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How Eating Like Your Ancestors Can Help You Lose Weight

Blog Photo FastingBy Mary Gocke, RDN, CDN

The key to losing weight in 2016 might be found by going back in time and eating like our ancestors.

What if fasting was a part of your healthy lifestyle and offered the benefit of weight loss? Please, don’t get nervous and don’t go anywhere. Keep reading. This is the real deal.

We’re talking about intermittent fasting and it’s how our ancestors ate – think feast or famine. When there was food available, they ate; when they didn’t have food, they didn’t eat. They couldn’t run to a fast-food restaurant or pop a frozen-food entrée in the microwave.

Intermittent fasting does not mean you have to starve yourself. It does ask you to look at your lifestyle, notice how often you eat and especially observe late-night snacking – you know, when you’re stressed and watching late night television to take your mind off things and unconsciously eating the bag of potato chips or pint of ice cream.

What if you stopped eating after dinner and didn’t eat again until breakfast? There you go – intermittent fasting! 8pm to 8am – 12 hours of intermittent fasting. Maybe your schedule is 7pm to 7am; not a problem. There’s flexibility here. It’s not the time that matters; it’s the timing – setting yourself up for a period of 12-14 hours when you are not eating. And giving your body a chance to detoxify and rejuvenate itself.

The benefits of intermittent fasting are well-studied and vast, including:

  • Improve metabolic efficiency and metabolic flexibility
  • Reset your body to use fat as its primary fuel source
  • Boost enzyme production to facilitate digestion and weight loss
  • Generate production of human growth hormone
  • Increase insulin sensitivity
  • Reduce markers of chronic inflammation

Intermittent fasting is one aspect of the revolutionary weight loss program offered at Blum Center for Health this month. We want to help you lose weight and we want you to keep it off with a healthy lifestyle plan.

Learn more and join our Group Weight Loss Program.

 

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What is Kitchari?

By Mary Gocke, RDN, CDN980827_920155898020966_3217417002046508483_o

Kitchari is an ancient Ayurvedic meal consisting of Mung beans and rice cooked into porridge. Kitchari (kitch-ah-ree) literally means mess – referring to this warm, delicious, satisfying (not messy!) porridge.

The Ayruvedic culture discovered the magic of the Mung bean; they do not cause gas; they are anti-inflammatory; and they are hypo-allergenic.

As a cleanse, kitchari is eaten for 7 days – breakfast, lunch and dinner as a mono diet, meaning eating one food. This limits the diversity of food which helps decrease inflammation while supporting digestive enzymes and the entire process of digestion.

At BCH we perform the Kitchari Cleanse once a year, during the winter months.  We  find this cleanse both nourishing, healing and weight reducing. Typically, a pound a day is lost with ease.

Kitchari is comfort food, warming and nourishing for this time of year.

Learn more at our Winter Fat Flush cleanse here and join us on January 10th for ether the morning or evening session! And don’t forget if you are too busy to make Kitchari at home, you can pick it up already prepared from Organic Pharmer!

 

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The Benefits of a Summer Detox

Fall and spring may be the most talked about time to detox because they are seasons of transition, but the summer months – filled with busy social calendars and beach vacations – is also a beneficial time to cleanse.  Consider a summer detox a way to reboot and reverse the dinners al fresco, crisp rosé, and trips to the ice cream parlor.

Take a Break from the BBQ’s

Summer is a social season.  Practically every weekend is booked by the time July hits with parties, bbq’s, vacations and holidays. We don’t believe in deprivation and advise our patients to indulge occasionally, but in-between events, our bodies need a break from the sugar, alcohol, and carbs, so the liver can detoxify.  Liver function is a key component to reducing inflammation and is essential to our health.

Detox for More Energy

Hot summer days coupled with poor food choices can make the body feel overtired and sluggish.  It may sound counterintuitive, but detoxing can actually increase your energy so you can enjoy those long summer nights.  By removing foods that slow you down like sugars and processed flours, and adding vital nutrients like greens, herbs, and proteins, energy will increase naturally – you may even have a better nights sleep!

Beat the Bloat and Lose Weight

Water retention, slow digestion, and salty, processed foods contribute to public enemy number one in the summer: bloating.  Feed your body with nutritious vegetables, fruits, and herbs during a detox and you’ll naturally see a decrease in water retention and stomach bloat.  Because let’s face it, it’s full on bathing suit season.

Make it Easy on Yourself

A lot of the times fitness routines and diets ramp up in spring only to lose steam come the end of June. Recharge your body and eliminate unhealthy eating patterns with a detox program that is easy to follow and will set you up for success! Mary Gocke, our Director of Nutrition, will walk you through step-by-step what to expect including foods to eliminate, a shopping guide and recipes.  For more information on our program click here.

Looking for something even easier?  Organic Pharmer has foods that are detox approved for grab and go ease to take with you to the beach, pools, and parties!