Shopping List for the 20 Pounds in 30 Days

A lot of people really seem excited about the diet I wrote about yesterday. Remember to follow every detail of it.  If you can, try to be organized and plan.  For instance, when I tried this, I made sure that on my days off  I used large trays and roasted all of my favorite vegetables.  I used large pots and sautéed lots of leafy greens.  I cut up salads and put them in large Zip-Loc bags in the refrigerator.  I made a big pot of my favorite beans (I happen to love chick peas).  Actually a combo can be quite nice.  Why not boil kidney beans and black beans?  You may want to use beans out of a can, that is certainly OK although I am not a fan.  Just remember when using beans out of a can, strain and rinse extremely well.  Remember it is the beans that will make your tummy full so do not neglect to eat them at every meal.

It is extremely important to drink only black coffee or tea, green tea and large quantities of H2O.  If I may make a suggestion; on your binge day go out and buy just what you can eat that day.  I do not suggest that you buy it as part of  your shopping list and keep it in your house simply to tempt you all week-long until you get to the seventh day.

In case you are wondering my choices for bingeing were Lay’s potato chips, Haagen Daz ice cream and tons of chocolate.  I think I had pizza too.  As promised here is the shopping list to make it easier if you are thinking about trying this diet.  As always I will provide you with a list that coincides with the layout of the supermarket, generally speaking of course.  This list is for one week for one individual.

• Two or three bunches of leafy greens
• One head of red cabbage
• Tomatoes
• Onions
• Garlic
• Zucchini
• Broccoli
• Brussels sprouts
• Packages or cans of beans (your choice)
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Balsamic vinegar
• Two cases of water
• Tw0 boxes of green tea bags
• One to two dozen organic eggs
• Two packages of organic chicken breasts
• Two whole organic chickens
• Two to Three pounds of your favorite fish (please, no tilapia)

You do not have to completely adhere to this list, especially if you have an aversion to anything on it; simply substitute something else.  I included red cabbage because I know a lot of men are going to try this diet and red cabbage is especially important for men’s health.  I included garlic and onions, use those to season your veggies.  Why not roast the whole chickens in the oven with lots of seasonings at 425 degrees for an hour and a half?  As far as the chicken breasts and the fish, why not season and grill on your day off?  You can eat the eggs any style, hard-boiled, scrambled, omelette…your choice.  Do not use butter, only use extra virgin olive oil for sautéing.  Try balsamic vinegar or lemon to season your veggies.  Remember to sip on your green tea throughout the day, please make your own.  Don’t forget, lots of water will aid in your weight loss.

We all scream for Ice Cream!

In my efforts to provide you with positive information as often as possible I have decided to blog about ice cream. Ice cream makes me happy, so I assume it makes you happy too. We have a lot of requests coming in all the time related to which ice creams people should be eating and of course feeding their children. First things first, always read ingredients and know how to interpret what you read. Here are some very important facts about one of my most favorite snacks.

• Always true: The fewer the ingredients the healthier the ice cream. In order to mimic the taste of strawberries and cream without using the costly ingredients recipe makers need to use a wide variety of chemical (artificial) flavorings. The first thing you will notice reading the ingredients on a healthier ice cream is that the list is much more concise than on the impostor, chemical filled desserts down the aisle.
• Often true: The higher the price the better the ingredients. Ice cream brands such as Haggen Dazs and Ben & Jerry’s are a higher price for a reason. Haagen Dazs, for instance, has some ice cream flavors with as few as five ingredients. Those would have to be delicious, quality ingredients to hold up to the flavor standard set by the brand. Ben & Jerry’s uses hormone free milk and real sugar, therefore the cost of production is higher than a company that uses cheap milk and high fructose corn syrup. One of the best pints in the grocery store is Graeter’s Premium Ice Cream. Their short list of ingredients includes things like hormone free milk and triple washed fruits grown only in the US. In order to provide that kind of quality their costs are going to be higher.
• Also often true: The organic seal on an ice cream can help put your mind at ease. That seal signifies milk produced without added hormones as well as no pesticides or chemical fertilizers going into the milk or onto the fruit in your dessert. More often organic ice creams are made with few or no artificial additives. Stonyfield makes organic ice creams and frozen yogurts that are tasty and far healthier than your standard ice cream.

If you have not tried Graeter’s Ice Cream allow me to make a recommendation, you need to try the Coconut Chip flavor they have. It’s made with a lot of coconut and delicious artisan single origin chocolate flakes from the oldest milk chocolate maker in the world. Incredible. Although I am a vegan, I simply cannot live without ice cream forever. I must allow myself the simple pleasure of ice cream at least once in a great while. I refuse to live without ice cream and so can you.Bon Appetit.

Great Question From a Reader Regarding Cool Whip

“I need to defend myself — I rarely rarely have cool whip or any kind of whipped cream product. Once in a while I have one scoop of cool whip with my ice cream. That’s it. I consider it chemical-ridden, but tasty nonetheless. lol So I have one scoop of the stuff once or twice a month. Is this ok? Thanks for all the updates! I love reading your blog!”

Great question from an honest reader.  Such a great question that I decided to blog about this comment.  This reader is honest and upfront, she is quite clear about eating a product with chemicals in it, but is also well enough aware so as not to partake too often.  Listen up honest reader, the answer to your question is yes, my personal opinion is that it is probably OK.  I am sure that we all ingest chemicals some how, some way; even those of us who are quite aware of what we consume.

I liked your comment because it hit home.  Folks it is just impossible to live a perfect lifestyle.  It is practically impossible to eat 100% natural.  It is important however to remember that we must try.  The reason that I do the kind of work I do is to instill an awareness in people.  What I sincerely hope people do not do is consume fast food, diet soda, energy drinks, frozen food, cookies, cakes and Cool Whip on a daily basis.  White flour, sugar and chemicals are probably not going to harm you unless you eat them quite consistently.  As this reader suggested, she has a spoonful of Cool Whip once or twice a month.  I am sure that probably gets flushed out of her body just as quickly as it goes in.  We all have  our vices don’t we?

My advice:  choose wisely, make sure it’s worth it and don’t do it often.  Oh, and to the reader, thank you kindly for the words of encouragement.

I Love Häagen-Dazs Ice Cream!

Happy Friday to all of you!

Since I always seem to be disappointing or scaring you, I decided that my blog today should have a different twist.

Most of us like to binge and most of us should – once in a while.  In fact, I pick one day a week – and it is usually Saturday – to eat anything I want.  I feel as if, since we are always discussing scary foods and scary chemicals, we should point out some of the fun foods.  When I say fun foods, of course it is implied that these fun foods do not contain scary additives, chemicals, or preservatives.

Here are some of my favorite foods to binge on:

• My all time favorite is ice cream – I adore ice cream!  Häagen-Dazs has some very good quality ice cream without nasty chemicals.
• I love pizza!  Although, I have to be careful that the dough does not contain chemicals.
• Granola is a great snack.  Especially granola with dark chocolate in it.
• By the way, I adore dark chocolate.  It has incredible anti-oxidants.
• All natural chocolate syrup.  Love it!
• Yogurt, honey, and walnuts.  One of my all time favorites – just like dessert.
• Did I mention Häagen-Dazs bars?  Vanilla and dark chocolate… Mmmmmmm!
• Sweet potato fries.  Fried food will not kill you once in a while.

As you can see, there are lots of fun foods to enjoy.  Here’s my tip:  tread with caution for 6 days.  Binge one day.  It will do your body good!