You Are What You Eat
What’s Cooking?
“Health is wealth.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
Are you trying to lose those 10 pounds you’ve put on over the last few months? Have you cut out sweets but not seen any results? Would you like to eat to support your health but don’t know where to start?
Losing weight and meeting your nutritional needs can go hand in hand! Let us show you how. We will unpack four nutrients essential for good health and offer up several foods and recipes you can use to support your weight loss goals and help you improve your well being.
Instead of taking this as a “what you should or should not eat list,” consider it a resource to help you make your own decisions and create a well being plan that works for you. Studies have shown that when you get rid of the “should(s)” in your life, you’ll live more happily. Dr. Daniel Amen, a leading psychiatrist and brain health expert, explains that when we are chained to what we “should” do, we don’t often enjoy positive feelings about that activity. Instead of worrying about what you “should” do, ask yourself does this fit the goals I have for my life?
After all, doing the right thing isn’t ever really about doing what we “should,” it’s about love for yourself, for your family, and for life. So, as you read on, ask yourself “how can I make my diet fit my life and get me to my health (or weight) goals?”
Don’t Derail Your Diet
It’s no secret that certain habits are just bad for our bodies. Eating a diet lacking omega-3 fatty acids, or consuming excessive amounts of simple carbohydrates (high glycemic, low fiber foods that quickly turn to sugar), can make losing weight next to impossible. These bad habits are hard to break because low-nutrition foods are often tasty. They satisfy sweet or savory cravings that many of us have and are therefore hard to say no to. Keep them out of sight (and out of mind) by not bringing them home from the grocery store. If you make that one quick decision outside the home, you won’t be tempted every time you open the fridge or the pantry.
Color Is Key
Colorful foods are not only visually stimulating but also often nutrient-dense and contain essential components your body needs. A diet filled with rainbow-hued vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and healthy fats will help you automatically be healthier.
Omega-3 Fatty Acids
This essential nutrient group is incredibly important to your body and brain. Omega-3 fatty acids:
- Fight depression and anxiety
- Reduce symptoms of metabolic syndrome
- Decrease inflammation
- Combat autoimmune diseases
- Decrease risk factors for heart disease (raising good HDL cholesterol and lowering triglycerides)
These essential compounds also make up one-quarter of your nerve cell membranes (which comprise the neuro-cognitive “communication highway” of your brain).
Foods high in omega-3 fatty acids include sardines, chia seeds, flaxseeds, salmon, walnuts, soybeans, and avocados.
Recipes:
Vegan Brownie Batter Overnight Oats
Need more omega-3 fatty acids in your diet? After using The Hollywood Cookie Diet® meal replacement cookies to replace two meals a day, choose one of the above recipes for your main meal that day. You’ll feel better and begin to lose weight.
The Hollywood Cookie Diet® is a great, low-calorie, more nutritious alternative to store-bought sweets. Satisfy your sweet tooth with a protein-filled, high fiber cookie instead of empty calories that sabotage your goals!
B-Complex Vitamins
B-complex vitamins are a group of essential nutrients that help support liver function to process toxic wastes out of the body and play an important role in regulating and boosting your immune system.
Foods high in B vitamins include brown rice, quinoa, eggs, beans, lentils, sunflower seeds, almonds, broccoli, spinach, avocados, and bananas.
Recipes:
Chili with Quinoa, Black Beans & Corn
The Hollywood 48-Hour Miracle Diet® contains 75% of your recommended daily value of vitamins B6, B12, B2 (riboflavin), and B1 (thiamin).
You can use this great Hollywood Diet® product as a standalone juice fast to help you jumpstart or restart your weight loss journey, or to help maintain your current momentum. Simply pour yourself a glass of this great-tasting beverage mixed with an equal amount of water and follow the directions. Remember to drink plenty of additional water throughout the day. The Hollywood 48- Hour Miracle Diet® can help you lose between up to 10 pounds in just 48 hours!
Zinc
Zinc is a little miracle worker and essential for multiple biological processes. It can help your body (and mind) recover after stressful events and repair itself after a workout and even help regulate your sleep cycle. Zinc has also been linked to increased immune response and improved resistance to common ailments like colds and the flu.
Foods high in zinc include legumes (like chickpeas, lentils, and beans) as well as certain types of nuts like cashews and almonds.
Recipes:
Roasted Chickpea Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
Help increase your zinc levels by incorporating one of the recipes above as your main meal on non fasting days. Not only will you be boosting healthful nutrients but you’ll be cutting calories too!
Vitamin E
Vitamin E is an antioxidant. That means it helps capture and remove harmful free radicals in your metabolic system. Free radicals can increase the physical and visible signs of aging. Another bonus of vitamin E is it increases immune response so we spend less time sick during the winter months and can maintain a healthy activity level all year long.
Foods high in vitamin E include almonds, sunflower seeds, hazelnuts, and green leafy veggies like spinach and broccoli.
Recipes:
The Hollywood 48-Hour Miracle Diet® contains 75% of your recommended daily value of this essential nutrient.
“Obstacles can’t stop you. Problems can’t stop you. Most of all, other people can’t stop you. Only you can stop you.” —Jeffrey Gitomer