Some people at work have been asking me about my detox plan. One person asked what drug I was trying to get out of my system. Another showed pity on me because "I could not eat the processed food they loved". My daughter is in a contest for weight loss and has done some extreme things to get her weight down. She tried the salt water flush and then drinking nothing but lemon juice with cayenne pepper and maple syrup for a few days. She gave up after three days because she was feeling really bad and "looked gray". She is also riding her bike about 100 miles a week and working out at the gym every day. I think she is going to win! I am worried about her and very glad her contest ends soon. I am also very proud of her because I know how hard this is for her.
Detox plans seem to be the rage. However it seems there are many plans out there all labeled as detox and some are outright dangerous. There are many supplements and weight loss formulas that simply don't work and have the potential to impair one's health. When the buzz goes down, they are simply repacked with a new name and ad campaign. A different "popular today" ingredient is slapped on the label and everyone plops down the money for another failure. Rarely does anyone google the supplement or look for fraud or complaints about them. I do this for every single thing I take.
Don Colbert's detox plan is a modified version of his life style diet plan. He adds supplements that support the liver function and then finishes off the plan with a 7 day juice fast. We are not talking Minute Maid or Cranberry juice cocktail here. The juice fast requires a whole produce basket of fruits and vegetables blended with phyto-nutrients to give you plenty of energy at the lowest caloric intake. Once the detox is over, you can add a few foods back into the diet and be on his life style plan full time. It was not intended to be a weight loss diet but the 10% drop in weight and 40 point drop in cholesterol were an undeniable bonus. We also accomplished our ultimate goal and that was to get toxins out of our bodies that were making us sick. I don't cough all the time anymore and I don't get sick every time my grandsons come over. That was my #1 goal and the plan worked for us!
On this detox plan, I did not take laxatives, diuretics, 64 oz of salt water or any of those fads. I did incorporate a detox tea, but only a cup a day. We did not limit our caloric intake. However when eating all vegetables, you can certainly have a lot more volume. I did not realize until after this diet that we were eating barley grains most days that were 500 calories for a 1/2 cup serving. We were eating avocados, nuts and olives most days and they are relatively high in calories and "the good fats". We lost weight in spite of the calories.
We actually ate more than we have in years. The meals were interesting and flavorful and we feel better than we have in a long time. I think we could easily sustain this eating plan and embark on an occasional side step and be healthy.
The detox plan got us healthy. Now Dr Perricone's weight loss diet should help us with the weight. Again, Dr Perricone's diet is also a modified version of his life style plan. The negative side of this is the truck load of supplements we have to take, but the majority of them are only necessary for the weight loss. My daughter started taking the supplements this last week. She lowered her carbs a bit more on her already sugar free diet. She lost 7 pounds this week. Harry and I have not been so successful but we cannot blame the diet. For about 7 meals this week, we ate out. Not take-out, but as close to possible what the diet would allow. We got interesting looks when we asked for the entry (protien) first and salad last, but we stuck with it. Restaurant food always has additives of oils, fats, butter, flavor enhancers, sugar, salt, white flour, etc that we do not have on our diet. At home we can ensure we are using the right oils, Himalayan salt, no sugar, msg, chemical laden ingredients, etc. In spite of the restaurant food, Harry lost three pounds. I was down two pounds durng the week but ended where I started. Next week will be better. According to the diet, we are only eating about 1/2 the servings of fish and chicken that we are allowed. I never thought I would have to eat MORE to make a diet work.
Im summation, whatever plan you select, whether it is plan to get heathier, lose weight, or even fight a disease, the thing to ask yourself is if the transition to a lifestyle plan would be easy and minimal. Anything radical would not be the way to go.
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Saturday, May 7, 2011
New six week plan starting Monday 5/9/11
I mentioned Dr Perricone as my inspiration for trying a new weight loss diet.
Now my pursuit is for a diet we can live with that will make us healthy and be incorporated into our new life style. Before we can have a maintenance diet, we need to get where we want to be to maintain.
The detox diet helped us rid our body of a lot of junk in our system that should help our bodies be more receptive to a proper diet. It was very successful for the short period we were on it. We felt much better, our bronchial issues went away. Our blood pressure went down. Our cholesterol dropped 40 points. We both lost 10% of our body weight. The best part is that we both really enjoyed being on it, up until the week of juicing. The juicing part was rewarding in a lot of ways but not sustainable. It was not intended to be. We were hungry most of the time and the sheer amount of fruits and vegetables for the juice was cost prohibitive to continue for long. Also I think we reaped most of the before that week of juicing.
This Perricone weight loss diet was something we thought we would do for a month. His diet book recommends 2 weeks. Since Harry and I need to lose quite a bit more, Two weeks of any program is not going to get us there. Also because our detox diet was so successful, I want to incorporate it somehow into our plans.
The similarities between the diets are this. Total elimination of processed foods, fast foods, sugar, artificial flavors and condiments with names we don't recognize as a food. Both diets promote fresh vegetables and fruits, good fats such as olive oil, avocados and nuts, and healthy whole grains.
Dr Perricone's diet says to get the majority of protein from seafood, fowl and eggs. Low fat cheese can be consumed in moderation. He also allows turkey bacon, which I disagree with because of the nitrates. Yogurt and Kifer can be consumed on a daily basis. Since the protein is coming from animal products, beans and grains are treated as simple carbohydrates and to be limited. He allows agave syrup, stevia and something called Zsweet as the only added sweeteners. His key is to consume 20 grams of protein for each meal, consume the protein first and any fruit last. He prescribes 5 meals a day, lots of water, lots of spices. He then goes on to recommend specific foods and spices such as wild salmon, watercress, blueberries, cinnamon and turmeric to be staples in the diet. He also prescribes 12 supplements which add considerable cost to the diet. More about that later.
The detox diet totally eliminates animal protein of all kinds. Instead Dr Colbert prescribes a combination of beans or whole grains with seeds or nuts to supply the protein at each meal. He is less precise about how much to eat at each sitting, or how many meals to eat. He is more interested in the quality of the food and the cooking techniques used to prepare it. For example, if I start cooking animal protein, I will be careful to use grapeseed or macadamia oil for the preparation and use olive oil for salad dressing. Most oil breaks down and becomes carcinogenic at the temperatures required to prepare food properly. While on the detox diet, we added a high protein shake in the morning. It was a 20 mg rice protein drink with 60 calories, no carbs and no sugar. We also added Brewer's yeast and lecithin to provide the B vitamins that we would not be able to achieve with an all vegetarian diet. The supplements he prescribed were more for the detox affect as they were important for liver support. The NAC he prescribed is not something I think one would continually take, but it would be prudent to take maybe one week a month or after an illness.
We decided we alternate Dr Perricone's and Dr Colbert's plans a seven week period and take the supplements prescribed by Dr Perricone for the entire time. We will start with Dr Perricone for three weeks, have a one week break, and then finish with Dr Colbert's plan. The week break will be right during the Memorial day weekend. W have plans that week that I don't want to have restricted with a specific diet.
Dr Perricone's supplements are all about fat burning, metabolism, and basically reducing the body's ability to protect the fat. I really can't see anything is his plan that would allow one diet plan to work over the other with these supplements.
Dr Perricone's weight loss diet is also an anti-aging diet that helps the brain and skin. Again, I think the Omega 3 and DMAE he prescribes could be used with both diets.
In a nutshell and this is a big shell, this is the breakdown of the supplements.
Omega 3 from fish oil or Evening Primrose oil 1000mg - 3000mg 3x daily
Anti-inflammatory, accelerate loss of body fat
Stabilizes blood sugar, lowers insulin levels, improves skin.
May assist with memory, reduce eczema and relieves rheumatoid arthritis.
Alpha Lipoic Acid 150 mg 3x daily
Universal antioxidant. Insulin sensitizing. Converts carbs to energy.
Blocks Nfkb which causes cancer. Boosts Glutathione levels.
Must be taken with Acetyl L-Carnatine to be effective.
Anataxathin (From eggplant skin or microalgae) 2 mg 3x daily
Improves vision, may prevent cataracts, protects cell membrane,
protects muscle, increases endurance, reduces wrinkles and age spots.
L-Carnatine 250 mg 2x daily, not in evening
Converts fat to energy, prevents muscle loss, protects liver function.
Acetyl L-Carnatine 500 - 1000 mg 2x daily, not in evening
Prevents neurological decline, improves cholesterol, reduces triglycerides.
Necessary for Alpha Lipoic acid to be effective.
Conjugated Linoleic acid - CLA 1000 mg 3x daily (up to 4000 mg)
Decreases visceral (mid-section) fat, blocks absorption of fat and sugar
into cells, reduces size of fat cells. (Hallelujah!)
More effective when taken with sesame seeds.
CoQ10 or Coenzyme Q10 100 mg 3x daily
In general, heart heath. Regulates blood sugar and insulin sensitivity.
Chromium 200 mcg 1x daily
Unlocks fat cells, normalizes cholesterol and triglycerides.
Cardio protective. Should not be taken with grains, nuts, seeds, milk.
I imagine this should be taken upon rising with all of the morning
supplements taken 30 minutes later, or an hour before a meal.
Gamma Linoleic acid (GLA) 200 - 400 3x daily to 1000mg.
This is an Omega-6 fatty acid that regulates blood pressure.
Creates a powerful anti-inflammatory hormone.
Glutamine This is a powder. 1 serving 3x daily with meals. Make fresh.
Prevents muscle breakdown. Helps weight loss without losing muscle mass.
Assists with the metabolic process and delivers essential nitrogen to cells.
Prevents damage from alcohol and reduces cravings.
Maitake SX Fraction Grifron brand recommended, 3x daily, 30 minutes after meals.
Natural weight loss supplement. Controls blood sugar, regulates blood
pressure. Increase insulin sensitivity.
DMAE 50 - 100 mg daily
Optimum brain and beauty health. May take 200 mg daily to lower cholesterol.
Like I said, these are a lot of supplements. They are easy to get. As for the Omega-3, Dr Perricone recommends 3000mg to 9000 mg daily while in the weight loss diet. Otherwise 3000 mg is sufficient. Since Omega-3 is also present in seafood, I would reduce the supplement to compensate for what is consumed.
Foods to eat: Wild or sockeye Salmon, Sablefish (if you can find it), sardines, anchovies, clams, cod, flounder, lobster, halibut, tuna, other oily fish, chicken, turkey, Cornish hens, raw foods and sprouts, green or white tea, dark chocolate in moderation, fiber 20-30 grams daily, spices, nuts and seeds.
All vegetables but potatoes, corn and beans in moderation. Whole fruits are preferred to juice. Kefir, eggs, yogurt (no sugar), oatmeal, lentils, barley, buckwheat, Acai, POM juice and tea. LOTS of water.
Every meal has protein, low glycemic carbs, 1 tbsp essential fatty acids, protein eaten first and fruits last.
This should be FUN!
Now my pursuit is for a diet we can live with that will make us healthy and be incorporated into our new life style. Before we can have a maintenance diet, we need to get where we want to be to maintain.
The detox diet helped us rid our body of a lot of junk in our system that should help our bodies be more receptive to a proper diet. It was very successful for the short period we were on it. We felt much better, our bronchial issues went away. Our blood pressure went down. Our cholesterol dropped 40 points. We both lost 10% of our body weight. The best part is that we both really enjoyed being on it, up until the week of juicing. The juicing part was rewarding in a lot of ways but not sustainable. It was not intended to be. We were hungry most of the time and the sheer amount of fruits and vegetables for the juice was cost prohibitive to continue for long. Also I think we reaped most of the before that week of juicing.
This Perricone weight loss diet was something we thought we would do for a month. His diet book recommends 2 weeks. Since Harry and I need to lose quite a bit more, Two weeks of any program is not going to get us there. Also because our detox diet was so successful, I want to incorporate it somehow into our plans.
The similarities between the diets are this. Total elimination of processed foods, fast foods, sugar, artificial flavors and condiments with names we don't recognize as a food. Both diets promote fresh vegetables and fruits, good fats such as olive oil, avocados and nuts, and healthy whole grains.
Dr Perricone's diet says to get the majority of protein from seafood, fowl and eggs. Low fat cheese can be consumed in moderation. He also allows turkey bacon, which I disagree with because of the nitrates. Yogurt and Kifer can be consumed on a daily basis. Since the protein is coming from animal products, beans and grains are treated as simple carbohydrates and to be limited. He allows agave syrup, stevia and something called Zsweet as the only added sweeteners. His key is to consume 20 grams of protein for each meal, consume the protein first and any fruit last. He prescribes 5 meals a day, lots of water, lots of spices. He then goes on to recommend specific foods and spices such as wild salmon, watercress, blueberries, cinnamon and turmeric to be staples in the diet. He also prescribes 12 supplements which add considerable cost to the diet. More about that later.
The detox diet totally eliminates animal protein of all kinds. Instead Dr Colbert prescribes a combination of beans or whole grains with seeds or nuts to supply the protein at each meal. He is less precise about how much to eat at each sitting, or how many meals to eat. He is more interested in the quality of the food and the cooking techniques used to prepare it. For example, if I start cooking animal protein, I will be careful to use grapeseed or macadamia oil for the preparation and use olive oil for salad dressing. Most oil breaks down and becomes carcinogenic at the temperatures required to prepare food properly. While on the detox diet, we added a high protein shake in the morning. It was a 20 mg rice protein drink with 60 calories, no carbs and no sugar. We also added Brewer's yeast and lecithin to provide the B vitamins that we would not be able to achieve with an all vegetarian diet. The supplements he prescribed were more for the detox affect as they were important for liver support. The NAC he prescribed is not something I think one would continually take, but it would be prudent to take maybe one week a month or after an illness.
We decided we alternate Dr Perricone's and Dr Colbert's plans a seven week period and take the supplements prescribed by Dr Perricone for the entire time. We will start with Dr Perricone for three weeks, have a one week break, and then finish with Dr Colbert's plan. The week break will be right during the Memorial day weekend. W have plans that week that I don't want to have restricted with a specific diet.
Dr Perricone's supplements are all about fat burning, metabolism, and basically reducing the body's ability to protect the fat. I really can't see anything is his plan that would allow one diet plan to work over the other with these supplements.
Dr Perricone's weight loss diet is also an anti-aging diet that helps the brain and skin. Again, I think the Omega 3 and DMAE he prescribes could be used with both diets.
In a nutshell and this is a big shell, this is the breakdown of the supplements.
Omega 3 from fish oil or Evening Primrose oil 1000mg - 3000mg 3x daily
Anti-inflammatory, accelerate loss of body fat
Stabilizes blood sugar, lowers insulin levels, improves skin.
May assist with memory, reduce eczema and relieves rheumatoid arthritis.
Alpha Lipoic Acid 150 mg 3x daily
Universal antioxidant. Insulin sensitizing. Converts carbs to energy.
Blocks Nfkb which causes cancer. Boosts Glutathione levels.
Must be taken with Acetyl L-Carnatine to be effective.
Anataxathin (From eggplant skin or microalgae) 2 mg 3x daily
Improves vision, may prevent cataracts, protects cell membrane,
protects muscle, increases endurance, reduces wrinkles and age spots.
L-Carnatine 250 mg 2x daily, not in evening
Converts fat to energy, prevents muscle loss, protects liver function.
Acetyl L-Carnatine 500 - 1000 mg 2x daily, not in evening
Prevents neurological decline, improves cholesterol, reduces triglycerides.
Necessary for Alpha Lipoic acid to be effective.
Conjugated Linoleic acid - CLA 1000 mg 3x daily (up to 4000 mg)
Decreases visceral (mid-section) fat, blocks absorption of fat and sugar
into cells, reduces size of fat cells. (Hallelujah!)
More effective when taken with sesame seeds.
CoQ10 or Coenzyme Q10 100 mg 3x daily
In general, heart heath. Regulates blood sugar and insulin sensitivity.
Chromium 200 mcg 1x daily
Unlocks fat cells, normalizes cholesterol and triglycerides.
Cardio protective. Should not be taken with grains, nuts, seeds, milk.
I imagine this should be taken upon rising with all of the morning
supplements taken 30 minutes later, or an hour before a meal.
Gamma Linoleic acid (GLA) 200 - 400 3x daily to 1000mg.
This is an Omega-6 fatty acid that regulates blood pressure.
Creates a powerful anti-inflammatory hormone.
Glutamine This is a powder. 1 serving 3x daily with meals. Make fresh.
Prevents muscle breakdown. Helps weight loss without losing muscle mass.
Assists with the metabolic process and delivers essential nitrogen to cells.
Prevents damage from alcohol and reduces cravings.
Maitake SX Fraction Grifron brand recommended, 3x daily, 30 minutes after meals.
Natural weight loss supplement. Controls blood sugar, regulates blood
pressure. Increase insulin sensitivity.
DMAE 50 - 100 mg daily
Optimum brain and beauty health. May take 200 mg daily to lower cholesterol.
Like I said, these are a lot of supplements. They are easy to get. As for the Omega-3, Dr Perricone recommends 3000mg to 9000 mg daily while in the weight loss diet. Otherwise 3000 mg is sufficient. Since Omega-3 is also present in seafood, I would reduce the supplement to compensate for what is consumed.
Foods to eat: Wild or sockeye Salmon, Sablefish (if you can find it), sardines, anchovies, clams, cod, flounder, lobster, halibut, tuna, other oily fish, chicken, turkey, Cornish hens, raw foods and sprouts, green or white tea, dark chocolate in moderation, fiber 20-30 grams daily, spices, nuts and seeds.
All vegetables but potatoes, corn and beans in moderation. Whole fruits are preferred to juice. Kefir, eggs, yogurt (no sugar), oatmeal, lentils, barley, buckwheat, Acai, POM juice and tea. LOTS of water.
Every meal has protein, low glycemic carbs, 1 tbsp essential fatty acids, protein eaten first and fruits last.
This should be FUN!
Clindamycin set back - wow
I have not posted a blog for two weeks. After a dental visit, I was prescribed some antibiotics to assist with the unexpected root canal I had to have.
I was prescribed 300mg Clindamycin HCL and on the third day I was suffering from quite a few side effects. I scanned the internet and found this antibiotic is usually prescribed long term for acne as well as dental infections.
I really don't want to go into details about how bad this set me back. For the most part I had flu like symptoms, chills, fever, weakness and so forth along with an intense headache and abdominal issues. I managed to work half days from home for two days and then all day from home for two days. I have been in the office since then but even yesterday, 12 days after stopping this drug, I was having issues. I am amazed that a drug can have side effects like that and I can't help but wonder what it would have done to me had I not been on a detox program just prior.
This drug obviously will not affect everyone the same way but from what I read from persons who have taken it, it can cause major gastro intestinal problems. It can lead to problems as long as 3 months after taking it, and cause problems that may result in surgery, organ failure and even death.
I urge anyone who has taken any drug and suffered side effects to log into http://www.fda.gov/Safety/MedWatch/default.htm and report it.
For too long the drug companies have been able to push drugs through by pressuring or simply out lobbying the FDA. New drugs are presented to our physican's who get free samples and possibly kickbacks for prescribing them. I have been guilty of taking free samples myself but I think there is a lot to be said for drugs that have been around for years as opposed to something that just hit the market.
For the last 10 days, since I didn't feel good and we have not been on a specific diet, we have relaxed our standards of what we eat. One night we even bought a hamburger from a new chain that has been opening up in Texas. We cheated on a few meals here and there but stuck with veggies and fruits in between. I am happy to say we have not regained our lost weight, but we have not lost any either.
It only convinces me more that a diet based on fresh vegetables and fruits, nuts, seeds an whole unprocessed grains is the way to go. I am a little concerned about going on a diet that stresses animal protein for weight loss but I am curious enough to give it a try. We have all the supplements we need now and will start that on Monday, but that is another topic.
I was prescribed 300mg Clindamycin HCL and on the third day I was suffering from quite a few side effects. I scanned the internet and found this antibiotic is usually prescribed long term for acne as well as dental infections.
I really don't want to go into details about how bad this set me back. For the most part I had flu like symptoms, chills, fever, weakness and so forth along with an intense headache and abdominal issues. I managed to work half days from home for two days and then all day from home for two days. I have been in the office since then but even yesterday, 12 days after stopping this drug, I was having issues. I am amazed that a drug can have side effects like that and I can't help but wonder what it would have done to me had I not been on a detox program just prior.
This drug obviously will not affect everyone the same way but from what I read from persons who have taken it, it can cause major gastro intestinal problems. It can lead to problems as long as 3 months after taking it, and cause problems that may result in surgery, organ failure and even death.
I urge anyone who has taken any drug and suffered side effects to log into http://www.fda.gov/Safety/MedWatch/default.htm and report it.
For too long the drug companies have been able to push drugs through by pressuring or simply out lobbying the FDA. New drugs are presented to our physican's who get free samples and possibly kickbacks for prescribing them. I have been guilty of taking free samples myself but I think there is a lot to be said for drugs that have been around for years as opposed to something that just hit the market.
For the last 10 days, since I didn't feel good and we have not been on a specific diet, we have relaxed our standards of what we eat. One night we even bought a hamburger from a new chain that has been opening up in Texas. We cheated on a few meals here and there but stuck with veggies and fruits in between. I am happy to say we have not regained our lost weight, but we have not lost any either.
It only convinces me more that a diet based on fresh vegetables and fruits, nuts, seeds an whole unprocessed grains is the way to go. I am a little concerned about going on a diet that stresses animal protein for weight loss but I am curious enough to give it a try. We have all the supplements we need now and will start that on Monday, but that is another topic.
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Calories in vs energy out, is it a myth?
After looking at Dr Perricones weight loss diet, I noticed it was very different than my detox diet. Granted the diets are for a different purpose, but I am not just looking for a program. I am looking for a lifestyle change that will allow me to be healthy. That includes being at an optimum weight, no blood pressure or cholesterol issues, and basically - HEALTHY!
The February 2011 issue of Reader's Digest had a picture on the cover of two eggs sunny side up and a piece of bacon. The food was arranged to look like a smile. At the time, I barely gave the article a glance because they were touting the very foods I was trying to avoid for the detox.
The detox diet was not meant to be permanent and a lot of good came of it. However, the addition of animal protein back into our meals stopped our weight loss cold. It let me know in just two short weeks that we would eventually gain back our loss. I noticed that my measurements just barely changed so what left my body that weighed 19 pounds? Muscle, probably!
Dr Perricone's diet is high fat and low carb. The secret is that his recommended fats are the Omega-3, olive oil, coconut oil, avocados and such. Inadvertently he recommends palm oil too as one of his recommended supplements is made from palm oil. For weight loss, he actually recommends taking in a whooping 9000 mg a day of Omega 3. THis is temporary, but it is a lot!
The Reader's Digest article was by Gary Taubes. Gary talked of the fundamental belief that people gain weight because they take in more calories than the energy they expend. He challenges that notion with his observation, people overeat because they developed a disorder in the way the fat tissue is regulated. This goes hand in had with Dr Perricone's thinking. Remember, Perricone stated that fat becomes it's own Endocrine system that sends hormones out to the body to be hungry, make and store more fat. Because the body becomes insensitive to insulin, the fat stores are safely locked away, getting fatter, while lean muscle is used for fuel if the person exercises. Gary goes on to say that if calories had anything to do with it, we would only need to eat an exta 20 calories a day to gain 20 pounds a decade. Who can count 20 calories? Basically eating less and exercising more is exactly what you would do to make yourself hungry. The metabolism actually slows down when the fat stores are "in danger".
Both Gary and Dr Perricone talk about eating foods that keep the insulin low. Hi protein, low sugar, low carb. Both talk about omitting processed foods, sugar, artificial anything mentality. To me Gary's article just supports Dr Perricone's diet plan. The big difference is that Dr Perricone sticks with the healthy fats while Gary's plan adds in the hamburgers, cheese, bacon and the like.
I still have a few more supplements to find before embarking on Dr Perricone's diet, but frankly I can't weight to get started. (Play on word intended).
The February 2011 issue of Reader's Digest had a picture on the cover of two eggs sunny side up and a piece of bacon. The food was arranged to look like a smile. At the time, I barely gave the article a glance because they were touting the very foods I was trying to avoid for the detox.
The detox diet was not meant to be permanent and a lot of good came of it. However, the addition of animal protein back into our meals stopped our weight loss cold. It let me know in just two short weeks that we would eventually gain back our loss. I noticed that my measurements just barely changed so what left my body that weighed 19 pounds? Muscle, probably!
Dr Perricone's diet is high fat and low carb. The secret is that his recommended fats are the Omega-3, olive oil, coconut oil, avocados and such. Inadvertently he recommends palm oil too as one of his recommended supplements is made from palm oil. For weight loss, he actually recommends taking in a whooping 9000 mg a day of Omega 3. THis is temporary, but it is a lot!
The Reader's Digest article was by Gary Taubes. Gary talked of the fundamental belief that people gain weight because they take in more calories than the energy they expend. He challenges that notion with his observation, people overeat because they developed a disorder in the way the fat tissue is regulated. This goes hand in had with Dr Perricone's thinking. Remember, Perricone stated that fat becomes it's own Endocrine system that sends hormones out to the body to be hungry, make and store more fat. Because the body becomes insensitive to insulin, the fat stores are safely locked away, getting fatter, while lean muscle is used for fuel if the person exercises. Gary goes on to say that if calories had anything to do with it, we would only need to eat an exta 20 calories a day to gain 20 pounds a decade. Who can count 20 calories? Basically eating less and exercising more is exactly what you would do to make yourself hungry. The metabolism actually slows down when the fat stores are "in danger".
Both Gary and Dr Perricone talk about eating foods that keep the insulin low. Hi protein, low sugar, low carb. Both talk about omitting processed foods, sugar, artificial anything mentality. To me Gary's article just supports Dr Perricone's diet plan. The big difference is that Dr Perricone sticks with the healthy fats while Gary's plan adds in the hamburgers, cheese, bacon and the like.
I still have a few more supplements to find before embarking on Dr Perricone's diet, but frankly I can't weight to get started. (Play on word intended).
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Test results
We just got our test results that were taken two weeks after the detox. Compared to the test results we had just prior to the detox, Harry and I both dropped our total Cholesterol 40 and 37 points respectively. My good Cholesterol went up 15 points and the bad went down 53. This is amazing to me because I have tried for years to control my cholesterol with diet and never could.
I am a little torn about what to do next. Harry and I are planning on doing Dr Perricone's weight loss diet in May. Harry wants to lose 25 pounds. I would be happy with a 25 pound weight loss, but at 185, I could stand to lose 40. The Dr's diet is a big shift from our detox diet. His diet is basically seafood, lean animal protein, non starchy vegetables, low sugar fruits, yogurt and kefir. He severely limits beans, nuts, seeds or grains other than the oats, flax seed and black beans. This is not a low cal diet. It is basically a high protein, low glycemic index diet. He even allows turkey bacon and eggs for breakfast. Harry and I won't eat the bacon though. It is impossible to find bacon without nitrates.
The detox plan relied on bean and grain combinations as protein. Dr Pericone's relies on animal protein with a high concentration of omega-3 rich seafood. He also touts an assortment of supplements to be taken 3 times a day. A 30 day supply of those supplements available on his website will cost $200 for each of us. He recommends an incredible 9000 IU a day of Omega-3 but supplies 3000 in his daily supplements so that would be an added cost. Now I would like to point out that we were taking various supplements on the detox diet and we were probably in the ball park of that $400 for the month. I would also like to add that doing this diet without the supplements would limit the effect.
The supplements are needed to burn fat and prevent muscle loss. Without them, this would be similar to the Atkins or South Beach diet and most of the weight loss would be water and muscle.
We expected to add animal fat back to our diet but in limited quantities. This diet will have us eating animal protein 3 to 4 times a day.
The outcome should be interesting.
I am a little torn about what to do next. Harry and I are planning on doing Dr Perricone's weight loss diet in May. Harry wants to lose 25 pounds. I would be happy with a 25 pound weight loss, but at 185, I could stand to lose 40. The Dr's diet is a big shift from our detox diet. His diet is basically seafood, lean animal protein, non starchy vegetables, low sugar fruits, yogurt and kefir. He severely limits beans, nuts, seeds or grains other than the oats, flax seed and black beans. This is not a low cal diet. It is basically a high protein, low glycemic index diet. He even allows turkey bacon and eggs for breakfast. Harry and I won't eat the bacon though. It is impossible to find bacon without nitrates.
The detox plan relied on bean and grain combinations as protein. Dr Pericone's relies on animal protein with a high concentration of omega-3 rich seafood. He also touts an assortment of supplements to be taken 3 times a day. A 30 day supply of those supplements available on his website will cost $200 for each of us. He recommends an incredible 9000 IU a day of Omega-3 but supplies 3000 in his daily supplements so that would be an added cost. Now I would like to point out that we were taking various supplements on the detox diet and we were probably in the ball park of that $400 for the month. I would also like to add that doing this diet without the supplements would limit the effect.
The supplements are needed to burn fat and prevent muscle loss. Without them, this would be similar to the Atkins or South Beach diet and most of the weight loss would be water and muscle.
We expected to add animal fat back to our diet but in limited quantities. This diet will have us eating animal protein 3 to 4 times a day.
The outcome should be interesting.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Next step, enter Dr. Perricone
Dr Perricone - Forever Young
Well it didn't take long to figure out the next leg of our quest to get healthier. I happened on a Dr Oz show that I had recorded back in February. It had Dr. Perricone on the show and I felt he was speaking directly to me. He believes that diet has everything to do with health and beauty. It is a no-brainer when you think about it, but I do not think the average American has any idea how the odds of attaining a healthful diet is against them. People have an idea that they can consume burgers, pizza, hot dogs, sodas, etc., and then eat it with a little lettuce and tomato to balance the diet.
I saw a couple in the doctor’s office recently. They were probably in their 80's. The woman looked extremely frail but has a huge belly, severe osteoporosis, and I suspected she might be fighting cancer or something. Her husband asked her what she wanted for lunch and she started rattling off fried chicken, spaghetti and sausage, chicken fried steak, then for the vegetables, mashed potatoes and mac n' cheese. Amazing. Then I overheard her tell the doctor she was trying to eat better and was adding greens to her diet every day. If this woman thought she was eating healthy and he diet had nothing to do with her condition, she was sadly mistaken.
Back to Perricone. I bought several of his books and started learning things right away. Perricone believes that inflammation is the key to bad health. This is extremely simplified, but basically many foods in the American diet cause inflammation in the tissues that cause the mitochondria (base cell structure) to die off or distort. A host of diseases including obesity, Alzheimer’s, multiple sclerosis, diabetes, atherosclerosis, cancer, Chrohn's disease, myocardial infarction, allergies, psoriasis, septic shock, and arthritis - to name a few. In addition to the diet, stress and toxins can also contribute to the inflammation. When the basic cell structure becomes compromised, the body ages faster and cannot fight off disease. Most of these conditions can be reversed with proper nutrition.
One eye opener was that fat, once it becomes 20% of the body or higher, becomes an endocrine system on its own and secretes 200 hormones that basically send out signals for the body to store fat. Fat causes fat. I always felt that was going on. My fat cells just grab on to incoming fat and get stuffed directly to my stomach and thighs. I bet I have fat cells the size of oranges.
Although his research is not about dieting and weight loss, he believes that obesity must be tackled first so the body has a fighting chance to deal with the other issues at hand. After all, how can the body process correctly when all of these hormones are calling all fat to the table?
He dedicated one chapter to weight loss and has reported that persons have lost as much as 25 pounds in one month without loss of muscle. The diet mainly consists of having two "Metabolic Meal Replacements" drinks daily and a meal consisting of salmon, lentils, salad with watercress, vinegar and olive oil, and a serving of cruciferous vegetables.
His drink is made from 1/3 cup of mixed berries - OR - 1 tsp. on non-dutch-processed cocoa mixed with stevia and a little hot water blended smooth. Add to that 1 tsp. virgin coconut oil, 6 ounces of protein powder and blend in a blender. He does not mention a particular brand of protein powder or whether it should be mixed with water, juice or milk. He does mention a packet of Metabolic Formula Supplement which is available on his website.
The formula is made up of CoQ10, L-Carnitine, Omega-3, Glutamine, Niacin bound Chromium (NBC) to stabilize blood sugar, Conjugated Linoleic acid (CLA) and Curcumin gel capsule (turmeric).
It sounds like something we can easily do. Elsewhere in his book, he talks highly of watercress, stating a bowl of it should be eaten daily. He speaks highly of Turmeric. I can understand not wanting to eat it daily so the Curcumin supplement makes sense. There has been a lot of conflict around coconut oil but recent discovery shows it actually helps to reduce cholesterol in the blood.
The book I am reading is called, Forever Young by Nicholas Perricone, MD. and his web site is called http://www.perriconemd.com.
Harry and I plan to start on this diet May 1st so stay tuned.
Well it didn't take long to figure out the next leg of our quest to get healthier. I happened on a Dr Oz show that I had recorded back in February. It had Dr. Perricone on the show and I felt he was speaking directly to me. He believes that diet has everything to do with health and beauty. It is a no-brainer when you think about it, but I do not think the average American has any idea how the odds of attaining a healthful diet is against them. People have an idea that they can consume burgers, pizza, hot dogs, sodas, etc., and then eat it with a little lettuce and tomato to balance the diet.
I saw a couple in the doctor’s office recently. They were probably in their 80's. The woman looked extremely frail but has a huge belly, severe osteoporosis, and I suspected she might be fighting cancer or something. Her husband asked her what she wanted for lunch and she started rattling off fried chicken, spaghetti and sausage, chicken fried steak, then for the vegetables, mashed potatoes and mac n' cheese. Amazing. Then I overheard her tell the doctor she was trying to eat better and was adding greens to her diet every day. If this woman thought she was eating healthy and he diet had nothing to do with her condition, she was sadly mistaken.
Back to Perricone. I bought several of his books and started learning things right away. Perricone believes that inflammation is the key to bad health. This is extremely simplified, but basically many foods in the American diet cause inflammation in the tissues that cause the mitochondria (base cell structure) to die off or distort. A host of diseases including obesity, Alzheimer’s, multiple sclerosis, diabetes, atherosclerosis, cancer, Chrohn's disease, myocardial infarction, allergies, psoriasis, septic shock, and arthritis - to name a few. In addition to the diet, stress and toxins can also contribute to the inflammation. When the basic cell structure becomes compromised, the body ages faster and cannot fight off disease. Most of these conditions can be reversed with proper nutrition.
One eye opener was that fat, once it becomes 20% of the body or higher, becomes an endocrine system on its own and secretes 200 hormones that basically send out signals for the body to store fat. Fat causes fat. I always felt that was going on. My fat cells just grab on to incoming fat and get stuffed directly to my stomach and thighs. I bet I have fat cells the size of oranges.
Although his research is not about dieting and weight loss, he believes that obesity must be tackled first so the body has a fighting chance to deal with the other issues at hand. After all, how can the body process correctly when all of these hormones are calling all fat to the table?
He dedicated one chapter to weight loss and has reported that persons have lost as much as 25 pounds in one month without loss of muscle. The diet mainly consists of having two "Metabolic Meal Replacements" drinks daily and a meal consisting of salmon, lentils, salad with watercress, vinegar and olive oil, and a serving of cruciferous vegetables.
His drink is made from 1/3 cup of mixed berries - OR - 1 tsp. on non-dutch-processed cocoa mixed with stevia and a little hot water blended smooth. Add to that 1 tsp. virgin coconut oil, 6 ounces of protein powder and blend in a blender. He does not mention a particular brand of protein powder or whether it should be mixed with water, juice or milk. He does mention a packet of Metabolic Formula Supplement which is available on his website.
The formula is made up of CoQ10, L-Carnitine, Omega-3, Glutamine, Niacin bound Chromium (NBC) to stabilize blood sugar, Conjugated Linoleic acid (CLA) and Curcumin gel capsule (turmeric).
It sounds like something we can easily do. Elsewhere in his book, he talks highly of watercress, stating a bowl of it should be eaten daily. He speaks highly of Turmeric. I can understand not wanting to eat it daily so the Curcumin supplement makes sense. There has been a lot of conflict around coconut oil but recent discovery shows it actually helps to reduce cholesterol in the blood.
The book I am reading is called, Forever Young by Nicholas Perricone, MD. and his web site is called http://www.perriconemd.com.
Harry and I plan to start on this diet May 1st so stay tuned.
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Fast is over, what now?
We did the juice fast for 5 days. It should have been 7 according to the book but we had to be off the fast by the weekend. The diet for the first three days after the fast is just as important as the fast itself. Going from a juice fast to a regular diet can cause gallstones and every a need for surgery.
We both feel better than we have in a long time. Since February 28th when we started the detox plan, I lost 9 pounds and Harry lost 14. Since January 3, Harry and I have lost 21 pounds each. Our blood pressure readings are remarkable. Mine was 117/69 last night. My skin looks better than it has in years! We found the pollen counts for the area were off the charts yesterday and we did not enough have a sniffle. Normally I would be suffering from flu like symptoms from the allergies.
We also had a couple of negative reactions. Toward the end of the detox, I was pulling my hair out by the handfuls. Harry did not notice if he was having the problem but he has very short hair. I noticed my memory was extremely faulty. I simply could not remember the names or words of things. I was taking Huperzine which is supposed to aid memory. I stopped during the juice fast part of the detox. We were also suffering from low back pain.
I believe these problems were related to the lack of B vitamins. B vitamins are natural in liver, wheat, brewer’s yeast, eggs, and meats. Some B can be found in milk. All of these items were off the menu during the detox. We added some brewer’s yeast to our morning banana juice for four days of the juice fast. Brewer’s yeast and liver are the ONLY two foods in America that provide all of the essential B vitamins! Even supplements can't do that. My hair loss has already slowed and my memory has already improved. Our back pains are gone.
What's next?
Now that we experienced the detox, we have no interest in a lot of the foods we used to eat. Pictures of fast food actually disgust me now. I used to be a Paula Deen wannabe and had to have butter on everything. I have not used butter for over a month and I don't really miss it. I used to put a splash of cream in my cream soups. I found that I can use cauliflower or potatoes in the soup to make it creamy. I made asparagus soup from a 1/2 pounds of asparagus. one potato, 1/4 onion and a handful of parsley. I added smoked paprika and liquefied it in the blender to make a very satisfying soup. It was about 120 calories and tasted like 500.
I missed my cheese, but we were eating cheese 2 and 3 times a day. I missed my eggs, but that was another habit of mine because they were so easy to fix. These items are no longer off our menu but we will eat cheese sparingly and limit our eggs to maybe 6 a week.
We are going to continue eating as though we were on the first three weeks of the fast, but with a little modification. We will allow ourselves to have animal protein two or three times a week. We can have cheese and eggs, but sparingly. We both agreed that we really liked that morning banana smoothie with the brewers yeast, protein and lecithin. Harry said it satisfied him through lunch. Our fruits and veggies are mostly raw, but for the evening meals I like to steam them in my tagine. Since I over bought the seeds for sprouts, I will continue to grow sprouts and wheatgrass and add them to our salads every day.
Now, I am going to concentrate on adding fermented foods to our diet. For the most part, America is the only country that does not have naturally fermented foods. We have a few available now in health food stores, like my Nama Shoyu, but for the mainstay diet everything is pasteurized. That is another word for dead!
We both feel better than we have in a long time. Since February 28th when we started the detox plan, I lost 9 pounds and Harry lost 14. Since January 3, Harry and I have lost 21 pounds each. Our blood pressure readings are remarkable. Mine was 117/69 last night. My skin looks better than it has in years! We found the pollen counts for the area were off the charts yesterday and we did not enough have a sniffle. Normally I would be suffering from flu like symptoms from the allergies.
We also had a couple of negative reactions. Toward the end of the detox, I was pulling my hair out by the handfuls. Harry did not notice if he was having the problem but he has very short hair. I noticed my memory was extremely faulty. I simply could not remember the names or words of things. I was taking Huperzine which is supposed to aid memory. I stopped during the juice fast part of the detox. We were also suffering from low back pain.
I believe these problems were related to the lack of B vitamins. B vitamins are natural in liver, wheat, brewer’s yeast, eggs, and meats. Some B can be found in milk. All of these items were off the menu during the detox. We added some brewer’s yeast to our morning banana juice for four days of the juice fast. Brewer’s yeast and liver are the ONLY two foods in America that provide all of the essential B vitamins! Even supplements can't do that. My hair loss has already slowed and my memory has already improved. Our back pains are gone.
What's next?
Now that we experienced the detox, we have no interest in a lot of the foods we used to eat. Pictures of fast food actually disgust me now. I used to be a Paula Deen wannabe and had to have butter on everything. I have not used butter for over a month and I don't really miss it. I used to put a splash of cream in my cream soups. I found that I can use cauliflower or potatoes in the soup to make it creamy. I made asparagus soup from a 1/2 pounds of asparagus. one potato, 1/4 onion and a handful of parsley. I added smoked paprika and liquefied it in the blender to make a very satisfying soup. It was about 120 calories and tasted like 500.
I missed my cheese, but we were eating cheese 2 and 3 times a day. I missed my eggs, but that was another habit of mine because they were so easy to fix. These items are no longer off our menu but we will eat cheese sparingly and limit our eggs to maybe 6 a week.
We are going to continue eating as though we were on the first three weeks of the fast, but with a little modification. We will allow ourselves to have animal protein two or three times a week. We can have cheese and eggs, but sparingly. We both agreed that we really liked that morning banana smoothie with the brewers yeast, protein and lecithin. Harry said it satisfied him through lunch. Our fruits and veggies are mostly raw, but for the evening meals I like to steam them in my tagine. Since I over bought the seeds for sprouts, I will continue to grow sprouts and wheatgrass and add them to our salads every day.
Now, I am going to concentrate on adding fermented foods to our diet. For the most part, America is the only country that does not have naturally fermented foods. We have a few available now in health food stores, like my Nama Shoyu, but for the mainstay diet everything is pasteurized. That is another word for dead!
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