The 85/15 Rule for Healthy EatingBy Dr. Tim Reynolds Last night my wife made chocolate chip cookies. For those who don't know it, my wife makes the best chocolate chip cookies in the entire world. She only makes them to torture me. She fills the entire house with the aroma and then the cookies sit on the cooling rack saying, "Eat me now." (It's true. I can hear them.) They are never satisfied. If I eat one, the others just start calling louder: "Eat us too." I love food. I love all kinds of food. The problem is that I am also very health-conscious and it turns out that not all the foods I like are healthy. I don't think I am alone. How do we justify our (sometimes uncontrollable) desire to eat something delicious that may not be "good for us" and at the same time remain true to ourselves in eating healthy and maintaining a healthy lifestyle? In treating many patients in my weight-loss clinic and teaching many others to eat healthy, I have developed the 85/15 rule of eating. It goes like this. We eat to survive 85 percent of the time. We need to grab some breakfast in the morning so we can go to work. We grab a mid-morning snack around 10. We eat lunch around noon. The day continues and we eat because we need the nutrition and energy to live. The other 15 percent of the time we eat for social reasons. We may be going out to dinner with friends or we get invited to a party. Or my wife makes cookies. We are not really eating to survive or for energy or to stay healthy. During these times we are eating because we want to, because it tastes good or because we are at a social event. If as individuals and as a society we can learn to eat only healthy foods during the "85 percent times" we would solve our obesity problem. And we'd still be able to have occasional treats. If we choose items that will provide us with good nutrition and energy 85 percent of the time, then the other 15 percent of the time it won't matter what we eat. I believe that is the secret to solving the dilemma of being a "health nut" and still being able to have the occasional "bad thing." My healthy eating plan consists of these building blocks: Fruits and vegetables. Eat at least four helpings of fresh fruits and vegetables every day. In addition, I try to vary the color of these items. Each color represents different nutrients. So try to have something green, yellow, red, orange and purple to get a wide variety of nutrients. If eating four helpings of vegetables a day is difficult, which it can sometimes be, then getting a juicer will help. I am a big fan of juicing and feel so much better when I am doing it. It is hard to eat an entire bunch of raw carrots, a cucumber and an apple in one sitting -- but very simple if you juice the same products. Make sure you buy a quality juicer -- the cheaper ones just make you more frustrated. Protein. I am also a big proponent of eating more protein and less simple carbohydrates (sugars). We need at least 1 gram of protein for each kilogram (2.2 pounds) of body weight. I recommend even more protein: 1 gram per pound of body weight. Do this and keep your total number of calories the same and see if you don't start losing weight, increasing lean muscle mass and losing fat. Inevitably, if my weight-loss patients quit losing it is because they do not have enough protein in their diet. Your diet should consist of at least four servings of protein a day, including meats, protein shakes, protein bars, nuts, dairy products or any other source of lean, healthy proteins. Water. Make sure you drink enough water. I do not believe, as some others do, that you need to be constantly carrying a water bottle with you and flooding your kidneys. Our bodies have evolutionarily adapted an amazing mechanism to keep us from becoming dehydrated. It is called thirst and you should listen to it. But when you are thirsty, instead of reaching for a soft drink -- or some food -- drink some water first and then see if you still want anything else. Chances are you will not. Vitamins. I also think you need to supplement with some type of multivitamin. They are inexpensive and easy to take. And there is ample evidence to show they can help in preventing disease. You can get these in pill form, as part of your protein drink or in a variety of other forms. Timing. Eat six meals a day. Last week I told you to eat like a 2-year-old. They graze, eating small amounts of food throughout the day instead of in three big meals. That makes sense for adults too. It helps you keep a better balance of insulin and other hormones. And it keeps you from getting really hungry, which means you will be more likely to eat nutritious foods instead high-sugar foods. So go ahead and splurge occasionally. You don't have to feel guilty as long as you are following a common-sense eating plan 85 percent of the time. Today I have eaten my four helpings of fruits and vegetables, I took my vitamins, I've had my protein and I drank plenty of water. I think it's time for another cookie. [Ed. Note: Tim Reynolds, M.D., is a practicing physician as well as a health and lifestyle expert. For more information, click here.]
I get a lot of e-mails from frustrated readers. They are frustrated because they just can't stick to an exercise program and, therefore, aren't getting results. Most of these people blame themselves. But instead of laying blame, let's find you a solution instead. If you want to lose fat every day, you have to be on a fat-burning diet and using strength and cardio interval exercise to burn fat. Here's a good tip from Men's Health magazine for men and women having trouble finding time to workout: Strike an agreement with your spouse and kids. The rule: You get 1 hour to yourself every day, provided that you use it for exercise (and reciprocate the favor). There's no pressure to do household chores, play marathon games of Monopoly or be a doting husband, wife or parent. Your best bet for exercise is a short 20- to 45-minute workout of bodyweight exercises, followed by quick strength training supersets. Then finished with interval cardio to burn fat in less time than ever. [Ed. Note: Craig Ballantyne is an expert consultant for Men's Health magazine. If you're looking to burn fat, build muscle and quickly step into the body you have always wanted with just three workouts each week, check out Craig's fat-loss system by clicking here.]
Most medical doctors are hostile toward nutritional supplements. They parrot the idea that they are ineffective and possibly dangerous, due to a lack of scientific evidence supporting them. In the same breath, they push drugs. Recent research underscores this deadly paradox. Prescription drugs have become the single greatest threat to the health, safety and security of the American people. They kill an estimated 105,000 people per year. That equates to one individual dying about every five minutes from an "approved" drug, or almost 300 deaths every day. That's twice as many fatalities in a single year as the total number of U.S. deaths from the Vietnam War. If not killed, an estimated 2 million people are victims of prescription drug-induced illnesses. These may include drug-induced obesity, diabetes, cancer, kidney disease, autism, depression and heart failure. Now, what about supplements? According to the 129-page annual report of the American Association of Poison Control Centers published in the February 2007 issue of Clinical Toxicology, the National Poisoning and Exposure Database showed that there was not even one death caused by vitamin supplements in 2005. Can someone please give our doctors a prescription drug reality check? [Ed. Note: Shane Ellison is known as "The People's Chemist." He holds a Master's degree in organic chemistry and has first-hand industry experience with drug research, design and synthesis. He is the author of Health Myths Exposed and The Hidden Truth About Cholesterol-Lowering Drugs. Get his FREE Life-Saving Health Briefs at by clicking here.]
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Last week I told you about my scientific inquiry into the 10 core values that actually make a difference in the quality of life for all people, no matter their gender, race, ethnicity or socioeconomic status. This week I want to clarify the difference between a value and a belief. Training to be a life coach, I learned that for most coaches the first step in personal strategic planning is encouraging a person to clarify his or her set of core values. Once these values are clarified, you next develop a set of goals based on those values. These goals are used to create an action plan, which will then be started with the idea that achieving the goal will yield increased levels of happiness, contentment and satisfaction with life. It is generally assumed that one person's core values are as good as another's, and that everybody has a right to his or her core values. When people think like this they fail to distinguish between core values and core beliefs. Beliefs are ideas people have about what is good and right. These ideas exist somewhere inside a person's mind. Values, on the other hand, are those things, interpersonal events and conditions of human life that have natural, inherent or intrinsic worth. Values have an existence independent of beliefs, ideas or thoughts about what we need to become and remain happy, content and satisfied with life. The problem with basing personal strategic planning simply on a belief becomes evident when we consider the fact that for thousands of years everybody "believed" the Earth was flat. People "believed" that by sailing too far out to sea, a ship would fall off the end of the Earth. Based on this belief sailors limited how far they would venture away from land. Once it was discovered that this belief did not reflect reality, people were able to accomplish goals that were previously unimaginable. If you haven't done so yet, please click here to learn about these core values. Take my General Inventory of Life Satisfaction survey and see where you stand with respect to each of the 10 core values. This exercise will help you in my future articles, which will explore enhancing each of these values. [Ed. Note: Dr. Douglas Ramm is a psychologist, philosopher, author and leading researcher in the field of emotional well-being, contentment and life satisfaction. He has appeared on numerous radio and television talk shows where he shares insights for enhancing quality of life. Discover how to enhance yours here.]
According to the National Sleep Foundation, 6 out of 10 people report they have problems getting a restful night's sleep. Given that sleep deficits have been linked with diabetes, heart disease and lowered thyroid function, this is alarming. Sleep issues have been a media favorite in the last couple of years, as multiple studies have linked lack of sleep to increased belly fat and weight and decreased leptin/increased ghrelin levels (hormone shifts associated with increased appetite). In fact, one study reported that if you got less than five hours of sleep, you would gain weight regardless of exercise and diet! Most health practitioners link a lack of sleep with increased stress, but amazingly few realize that research shows that chronic stress from too-busy days hyper-excites the brain and is the actual trigger of chronic primary insomnia (insomnia not due to any other causes, such as sleep apnea). In a landmark study reported in 2001 in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, researchers concluded that insomnia was a disorder of hyper-arousal. Significantly higher levels of the stress hormones adrenocorticotropic hormone and cortisol were found in insomniacs compared to the lower levels found in people who sleep normally. In a 2007 article in Sleep Medicine Reviews, researchers revisited the connection between primary insomnia, depression and hyper-arousal factors as seen by high levels of stress hormones. Once again, researchers are calling for more attention to the regulation of stress hormones as a better approach for insomnia. Current drug therapy does not offer good options for managing cortisol and its effects on your brain. There are other, more effective approaches for dampening your stress response during the day so that your brain can slow down or cool off at night. To retrain your brain and to allow the sleep switch to flip on at night, here are some safe natural therapeutics: • Theanine helps stop the rolodex from spinning in your mind at night by reducing excess PEA (phenylethylamine) production during the day. PEA is a neurotransmitter that makes you focus, but it should be turned off before bedtime. Consider 100-200 mg up to three times a day to calm your hyper-excited mind. • Seditol is an extract of phellodendron and Ziziphus. It helps to cool down the brain at night by helping to balance you calming neurotransmitters and stress hormones. Consider 365-720 mg one-half hour before bedtime. [Ed. Note: Jim LaValle is an educator, clinician and industry consultant in the field of integrative healthcare. He is a licensed pharmacist, board certified clinical nutritionist and doctor of naturopathic medicine with more than 20 years clinical practice experience in the field of natural therapeutics and functional medicine. Named one of the "50 Most Influential Druggists" by American Druggist for his work in natural medicine, LaValle has authored 13 books, including his latest, Cracking the Metabolic Code. For more information, click here.]
Ex-pharmaceutical chemist exposes deadly health myths and how to beat obesity, insulin resistance and even heart disease NATURALLY!
The flavor of juicy, fresh strawberries peaks with just a drizzle of high-quality balsamic vinegar. And thanks to strawberries' ellagic acid -- a phytonutrient that helps cancer cells self-destruct -- this dessert will please your palate and protect your health. Serves: 4 • Ellagic acid • Good source of folate Ingredients Preparation Nutritional Information |