Wednesday, March 2, 2011

rebuilding your temple: week four

i can't get enough of whole living. i made this salad yesterday and it was so great. i cooked the vegetables in coconut oil and replaced the romano with ubriaco del piave and left out the olives. this list of the "dirty dozen" are 12 fruits and vegetables that you should be buying organic. the thin skins allow the pesticides to sink far in to the fruit, thus making their way in to your body.

this week at my class we had a guest speaker: mrs. kimberly roberto from west cobb chiropractic. she is co-author of the maximized living nutrition plan book. she came armed with a shopping list and tons of information on living a "maximized" life. some of the information i was familiar with: cook with coconut oil, avoid trans fats, eat grass fed beef ect., but i learned so much more! i'm going to try to break it down for you in bite-sized chunks. as always feel free to ask questions in the comment section and i'll try to answer them the best i can. i also wanted to share with you all how my happiness has increased 10 fold making these changes in my own life. i also wanted to tell you that i'm seeing BIG changes in my body. potential TMI: i have always had irregular cycles, over the past several months they have become regular. i get chills thinking about my body performing how it should be.

something that dr. roberto said that really stuck out was, if you are going to make one change, change the meat you eat. if you are going to eat meat, make sure it is grass fed beef or free range organic chicken.

we also talked about cholesterol and how it is actually plays a very important role in our diet.
  • helps balance hormones
  • creates bile acids to digest fats
  • repairs and protects cells
  • creates proper neurological functions
  • promotes healing
the oxidation of cholesterol is what causes problems.

good fat vs. bad fat:
  • avoid all transfats
  • stay away from canola oil, vegetable oil, margarine, soybean oil, hydrogenated oils
  • use coconut oil, extra virgin olive oil, raw butter
good fat-
  • builds cell membranes
  • absorbs vitamins
  • cushions vital organs
  • makes 70% of brain tissue
LOW FAT diets do NOT work. americans are the leaders in "low fat" dieting and we are also the most obese. what does this tell you?

type 2 diabetes can be reversed by cutting out grains and sugars. reversed!

something that really struck a cord with me was the overwhelming evidence that cancer feeds on sugar. i'm not going to sugar-coat (<---- see what i did there) that. it is so important to strip our diets of sugar and refined and processed grains. it makes me so sad that people are basically killing themselves with their diets. why aren't we taught this? why aren't doctors teaching their patients how to heal themselves with proper nutrition? tears are welling up in my eyes just typing this because i feel like we're being drugged to our death. our bodies are amazing machines that are capable of healing themselves.

in 1931 dr. otto h. warburg was given the nobel prize for finding the connection between sugar and cancer. 1931!

"Cancer, above all other diseases, has countless secondary causes. But, even for cancer, there is only one prime cause. Summarized in a few words, the prime cause of cancer is the replacement of the respiration of oxygen in normal body cells by a fermentation of sugar." -- Dr. Otto H. Warburg in Lecture

scripture: romans 12:1

homework:

drink more water!
exercise at least 3 days a week.
make changes in your diet, i challenge you to cut out sugar for one week...
edit your media intake. ask yourself if what you're reading is helping you to make healthy/happy choices.
tell me any/all changes that you're making or want to make. let's encourage each other!

17 comments:

Ashley said...

I love these posts! I can't wait to see you in person and hear more about it. :)

I am so glad you are bringing to light the medical side of things. While I can't speak for all physicians, I can say that the first thing we learn about treating ANY type of disease is lifestyle modification (diet, exercise, refined sugar, etc). Unfortunately, people think it's "too hard." I've counseled so many diabetic patients about ways to reduce or eliminate their daily insulin shots just by changing their lifestyle. It's sad.

I can't wait for week five! I'm almost tempted to drive in from Augusta....

Lesley said...

re: ash
i would love to see your face!

i have such a hard time understanding why someone would want to give themselves shots so they can eat subpar food. it blows my mind! all we can do is give people the tools to succeed. i'm really glad that you are trying to educate people. keep on keepin' on girlfriend!

"hi, i'm ginnybranch stelling and i love love." said...

seriously, i LIVE for these posts! you totally inspired me to turn my health situation around and i love your honest and whole-istic(pun sooo intended) way of nourishment. awesome awesome awesome!

hannah. said...

I am SO happy that 1) a mainstream magazine is bringing this extremely important nutritional information to the surface and that 2) You are also bringing it up and talking about it. This information is SO important to the public, and one that has been somewhat underground because it isn't wholly beneficial to the industrialized food system we have in place in the US. Which is very unfortunate. Another great resource is The Weston A. Price Foundation, who promote a nutrient-dense foods diet with raw butter, milk, and grassfed meats. They also have a wonderful resource guide for folks seeking out these types of foods. And the sugar thing??? People have NO idea just how harmful it is to our bodies...especially if our systems are crowded with disease. So, pardon the rant, but *THANK YOU* for spreading the word.
And if I may put a plug in :), our family farm specializes in grassfed meats, but our website is super informative and has lots of pics and videos for the younguns...www.mountainrunfarm.com.

Shaunna Faye said...

I've been cutting down the sugar that I put in my sweet tea for about a month. I'm totally taking the challenge now. No sugar for a week starting on Sunday! (Because, ya know, I have to finish up the gallon of tea I just made.) A question though... Sugar can be sneaky. Is there sugar in things that I would not automatically know there is sugar in?

Brandi said...

i had no idea about the link between cancer and sugar. VERY interesting! thanks for sharing.

i drink water like a fish, but i could definately do better in the "fresh" department. great inspiration...and it helps that i'm CRAVING fruits and veggies this pregnancy.

Unknown said...

Awesome job! I have been getting a little discouraged by the numbers. However when I see your blog and the beautiful job on the recap of the information, my heart swells with joy, and I am reminded that the numbers don't matter. The message is getting out! My mind is coming up with so many ideas, and you are one of my inspirations! Thank you so much for all you do!

Christina said...

first lesley, i just wanted to say that you are awesome. second, i'll have you know that i've cut out cream and sugar in my coffee in the morning for the past month (i definitely think having good french pressed organic coffee is key for this). b is not sold on the coconut oil theory as he keeps finding research telling him that olive oil is the way to go which is fine because i can't have much else since i'm allergic to everything.
anyway, we did try the chia seeds and i gotta say, love them. you should definitely check out the book 'born to run' if you're interested in reading more about them and the connection to running. xo

Lori @ Lori May Interiors said...

Lesley, these posts are so great. My family and I have been patients of Dr. Roberto for the past two years. I have learned so much from him, but I have to say that the info that I have gained about food has been the most beneficial. I have changed almost everything about our diet over the past two years. We joined a local co-op where I get our milk, eggs and meat.

These changes require planning and can sometimes be a challenge, but they are so worth it.

Keep up the good work!

Lesley said...

these comments are making my day! i am so thankful for all of your encouragement and so excited to see change in your lives too. hooray!

re: shaunna
you go girl! yes, there are hidden sugars in sauces and all sorts of things. the best thing you can do is stick to vegetables and meats and plain yogurt and raw dairy if possible. also, stick to the berries because they are lowest in sugar and will keep your insulin from spiking. the first three days are tough, so come armed with lots of raw cashews, almonds, and macadamias! can't wait to hear about it!

re: christina
thanks girlfriend for the tips. i'm going to look in to that book and the chia seeds. so, here's the deal on olive oil. it is GREAT for you, but olive oil at high temps becomes unstable and actually transforms in to a transfat. not good. coconut oil is great because it can handle high heat. you can also cook with raw butter.

http://www.organicfacts.net/organic-oils/organic-coconut-oil/health-benefits-of-coconut-oil.html

Anonymous said...

WHAT !!!
I can not beleive that this is the only pictures you posted about your Costa Rica trip... I want to see you surfing...!
rhhaaa...so frustrating !
bisous
isa

Your Southern Peach said...

Thank you again for some great information! Cancer and sugar...yikes. I'm also happy to read your comments about buying organic meat and chicken, something I committed to this past summer. It helps justify the extra cost but is so worth it. Also doing organic milk and eggs...guess I should switch butters too. I've been reading a lot more about farmed vs. wild fish...gross stuff there....more trips to Harry's for me! Thanks for taking the time to share with us and I love your surfer picture :)

Desiree said...

just found your blog and loving. my husband and i just watched the documentary "fat head"and learned a lot about the fats and cholesterol, all the things we've been taught against for years. unbelievable. we're converts to coconut oil and love it! i'm going to subscribe to whole living. thanks!

Tiffany from HOLIDAY said...

these posts are so informative and i'm so appreciative! will be purchasing coconut oil pronto. had no idea about olive oil turning into a transfat - yikes! i was also reading in vanity fair about a woman who turned vegan b/c she read cancer also feeds on meat. some days i feel like i make good choices only to find out something bad (heated olive oil).

Bridget said...

amen!!! love this post- i am tweeting it right now- we all need more of this!

sophie said...

I LOVE these posts! And that's all I am going to say before I go on ranting like a crazy person of how much I love love love them. You are such a doll for caring enough to share this vital information with us. THANK YOU!

My Peace Of Food said...

Thanks for these posts...I just linked to yours in mine!