I have been encouraged by friends and family to start a blog about my life-plan for healthy eating and living.  I have been on the plan for five (5) months and have lost over 35 pounds.  This blog is about executing my plan with the hopes of sharing my experience will help others.  Just to put some perspective on where I started and where I am, it is important to note that I’ve always had trouble with controlling my weight and belly fat.  I love food and food of all kinds; I’ve always been a big eater and mostly planned my days and my life around eating.  I went into the Army at a young age and at 5’9” carrying a weight of 145 lbs.  I spent 20 years in the Army and retired at 180 lbs.  It’s now more than 25 years later and when I started my plan I weighed 256 lbs.  As of the start of this blog, I now weigh 219 as of January 4, 2016.  My waist has gone from size 44 to 38 and most of the weight I’ve lost is from my belly (I can stand straight up and see my feet again – without bending over).  I feel good, have lots of energy, and this life-plan has been a breeze to stay on.

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Take a look at the foods you can eat in the list below (the key is to look at the ingredients and don’t buy anything with chemicals added):

Meats

Beef (all cuts)

Pork (all cuts)

Chicken (whole or parts)

Fish (any kind)

Shell Fish (any kind)

Ham (natural)

Turkey

Bacon (natural)

Sausage (natural)

(no cold cuts of any kind)

Vegetables

Any fresh vegetable

Potatoes (special prep)

Sweet Potatoes

Pickles (natural)

Sour Kraut (really good for you)

 

Fruit

Any kind of fruit

(no juices)

(no dried fruit)

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Dairy & Other

Any Dairy

(whole only - no 2% stuff)

Cheese (natural)

Nuts (any kind)

Pasta (special prep)

Rice (special prep)

Bread (Ezekiel or Sour Dough)

 

What is missing from the table above?  Sugar water drinks (cola, flavored drinks, diet drinks, and all the other junk drinks being sold).  What you drink is mainly just pure water or tea.  If you want to add sweetener to your drinks just add about a ½ teaspoon of Stevia to your drink.  Stevia is made from a natural plant and is safe to use on this health plan.  Sweets are also missing but if you crave chocolate, you can buy dark chocolate that is at least 70% cocoa bean or higher and doesn’t have artificial sweeteners.

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For those of us who like potatoes, pasta, and rice there is a little trick to allow your digestive system to process them without absorbing the sugars and complex carbs.  The trick is to cook them ahead of time, put them in the refrigerator either over-night or for at least four (4) hours, then reheat them to prepare the dishes you want.  As an example, you can prepare a dish of fried rice using all the usual fresh ingredients but just cook the rice and chill it prior to making the dish.  You do the same with potatoes and pasta.

 

 

Here’s an example meal that I prepare for us quite often that is delicious, in keeping with the plan, and provides a nicely balanced meal for your digestive system.

 

Pork Chop Dinner

         2 Center Cut Pork Chops (one for each of us)

(Marinated in fresh lemon, pepper, garlic, and onion then grilled for about 20 minutes on the grill)

2 medium sized red potatoes (previously boiled whole with peeling on)

(Peel potatoes (optional), slice to frying width, and fry in unsalted butter on the grill)

I season with fresh herbs and spices, garlic, pepper and onion and cook in a special grill pan using non-stick foil

Fresh green beans (do not use canned or frozen beans)

To the beans, add onion and garlic (optional), then put ¼ stick of butter into a microwave dish.  Cook the beans in the microwave for three (3) minutes and they’ll be done and tasty.  This is actually faster than cooking time for frozen packages.

Sliced Tomatoes

I normally just cut the tomatoes like I would for a salad.  To the tomatoes I add sliced onion, natural balsamic (not dressing) sauce, and salt and pepper

 

To drink we usually have tea that is made unsweetened and sweetened with Stevia.

 

Special Note:  you might have noticed that I didn’t add salt as an ingredient to any of the menu items.  The reason is that salt changes the chemical makeup of food during cooking (don’t ever use it for cooking).  You can use all the salt you want at the table, just don’t use it for cooking.

 

You can add more of any item if you think you need to eat more than one pork chop or potato but generally this meal will fill you up, be good for you, and since it’s all made with fresh ingredients it will also be delicious.   As you can see, this dinner does not eliminate good foods.  It allows you to eat normal foods that are actually good for you.

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I’ll be adding more menu items to the blog when I can.