Saturday, September 17, 2011

Benefits of Whole-food, Plant-based Diet

More compelling information about a whole food, plant-based diet: ForksOverKnives.com.

I just watched the documentary film Forks Over Knives, which focuses on two doctors who independently came to the realization that meat and dairy were leading causes of heart problems and that switching to a whole plant-based diet can stop the progression of those diseases.

Patients documented in the film went from some horrific cholesterol numbers to very healthy ones after 22 weeks of the recommended diet. Medications were eliminated. Energy levels were elevated.

Others mentioned in the documentary were vegan Ultimate Fighting competitor and a fireman whose physiques could leave no question that plants provide all the nutrients you could need. The fireman repeated the memorable quote, as he climbed the fire pole using just his arms: "Real men eat plants."

All this correlates to my own recent experience of losing 10 pounds in 3 weeks with the sole lifestyle change being avoidance of refined sugar.

One of the patients in the film echoed another experience of mine....food tastes incredible again. I've come to believe that refined sugar deadens your senses to the variety of flavor inherent in food. As a result we feel compelled to eat foods that are ever more rich. It's sweetness arms race.

Now though, after just 3 weeks of avoiding refined sugar, a plain Fuji apple tastes to me as sweet as a caramel apple used to. Literally.

I'm looking in the mirror and seeing angles returning to my face. I'm feeling more vigorous and I'm noticing less puffiness around my eyes.

I'm looking forward to my next blood test because I feel like I'm going to ace it.

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Inspired by blief.net's post on sugar, I decided to try banning refined sugar from my diet.
My goal is to get a good reading the next time I have my blood tested, but in the meantime, I've lost about 10 pounds of weight. Totally unintended and equally welcome.

I've also noticed that regular food tastes amazing now. Everything is super flavorful and sweetness crops up in many more places now.

Perhaps it's the placebo effect, but I also feel more energetic and more alert throughout the day.