Monday, June 29, 2015

Treat your FOOD like MEDICINE


Think about the way we typically treat our bodies. If you get sick, you go to the doctor. If the doctor prescribes you medication, you most likely want to know what's in that medication. What are the side effects? Are there warning labels? Are there possible reactions with other medicines I'm already taking? We want to be informed about this chemical medicine that we are putting into our bodies. But, do you treat your food the same way?

Do you go grocery shopping and carefully consider the foods you buy? Do you shop based on the pureness of the food? Do you think about the potential consequences or side effects of the foods you buy and eat? Do you think about the chemicals in your food like you think about the chemicals in your medications? If not, then you need to think about the way you shop. And, you need to think about the way you treat your body.

There is a popular phrase we've all heard that says "You are what you eat." So, do you want to be healthy or do you want to be full of chemicals and junk processed foods? You can exercise like an athlete, but if you eat like a pig, you'll never see results. If you don't fuel your body with healthy foods, the exercise you're doing won't make up for the damage you're doing in the kitchen.

The foods you eat should be deliberate. Your choice of food should be a conscious decision. You should know what's in the food you are eating, just like you want to know what's in that medication you're taking. It's the same idea. Your food can either heal your body or make you sick. It's ultimately your choice.

Take it from me, the less processed junk you eat, the better you feel. If your foods are fresh, natural, and not processed, you're doing your body a favor. You are feeding and fueling your body the way nature intended. If you cut out the processed chemical food-like substances from your life, you will see significant improvements in your health. You'll get sick less, you'll have better digestion, you'll be less bloated, and you'll have better cholesterol and lower blood sugar. Weight loss is a side effect from eating right. It's just an added bonus. Your health and well-being are the main goals here.

Now, I'm not saying you can never eat a french fry or a bag of chips again. What I am saying is that the majority of the foods you eat need to be healthy, natural, real, whole foods. Aim for organic Non-GMO foods whenever you can. If you buy meats like sausage or salami, look for uncured nitrate and nitrite free varieties. Most of your food shouldn't have an ingredients label. But, the foods that have ingredients need to have as few as possible and they need to be real ingredients that you can pronounce.

I can't speak for everyone, but I can speak for our family. I haven't had a cold or flu in well over a year. There was a time during cold/flu season this year where just about everyone I knew and spent time with got sick, sometimes for a month at a time. But, even though I spent a lot of time with these people, I never got sick. My kids have had a cold less than 5 times in the past year, whereas a lot of their peers are sick all the time. I believe that a healthy diet of real foods plays a huge role in our health. After all, most of our immune system lives in our gut, so food is where your main focus on health should be. If we could all eat healthier, imagine how many trips to the doctor we could avoid.

Monday, June 8, 2015

The SECRET to weight loss


You see ads all the time promoting the latest crazy diet fad, medication, or device. All of them claim to have the "secret" to weight loss that you've been looking for. All of them claim to know more than the last company trying to sell you something. All of them want you to trust them. 

So, what is the secret to weight loss? What is the secret to losing weight and keeping it off? And why is it a big secret? The answer is simple. The secret to weight loss isn't a secret at all, it's just that nobody wants to admit the truth. 

The secret to weight loss is to stop eating junk and get moving. The secret is that you have to burn more calories than you consume. The secret is that there are no fad diets that work. The secret is that you can't wake up tomorrow 20 pounds lighter. The secret is that it takes work. It takes dedication. It takes HONESTY. It takes commitment. It takes a strong person. The secret is that these weight loss companies know this, but they also want to turn a profit. The secret is that they know most people are lazy. They know most people want a quick fix. They know most people don't want to put in time and effort to lose weight. So, they prey on your emotions and your desires to change your bad habits with a pill, powder, or shake. They know you're desperate and you'll try ANYTHING to lose weight. That is, anything that doesn't require actual hard work. 

Unless you have some underlying medical condition causing your weight gain, the truth is that your weight didn't show up overnight. So, it's unrealistic to expect it to disappear overnight. You can't keep putting junk food in your mouth while you binge watch Netflix and expect to see results. You can't eat processed junk and think you eat healthy because the box has some buzz words on it like "low fat," or "heart healthy." Real food doesn't have labels. If it doesn't grow in the ground, on a tree, on a vine, on a bush, or have a face, it doesn't belong on your dinner table. If it's been so heavily processed that it's no longer food, but is more like a chemically altered food-like substance, don't eat it. If the only exercise you get each day is walking to the refrigerator, you need to move more. 

Nobody is saying that you have to go from couch potato to bodybuilder running marathons overnight. But, you do need to be realistic and make a commitment that you will treat your body better. You need to eat mindfully and be aware of what you're putting in your body. You need to make exercise a routine part of your day. You need to get up and get moving. That's the secret. And, you didn't have to pay 6 payments of $19.99 to get it from me!