The detox diet

Reset Diet to Detox Diet

January 19, 2016 by Lisa Lafave

All this time, I thought I was on the Detox Diet. Apparently, I was on the Reset Diet, which is far more restrictive, than the Detox Diet. Actually, I just learned that “Reset” is a new term, showing itself only in the last six weeks or so. There were always three different diets, with varying levels of restrictions from least restrictive, to more restrictive, to most restrictive. People were placed on one over the other depending on what types, and severity of medical problems they had.

Boy, oh boy am I ever thrilled! No one gave me an overview of the diet. No one explained that while you are on the diet, foods would be re-introduced back into the diet. So what does this mean for me practically? Over the course of the next few weeks, I will re-introduce apples, mangos, pineapple, and fruit and vegetable juices. This goes great with the additions that were made last week, such as steel cut oats, rolled oats, quinoa, brown rice, and wild rice.

After I have begun to recover from my knee replacement surgery, 6-12 weeks out or by mid April, I will be permitted to incorporate products like sour dough bread and some of the ancient grains like Teff, Amaranth, Spelt and Sorghum. Sounds like an interesting journey!

So it will be interesting to see how my body responds to the re-introduction of various food types. Given what we know about carbohydrate consumption causing fat to accumulate, it will be especially interesting to see, if I can lose weight on a regimen like this. I think I will lose weight, owing to keeping junk food out of my life, and concentrating on eating whole foods, without preservatives, sweetners, and other non-essential ingredients.

How about you? Are you ready to re-introduce any foods to your diet? Let me explain how you do it. Start out by not eating the food for 30 days or more. Next, consume no more than a half a cup of the food between meals. For many people this will be around 11:00 AM and then again around 3:00 PM. Then, document how you respond, over the course of the next 24 hours. Note feelings such as sluggish, gassy, bloated, diahhrea etc. Then skip a day, and repeat on day 3, noticing symptoms through day 4. If the food does not cause too many problems it can be back in the diet. If you have cramping and major discomfort caused by any of the symptoms you should stop consuming that food and try the procedure again in 30 days. Do not try to introduce more than one food in any 4 day period.

Best of luck!

Lisa

Lisa J Lafave, PhD, MBA, ACC, BCC
CEO & Founder of Coaching Rocks, LLC
The Wellness Coach form Building Better Bodies Rocks
A Single Mom By Choice Raising Surrogacy Twin Boys
Written in My Little Brick in University Heights, Ohio

Leap Into Action!

Those Supplements!

September 22, 2015 by Lisa Lafave

Dr Mark Hyman of The Center for Functional Medicine at the Cleveland Clinic recommends quite a few supplements for the Detox Diet. He may prescribe different supplements to different people, but I am sure a few of them are standard fare. Which are which are unknown to me.

The ones I take prescribed by Dr Hyman himself include: Ultra Flora Balance, which is kept in the fridge. You take 2 tabs twice daily of Ultra Flora Balance. One PureLean Pure Pack with a meal daily. Two large scoops of Mediclear Plus in cold water daily. Two packets of PGX in cold water daily. Two capsules 2 times daily of Meriva SR (curcumin phytosome). One tab 2 times daily of Alamax CR (controlled release alpha lipoic acid). One tab once daily of Vitamin D3 5000 iu. Two daily OmegaGenics EPA – DHA 720 with food. Two to four 2 times daily Magnesium (citrate) with food. Two capsules between meals of Quercetin (garlic) and two capsules two times daily between meals of NAC 600mg.

I point out this fairly exhaustive list by way to remind you that this is not simply an anti-inflammatory diet that encourages healthy food intake and crowds out artificial, chemicalized and processed foods found in the aisles of the grocery store.

Now I must admit it took me a few weeks to figure out how to take all of this stuff everyday! But after awhile you get used to the routine!

You might wonder where you can get all of these supplements. It’s actually easy. You can order it on line at ClevelandClinic.HealthyLivingShop.com or over the phone at 1-800-897-1722. Finally, if you want to email them you can at customerservice@healthylivingshop.com. Guess who owns the company. That’s right! Dr Mark Hyman! Here is a doctor who writes books, appears on TV, in the paper, and on the internet. He has his own newsletter and is willing to share his knowledge. Perhaps most importantly is his supplement distribution center. Although he is a busy man, he has clearly discovered how to get paid, while he is relaxing! I say good for him!

So are supplements for you? Seems to be working for me. But remember according to Joshua Rosenthal of the Institute for Integrative Nutrition one person’s food is another person’s poison. Please research what supplements might be best for you. You might look into this topic in one of Dr Hyman’s many publications. Better yet, hire a functional medicine doctor to look after your own individual needs. Then you would be sure you would be taking the right thing for your certain circumstances. Don’t forget, our needs change as we pass through various phases of our lives, so what might have made sense 5 to 10 years ago might not serve you best now. Is is always best to consult a doctor who knows about all of your medical needs and can look at the big picture before recommending the addition of any new supplements or medications.

Speaking of medications, Dr Hyman actually took me off several prescription medicines as he suggested a new eating program and simultaneously put me on the supplements mentioned above. In just one month, I have lost 20 pounds. All systems are go!

How about you? Have you chosen a new regimen? Crowding out processed foods which have few micronutrients and replacing them with whole foods is a great way to go. What is on the horizon for you concerning a new focus on your food intake or the prospect of coupling taking supplements as you change you eating style? Talk your ideas over with a trusted person in your life. You will need support from someone as you undergo your transformation!

Best of luck as you begin to build your better body today!

Lisa J Lafave, PhD, MBA, ACC
The Wellness Coach at Building Better Bodies Rocks
CEO & Founder of Coaching Rocks, LLC
A Single Mom By Choice Raising Surrogacy Twin Boys
written In My Little Brick in University Heights, Ohio

Leap Into Action!

This Old Body Needs a Tune-up!

July 9, 2015 by Lisa Lafave

So I’m six weeks post-op and still hobbling around. Looks like I might need that knee replacement.

In the meantime, I need a complete overhaul regarding I how I fuel this old battle wax. I am on a collision course for shear disaster and I need to stop dead in my tracks.

So how am I going to get that tune up? I am going to be smarter about what I put in my mouth to survive or should I say thrive? And guess what you get to watch and see how I do.

So here is the plan. I am going on Mark Hyman’s detox diet for a year. But I won’t start until I get back from my trip to the east coast with the boys to visit my brother and sister! Hey you need to know, I am not only going on the Detox Diet, I hired Mark and he is working with me directly! He also has some great people onboard to support me through my journey.

Trisha Howell is an amazing nutritionist at the Cleveland Clinic in the Center for Functional Medicine. She touts Mark Hyman’s detox diet. She laughs and jokes as she informs with a smile, while speaking a mile a minute. She wants me to make breakfast the biggest meal of the day and dinner the smallest. She says its best for your gut if you eat for 12 hours and train your body to not eat for twelve hours. If you are hungry at night she advises you drink water! She says, “Water, water, water!” She wants me to eat breakfast, then snack, then lunch, then snack, then dinner and maybe another snack.

During each eating episode she expects me to consume a protein, a carb and fat. But when she talks about carbs she is talking fruits and vegetables! She’s got rainbow charts to help you eat all the colors of the rainbow. She demands that I keep copious notes about what I eat! And she wants to read them!

She’s into eating cruciferous vegetables like broccoli and brussel sprouts and fermented foods like kimchi and saurkraut, and not into night shades like tomatoes, potatoes, bell peppers and eggplant. She highly recommends watercress. She encourages modest portions of nuts, like a portion size of 4-6, not ounces, but nuts! Munching on unsweetened teaspoons of coconut flakes is okay too. Tempeh is a favorite of hers. She reminds me to eat only grass fed ghee or coconut oil or first cold press virgin olive oil. She reminds me to mix up the oils, olive and grape leave, while mixing up the nut milks, almond, soy and cashew. Variety is the spice of life, she says with a twinkle in her eye!

On this diet you are expected to refrain from consuming gluten or dairy. There is no sugar or sugar replacers on this diet either. No caffeine, or alcohol, but tea and bone broth are both encouraged. She specifically encourages bison bone broth! Eating sardines is also admired. Several supplements are recommended as well.

So this is my journey! You may ask what about my sons? They will be on the journey as well. Things won’t be quite as strict as they will eat cafeteria style with classmates at University School and have visits at other peoples’ homes, but at home we will all eat together and the pantry will be stocked accordingly!

So no sugar, flour, or grains. Little salt, no caffeine, no alcohol, no dairy. No carbonated beverages. What’s left? You guessed it, meat, vegetables, fruits and oils. It’s a kind of paleo diet.

Heck even my fruits are designed to be restricted. I can eat berries, cherries, kiwi and pomegranate. All high in antioxidants! Oh and I forgot to mention that apple cider vinegar combined with first cold press oil is recommended as salad dressing.

But if it’s so hard, why do it? So I feel better and don’t go off the deep end with diabetes, cancer stroke and heart disease. It’s an anti-inflammatory diet and benefits all auto-immune disorders. It even helps with leaky gut. I think I’ll try it. What do I have to loose but a bunch of weight and a lot of inflammation that I frankly do without!

In fact I already did! I tried it for 6 weeks and lost 17 pounds in January. I was not hungry and I did not get headaches as I have so many times in the past when dieting. In the past dieting has always been a punishing process. This was not! Refreshing.

Lisa J Lafave, PhD, MBA, ACC
CEO & Founder of Coaching Rocks, LLC
A Single Mom By Choice Raising Surrogacy Twin Boys
Written in My Little Brick in University Heights, Ohio