthy weight loss is get healthy fats from nuts and seeds. Even though

nuts and seeds are fattening, they help to suppress the appetite. The healthiest diet includes some

fatty foods. Shoot for one ounce per day of raw, unsalted sunflower, sesame, or pumpkin seeds,

or almonds, walnuts, or pistachios.

Studies show that populations that consume the most seeds and nuts are slimmer on average

than those that don't. Give up oil and blend seeds and nuts instead into salad dressings and

sauces. It's not a “low-fat” diet you want – that could potentially be worse than a high fat diet if it

includes more saturated or trans fats, or excessive refined carbohydrates.

Attaining your ideal weight requires eating plenty of natural

carbohydrate-rich foods. So be sure to load up on a variety of

beans and other legumes, fresh fruit and whole grains. Remember

that it's the nutrients per calorie that determines the true

nutritional value of the food.

Therefore, it’s the natural, unrefined carbohydrates that you should eat to most. Poor quality,

nutritionally-empty foods (refined carbs) that give carbohydrates the reputation they possess of

being a food to avoid. But it's crucial to make the distinction between unrefined and refined

foods. Just two letters makes a whole lot of difference.

One's appetite is primarily controlled not by the weight of the food, but by the fibre, nutrient

density and caloric density contained within. If a food's weight was important to controlling one's

body weight, all one would have to do to lose excess fat would be to consume a lot more water. In

theory, this would then trigger the receptors in the digestive tract and one's appetite would be

reduced. But in the control center of the brain, weight alone doesn't have much of an influence.


Instead it’s the bulk from the fibre that provides roughage, as well as the nutrient fulfillment and

caloric intake of food that's required to diminish one's appetite. Water is good for you, of course...

and you should drink plenty of it. But as far as diminishing one's appetite – eating (as opposed to

juicing) water-rich fruits and vegetables are better.

One litre of food represents a full stomach. On average, that's how much a one's stomach can

typically hold. Now let's look at some specific foods and food groups and compare the number of

calories one litre (a full stomach) would represent as well as the fibre (measured in grams) it

contains.

Based on calories alone, dark, leafy green vegetables are the winners in terms of giving you

nutritive value in the fewest possible calories. They are the king of kings. Fruit is the clear winner

when it comes to fibre. But look at how many of today's popular foods offer absolutely no fibre

whatsoever. The more green vegetables you eat (prepared in healthy ways) the more weight you

will lose.

It's really that simple.

Food Calories Per Litre Fibre

Cooking Oils 7,700 0

Potato Chips 3,000 0

Meat 3,000 0

Cheese 3,400 0

French Fries 3,000 0

White Bread 1,500 0

White Chicken 1,600 0

Fish 1,400 0

Eggs 1,300 0

Wholegrain Rice 1000 3

Starchy Vegetables 600 4

Pinto Beans 500 5 Fruit 300 9 Green Vegetables 200 5


You can completely fill your stomach and feel satisfied and get the maximum amount of nutrients

from the lowest total calories. How can you not win and shed pounds when you base your diet on

the healthiest, most nutrient-dense foods on the planet? If there is a secret to weight loss – this is

it. The more of these fresh, vibrant vegetables you eat in as close to their natural form as possible

(raw or lightly-steamed) – the thinner your waist will become and the healthier and better-

protected from common problems you will be.

Let's now look at the actual density of nutrients these foods contain. Scores are based on the total

identified vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and phytochemicals contained therein. The lowest score

is zero and the highest score is one hundred.

Food Nutrient Score

Sweets and Treats (Soda pop, cakes, donuts, cookies and candy) 0

Refined Cooking Oils (various oils including olive oil) 1

Cheese (includes both hard and soft cheeses) 3

Meat (red meat of various cuts) 6

Processed or refined grains (white flour products, white rice, etc) 6

Dairy Products (regular versions) 8

Dairy Products (fat-free) 15

Wild Meat and Foul 15

Eggs 15

Fish (various freshwater and saltwater species) 18

Whole Grains (oats, barley, brown rice, wild rice, quinoa, etc) 20

Colorful, High-Starch Vegetables (squash, sweet potatoes, turnips, etc) 25

Raw Nuts and Seeds (sunflower, flax, sesame, almonds, walnuts, etc.) 30

Legumes (lentils, kidney beans, black beans, pinto beans, chick peas, etc.) 40

Fresh Fruit (apples, pineapples, strawberries, melons, kiwi, grapes, etc.) 45

Non-Starchy, White and Various-Coloured Vegetables (mushrooms, green,

red, orange and yellow bell peppers, radishes, onions, tomatoes, cauliflower,

eggplant, beets, bean sprouts, radicchio, carrots, artichokes, etc.) 50

Various Green Vegetables (broccoli, green peas, snow peas, bok choy,

romaine lettuce, asparagus, cabbage, brussel sprouts, green beans, etc.) 95

Dark, Leafy Green Vegetables (Watercress, Kale, Collard greens, Swiss

chard, spinach, arugula, mustard greens, etc.) 100


Now take at look at your typical diet and see where the foods you typically eat lie on the

nutritional scale. Are you overfed and undernourished? It's a common problem and one that most

people simply don't realize. We tend to eat the way we were raised and parents typically prepare

foods the way they learned when they were growing up. Somewhere along the way as a society,

we've missed this most essential message about nutrient density and based our diet on foods that

just don't pack the same nutritional punch.

Now that you know, you've been armed with all the weight loss weaponry you need to reduce in

weight to the type of body you were made to have – one that fits perfectly someone of your

height. When you eat in a way that naturally increases your nutrient-per-calorie ratio, the result is

permanent weight loss.

But in reality, shedding those excess pounds is only part of the reward. It will also put an end to

the hunger or cravings you get on one of those diet plans. You'll improve the functioning of your

immune system, build stronger resistance to disease, reverse any disease you may have been

inflicted with and improve your longevity. You'll be better protected against heart attack, stroke

and dementia – killers and disablers of huge numbers of people these days. In short, you'll live a

longer, healthier life. Is it worth it? Only you can answer that question.


What You Should Focus On

Forget about a “fat-free” diet – that should never be your

intention. Other than opting for fat-free dairy, if you choose

to include dairy products in your diet, fat-free is not

something you should worry about. Fat-free will not get you

to your desired weight. What you want to consume is a

healthier diet, starting today. This most assuredly means

that you need to add more of those dark, leafy green

vegetables to the menu and rest assured, even these

contain some fat.

Where most people need to place their focus on is not on avoiding fats per se, but in significantly

reducing the level of harmful, processed fats they routinely consume. Just as there are bad

(refined) and good (unrefined) carbohydrates, so too are there bad (processed) and good (from

natural sources) fats. You want one and you want to reduce or eliminate the other altogether.

Healthy fats found in nuts, seeds and avocados make nutritional additions to a wholesome diet.

They do contain plenty of calories to be sure, so you'll want to use them in moderation. For

example, don't add a whole avocado to your salad. Half an avocado sliced and placed on top will

give you the taste and nutritional value, without too many extra calories. Adding these to your diet

means that you'll also gain a nutritional punch from the added vitamin E and other antioxidants

these healthy fats provide.

At the beginning of your permanent weight loss venture, you need to worry about fats much. If

you're overweight, you already have plenty of fat reserves on the body. Let the body burn off

those fat reserves for energy. You can always add the nuts and seeds later.


Weight Loss Tips

1. Relax through deep breathing and you will burn body-fat at a

more efficient rate than ever before. Allow yourself five minutes

of quiet privacy three times a day. Breathe in by filling your upper

and lower lungs with air for a count of five. Hold your breath for

four times as long to the count of twenty. Exhale to the count of

ten and empty those lungs fully. Finally, repeat these steps ten

times in a row and do this exercise three times every day.

2. Strive for a diet that's ninety percent unprocessed foods. It should include raw vegetables,

steamed vegetables, several pieces of fruit and some whole grains.

3. Stop cooking with oils. Use vegetable broth, wine, fresh carrot juice or water instead. If

cutting out oil altogether seems too radical a step, cut down on the amount you use

because a little oil goes a long way.

4. Drink more water. Water is your best calorie-free drink. Few of us get enough water and

remain dehydrated most of the time. Studies show that drinking two cups of water speeds

metabolism by as much as forty percent over the next half hour. Part of this increase is due

to the warming of the water to body temperature. When you think you feel hunger coming

on, go for a glass of fresh water instead. Drink water at every opportunity every single day.

5. Buy more organic foods. They usually cost a bit more, but “certified organic” means you're

getting the real deal – without the dangerous additives. When you're eating pure foods,

you will be more drawn to make healthy meals.


6. Stop buying soft drinks and packaged fruit drinks. Soda has a lot of calories in it and diet

soda may be even more damaging to your health than regular soda. These are sugar-laced

manufactured products that have absolutely no redeeming qualities. Drink water or fresh

vegetable and fruit juices instead. Soft drinks are utter trash and not even worth having on

special occasions.

7. Refuse to buy refined grain products. Choose whole grain breads and bagels instead. And

steer clear of junk food items that fill you up with empty calories. If you don't put them in

your shopping cart, they won't be in your house to tempt you at a weak moment.

8. Avoid stress wherever possible and manage that which you cannot avoid. There's not much

we can do to prevent stress in our lives, but we can certainly get better and handling it and

when we're not burdened with stress, we're less likely to reach for a candy bar of bag of

chips.

9. When you feel the urge to snack – exercise instead. That's right. Get up and go for a walk.

Get some fresh air and get you body moving.

10. Stop frequenting the drive-through window of fast food outlets. If you normally visit every

day, cut it back to once a week. If you stop in once a week now, make it once a month.

Limit your access to these places because none of them offer healthy food choices. Eating

at home is a much better option.

11. Don't skip breakfast. Eat a high fibre meal like hot oats topped with fresh fruit instead.

You'll fire up your metabolism and satisfy the body for hours, so you won't be tempted to

grab that fat-laden Danish or donut later on.

12. Get plenty of restful sleep. You should be getting about seven to eight hours of sleep every

night. If you're not getting enough sleep, the level of the hormone, ghrelin increases, which

also increases the appetite and slows down metabolism.


13. Be sure you're getting enough protein. Since protein is the toughest food source to break

down, to digest it requires more calories. What's more is that any weight lost will come

from fat and not from muscle.

14. Turn down the heat in winter. Not only does it save you money, it increases the body's

metabolism. Earlier generations naturally burned off more calories by simply trying to keep

warm. You can achieve a similar metabolic boost by exercising outdoors in cold weather.

15. Add a little heat to your meals. Red hot chili peppers can wake up

your taste buds and your metabolism. Just be careful not to overdo

it. A steaming-hot cup of coffee can increase the heart rate and

boost metabolism too. But as with peppers, it's best to use caffeine

in moderation.

16. Limit the amount of dairy in your diet. No other animal (other than man) drinks milk after it

was weaned from its mother's supply and no other animal consumes the milk of a different

species. These two factors alone indicate that milk and its associated products are

unnatural substances to the human body. Furthermore, homogenization and

pasteurization destroys much of its nutrition – including natural enzymes.

17. Drink green tea without adding anything to it. Green tea offers numerous benefits

including antioxidant protection. If you regularly drink three cups of coffee or black tea

with milk (or cream) and sugar and you make the switch to green tea (not an easy thing to

do, but still possible) think of all the garbage you wouldn't be putting into your body like

ninety teaspoons or more of refined white sugar.

18. Think of fruit as a whole meal. Instead of merely snacking on an apple or pear, chop it up

and combine it with four or five other fruits and you've got a full meal. Sprinkle on

teaspoon or two of sesame seeds or ground flax seeds for a new taste sensation and added

nutrition. Mixed fruit is delicious at breakfast or lunch.


19. Minimize couch time in favour of something more active. Sitting around and watching

television may be the greatest time waster ever. The number of junk food items advertised

on television will tempt you to eat poorly while you’re in couch potato mode. Get up and

get moving instead. Go for a walk or jog outside. Or, if the weather's bad, jump on the

treadmill or exercise bike and rack up some mileage. You'll feel better as you get moving.

20. Look for non-exercise opportunities to burn more calories. Park at the far corner of the

mall's parking lot and walk to the entrance. Take the stairs up and down and avoid the

elevators and escalators. Walk to the corner store instead of getting in the car. The more

active you can be – the better it is for weight loss.

21. Avoid all weight loss gimmicks and focus on a healthier, nutrient-rich diet instead. Nothing

can give you the long-term benefits of a regular diet that fulfills you and is rich in nutrients

and light in calories.

22. Start getting into the habit of eating only at meal time and getting your fill of healthy,

nutrient-rich foods and less of the foods that are low on the nutritional scale whenever you

eat.

23. Spend less time in situations and with people who crave junk food. They won't understand

your fresh new healthy approach and may try to dissuade you. That's the last thing you

need if you want to reach your target and stay there. Let nothing stand in your way.

24. Read all you can about the nutritional values of foods. Research everything you put in your

mouth. It's easy to get a whole lot of calories from incidental items like salad dressings and

croutons. Discover what is good for you and what isn't and stay away from problematic

foods.

25. Food is nature's glorious life-sustaining gift. As creatures of nature, we were meant to eat

natural, not manufactured foods. Most man-made food is highly-processed and seriously

lacking in nutrition. Make the majority of your foods as fresh and pure from nature as

possible.


26. Skipping meals causes more harm than good. To anyone wanting to lose weight, it's a

potential disaster because sooner or later your body's going to demand that you eat

something and usually the closest and most appealing thing is something you should rarely,

if ever eat.

27. You've got to be self-motivated. No one else can – or should – make you lose weight. That

desire has to come from within. You have to want the rewards for yourself. Then and only

then can you succeed in reaching your goal.

28. When you give up junk food and take in a highly-nutritious food instead, you'll recover a

sense of taste you never know you had. Get away from the chemical additives and empty

calories for a period of time and nourish the body properly. When you're tempted to

indulge, go ahead. After you've rehabilitated your taste buds, that junk food really tastes

like junk.

29. Use herbs and spices to create flavourful, healthy dishes. Unlike oils,

both herbs and spices have minimal calories and some have wonderful

health benefits too, so you don't have to worry about adding too many

calories.

30. Avoid fried foods. All fried foods are cooked in oils. While no oil is healthy, some are loaded

with trans fats – the most harmful of all. Secondly, fried foods are often coated in a batter,

adding extra calories that are completely void of nutrients.

31. Choose carefully at the salad bar. With much to choose, it's easy to get sidetracked. Avoid

prepared salads like pasta, potato or coleslaw. Stick to the freshest, healthiest vegetables

you can find. Given a choice in lettuce, avoid iceberg in favour of romaine or leafy green.

And watch out for toppings like bacon bits, croutons and creamy dressings – avoid theses

at all costs.


32. Almost all restaurant meals are designed with the intention of creating something that

tastes good. Very little concern is given to the nutritional value or the quality from a health

perspective. Their goal is to give you food that will taste good and gladly fill you up on

breadsticks and alcoholic beverages, or soda pop. They want to send you home happy and

fat.

33. With nuts and seeds, eat only in moderation. But when starting out in your quest to

permanently lose substantial weight, you may want to pass on these altogether, until you

start to trim down. Though these are healthy fats and better than all junk food, it's easy to

overdo it. A small handful is plenty and can keep you going for hours. But three large

handfuls can add a whopping 2000 calories to your daily intake and that can sabotage even

the best of plans.


Conclusion

For most of the population, it's easy to gain weight. Most of what is

offered in stores, restaurants, coffee shops and fast food kiosks should be

completely avoided. But that's hard to do when unhealthy, fattening food

seems to be readily available at every turn. We get in the habit of eating

certain foods and remain oblivious to the problem for far too long before

deciding to do something about it. But then, usually years later, it's more

of a problem than it used to be. But the only way to change the result is to

change the cause and the cause becomes clear when we carefully

examine our total diet over a one week period.

When you observe and record every food item and beverage you consume and you check the

nutritional values of those foods, the real problem becomes evident quickly. Make changes there

and you're well on your way to reaching a healthier date and maintaining it for a lifetime.

Exercise helps too, though it's not part of this report. I encourage you to involve yourself in your

favourite kind of exercise for thirty minutes every day. Apart from being good for you, you'll burn

off some of those extra calories and unwanted pounds. But you cannot ignore the foods you eat

no matter how much you exercise. As good as it is, exercise doesn't replenish the body of vital

nutrients and fibre. So, in order to lose the weight and keep it off for good, you need to start

eating with the intention of nourishing the body instead of merely to quell those hunger pains.

Healthy eating is far more effective than portion control. I advise anyone on one of those

ridiculous, portion-controlled diet plans to give them up immediately, in favour of a plentiful,

nutrient-rich diet instead. Healthy eating will take care of any toxic hunger. You will get your fill of

food and do so with far fewer calories. But you'll never have to count calories again. Eat all you

want of the right foods and stop polluting your body with garbage that shouldn't even be called

food.


It won't take long for you to look and feel better than you have in years. But it does require

making a firm decision and plenty of effort to stay the course. It gets easier when you see the

difference. But when others start making comments to you – it's reinforcement that helps keep

you going. Are you ready to lose weight starting this week? Make the decision and never look

back. You won't need to buy another diet book ever and you won't even consider a reducing

program. Optimum health and an ideal weight for life can be yours if you take this information and

run with it. The only question is, will you?

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