36 Potent Foods to Lose Weight & Live Healthy

Fat Burning Basics

If you’re overweight, you are not a bad person. You’re simply overweight. But it’s important to lose the extra pounds so you’ll look good, feel healthier and develop a sense of pride and self-esteem. Once you’ve lost the fat, you’ll need to maintain your weight.


In this booklet, you’ll discover how to lose 10 pounds a month – a nice, safe loss of about two or two-and-a-half pounds a week – painlessly. You’ll feel satisfied and more energetic than in the past without feeling deprived.


Most Americans pack on those extra pounds by eating the wrong things. Changing these poor eating habits is the key to long-term success. Knowledge – along with the right food – is the key.


When humans lived in caves, they didn’t know anything about preserving and storing food. They spent all their waking time and energy hunting and gathering food. When they had it, they gobbled it down fast. Instead of storing food in pantries or cupboards, they stored energy in their bodies in the form of fat to burn during periods when there was little or nothing to eat.


Each year, it was absolutely vital for them to put on a good layer of fat during the warm spring and summer months. That was the only way they could guarantee their survival during the lean and mean winter months.


And since women bore the young, they needed more energy to sustain themselves and their babies, and that meant they were usually heavier.




Even though we no longer live in caves, we have inherited and maintained this basic mechanism for fat storage from our hunting and gathering ancestors.


Each one of us is born with a certain number of fat cells. How many of these fat cells you possess depends on genetics. If you have a lot of fat cells, maybe your ancestors were the biggest people in the tribe, which was a good thing because they had the best chances of survival.


You can never get rid of fat cells, but – unfortunately – you can add to them. Depending upon what you eat, your body will manufacture new fat cells. And like those you were born with, they never go away.


That doesn’t mean you’re doomed to be fat once you put on extra pounds. It is possible to shrink fat cells. That’s what happens when you lose weight. You burn up the fat stored in those big fat cells. Think of them as balloons. Burning off the fat inside them has the same effect as letting the air out of a balloon.


A good weight loss program requires a certain amount of intake restriction – the consumption of fewer calories. You burn off the fat by eating less fat and becoming more active.


To guarantee a lifetime of weight-control success, you have to change the type of foods you eat, so that you ingest less fat and still get the vitamins, minerals, trace elements, protein, fat and carbohydrates your body needs to thrive.


Extremely low-calorie diets may help you shed pounds quickly, but they’ll lead to failure in the long run.


That’s because humans are genetically protected against starvation. During food shortages, our bodies slow down our metabolisms and burn less energy so we can stay alive.




A part of our brain called the hypothalamus keeps us on an even weight by creating a “set point.” That’s the weight where we feel comfortable. The hypothalamus determines this point based on the level of consumption it’s used to. It seeks to keep our weight constant, even if that point is over what it should be.


When we drastically cut back our food intake, the brain thinks the body is starving, and in an effort to preserve life, it slows the metabolism. Soon the pounds stop coming off. Consequently, we grow hungry and uncomfortable and then eat more. And then the diet fails.


How can you compensate for this metabolic slow-down? The answer is that you have to change the nutritional composition of the foods you eat. You will have to cut down on total calories – that’s absolutely basic to weight loss. More important, however, is reducing the percentage of total calories you are getting from fat.


That’s how you’ll avoid starvation panic in your system. At the same time, you reduce the amount of fat in your food, replacing it with safe, low calorie, nutrient-rich plant foods. This will convince your brain that your body is getting all the nutrition it needs.


In fact, you’ll be able to eat more food and feel more satisfied while consuming fewer calories and fats.


Plant foods break down slowly in your stomach, making you feel full longer, and they are rich in vitamins, minerals, trace elements, carbohydrates and protein for energy and muscle-building. This allows your body to burn off its excess stored fat.

Fat Burning Foods

Each one of the following foods is clinically proven to promote weight loss. These foods go a step beyond simply adding no fat to your system – they possess special properties that add zip to your system and help your body melt away unhealthy pounds. These incredible foods can suppress your appetite for junk food and keep your body running smoothly with clean fuel and efficient energy.


You can include these foods in any sensible weight-loss plan. They give your body the extra metabolic kick that it needs to shave off weight quickly.


A sensible weight loss plan calls for no fewer that 1,200 calories per day. But Dr. Charles Klein recommends consuming more that that, if you can believe it – 1,500 to 1,800 calories per day. He says you will still lose weight quite effectively at that intake level without endangering your health.


Hunger is satisfied more completely by filling the stomach. Ounce for ounce, the foods listed below accomplish that better than any others. At the same time, they’re rich in nutrients and possess special fat-melting talents.


Apples

These marvels of nature deserve their reputation for keeping the doctor away when you eat one a day. And now, it seems, they can help you melt the fat away, too.


First of all, they elevate your blood glucose (sugar) levels in a safe, gentle manner and keep them up longer than most foods. The practical effect of this is to leave you feeling satisfied longer, say researchers.


Secondly, they’re one of the richest sources of soluble fiber in the supermarket. This type of fiber prevents hunger pangs by guarding against dangerous swings or drops in your blood sugar level, says Dr. James Anderson of the University of Kentucky’s School of Medicine.


An average sized apple provides only 81 calories and has no sodium, saturated fat or cholesterol. You’ll also get the added health benefits of lowering the level of cholesterol already in your blood as well as lowering your blood pressure.


Whole-Grain Bread

You needn’t dread bread. It’s the butter, margarine or cream cheese you put on it that’s fattening, not the bread itself. We’ll say this as often as needed – fat is fattening. If you don’t believe that, ponder this – a gram of carbohydrate has four calories, a gram of protein four, and a gram of fat nine. So which of these is really fattening?


Bread, a natural source of fiber and complex carbohydrates, is okay for dieting. Norwegian scientist Dr. Bjarne Jacobsen found that people who eat less than two slices of bread daily weigh about 11 pounds more than those who eat a lot of bread.


Studies at Michigan State University show some breads actually reduce the appetite. Researchers compared white bread to dark, high-fiber bread and found that students who ate 12 slices a day of the dark, high-fiber bread felt less hunger on a daily basis and lost five pounds in two months. Others who ate white bread were hungrier, ate more fattening foods and lost no weight during this time.


So the key is eating dark, rich, high-fiber breads such as pumpernickel, whole wheat, mixed grain, oatmeal and others. The average slice of whole


grain bread contains only 60 to 70 calories, is rich in complex carbohydrates – the best, steadiest fuel you can give your body – and delivers a surprising amount of protein.


Coffee

Easy does it is the password here. We’ve all heard about potential dangers of caffeine – including anxiety and insomnia – so moderation is the key.


The caffeine in coffee can speed up the metabolism. In nutritional circles, it’s known as a metabolic enhancer, according to Dr. Judith Stern of the University of California at Davis.


This makes sense, since caffeine is a stimulant. Studies show it can help you burn more calories than normal, perhaps up to 10 percent more. For safety’s sake, it’s best to limit your intake to a single cup in the morning and one in the afternoon. Add only skim milk to it and try doing without sugar – many people learn to love it that way.


Grapefruit

There’s good reason for this traditional diet food to be a regular part of your diet. It helps dissolve fat and cholesterol, according to Dr. James Cerd of the University of Florida. An average sized grapefruit has 74 calories, delivers a whopping 15 grams of pectin (the special fiber linked to lowering cholesterol and fat), is high in vitamin C and potassium and is free of fat and sodium.


It’s rich in natural galacturonic acid, which adds to its potency as a fat and cholesterol fighter. The additional benefit here is assistance in the battle against atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) and the development of heart disease. Try sprinkling it with cinnamon rather than sugar to take away some of the tart taste.


Mustard


Try the hot, spicy kind you find in Asian import stores, specialty shops and exotic groceries. Dr. Jaya Henry of Oxford Polytechnic Institute in England, found that the amount of hot mustard normally called for in Mexican, Indian and Asian recipes, about one teaspoon, temporarily speeds up the metabolism, just as caffeine and the drug ephedrine do.


“But mustard is natural and totally safe,” Henry says. “It can be used every day, and it really works. I was shocked to discover it can speed up the metabolism by as much as 20 to 25 percent for several hours.” This can result in the body burning an extra 45 calories for every 700 consumed, Dr. Henry says.


Peppers

Hot, spicy chili peppers fall into the same category as hot mustard, Henry says. He studied them under the same circumstances as the mustard and they worked just as well. A mere three grams of chili peppers were added to a meal consisting of 766 total calories. The peppers’ metabolism- raising properties worked like a charm, leading to what Henry calls a diet- induced thermic effect. It doesn’t take much to create the effect. Most salsa recipes call for four to eight chilies – that’s not a lot.


Peppers are astonishingly rich in vitamins A and C, abundant in calcium, phosphorus, iron and magnesium, high in fiber, free of fat, low in sodium and have just 24 calories per cup.


Potatoes

We’ve got to be kidding, right? Wrong. Potatoes have developed the same “fattening” rap as bread, and it’s unfair. Dr. John McDougal, director of the nutritional medicine clinic at St. Helena Hospital in Deer Park, California, says, “An excellent food with which to achieve rapid weight loss is the potato, at 0.6 calories per gram or about 85 calories per potato.” A great source of fiber and potassium, they lower cholesterol and protect against strokes and heart disease.


Preparation and toppings are crucial. Steer clear of butter, milk and sour cream, or you’ll blow it. Opt for yogurt instead.


Rice

An entire weight-loss plan, simply called the Rice Diet, was developed by Dr. William Kempner at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. The diet, dating to the 1930’s, makes rice the staple of your food intake. Later on, you gradually mix in various fruits and vegetables.


It produces stunning weight loss and medical results. The diet has been shown to reverse and cure kidney ailments and high blood pressure.


A cup of cooked rice (150 grams) contains about 178 calories – approximately one-third the number of calories found in an equivalent amount of beef or cheese. And remember, whole-grain rice is much better for you than white rice.


Soups

Soup is good for you! Maybe not the canned varieties from the store – but old-fashioned, homemade soup promotes weight loss. A study by Dr. John Foreyt of Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, found that dieters who ate a bowl of soup before lunch and dinner lost more weight than dieters who didn’t. In fact, the more soup they ate, the more weight they lost. And soup eaters tend to keep the weight off longer.


Naturally, the type of soup you eat makes a difference. Cream soups or those made of beef or pork are not your best bets. But here’s a great recipe:


Slice three large onions, three carrots, four stalks of celery, one zucchini and one yellow squash. Place in a kettle. Add three cans crushed tomatoes, two packets low-sodium chicken bouillon, three cans water and one cup white wine (optional). Add tarragon, basil, oregano, thyme and garlic powder. Boil, then simmer for an hour. Serves six.


Spinach

Popeye really knew what he was talking about, according to Dr. Richard Shekelle, an epidemiologist at the University of Texas. Spinach has the ability to lower cholesterol, rev up the metabolism and burn away fat. Rich in iron, beta carotene and vitamins C and E, it supplies most of the nutrients you need.


Tofu

You just can’t say enough about this health food from Asia. Also called soybean curd, it’s basically tasteless, so any spice or flavoring you add blends with it nicely. A 2½ ” square has 86 calories and nine grams of protein. (Experts suggest an intake of about 40 grams per day.) Tofu contains calcium and iron, almost no sodium and not a bit of saturated fat. It makes your metabolism run on high and even lowers cholesterol. With different varieties available, the firmer tofus are good for stir-frying or adding to soups and sauces while the softer ones are good for mashing, chopping and adding to salads.


Potent Foods

It would be unrealistic to think you could successfully lose weight and enjoy what you’re eating with a mere handful of foods, no matter how delicious, nutritious and satisfying they may be. So we’re going to add an extra roster of fat-fighting foods you can eat along with the great foods mentioned in the last section.


They’ll lend different tastes and textures to every meal and provide a wide range of vitamins, minerals, proteins and other vital nutrients. Naturally, each one is high in fiber, low in fat and safe when it comes to sodium content, too.


Many have crunchiness and flavor we’ve come to desire in snack and nibbling foods. If you’re like most of us, you may have a real junk food snacking habit – a habit you’re going to have to change in order to slim down. Many of the foods in this section may be worthy substitutes.


Barley

This filling grain stacks up favorably to rice and potatoes. It has 170 calories per cooked cup, respectable levels of protein and fiber and relatively low fat. Roman gladiators ate this grain regularly for strength and actually complained when they had to eat meat.


Studies at the University of Wisconsin show that barley effectively lowers cholesterol by up to 15 percent and has powerful anti-cancer agents. Israeli scientists say it cures constipation better than laxatives - and that can promote weight loss, too.


Use it as a substitute for rice in salads, pilaf or stuffing, or add to soups and stews. You can also mix it with rice for an interesting texture. Ground into flour, it makes excellent breads and muffins.


Beans

Beans are one of the best sources of plant protein. Peas, beans and chickpeas are collectively known as legumes. Most common beans have
215 calories per cooked cup (lima beans go up to 260). They have the
most protein with the least fat of any food, and they’re high in potassium but low in sodium.


Plant protein is incomplete, which means that you need to add something to make it complete. Combine beans with a whole grain – rice, barley, wheat, corn – to provide the amino acids necessary to form a complete protein. Then you get the same top-quality protein as in meat with just a fraction of the fat.


Studies at the University of Kentucky and in the Netherlands show that eating beans regularly can lower cholesterol levels.


The most common complaint about beans is that they cause gas. Here’s how to contain that problem, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA): Before cooking, rinse the beans and remove foreign particles, put in a kettle and cover with boiling water, soak for four hours or longer, remove any beans that float to the top, then cook the beans in fresh water.


Berries

This is the perfect weight-loss food. Berries have natural fructose sugar that satisfies your longing for sweets and enough fiber so you absorb fewer calories than you eat. British researchers found that the high content of insoluble fiber in fruits, vegetables and whole grains reduces the absorption of calories from foods enough to promote weight loss without hampering nutrition.


Berries are a great source of potassium that can assist you in blood pressure control. Blackberries have 74 calories per cup, blueberries 81, raspberries 60 and strawberries 45. So use your imagination and enjoy the berry of your choice.


Broccoli

Broccoli is America’s favorite vegetable, according to a recent poll. No wonder. A cup of cooked broccoli has a mere 44 calories. It delivers a staggering nutritional payload and is considered the number one cancer- fighting vegetable. It has no fat, loads of fiber, cancer-fighting chemicals called indoles, carotene, 21 times the RDA of vitamin C and calcium.


When you’re buying broccoli, pay attention to the color. The tiny florets should be rich green and free of yellowing. Stems should be firm.


Buckwheat

It’s great for pancakes, breads, cereal, soups or alone as a grain dish commonly called kasha. It has 155 calories per cooked cup. Research at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences shows diets including buckwheat lead to excellent blood sugar regulation, resistance to diabetes and lowered cholesterol levels. You cook buckwheat the same way you would rice or barley. Bring two to three cups of water to a boil, add the grain, cover the pan, turn down the heat and simmer for 20 minutes or until the water is absorbed.


Cabbage

This Eastern Europe staple is a true wonder food. There are only 33 calories in a cup of cooked shredded cabbage, and it retains all its nutritional goodness no matter how long you cook it. Eating cabbage raw (18 calories per shredded cup), cooked, as sauerkraut (27 calories per drained cup) or coleslaw (calories depend on dressing) only once a week is enough to protect against colon cancer. And it may be a longevity- enhancing food. Surveys in the United States, Greece and Japan show that people who eat a lot of it have the least colon cancer and the lowest death rates overall.


Carrots

What list of health-promoting, fat-fighting foods would be complete without Bugs Bunny’s favorite? A medium-sized carrot carries about 55 calories and is a nutritional powerhouse. The orange color comes from beta carotene, a powerful cancer-preventing nutrient (provitamin A).


Chop and toss them with pasta, grate them into rice or add them to a stir-fry. Combine them with parsnips, oranges, raisins, lemon juice, chicken, potatoes, broccoli or lamb to create flavorful dishes. Spice them with tarragon, dill, cinnamon or nutmeg. Add finely chopped carrots to soups and spaghetti sauce – they impart a natural sweetness without adding sugar.


Chicken

White meat contains 245 calories per four ounce serving and dark meat,
285. It’s an excellent source of protein, iron, niacin and zinc. Skinned
chicken is healthiest, but most experts recommend waiting until after cooking to remove it because the skin keeps the meat moist during cooking.


Corn

It’s really a grain – not a vegetable – and is another food that’s gotten a bum rap. People think it has little to offer nutritionally and that just isn’t so. There are 178 calories in a cup of cooked kernels. It contains good amounts of iron, zinc and potassium, and University of Nebraska researchers say it delivers a high-quality of protein, too.


The Tarahumara Indians of Mexico eat corn, beans and hardly anything else. Virgil Brown, M.D., of Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York, points out that high blood cholesterol and cardiovascular heart disease are almost nonexistent among them.


Cottage Cheese


As long as we’re talking about losing weight and fat-fighting foods, we had to mention cottage cheese.


Low-fat (2%) cottage cheese has 205 calories per cup and is admirably low in fat, while providing respectable amounts of calcium and the B vitamin riboflavin. Season with spices such a dill, or garden fresh vegetable such a scallions and chives for extra zip.


To make it sweeter, add raisins or one of the fruit spreads with no sugar added. You can also use cottage cheese in cooking, baking, fillings and dips where you would otherwise use sour cream or cream cheese.


Figs

Fiber-rich figs are low in calories at 37 per medium (2.25” diameter) raw fig and 48 per dried fig. A recent study by the USDA demonstrated that they contribute to a feeling of fullness and prevent overeating. Subjects actually complained of being asked to eat too much food when fed a diet containing more figs than a similar diet with an identical number of calories.


Serve them with other fruits and cheeses. Or poach them in fruit juice and serve them warm or cold. You can stuff them with mild white cheese or puree them to use as a filling for cookies and low-calorie pastries.


Fish

The health benefits of fish are greater than experts imagined – and they’ve always considered it a health food.


The calorie count in the average four-ounce serving of a deep-sea fish runs from a low of 90 calories in abalone to a high of 236 in herring. Water-packed tuna, for example, has 154 calories. It’s hard to gain weight eating seafood.


As far back as 1985, articles in the New England Journal of Medicine showed a clear link between eating fish regularly and lower rates of heart


disease. The reason is that oils in fish thin the blood, reduce blood pressure and lower cholesterol.


Dr. Joel Kremer, at Albany Medical College in New York, discovered that daily supplements of fish oil brought dramatic relief to the inflammation and stiff joints of rheumatoid arthritis.


Greens

We’re talking collard, chicory, beet, kale, mustard, Swiss chard and turnip greens. They all belong to the same family as spinach, and that’s one of the super-stars. No matter how hard you try, you can’t load a cup of plain cooked greens with any more than 50 calories.


They’re full of fiber, loaded with vitamins A and C, and free of fat. You can use them in salads, soups, casseroles or any dish where you would normally use spinach.


Kiwi

This New Zealand native is a sweet treat at only 46 calories per fruit. Chinese public health officials praise the tasty fruit for its high vitamin C content and potassium. It stores easily in the refrigerator for up to a month. Most people like it peeled, but the fuzzy skin is also edible.


Leeks

These members of the onion family look like giant scallions, and are every bit as healthful and flavorful as their better-known cousins. They come as close to calorie-free as it gets at a mere 32 calories per cooked cup.


You can poach or broil halved leeks and then marinate them in vinaigrette or season with Romano cheese, fine mustard or herbs. They also make a good soup.


Lettuce

People think lettuce is nutritionally worthless, but nothing could be farther from the truth. You can’t leave it out of your weight-loss plans, not at 10 calories per cup of raw romaine. It provides a lot of filling bulk for so few calories. And it’s full of vitamin C, too. Go beyond iceberg lettuce with Boston, bibb and cos varieties or try watercress, arugula, radicchio, dandelion greens, purslane and even parsley to liven up your salads.


Melons

Now, here’s great taste and great nutrition in a low-calorie package! One cup of cantaloupe balls has 62 calories, one cup of casaba balls has 44 calories, one cup of honeydew balls has 62 calories and one cup of watermelon balls has 49 calories. They have some of the highest fiber content of any food and are delicious. Throw in handsome quantities of vitamins A and C plus a whopping 547 mgs of potassium in that cup of cantaloupe, and you have a fat-burning health food beyond compare.


Oats

A cup of oatmeal or oat bran has only 110 calories. And oats help you lose weight. Subjects in Dr. James Anderson’s landmark 12-year study at the University of Kentucky lost three pounds in two months simply by adding 100 grams (3.5 ounces) of oat bran to their daily food intake and nothing else. Just don’t expect oats alone to perform miracles – you have to eat a balanced diet for total health.


Onions

Flavorful, aromatic, inexpensive and low in calories, onions deserve a regular place in your diet. One cup of chopped raw onions has only 60 calories, and one raw medium onion (2.15” diameter) has just 42.


They control cholesterol, thin the blood, protect against cholesterol and may have some value in counteracting allergic reactions. Most of all, onions taste good and they’re good for you.


Partially boil, peel and bake, basting with olive oil and lemon juice. Or sauté them in white wine and basil, then spread over pizza. Or roast them in sherry and serve over paste.


Pasta

The Italians had it right all along. A cup of cooked pasta (without a heavy sauce) has only 155 calories and fits the description of a perfect starch- centered staple. Analysis at the American Institute of Baking shows pasta is rich in six minerals, including manganese, iron, phosphorus, copper, magnesium and zinc. Also be sure to consider whole-wheat pastas, which are even healthier.


Sweet Potatoes

You can make a meal out of them and not worry about gaining a pound
– and you sure won’t walk away from the table feeling hungry. Each sweet potato has about 103 calories. Their creamy orange flesh is one of the best sources of vitamin A you can consume.


You can bake, steam or microwave them. Or add them to casseroles, soups and many other dishes. Flavor with lemon juice or vegetable broth instead of butter.


Tomatoes

A medium tomato (2.5” diameter) has only about 25 calories. These garden delights are low in fat and sodium, high in potassium and rich in fiber.


A survey at Harvard Medical School found that the chances of dying of cancer are lowest among people who eat tomatoes (or strawberries) every week.


And don’t overlook canned crushed, peeled, whole or stewed tomatoes. They make sauces, casseroles and soups taste great while retaining their nutritional goodness and low-calorie status. Even plain old spaghetti


sauce is a fat-burning bargain when served over pasta, so think about introducing tomatoes into your diet


Turkey

Give thanks to those pilgrims for starting the wonderful tradition of Thanksgiving turkey. It just so happens that this health food disguised as meat is good year-round for weight control.


A four-ounce serving of roasted white meat turkey has 177 calories and dark meat has 211.


Sadly, many folks are still unaware of the versatility and flavor of ground turkey. Anything hamburger can do, ground turkey can do at least as well, from conventional burgers to spaghetti sauce to meat loaf.


Some ground turkey contains skin which slightly increases the fat content. If you want to keep it really lean, opt for ground breast meat. But since this has no added fat, you’ll need to add filler to make burgers or meat loaf hold together.


Four ounces of ground turkey has approximately 170 calories and nine grams of fat – about what you’d find in 2.5 teaspoons of butter or margarine. Incredibly, the same amount of regular ground beef (21% fat) has 298 calories and 23 grams of fat.


Buying turkey has become easy. It’s no longer necessary to buy a whole bird unless you want to. Ground turkey is available fresh or frozen, as are individual parts of the bird, including drumsticks, thighs, breasts and cutlets.


Yogurt

The non-fat variety of plain yogurt has 120 calories per cup and low-fat,
144. It delivers a lot of protein and, like any dairy food, is rich in calcium
and contains zinc and riboflavin.




Yogurt is handy as a breakfast food – cut a banana into it and add the cereal of your choice.


You can find ways to use it in other types of cooking, too – sauces, soups, dips, toppings, stuffings and spreads. Many kitchen gadget departments even sell a simple funnel for making yogurt cheese.


Yogurt can replace heavy creams and whole milk in a wide range of dishes, saving scads of fat and calories.


You can substitute half or all of the higher fat ingredients. Be creative. For example, combine yogurt, garlic powder, lemon juice, a dash of pepper and Worcestershire sauce and use it to top a baked potato instead of piling on fat-laden sour cream.


Supermarkets and health food stores sell a variety of yogurts, many with added fruit and sugar. To control calories and fat content, buy plain non- fat yogurt and add fruit yourself. Apple butter or fruit spreads with little or no added sugar are an excellent way to turn plain yogurt into a delectable sweet treat.


For more great information on how you can lose that fat, thin your waistline and get those six pack abs make sure you check out Carb Rotation Diet.


The principles that are covered within "Carb Rotation Diet" are absolutely solid. The advice and knowledge that you receive in these books are exactly what I've used to achieve a body fat percentage in the low teens myself. I'm no different from you either. I'm a busy mom who spends most of her time making the family happy. My husband
Scott has applied these same strategies as well to achieve single digit body fat percentage. He knows what it's like to be 30 pounds overweight and he knows how awful it feels.


Angie Tousignant


“Jayson, you’ve given men and women the secret! “The Carb Rotation Diet” reveals everything that a woman needs to know in order to safely diet, know how much food is too much/too little, lose weight quickly and effectively, and create a lifestyle of appealing food choices that keep
the weight off, permanently. Jayson’s different from all the rest in that he
helps you find a lifestyle that works, so that you can have a body that’s yours, forever. If you’re dieting for a big event and you need help getting the body you desire, there’s no question you should have this book. Jayson will help you achieve the body you’ve been hoping for, while showing you how you can actually keep your body, even after the event is over.”

Read More

The TOTAL Solution For The Weight Loss Impaired : Understanding Weight Gain And Loss

Before I go the various aspects of how to lose weight, I think it is helpful to have an understanding of the factors involved when someone becomes overweight. Weight gain typically occurs from a combination of interacting physical, emotional / psychological, and sometimes “energetic” factors. The vast majority of these factors exert their effects on weight gain or loss through their stimulation or inhibition of certain hormones, so let’s begin there.


First, what is a hormone? A hormone is often described as a “chemical messenger”. A hormone is a chemical released by a gland that is typically released into the bloodstream to tell certain cells and tissues to take some action that the body needs to have performed. The release
of hormones is controlled by the central nervous system (specifically the brain), as well as by feedback systems that are triggered by certain sensors in the body that monitor the hormone levels in the blood, or
monitor the effects of the hormones.


Under normal circumstances, diet, exercise, sleep, stress levels, and exposure to certain chemicals will determine hormone levels and function and the function of certain hormones in turn determines
whether the body burns sugar, burns fat, breaks down muscle, or stores sugar, stores fat, or builds muscle. There are three primary hormones
that promote fat storage: insulin, cortisol, and estrogen. There are six
hormones that promote fat burning: thyroid hormone, growth hormone, insulin-like growth factor, glucagon, testosterone, and adrenaline. Even
though there are more fat-burning hormones, the fat storing hormones
are stronger in their effects. First let’s look at the fat storing hormones and what stimulates them.


Insulin is the strongest of the fat storing hormones. Insulin is released by the pancreas for the purpose of regulating blood sugar levels. When you eat a meal that is high in carbohydrates, the carbohydrates are



digested and absorbed into the blood as glucose (blood sugar). When there is a large amount of blood sugar present, large amounts of insulin are released. So, here’s the first clue on how to lose weight: if insulin is the strongest of the fat storing hormones and carbohydrates cause the release of insulin, what type of food should you limit your intake of if you want to get rid of fat? (Hint: It’s carbs!) Insulin will first store excess sugar (more than what is necessary for immediate use by the brain and other tissues) as a compound called glycogen. Glycogen is stored in
the liver and muscles and can be quickly converted to blood sugar for fuel when needed, such as during brief periods of heavy exertion. There is pretty limited space for glycogen storage, so if there’s more blood sugar that needs to be stored, the remaining amount will be converted and stored as fat.


There are many fat cells in the body and each fat cell can enlarge over
100 times its original size to accommodate more fat (which is why it is quite possible to get fat again after liposuction), so there is a large potential for fat storage. Again, the primary factor that stimulates insulin release is consuming carbohydrates, particularly refined sugars and grains. Vegetables (here we are talking about fresh or frozen whole,
raw vegetables without any added ingredients such as sugar) also contain a high percentage of carbohydrates, but they do not stimulate
insulin release as strongly as refined sugars and grains. Fruits (fresh,
whole fruits) tend to increase blood sugar somewhat more than vegetables, but usually not nearly as much as grains. This is because
vegetables and fruits are high in fiber and nutrients like beta-carotene
that slow the absorption of their carbohydrates into the bloodstream when you eat them. Whole grains, because of their fiber content,
stimulate less insulin response than refined grains. Whole grains are a
much more concentrated source of carbohydrates than most vegetables and fruits (fruits and vegetables have a much higher water content than
whole grains) and it is easier to consume more grams of carbohydrate
from grain sources than from vegetables and fruits, so even whole grains tend to be problematic for causing fat storage. As mentioned
earlier, insulin is the strongest of the fat storing hormones. It is such a



powerful stimulator of fat storage that it can literally shut off fat burning for 24 to 48 hours when it is released in large quantities. In fact, a single slice of white bread will be enough in most people to dramatically inhibit all fat burning for one to two days, regardless of how a person eats or exercises during that time period. This is why limiting carbohydrate consumption is critical to fat burning. This is not to say that you cannot lose weight if you are eating refined carbs, because you can definitely still lose water weight (which is usually necessary in an overall weight loss program), but it becomes very difficult to lose actual fat. Excess refined carbohydrate consumption with its accompanying insulin release is a key problem in the failure of many people’s weight loss attempts. In fact, some diet plans actually recommend that people “cheat” or “reward” themselves with carbohydrates periodically in order to keep them motivated. That “reward” may seem like a good idea at the time, but it sabotages your progress and may contribute to frustration and eventual failure of the
diet in the long run. Refined carbs need to be kept out of your diet if you are going to have sustainable weight loss. This point will be
emphasized repeatedly as we go along.


Cortisol is another hormone that stimulates fat storage, primarily around the lower abdomen. Cortisol is released by the adrenal glands and its release is associated with stress. It is speculated that the storage of fat around the abdomen during times of stress served a survival purpose
for our ancestors who had to live under harsh conditions – basically storing fat to be used for energy when physical demands were high and/or food supplies were low. Stress can take more than one form though, and these days emotional stress has largely replaced physical stress. This means we store fat in response to cortisol but we do not have the events present that would allow us to burn off the fat as were present in earlier periods of human existence. As just stated, stress can take more than one form, all of which can stimulate cortisol release and cause fat storage. Emotional stress, illness or injury, heavy physical exertion, relationship problems, major life changes, etc. can all cause excess cortisol release and its resulting weight gain.





It is interesting to note that excessive or excessively intense exercise
can stimulate cortisol release – which means for people who are already overstressed and their adrenal glands have been overworked, too
much or the wrong kind of exercise can actually promote weight
gain! And if you think you can overcome that effect by going on a starvation diet along with the heavy exercise, think again! Not only does inadequate food intake stimulate even more cortisol release, your body will still not burn fat in the presence of high cortisol even though you’re hardly eating anything. Instead, the high cortisol will cause your body
will burn muscle tissue to convert to blood sugar. Although burning muscle will cause you to lose weight, you will actually be increasing your
percentage of body fat, which again typically is deposited around the
midsection. Furthermore, since muscle tissue has a high metabolic rate, the more of it you burn up, the slower your metabolism will get. If
you’ve starved yourself and exercised like a maniac but still couldn’t lose that roll of belly fat, now you know why. Later in the book, we’ll discuss how to get off the cortisol “merry-go-round”.


Estrogen is another fat-storing hormone. You might think this only applies to women, but men produce estrogen in small quantities and can be exposed to chemicals in food, water, and the environment that act like estrogen in the body. Estrogen is produced by the ovaries and adrenal glands. The adrenal glands are the source of natural estrogen in men and in post-menopausal women. As we mentioned a moment ago, there are outside sources of estrogen. One of the most common sources of what are called “exogenous” (not to be confused with “erogenous”) estrogens is meats, particularly beef and pork, and dairy products. This is because commercially-raised cattle and hogs are often given extra estrogen to cause them to grow and fatten faster, and residuals of these hormones are in the meat and dairy products we consume. But meat is not the only source of estrogens in the diet. Various pesticides and chemical fertilizers used on produce can act as estrogens in the body. Because of the presence of these exogenous estrogens, it is recommended that you stick to naturally raised beef and



pork, hormone-free dairy, and organically grown produce as much as possible. Estrogen tends to cause fat accumulation around the hips and buttocks and sometimes in and around the breasts (this is most noticeable when it occurs in men as a condition called gynecomastia – often referred to as “man-boobs”), presumably to provide close-by
stores of energy for a developing fetus, and for breast milk production. But if you don’t happen to be pregnant, this fat deposition is not normal and is due to an imbalance in hormones. Later, we’ll discuss ways to balance estrogen levels through diet, exercise, and supplementation.


Before we discuss the fat burning hormones, there’s something very important to know. ALL of the fat burning hormones are activated / produced by the liver. Under normal circumstances, the liver is quite good at handling all of the chemical reactions it must process, including the processing of fat burning hormones. Unfortunately, the usual American lifestyle can get pretty overwhelming for the liver. We tend to eat too much fat and protein and drink too much alcohol and take too many medications, and sometimes the liver just can’t keep up. Since keeping levels of certain chemicals from reaching toxic levels in the blood is the liver’s first priority, if you overload the liver, it’s not going to be able to process the fat burning hormones as it should. This means that you will not produce adequate amounts of the activated forms of the fat burning hormones, and you will deposit fat. In addition, when the
liver is overworked, fluid tends to accumulate in the upper abdominal area. The classic description of this is the “beer gut”.


For people with overworked livers, a large amount of their excess weight is actually water. Some people try to exercise away the protruding gut through sit-ups or crunches in an effort to “spot reduce”, but usually to
no avail. Liver overload is also the primary reason many people don’t get good long-term results with the Atkin’s diet even though it often
works great at first. The weight gain associated with an overworked
liver must be addressed through changes in diet and by reducing the intake of alcohol and limiting the use of drugs and medications of all
kinds as much as possible. As the liver recovers, the water weight will



usually begin to recede pretty quickly (and you’ll be spending quite a bit of time in the bathroom as it does!). The specifics for helping the liver recover will be covered later in this book.


Now we come to the fat burning hormones. Thyroid hormone is probably the most powerful of these – under normal circumstances of course. The thyroid gland produces an inactive hormone, called T4 which is converted to the active form T3 by the liver. The active T3 hormone stimulates cells to produce structures within them called mitochondria, which are kind of like energy factories that burn fat to convert to usable energy for a variety of functions. When thyroid hormone is either not produced adequately, not converted to the active form by the liver, or is blocked from its receptor sites on the cells (most commonly by excess estrogen or estrogen-like compounds), not only do the cells not burn fat, they also fail to produce sufficient energy for normal functioning. This obviously leads to weight gain, but also can cause fatigue, hair loss, and brittle nails. The weight gain related to thyroid issues is all over the body – trunk, arms, and legs, as the failure
of fat burning is wide-spread. As just mentioned, some thyroid problems are due to blockage of the receptor sites for thyroid hormone, rather
than due to insufficient hormone levels. This is why it is possible for
someone to have classic low-thyroid symptoms even with perfectly normal blood tests for thyroid hormone levels. Thyroid hormone production is stimulated by exercise – primarily anaerobic exercise – and specific recommendations for exercise will be presented later. As we mentioned a short time ago, thyroid hormone is converted to the active form by the liver, so it is important that the liver be kept healthy – which basically comes down to not overloading it with excessive intake of fat, protein, alcohol, and/or drugs and medications. Finally, to keep the cellular receptor sites working normally, it is necessary to keep natural estrogen levels normal and to limit as much as possible one’s exposure to exogenous estrogens by consuming natural meats and
organic produce. Synthetic estrogens used in birth control and estrogen replacement therapy can also dramatically interfere with thyroid receptor
sites and inhibit thyroid function, so you may wish to consider other



options if you are using these medications and are having a lot of trouble losing weight.


Adrenaline (also called epinephrine) is a fat burning hormone that is produced by the adrenal glands. It accelerates the body’s breathing and heart rate to provide more blood flow and oxygenation to the tissues in times of stress, or during heavy exercise. When you accelerate in a car, you burn more fuel, and the same is true when you accelerate the body
– but in this case the fuel is fat and sugar. Many diet drugs either stimulate or simulate the action of adrenaline. The problem is that
stress and diet drugs stimulate the adrenals generally, and also wind up
stimulating the production of cortisol – the fat storing hormone we discussed earlier. Adrenaline is fast-acting, and produced in limited amounts, whereas cortisol is long-acting and can be produced over a longer period of time. So, while doing short bursts of intense exercise will give you the fat-burning effects of adrenaline, excessive exercise or excessive stress will stimulate cortisol release and hinder fat burning. Likewise, diet drugs will stimulate adrenaline production for a limited time, but the cortisol production they stimulate will last much longer – this is why many diet drug users wind up gaining weight in the long-run.


Growth hormone is produced by the pituitary gland in the brain. It stimulates the growth of muscle and lean body tissue. Muscle cells have a proportionately high number of mitochondria, the “energy factories” we discussed in relation to thyroid hormone. Because of this, more muscle tissue means more fat burning, so growth hormone indirectly stimulates fat burning. In addition, growth hormone stimulates the liver to produce a hormone called insulin-like growth factor (IGF). IGF controls blood sugar levels during long periods between eating –
primarily at night when you are asleep. Without adequate sleep (at least
7 hours of RESTFUL) sleep per night, IGF does not function properly. A few hours after eating, your blood sugar begins to fall, and IGF stimulates the burning of stored sugar and fat to keep normal energy supply to the brain. So growth hormone has a second indirect effect on fat burning. Growth hormone (and consequently IGF) is stimulated by



anaerobic exercise – which is of relatively short duration but high intensity. I’ll discuss this in more detail when we get to exercise recommendations. I feel it bears mentioning that growth hormone injections are sometimes used to enhance muscle growth and reduce fat. This may be done illegally by athletes trying to artificially enhance muscle growth, or it may be prescribed by some doctors as an “anti- aging” measure for their patients. While growth hormone definitely has its good points, I urge anyone who is considering growth hormone injections to be very careful. Excess amounts of any hormone can be extremely dangerous, and injecting large amounts of growth hormone could potentially have serious adverse health effects.


Glucagon is a hormone that can be thought of as the anti-insulin. Like IGF, glucagon stimulates the burning of stored sugar and fat when blood sugar drops too low, but it operates much closer to the time when you eat. It is a counter-balance for insulin. Basically, when you eat and
your blood sugar rises, insulin is produced to store the excess, but if insulin takes too much sugar out of the bloodstream, glucagon is
released to bring the blood sugar back up again by burning the stored sugar and fat. Glucagon production tends to be stimulated by meals that are relatively low in carbohydrate.


The last major fat-burning hormone is testosterone. Just as men produce some of the “female” hormone, estrogen, women produce some of the “male” hormone, testosterone. Testosterone is produced by the testicles (in men) and the adrenal glands (in men and women). Like growth hormone, testosterone stimulates fat burning indirectly by stimulating muscle growth. Also like growth hormone, testosterone production is stimulated by anaerobic exercise – short duration, high intensity. And again, like growth hormone, injecting testosterone is potentially dangerous, so think carefully about artificially raising your testosterone levels.



So, now that we’ve reviewed the action of the various fat storing and fat burning hormones, let’s summarize what causes fat storage and fat burning.


Fat storing is largely stimulated by:
1) Excess carbohydrate consumption
2) Excess stress (physical and/or emotional)
3) Excess estrogen and estrogen-like chemicals (such as chemical pesticides, fertilizers, etc.)


Fat burning is stimulated by:
1) Good liver function (avoiding the overconsumption of fat, protein, alcohol, and drugs/medications
2) Low carbohydrate consumption
3) Anaerobic exercise (relatively short duration, high intensity activity)
4) Adequate sleep (at least 7 hours of restful sleep per night)

Read More

17 Potent For Removing Unwanted Fat From Your Belly, Butt, Hips and Thighs!

You keep thinking to yourself: “What happened?”

“I used to have the kind of body people couldn’t keep their hands off of. Now I’ve got this double chin and my pants barely fit.”

“My significant other would probably compliment me and drool over me more if I
wasn’t so heavy.

“Will somebody please tell me the easy way to get rid of this unwanted fat!”

Well, you didn’t get that gut or those hips or butt overnight. And you’re not going to lose it overnight. If you’re searching for a miracle solution you’ve come to the wrong place.

But if you’re will to do just a TINY bit of work and make some small changes, I’ll help you get rid of that unwanted fat in no time!

The first step in losing the fat from your belly, butt, hips or thighs is to just take action. You can read and read and read on everything you are supposed to be doing, but until you actually do something you won’t ever succeed. I have outlined 17 important guidelines to follow for you to start taking action.

Do you need to follow all 17 to be successful?

If you want to maximize your success yes you will need to follow all 17. Will you lose your unwanted fat if you only follow some of them? Yes, you most likely will, but it will take you longer to see that success.

So let’s not waste anymore time here. The objective is to take action so read the guidelines below and just start with the first guideline and work your way down the list until you are completing all 17 guidelines for weight loss success.

1. Eat 4-6 small meals day a day instead of the usual 2-3 large meals. Eating frequently will help regulate and boost your metabolism to burn more calories.

2. Eat some type of lean protein at each meal. Protein helps to satisfy hunger and provide the necessary building blocks to maintain lean body mass while losing body fat. Learn exactly how much protein here: Carb Rotation Diet

3. Recommend eating 5-10 servings of fruit and vegetables a day to meet your micronutrient needs. Vegetables also contain a good amount of fiber and help to control appetites and curb hunger.




4. If you want to start building habits then you need to follow a plan. Habits are formed by repetitively following a prescribed plan. Therefore map out your meals every day and follow them. If you follow your plan everyday for 2-3 weeks you will form habits that become part of your daily routine and you won’t even notice it. How do you think bad habits are formed? By repetitively doing something over and over again.

5. Keep total fat intake under 30% for the day. This can be accomplished by not adding too many extra fats such as butter, sour cream, mayonnaise, etc. This doesn’t mean you have to completely eliminate these items, but do not eat them as a regular food item every day.

6. EXERCISE!! You can lose weight by just following a nutrition plan on its own but very few succeed at it and it takes much longer than when you eat properly as well as exercise. I am not talking about just getting on a
treadmill for 30 minutes every other day. Though you can lose weight this
way it is not the most efficient use of your time nor maximizing the ability to burn calories. The most effective way to lose fat is by strength training or some type of interval training utilizing strength training and cardiovascular exercises. A properly designed program can burn more overall calories in 20 minutes than 20 minutes on a treadmill. Also, the X factor in all this is that you will burn more calories per minute hours after you finished strength training because of the EPOC effect. Static exercise on a treadmill doesn’t produce this X factor.

7. Record what you eat and drink. You will be amazed at what you consume and not even realize you did it until you right it down and reflect back on the day. Keeping a food log is critical to your success because if modifications need to be made you need something to be able to evaluate and analyze. If changes aren’t happening like you had hoped the answer can usually be found in the food and or exercise journal.

8. Follow the 90% rule. If you can follow your plan 90% of the time then that is enough to have success with weight loss. If you find yourself breaking the rules more than 90% of the time then the chance of being successful with weight loss is not as likely. Your chances of failing increase significantly. Lose the all or nothing attitude and just take one day at a time. Reflect on your day before you go to bed at night and instead of getting down on yourself because you weren’t perfect just set goals to accomplish next day that would eliminate those errors.

9. Review food labels. Avoid foods that contain excess sugar, calories.
Especially avoid foods that contain any trans-fats. Look for foods that are low in energy density. This means you get a good size portion, but low calorie. This will generally be your non-processed foods. So your fruits, vegetables and whole grains along with lean protein are your best


choices. Learn about what you should exactly be reading on a food label at Carb Rotation Diet.

10. Drink 1oz per 50-75% of your bodyweight. This equates for most people to 13- 20 (8) ounce glasses a day. This is important to maintain efficiency of your metabolism and provide fullness.

11. Balance your fat intake for the day. 1/3 should come from saturated fats,
1/3 from monounsaturated fats, and 1/3 from polyunsaturated fats

12. Avoid soft drinks and other calorie filled drinks. These types of drink are very high in calories and energy density. A 12 ounce soda can contain
150 calories of almost all sugar.

13. I recommend consuming 25-35 grams of fiber per day. Since the average diet contains only 14 grams we could all use more fiber. Fiber will help satisfy hunger pangs as well as control insulin and blood sugar levels
which tend to promote fat storage when they are elevated.

14. Eat low-glycemic carbohydrates such as vegetables, whole-wheat products and oatmeal instead of refined processed carbohydrates which usually come in a box or a bag.

15. Consume adequate amounts of healthy fat foods such as olive oil, walnuts, almonds, Omega-3 fortified eggs or other Omega-3 products. Healthy fats are great antioxidants as well as help with brain function and many other essentials processes that take place in the body on a daily basis. Essential Fatty acids also help prevent certain diseases.

16. Include what I call “Superfoods” into your meal plan on a daily basis.
These include but not entirely lean meat, salmon, low fat plain yogurt, tomatoes, spinach, mixed berries, whole oats, mixed nuts, olive oil, flax seeds(or flax meal), green tea, and various beans. These are just some of the “Superfoods” who should be incorporating into your daily meal plans.

17. Be consistent! Don’t try to change everything at once. Aim for 2-3 improvements each week. Try to master 2-3 guidelines a week and then move down the list until you have mastered all 17.

Now that you know some of the most important steps to losing your gut go ahead and get started with #1. Work on eating 4-6 small meals a day to start increasing your metabolic rate and turning up the fat burning furnace.

Read More

The TOTAL Solution For The Weight Loss Impaired : DIETARY RECOMMENDATIONS

Before I begin, an acknowledgement should be given to Dr. Eric Berg, author of “The 7 Principles Of Fat-Burning” (for more information, go to www.bergdiets.com), and Dr. Guy Schenker, developer of the Nutri- Spec nutritional analysis system, as the diet and exercise programs described in this book are derived from their work. Both of these doctors have made a huge contribution to the understanding of diet and exercise for health and weight loss. I have studied their work extensively, and have attempted to simplify their programs to make the principles of effective diet and exercise easier to understand and implement for the average person. For those wanting more detail on
diet for specific body types, I highly recommend Dr. Berg’s book, “The 7
Principles Of Fat Burning”.


My simplified dietary recommendations are as follows:




1. Eliminate or greatly reduce refined carbohydrates such as bread, cereal, baked goods, pancakes, pizza, pasta, and anything else made with wheat, oats, or other grains – even whole grains. Bran crackers (preferably with no added sugar or salt) are alright because they are mostly fiber. In addition, eliminate or greatly reduce all sugar and other sweeteners. The main reason that refined carbohydrates MUST be kept low is because they trigger the release of the hormone insulin from the pancreas. ANY significant insulin release will shut down your body’s ability to burn fat for one to two days. To put it in eating terms, if you eat more than about 20 to 25 grams of refined carbohydrate (about the amount found in one slice of white bread) in a day (that’s in a DAY, not per MEAL), you CANNOT burn fat effectively for the next one to two days, no matter how well you eat and how much you exercise those days (you will burn calories, but not from fat – you will burn up whatever sugar is in your body and then your body will start “eating” your muscle tissue to convert it to



sugar.). Now, there might be special occasions or some other reason why you want or need to eat refined carbohydrates for social reasons. If that comes up, it is not the end of the world, but try to minimize the carbohydrates you do eat. Just be aware that every time you “cheat” on the carbohydrate recommendation, you set yourself back one to two days on your weight loss.


2. One thing that I think needs special mention separate from the carbohydrate issue is that it is strongly recommended that
you stop drinking sodas of all kinds (those with sugar and artificial sweeteners alike). This is for a couple reasons. Sodas
containing sugar obviously create the problems of any refined carbohydrates, and your average 12 ounce soda has around 35 grams of sugar – more than enough to sufficiently activate insulin release that would stop fat-burning completely for 24 to 48 hours!
Artificial sweeteners create their own problems, most notably that they tend to cause water retention. But sodas may cause yet another even bigger problem when it comes to weight loss.
Preliminary studies indicate that sodium benzoate, an ingredient found in many sodas (as well as in other highly-processed foods), inhibits something called mitochondrial DNA. We talked about the
mitochondria in relation to the effects of thyroid hormone. Well, when you inhibit mitochondrial DNA, the cells of the body don’t make as many mitochondria, and just like in cases where there are
problems with thyroid hormone function, when there aren’t as many mitochondria, you can’t burn as much fat, and you tend to get fatigued. Over the years, several people have told me that they
lost weight after the only change they made was that they stopped drinking sodas. Because of the combination of problems with soda, for some people simply eliminating their soda consumption
can be the solution for their weight loss impairment.


3. Be careful not to eat excessive quantities of animal proteins (meat, poultry, fish, dairy products, etc.). The liver has to process the proteins you take in, and animal proteins (and the



animal fats that accompany them) are hardest for it to process. So, the relatively low protein intake during the early stages of the diet is intended to give the liver a rest and allow it to recover. Low-fat yogurt or cottage cheese (provided you don’t suffer from lactose intolerance or dairy allergies), organic eggs, and fish (especially eaten raw as sashimi – without rice!) are the easiest animal
proteins for your liver to handle, so I recommend eating these more frequently than beef, pork, or chicken.


When possible, it is best to stick to fresh meats and avoid processed meats like ham, salami, bologna, and processed turkey and ham, as processed meats are high in preserving agents and salt which promote water retention. There are some “natural” processed meats such as ham and turkey that do not contain nitrites or other preservatives that are acceptable, but fresh, unprocessed meats are preferable.


I recommend starting with about 30 to 50 grams of animal protein per day – preferably in the morning and early afternoon (avoid eating lots of animal protein late at night). If you feel fatigued or sensitive to cold after a day or so on this amount, continue to add an additional 10 grams of protein per day until you are feeling good, or until you reach a maximum of about 80 grams per day – remember, this is strictly for animal proteins. Proteins from nuts, seeds, and nut and seed butters can be eaten in unlimited quantities. On the following page are guidelines for the grams of proteins in certain foods.



1 egg = 7 grams
1 chicken leg = 10 grams
3 ounces of canned tuna (1/2 of a regular can) = 20 grams
4 ounces of hamburger (a quarter-pound patty) = 40 grams
½ cup of plain yogurt = 11 grams
½ cup cottage cheese = 15 grams
1 cup of milk = 9 grams of protein
1 ounce of cheese = 7 grams of protein


Before moving on, I wanted to take a moment and address a common concern regarding eggs: cholesterol. Eggs have been unfairly blamed for causing high cholesterol by those (including many doctors) who do not really know that much about diet. It is true that eggs are relatively high in cholesterol, but eating eggs does not significantly raise blood cholesterol (this has been shown by clinical studies). How can this be? Well, first of all, it is a well-documented fact of human physiology that about 70% of the cholesterol in your blood is actually produced by your own liver (for the purpose of hormone production), and only 30% is from cholesterol you eat. Secondly, even though eggs are high in
cholesterol, they are also high in a chemical called lecithin. Lecithin has been shown to quite effectively lower blood cholesterol. So, at worst,
eggs are pretty much neutral when it comes to blood cholesterol, and they are an excellent source of several nutrients. So, about now you may be wondering if the liver makes 70% of the cholesterol in your
blood, what makes the liver over-produce cholesterol and give you high blood cholesterol? To a large degree, it’s refined carbohydrates! Did you ever wonder why diabetics typically have high cholesterol and
triglycerides? It’s because diabetes (Type II, anyway) and high cholesterol/high triglycerides are caused by the same thing: eating too many refined carbohydrates! Now, getting back to the diet
recommendations…


4. Most fats should be kept relatively low. This means eliminating or greatly reducing fried food, butter, margarine, shortening, lard, bacon grease, and cooking oil. If you want to use some type of



fat/oil for cooking, organic coconut oil is the best choice. Olive oil is a good second choice for cooking, or it can be used in salad dressings. Small amounts of real butter are also acceptable for cooking or for use as flavoring for cooked vegetables. Flax oil and fish oil supplements are fine and are actually beneficial, and flax oil can also be used as a salad dressing oil, provided you mix your own dressing and use it immediately (flax oil degrades quickly
when exposed to air). Flax oil should not be used for cooking because heat breaks it down very rapidly and produces unhealthy
changes in the oil. Any added fats and oils should be limited to just
what you need to cook without food sticking to the cookware, and to maybe a tablespoon or so of salad dressing.


5. So, what should you eat? The answer is fresh (or frozen) vegetables and fruits, nuts and seeds, and unsweetened/unsalted nut and seed butters (peanut butter, tahini, etc.).


You can eat unlimited quantities of any kind of vegetables, preferably raw, but lightly steamed is alright. The best vegetables for helping the liver to recover are the cruciferous type, which includes broccoli, cauliflower, kale, and radishes. Some people have difficulty digesting raw vegetables, and if this is the case for you, it is alright to steam them lightly (cook them as little as possible so that they will retain their nutrient content). The sprouts of the cruciferous vegetables are particularly high in nutrients and are usually easier to digest raw than the full-grown vegetables. Whenever possible it is best to eat organic vegetables. Organic vegetables are not as contaminated with pesticides and other chemicals which are damaging to the liver.


You can eat unlimited quantities of apples. All other fruits and berries should be consumed in quantities of about 1/3 of the quantity of vegetables consumed. Again, organic is best.



Nuts and seeds can be eaten in unlimited quantities as long as they are not salted. It is preferable to eat them raw (not roasted), and it is best to soak them in spring or filtered water in a glass container overnight before eating them, as this makes them much easier to digest. After soaking, they can either be spread out to dry before eating, or can be eaten damp. Nuts and seeds make convenient snacks because they do not take up much space and
do not require refrigeration.


Nut and seed butters can also be eaten in unlimited quantities. These include peanut butter, almond butter, cashew butter, and tahini (sesame seed butter). It is preferable to get nut and seed butters that have no added sugar or salt. If organic nut and seed butters are available, these are best. Tahini can be made from either raw or roasted sesame seeds, and the raw type is preferred for the purpose of the liver enhancement.


6. Snacks are important to make sure your blood sugar stays stable. You can snack as often as you like and can eat as much as you want as long as you stick to the foods laid out in number 5. It is not good to let yourself feel hungry for extended periods of time, as this causes the adrenal glands to release cortisol, which will interfere with weight loss.


7. Caffeine, alcohol, and artificial sweeteners (splenda, equal, saccharine, etc.) should be kept to a minimum. Caffeine stimulates the release of cortisol from the adrenals, which can interfere with fat burning, and artificial sweeteners tend to make you retain water. Alcohol is handled like carbohydrates by the body (which means increased insulin and decreased fat-burning), can be damaging to the liver (which reduces the liver’s ability to activate the fat-burning hormones) and also tends to cause water retention.



8. Condiments and seasonings need to be used with care. Some condiments and seasonings are fine (such as dried or fresh herbs and spices), but it is best to avoid products containing added salt, added sugar, and chemical flavor enhancers and preservatives. If you need salt on your food, I recommend Morton’s Lite Salt, which is essentially half sodium chloride and half potassium chloride, but it tastes pretty much like regular salt. For salad dressing, I recommend mixing your own with olive or flax seed oil and balsamic or apple cider vinegar, with dried spices and/or garlic and/or Morton’s Lite Salt to taste. Another option is to mix low-fat yogurt or sour cream with organic salsa (it’s kind of like a spicy thousand island). Pre-made salad dressings can be used, but try
to use them sparingly.


Most people will lose weight pretty rapidly in the first few weeks on this plan. The weight you are losing at this stage is mostly retained water, and you will likely need to use the restroom much more frequently when you begin – people may make fun of you for running to the restroom all the time, but they won’t be laughing when they see the positive changes in you. Poor liver function causes the body to retain water, and it is possible to have several gallons of water stored in your tissues. This diet will stimulate the liver and kidneys to release this retained water.
Since water weighs about 8 pounds per gallon, it is possible that you will lose several pounds in just a few days when you first begin this
program. Once you have run out of the retained water, your weight loss will slow down dramatically. This is the point at which you begin to burn fat. This is what you want to have happen! Once water weight has been
eliminated, optimum fat burning will take place at about 1 to 2 pounds per week for most people. Some people get discouraged when they start out losing 5 or 10 pounds (or more) per week and then drop down
to losing 1 to 2 pounds per week (in some cases maybe only half a pound per week), and they may think that their weight loss program is
no longer working. In fact, this is exactly what should be happening and
is simply the difference between eliminating water and actually burning fat. When you understand what’s happening, you can look at the



slowing of your weight loss as a positive sign – you’re finally getting somewhere toward lasting change in your body!


At this point, you can either keep doing what you’ve been doing, or you can add a little more protein into the diet, particularly if you are following the exercise recommendations (covered later). You don’t want to go too heavy on protein, because that will start to overload the liver again, but up to about 80 grams of protein per day is usually fine, as long as you don’t have a tendency to get the “beer gut” type of weight deposition. If you do have a tendency to develop a “beer gut”, I recommend keeping the protein intake down to the 30 to 50 grams per day as a maximum.


While losing weight is probably your primary motivating factor, there are actually more important signs that you are on the right track in the first few weeks. Among the things we look for are your clothes fitting more loosely, your energy level is higher and you are sleeping better, your skin looks healthier, and you are in a better mood. As long as some positive changes are occurring, you are getting healthier, and this is the first step in your body becoming able to lose weight efficiently. The weight loss will happen, but you may need to be patient to allow your body time to heal and function properly.


If you are not losing any weight or seeing any of the positive changes just mentioned within the first two weeks on this program, there are a few possible explanations: First, your liver may simply be in such bad
shape that it needs longer to heal up and start working (this could take 4 to 6 weeks in extreme cases). Another possibility is that you’re doing
something wrong. Take a close look at everything you are eating and drinking. An online tracking system devised by Dr. Eric Berg, called the Fat Burning Tracker can help pinpoint problem areas. The Fat Burning
Tracker can be accessed at www.fbtcoach.com . Finally, there may be some other problem blocking your body from working properly. This can take the form of an emotional need (you may or may not be consciously
aware of) to remain overweight, a physical blockage to normal bowel function (such as from scar tissue related to abdominal surgery), it could



be a side-effect of a medication you are taking, you may be having inflammation (and water retention) related to food allergies, or it can be a neurological or energy-flow problem in the body. We will cover the most common of these barriers to weight loss as we go along.


It needs to be emphasized that during the first few weeks on this program, weight loss usually proceeds pretty quickly. The beginning of the weight loss usually begins within a day or two on the program, but for someone with a severely overworked liver, it could take up to a month before any significant weight loss begins. If you stick to the
program and follow the recommendations, the weight loss will come, but you need to be patient and allow the body to get healthy enough for it to
happen. Once the weight loss does begin, you could lose 5, 10, 15
pounds per week and possibly more! This is the loss of water weight
(you’ll need to go to the bathroom frequently during this process). Depending on how much water weight you are carrying, this rapid
weight loss could continue for several weeks. If you stick to the
program, it will continue until you run out of excess water. From then on, your weight loss will slow down considerably as you begin to burn
fat. Fat burning proceeds at a maximum rate of about 2 pounds per
week. I know we’ve talked about this before, but it bears repeating: this changeover from losing water to burning fat can sometimes be
discouraging to people if they don’t understand what’s happening. If
you didn’t know better, you might assume that if you were losing 5 pounds per week and then you were only losing 1 pound per week that
your program was not working anymore. Some people mistakenly think
they’ve hit a plateau. Losing 1 pound per week, or even a ½ pound per week is NOT a plateau! A plateau is when you stop losing weight
altogether for a few weeks, or cycle through gaining and losing a similar
amount of weight repeatedly. When you shift from losing weight rapidly
(losing water weight) to losing 1 or 2 pounds per week (most likely burning fat), it is exactly what SHOULD be happening – you are on the right track!



Now, if you are losing 1 to 2 pounds per week, does that mean you are definitely burning fat? Not necessarily. Wait a minute! Didn’t I just say that when you burn fat, you can only lose 1 or 2 pounds per week? Yes, but you could be losing water weight at that rate too, even though water loss is usually faster than that. So, how do you know if you’re actually burning fat? There is a very simple way to tell. When you burn fat, ketones are produced. Ketones are an alternate fuel source for your brain when blood sugar is not available. Anyone who has done the Atkin’s diet is probably familiar with ketones. To keep it simple, you
know you’re buring fat when you produce ketones, and the simplest way to know if you are producing ketones is to test your urine with a
chemical test strip. Ketone test strips are available at most pharmacies, so if you want to be sure your’re burning fat, simply get some ketone
test strips and check your urine periodically. If you have ketones in your urine, you’re burning a significant amount of fat. If you don’t, you’re not.




Now that we’ve completed the overview of the diet, I’m sure that at least a few people are wondering at what point you start adding the refined carbohydrates back in. Those people need to go back and read that section about insulin again. You don’t add carbohydrates back in – EVER! Eating too many refined carbohydrates is most likely at least a part of what got you into weight trouble (and/or other health problems) to begin with. So, the only time you would add the carbs back in is if you are trying to get fat again. Unless you happen to be a movie star needing to fatten up for a role, I don’t think this is going to come up too often. This being said, there will be times where it may be “necessary”
to eat some refined carbohydrates. This is covered in detail in my E- Book, “Training Your Brain For Weight Loss”.


I’m not saying that you should feel bad about going off the diet once in a while, but if you want to continue to lose weight and keep it off, you
need to consider this program as a permanent change in your usual
lifestyle. If there’s a special occasion and you want to eat some bread, pasta, sweets, etc. either for enjoyment or social reasons, by all means



do it. One lapse is not going to be your downfall. Enjoy the special occasion, accept that it may take a few days for your body to get back to fat burning, and move on. The important thing is to not let that lapse become a recurring thing. If you eat refined carbohydrates a few times per month, that’s not a big deal. If you eat them a few times per week, the repeated high insulin release will block any and all attempts for you
to lose weight.


As mentioned earlier, alcohol intake should be kept to a minimum, but a small amount of alcohol is OK, if you feel you simply must have it. By small amount, I mean one 6 ounce glass of wine or of a mixed drink, or (not and) a 12 ounce serving of beer per day. You really need to keep it to ONE and ONLY ONE serving – and the serving should be a normal sized glass – not a pitcher! As with the refined carbohydrates, it is recognized that special occasions do come up, and the periodic bending of the rules is fine. But if you bend the rules every other day, the weight you worked so hard to lose is likely to come back – and fast.


You can usually get away with coffee, tea and other caffeinated beverages in moderation unless you have the adrenal-type weight pattern of the pendulous abdomen with the weight being below the waist
– the “stomach pooch” – in which case caffeine and other stimulants should be avoided. Sodas really should be avoided if at all possible for the reasons previously discussed, but one once in a while is not a
disaster. For coffee and tea, 2 to 4 servings per day is fine, as long as you keep the use of sweeteners to a minimum. Even non-caloric sweeteners are problematic because of their effects on the liver, so the
use of any sweeteners should be kept to a minimum.


So, let’s summarize the basic approach of the diet portion of the program once more:


1) Eliminate sweets, grain-based foods (bread, pasta, cereal, etc.), potatoes, and corn from the diet.
2) Eliminate the consumption of all sodas (regular or diet).



3) Be careful not to eat excessive quantities of animal proteins (meat, poultry, fish, dairy products, etc.). I recommend starting with about 30 to 50 grams per day – preferably in the morning and early afternoon (avoid eating lots of animal protein late at night). If you feel fatigued or sensitive to cold after a day or so on this amount, continue to add an additional 10 grams of protein per day until you are feeling good, or until you reach a maximum of about 80 grams per day – remember, this is strictly for animal proteins, proteins from nuts and seeds can be eaten without restriction. As much as possible, stick to fresh, unprocessed meats.
4) After the first few weeks, if you started out with rapid water- weight loss and have reached a stable point of losing 1 to 2 pounds per week, AND you do not have the tendency to develop a “beer-gut”, you may wish to increase your animal protein
intake slightly, up to a maximum of about 80 grams per day. If you do have the tendency to develop the “beer-gut”, you are better to stay on the lower protein amount of 30 to 50 grams per
day for the long-term.
5) You may eat unlimited amounts of primarily raw fresh or frozen vegetables, preferably organic.
6) You may eat primarily raw fresh or frozen fruits, preferably organic, in quantities of about 1/3 the amount of vegetables, except apples which can be eaten in unlimited quantities.
7) You may eat unlimited quantities of nuts and seeds, preferably raw and unsalted, but dry roasted is acceptable (soak raw seeds and nuts in water overnight to make them easier to digest).
Peanut butter, tahini, and other nut and seed butters are also acceptable.
8) Minimize alcohol consumption. It’s best to limit it to no more than
one 6 ounce glass of wine or mixed drink or one 12 ounce serving of beer per day. In other words, only one small to medium alcoholic beverage per day.
9) Limit caffeine consumption to 2 to 4 servings (6 to 8 ounces) of coffee or tea per day. If you have the adrenal type of weight



deposition (the lower abdomen “pooch”, it is best to avoid caffeine.




The following suggestions are to give you an idea of possible food choices that meet the guidelines of the recommended diet plan. For a more extensive menu, I recommend you check into www.myfoodwiththought.com. They offer custom-made meal plans and provide complete recipes based on your particular dietary needs and your food preferences. A free trial of their service is included as a
bonus with the purchase of my E-Book, “Training Your Brain For Weight Loss”.




Sample Menus:




Breakfasts: For all of the following, recommended beverages are 1 cup of coffee or tea, or 8 to 12 ounces of water, or a small glass of milk (preferably organic). Juices are NOT recommended, as they are a concentrated source of sugar.


1 to 2 eggs, cooked in a small amount of coconut oil, olive oil, or butter.
½ cup fresh or previously frozen berries (no added sugar)
1 apple


Or…


2 egg omelette (or scrambled eggs) with your choice of spinach, onion, tomato, salsa, mushrooms, cheese, natural ham, natural turkey, and/or natural sausage – try different combinations for variety.


Or…



½ to 1 cup of plain (unsweetened) yogurt with ¼ to ½ cup of fresh or previously frozen berries (unsweetened) and ¼ to ½ cup of raw or roasted unsalted seeds and/or nuts.
1 apple, plain or sliced and spread with peanut or other nut butter.


Or…


3 to 4 ounce breakfast steak or natural ham slice.
1 apple, pear, or other piece of fresh fruit.
¼ to ½ cup of raw or roasted unsalted seeds and/or nuts.


Or…


½ cup of cottage cheese with ½ cup sliced fresh fru it.
½ cup of raw or roasted unsalted seeds and/or nuts.
1 apple sliced and spread with peanut or other nut butter. Or…
1 apple sliced and spread with brie cheese.
1 egg cooked in small amount of coconut oil, olive oil, or butter
½ cup of fresh berries


Or…


1 – 2 hard boiled eggs.
½ - 1 cup of plain yogurt with ½ cup of sliced fres h fruit.
1 apple


Or…


1 cup of plain yogurt mixed with 1 cup of milk (whole or low-fat) and ½ cup of berries or other fruit blended with 1 cup of ice for a smoothie (low-sugar whey or soy protein powder can be added if desired).





Lunches: The recommended beverages to accompany these selections would be water, tea, or coffee (with minimal sweeteners).


3 to 6 ounces of canned tuna or salmon mixed with a tablespoon of mayonnaise, plain yogurt, or sour cream, with lemon or lime juice and salt to taste.
1 to 2 cups of cut raw vegetables (cucumbers, carrots, zucchini, broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, etc.) plain, with lemon juice, or
dipped in hummus, tahini, or peanut butter.
1 apple, plain or sliced and spread with peanut butter.
¼ to ½ cup of raw or roasted nuts and/or seeds. Or…
Lettuce, spinach, or mixed-greens salad with your choice of vegetables (tomato, cucumber, carrots, sprouts, broccoli, jicama, beets, radishes, etc.), with bottled salad dressing, oil and vinegar, or dressing made of a mixture of plain yogurt or sour cream with salsa.
Your choice of 1 to 2 hard boiled eggs, 3 to 6 ounces of tuna or salmon as prepared above, or 3 to 4 ounces of cooked to taste beef, pork,
chicken, or “natural” processed meat “cold cuts” served over salad. Salads are a good option for lunches that can be made ahead of time and they allow for considerable variety.


Or…


3 to 4 ounce hamburger patty with 1 to 2 cups grilled onions, mushrooms, and/or peppers, with or without cheese, with fresh lettuce and tomato.
1 apple or other piece of fruit.


Or…



Stir fry with 3 to 4 ounces of chicken breast mixed with your choice of vegetables (broccoli, onion, snow peas, bean sprouts, carrots, bok choy, cauliflower, etc.), cooked with 1 to 2 tablespoons coconut or olive oil,
salt and spices (garlic, curry powder, cayenne, or any other herbs/spices you enjoy), or small amount of soy sauce to taste.


Or…


3 to 4 ounces of sushi-grade sliced fresh raw tuna, salmon, or other fish, seasoned to taste with salt, lemon or lime juice, soy sauce, hot sauce,
or any other seasoning you enjoy. Fresh sliced cucumber with salt and
lemon juice and fresh sliced tomato seasoned with salt and pepper to taste.
1 apple sliced and spread with peanut or other nut butter.


Or…


1 to 2 hard boiled eggs.
Fresh raw vegetables (carrots, broccoli, cucumber, cauliflower, mushrooms) dipped in hummus, tahini, or peanut butter.
½ cup of raw or roasted unsalted nuts and/or seeds.


Or…


1 tomato cut into slices about ½ inch thick baked or heated in
microwave with sliced or shredded cheese on top (heat just until cheese is melted).
Celery and/or carrot sticks spread with peanut butter or cream cheese.
1 apple or other piece of fresh fruit.



Dinners: The recommended beverages to accompany these selections would be water, tea, or coffee (with minimal sweeteners).




Taco salad made with fresh greens, diced tomatoes, diced bell peppers, and diced onions with shredded cheese and ground meat crumbles (about ¼ pound per serving) cooked with salt, garlic, chili powder, cayenne, and/or any other desired spices. Top with mixture of ½ cup sour cream (low fat or regular) mixed with ½ cup of salsa.


Or…


Grilled, baked, or broiled 3 to 4 ounce chicken breast seasoned to taste served with 1 to 2 cups of lightly steamed vegetables of your choice (broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, carrots, etc.). Vegetables can be seasoned and/or lightly buttered.


Or…


Brown 1 pound of ground beef (crumbled) in a skillet with 1 to 2 table spoons of coconut or olive oil and seasoning to taste (salt, garlic, etc.). Once beef is browned, add sliced onions, mushrooms, bell peppers, zucchini, and/or any other vegetables (for a total of 2 to 3 cups of cut vegetables) to pan with browned beef and stir fry until lightly cooked (still crunchy). Makes approximately 4 servings. Can be served with side salad and/or with fresh fruit for dessert.


Or…


Place fresh fish filets (about 4 ounces of fish per serving) in a plastic bag and add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and a couple of tablespoons of lemon or lime juice (use about equal amounts of oil and juice in quantities sufficient to thoroughly coat fish). Seal and then shake bag and flip filets around in bag with fingers until the fish is coated with the oil and juice mixture. Place in non-stick skillet on



medium heat, salt filets lightly and then cover skillet. Cooking time will vary with thickness of filets, so check every few minutes until fish is cooked through (use a knife to slice into the thickest part of the filet). Remove from heat and serve with side salad and/or fresh fruit.


Or…


Sprinkle lime juice on steaks (about 4 ounces per serving) and then rub with salt, garlic, chili powder, and any other spices you like. Grill or broil steak until done to your preference. Can be served with side salad, or grilled vegetables. If grilling vegetables, onion, tomato, green pepper, mushrooms, etc. can be skewered and placed directly on grill. Zucchini sliced lengthwise in ¼ inch slices can also be placed directly on most grills or on the warming rack that is above the main grilling surface
(have tongs handy to manipulate the slices on the grill). Another option is to wrap sliced vegetables in foil or grilling pouches with a little bit of oil
and place on main grill or warming rack.


Or…


Chicken fajita lettuce wraps: Grill or stir-fry ¼ pound of chicken breast and cut into slices. Place some strips of chicken onto center of a lettuce leaf (romaine, green leaf, etc.) with diced tomatoes, onions, and/or other vegetables. Add salsa, low fat sour cream, cheese, and/or salad dressing per your preference and fold the lettuce leaf around the mixture and enjoy.


Or…


Low-carb chicken parmigiana: Cook whole chicken breast in a small amount of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat, and sprinkle with garlic powder and a small amount of salt. When chicken is cooked-through, coat the top with tomato paste and then sliced or shredded mozzarella cheese. Reduce heat to low and cover. Check every few minutes until cheese is melted then remove from heat and serve. Goes well with



salad with oil and vinegar or Italian dressing. May also be served with sautéed fresh spinach: to prepare, thoroughly wash 4 to 5 cups of spinach leaves and set aside. In a skillet on medium heat, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and a tablespoon of lemon juice. Add spinach, and sprinkle lightly with garlic powder and salt and cover skillet. Check frequently, and as spinach wilts, stir frequently to mix it with oil and lemon juice. When fully wilted and mixed, you may add additional salt, garlic, or lemon juice to taste if desired. Serve warm.

Read More