I have been interested in the theory behind The Belly Fat Cure. I've come to the conclusion that I agree with Jorge Cruise. I don't like it but the fact is. We eat too much sugar. And I'm not just talking about refined sugar, but sugar in general. We simply eat too much. End of story.

The idea behind this program is to limit your sugar intake(all sugars, not just refined) to below 15g per day and your healthy carbohydrates(breads/grains/potatoes) to 6 servings. I was just talking to a friend whose sugars were high this morning. She had a very sensible breakfast, most would think, including her doctor. Oatmeal with splenda and milk, an orange, cup of tea. Sounds reasonable right? Very sensible.

However, the orange itself has 9 g of sugar and if there was milk in the oatmeal, even more sugar. And they are learning that sweeteners cause a spike in insulin even without the calories so right there, we have more than half the recommended daily consumption of sugar.

I had a different breakfast. I ate 3 eggs with a tiny bit of milk, salt and pepper. I fried it in some extra virgin olive oil with a large handful of veggies(broccoli, mushrooms, green onion, peppers, etc.all dry, all prepared before hand) and I sprinkled it generously with grated Romano cheese. This was very filling, less than 1g of sugar(from the milk) and super healthy and easy.

Lunch for me will be a salad with lettuce(already torn), another handful of the same veggies, some more shredded cheese(maybe a different kind)a oily dressing(no sugar) and I'll drink two cups of green tea.

Dinner will be a vegetarian Shepherd's pie made with veggies(carrots, onions, cabbage, lentils, etc.) covered with mashed potatoes and baked. I'll have this served on top of the same salad. Still 0 sugar, carbohydrate in the potatoes and lentils.

Snacks will be cheese and whole wheat crackers/microwave popcorn/handful of nuts..still no sugar.

At some point I'll have a small glass of red wine and some dark 85% chocolate. (2g sugar)

I've eaten this way for 5 days now. Those who know me know I don't weigh myself so I can't report weight loss. I can report looser pants, zero sugar cravings and increased energy.

This is MY plan. I am vegetarian..make your own shepherds pie recipe..as long as it's low in sugars. Meat has no sugar.

So I think I'm on the same page with this guy. I'm still debating whether it's a diet or not. It has some of the qualities that identify it as a diet but he calls the meal plans a guide. He says they can be personalize and he doesn't do the no-carb preaching that drives me insane. Good carbs in moderation are necessary for health and he agrees.


I agree with Jorge Cruise on one thing. I believe sugar is the problem. I believe that we crave the food we crave because we are fat, that we are not fat because we craved them. The more fat you have on your body the more difficult it is to give up the food we crave because our fat cells crave it.

He doesn't call this a diet. He calls it a cure. I won't disagree with his right to do so. He recommends not using the traditional sugar substitutes as they spike insulin levels just as sugar does thus leading to the cravings yet again. He recommends xyletol and stevia instead. I'm not sure where I stand on this. I wary about anything new so I'll investigate that further.

So here I am, kinda following the program, yet not really. I'm test the theory however I won't be doing anything beyond limiting sugar intake and carbohydrate intake. I will not follow the three meals a day, 2 snacks etc. but rather following my body's instinct as to what I will eat and when I will eat it.

I also won't be purchasing a lot of the products he recommends beyond what I already use.

I am now on day 4 and the cravings have stopped because the first three days are very difficult on a sugar purge. The reason I'm following it my way is because my goal is health rather than weight loss so I am unconcerned about the results at the scale.

I am concerned about how I feel so my diet has returned to one rich in natural whole foods, sugar lower than 15g per day and whole rich carbohydrates.

Anyone who decides to follow along is welcome to. I'm hoping to update daily, post my recipes etc.


If you need more structure the book does lay out some pretty set guidelines and I won't recommend against its purchase simply because it has enough redeeming qualities to make up for the "meal plans." I believe the science is strong and I'm willing to give it the benefit of the doubt. This is the closest I've come to recommending a "weight loss program" in a while.

But, remember, nothing works unless you've worked on your mind. You can change the way you eat but if your stubborn mind brings you back to the cakes and cookies because your eating is disordered then you will revolt against the change required for your health.

Keep the hypnosis, EFT and whatever support you need for your mind. And when you are ready check out the belly fat cure. See if it works for you. And please, check out the link below.

And keep exercising. Weight loss can be achieved without it but optimal health cannot.

Here is a video that might motivate you to give this a try.

Video


My Writing Blog

It has been a crazy few weeks. I am likely a few pounds heavier and suddenly I'm feeling it. I feel wonky, caught a cold and I'm tired more. My diet has gotten crazy out of control and I haven't exercised regularly for about a month. So who am I to dole out advice to you, to inspire you, how can I inspire my readers to do what I haven't been doing? I can't inspire you by those actions but I can try to pick myself up and give you an example of getting back on track after a derailment!

I've not posted for a while either and again, the same excuse applies. It's been a crazy few weeks and the rhythm of my life hasn't been conducive to my success. I love the warm, long, sunny days of summer, but the lack of routine plays havoc with my ability to fit things in. Exercise is the first thing to go.

And then the fresh Ontario peaches came. And I made a pie, and a crisp and proceeded to eat them over the past few weeks. Then the heat came, ice cream is good in the heat! Oh, life and food, food and life, they creep in and creep up on you and before you know it, you are unmotivated and sluggish and up a few pounds once more.

It's time to start taking control. Knowing that this is a journey, that we're travelling on foot, not by some Star-Trek magic where we are suddenly beamed into that size seven pair of jeans, is of utmost importance! This is real, this is life. Accepting that these normal fluctuations will occur is imperative to the success and joy of the journey.

I'm a walker and I'm walking today. I haven't been completely sedentary, there are muscles aching right now from my Wednesday night rowing practice(we are learning a new stroke and I have a completely new set of muscles apparantly) but I've been less than motivated to walk, something that has been part of my routine for years! My body is missing the exercise. My mind is missing the meditative aspect of walking and my heart is missing my community, the people I wave to as we go along, wagon load of kids, dog tied to the side, heck even the cat(aptly named Princess) sits in the wagon occasionally and goes along for a ride!

So forward we go. Strapping on the running shoes, heading out the door. It's time to focus and recapture my life as an active, fit, healthy individual again.

Affirmation: Every day is an opportunity to start or restart living as an active and healthy participant in your life! Today I will take that opportunity once again!

Namaste



My Writing Blog

Training has officially started. When trying to find the motivation to keep active, be fit, move and live a full and healthy life what I've found to be motivational is to have a target, a goal. I'm competitive by spirit though not governed by the urge to win so much as the urge to play.

When I made the decision to work on my physical body without the aid of the diet industry I also made the decision to spend very little money on it. I have purchased a few items, my mP3 download, some good shoes, yoga DVDs. But I have also found some wonderful programs for free on the Internet.

When I started running last year I followed the couch to 5K program. I downloaded some free podcasts to my iPod and off I went. I can't find a link to my original download but if you search with google there are multiple choices for free downloads to get you started. Or you can just run with a stop watch, as many people do.

Then more recently I discovered the one hundred push up program. I was pleasantly surprised that in the initial test I could do 11 push ups. I'm in better shape than I thought particularly since I haven't done a push up in years. I'm adding that as part of my training. I will log in my workouts and watch my strength increase until I'm up to 100 push ups! I'll be sure to share my success with you.

That all leads up to the reason I've suddenly decided to go into training! I've joined a Dragon Boat team. For those who aren't familiar this is a rowing team as in the picture above. The boats are called dragon boats Last night I went for my second practice and it is extremely hard work! Our first event is on July 18, in Waterloo Ontario and I have to be ready! I'm learning but I don't have the physical fitness to keep my proper form and I need to get in some pretty good physical condition for this. The sport itself is rather inexpensive, I may purchase a life jacket and a paddle down the road, meanwhile I'll use the equipment they supply.

So I've found my sport, I'm in training and on to the next phase of my goal of optimum fitness and health! I'm excited and cannot wait for my first race!

Oh, and for the chance to win a free hypnosis download go here. I have the weightloss download and I find it invaluable in my journey! Good luck!

Namaste



My Writing Blog

I've had a pretty stressful week but I've been feeling pretty normalised in my eating patterns. Something has clicked into place. So today I decided as a treat to make chocolate chip cookies. I knew I was not going to binge on them. I feel healthier and able to make sensible choices without deprivation.

When the cookies were done I sat and had a glass of milk and two of the cookies. Immediately I began to feel funny. I was shaky and had this weird cloudiness come over me. It passed after a few moments. I haven't been eating refined sugar lately and I guess my body was shocked by it.

Now the thing is, I've had this happen before. I'm sure it's the adult equivalent of the sugar-rush except it feels creepy to one who likes to have control over herself. A while later I went and had one more. Same thing, that rushy/shaky feeling yet again. I don't have this happen when I'm eating sugar regularly, I think we either get used to the feeling so it's not a shock or we're numbed by the cloudiness and I don't notice.

Either way, no more cookies for me. I don't like the feeling. The cookies are not that good(wow, did I actually say that?).

Now to address the issue of stress. It's been a week of challenges. My wonderful aunt has been diagnosed with pretty serious cancer. Originally it was thought to be just in her colon but it's been found in both lungs, on her liver and in the lymph nodes. She will have quite a battle to fight. I've been walking around feeling helpless and then today I decide enough of that, if I can't help her I'll help someone else. So I set up a team for the cancer Relay Walk for Life and I've signed up 7 of our family members to walk with me on June 12. Instead of moping and eating my way through, I'm being proactive and I'm going to work my way through it. This will help my family who can't be there for her, get together for a good cause and help each other while raising awareness and money.

Affirmation: I will find a way to direct my energy into something positive that helps instead of burying my emotions under a pile of crappy food and sugar. A healthy me can better serve the world.

Namaste

I should be writing about motivation but instead I'm writing about the day of challenges I had yesterday.

My journalling went fine but because I hadn't planned well I ended up eating dinner that I know wasn't particularly healthful. I washed it down with a sugary glass of ice tea.

So I had a bad day food wise. No blame, no excuses, I completely and utterly claim it. I know my period is due and I'm going to go into the connection that there is between our monthly cycles and our diet. There is no doubt, having lived in this body 43 years and menstruting for 30 of them that I get carbohydrate cravings before and during my period. There is a connection.

I'm tempted to just go with it, moderately of course and let my body have what it seems to want, cut back on other things like protein for a week and just see. Then adjust again when it's past.

Today I'm planning better and working harder at eating well. No snacking and more fruit and vegetables.

It's not easy. It's one of those things where you know better and you do wrong. I refuse to fall into the guild trap and I refuse to give up.

I will post about Motivation later. I'm going to need some!