For your viewing pleasure! Dr. Fuhrman on his new book, The End of Dieting.
intervention
Yesterday was rough. I wanted to eat everything that wasn’t nailed down. I went to Whole Foods after my work day was over, and did some grocery shopping and got dinner. As I was shopping, I was looking for some of my favorite Nutritarian treats—the Health Starts Here “cheesecake” and “gelato”, both made out of fruit and nuts. They haven’t had them in forever. Then I went to get raisins so that I could make some Nutritarian oatmeal raisin “cookies”, and all of the raisins had oil in them. Sigh. I got really pissed off, and an evil little voice was like, “Screw it. This is totally not worth it. You aren’t even losing weight. Just get the vegan cheetos and vegan ice cream. Why bother? Are you going to eat *another* goddamned salad? If you eat vegan donuts and ice cream you could always throw them up. In fact, why are you eating? You should be working out. You are so lazy!” and so forth. I just stood in the aisle, kind of paralyzed. Then I decided to head to the vegan cheetos. Right as I was about to go down the aisle, I ran into one of my coworkers who was at the Immersion with me. Talk about divine intervention. I spoke with her for a while, and we talked about our challenges since we’ve been home. I told her that I was about to go grab junk food and she encouraged me not to give up. She was super supportive and sweet. I went and got a salad, some soup and a chia seed pudding. I felt so grateful that she just magically popped up in my path. I felt very protected by good old Glinzilla at that moment. It reminded me that I am always surrounded by helpers, even when I don’t know they are there.
Later that night, I was in bed listening to my stomach growl. I know Dr F says that this is toxic hunger and not true hunger, but that thought was not reassuring at that very moment. Finally, I got so pissed off that I got up and had Ezekiel toast and almond butter. The almond butter was supposed to be for the Fuhrman Black Bean brownies I was going to make tonight. Well, not anymore. Clearly it is still not safe for me to have it in my house. It’s reminding me of the question that one of the women asked at the Immersion about bingeing on healthy food. She said that if there was a jar of almond butter in her house, she would just eat it all. Thankfully, this wasn’t a jar, but I wasn’t happy about it. Today is a new day. Learn from it, and move forward. I will make the Happy Herbivore brownies instead that do not have almond butter in them.
There’s been food in my face all week long for Team Member Appreciation week. Today there is an ice cream social going on in our office with like four different kinds of vegan ice cream and cookies. I am telling myself that I can go home, and make myself some black bean brownies for dessert tonight. I do NOT need to eat ice cream in the middle of my work day. Just for today, I can abstain from the mother#@*&^%$ ice cream. I can go to Green Juice Happy Hour with my lovely coworker J and enjoy her company. I can make myself a nice, nourishing, Nutritarian meal that tastes delicious and treat myself to a hot bath and a home pedicure with a salt scrub. I can take care of myself in many ways that have nothing to do with binge eating.
I think it’s funny that sometimes when things are going really well, I want to eat more than ever. Food addiction and addiction in general is cunning, baffling, powerful. It’s not just stress or anger or sadness that sets me off. Sometimes it’s just seeing food. I will go for weeks or months or even years where food does not call to me. And then, seemingly out of nowhere, food calls me: hey bitch, it’s me. Come on over and party.
Sometimes it’s being *happy* or successful. Sometimes it is new things—even really good new things, like a new romance or a new apartment or city or job. Sometimes it’s fear—fear of success, fear of change, fear of failure, fear of everything.
I will leave you all with a reading from Food For Thought that I thought was particularly appropriate:
Forgetting Food
Abstinence enables us to stop being preoccupied with food. We decide that we will have three meals a day with nothing in between, and we have a definite plan for those meals. Whenever cravings or thoughts of food begin to distract us, we put them out of our mind. We remember that food has proved to be a false friend, and we no longer permit it to control our life.
Through OA, we have found new interests and activities. We have friends to call when we are lonely or upset. When we are feeling shaky, we can go to a meeting. Perhaps our new energies have led to involvement in community activities, new jobs, hobbies and projects.
Each of us faces a certain amount of sluggishness and inertia when we decide to get involved in something new. It is easier to stay in the same old rut, since we often fear what is untried and unknown. Let us not permit apathy or anxiety to weaken our resolution. Escape into food and overeating is no longer an option.
malfunction
I am STILL sick. Really sick. Had to leave work yesterday early, and then crawled into bed. Worked a few hours from home and now I am about to crawl back into bed again. My immune system is either majorly malfunctioning, or I am majorly detoxing. I had just gotten over a cold the week before the Immersion, and now this is cold #2 in less than a month. Still abstinent, still not drinking coffee, still going strong. Much love to my Ladies of The Nute, and hello to all of my new blog followers! I will be back with less whining soon, I promise. In the meantime, you have John Joseph from the Cro Mags to keep you warm.
Dr. Fuhrman’s TEDx Talk, “I Love Nutritional Science”
Dr. Fuhrman told us about this TEDx talk at the Immersion, so I thought I would share it with my blog readers. Enjoy!
the samuel l jackson voice over
One of the things I realized at the Immersion was that my sleep problems frequently drive my desires to binge. And that my coffee intake feeds my inability to sleep, and then I am laying in bed feeling hungry, wanting to eat. And when I used to drink, my sleeping problems completely excused the fact that I was drinking myself to sleep every night. I think I spent the first two years of my sobriety just not sleeping, ever. And AA coffee didn’t help!
Today is day nine with no coffee, whoo hoo!!! Just herbal teas. I made myself some green tea, and I was scared to drink it. I am still having problems falling asleep. I know it’s going to get better, but I just have to push through. Lately I have been envisioning my Higher Power speaking to me in Samuel L Jackson’s voice and telling me, “Go the fuck to sleep!”
I think that I have a cold. I thought it was allergies, but it’s not. Maybe it’s detox? Who fucking knows? In any case, I have literally blown through a box of kleenex today and I can barely breathe. I’m having soup and salad and a piece of toast right now, and I can’t taste any of it! I was just going to do smoothies today, but I am really having the urge to just CHEW something even though I can’t taste much.
I watched Supercharge Me on Youtube last night—a short little movie about a woman who decides to go raw for 30 days. I had done 100% raw for an entire summer in Florida once. Not sure why I stopped…probably due to alcohol and coffee and binge eating (surprise!). I was feeling really good, and then who knows what happened? I do like the fact that when I am ETL compliant, I am about 75% raw. There’s some interesting things in this film, although I love how everyone sidesteps the B12 supplementation question. Just take some fucking B12 already! And some iron. Geez. Cherries probably aren’t going to cut it. Sometimes the overt fanaticism and compltely unscientific behavior of the raw foodies gets me a little aggravated. Although I”m very woo woo in a lot of ways, I like how Dr. Fuhrman uses science and research to suggest the best ways to eat. Like cooking your mushrooms and tomatoes. And not eating a massive amount of raw spinach because of the oxalates.
OK, back to bed. Calling it a day at work and getting some rest.
Here’s the link to Supercharge Me if you are curious:
reentry
Well, I am back from the Immersion and still abstinent and going strong. It was definitely strange to come back, and it went by so quickly! No coffee for 8 days now! I haven’t been doing much exercise, because I have not been feeling good. It’s hard to do yoga when you can’t breathe and you are exhausted. I still have zero energy, I got my period a week early (that explains a lot) and I am either having wretched allergies or I have another cold. I am just going to rest and stay away from the crap vegan SAD stuff. Luckily, I have no appetite for anything right now, period. I’ve been living off of green juices and a fabulous two lentil chili that I made courtesy of Fatfreevegan.com. I might just have a green smoothie and some miso broth and take a handful of benadryl and call it a night. Happy Tuesday, Ladies of the Nute!
Day 6: Q & A #2 with Dr. Fuhrman
This is our last question and answer with Dr Fuhrman. We are doing a round table for the whole group with what issues you have individually and what is your plan for success when you leave the Immersion.
The bean question came up in the Q & A session (Hello N!). And indeed, the answer was to start with the smallest amount possible twice a day, chew it thoroughly and continue doing this until the digestive issues and your gut bacteria have normalized. I was hoping for a different or new answer but alas this was not the case.
Dr Fuhrman told us that he does not like to eat two salads a day. Yes! This made me feel so much better. He said that many times with dinner he will eat raw veggies with a dip or lettuce wraps and some cooked food.
One of my coworkers asked about food addiction and bingeing on healthy food, like almond butter, nuts or beans.This is a direct quote from his answer: ‘For some of you who are food addicts, your decision making in the past has not worked for you. Your decision making is a mixture of your intellect, your addiction, your instinctive food drives and the environment you were raised in. Let me decide what you should eat, let me make the decisions for you–just do this exactly. Don’t think anymore. ‘ He emphasized the importance for food addicts of not eating between meals, eating the three meals a day and only eating nuts, seeds or beans with your meals. Make sure you eat until you are full and satisfied. And don’t try to think your way out of your addiction. Follow the Nutritarian rules, and don’t think about it. He also said it takes most people 4-6 months of total abstinence before they start to feel true hunger. He emphasized total abstinence repeatedly for food addicts. He said moderation is a myth, and that moderation kills more people than anything.
I ate breakfast today with Dr Fuhrman and Randi Carbone, one of the addiction counselors. I brought up how my mother raised us with a lot of healthy food, and we were not allowed to eat sweets or junk food. She policed my food rigorously, and started trying to put me on diets are age 7. Dr Fuhrman said the way to talk to children about their food is first and foremost to involve them in the process and tell them you are making these changes out of love. Ask them what they would do if they were the parent? And we talked about rebellion and defiance and addiction. It was very interesting. I thought about how I could incorporate this idea into my self-talk. Again, it all comes back to love.
I’m happy to report today that I no longer feel like a vegan zombie. The coffee withdrawal is getting better. Still tired, but don’t feel like killing people anymore.
OK, more later! Happy Friday, Ladies of the Nute!
Day 5: Cooking Demos
We had another exercise class with Dr Fuhrman today. There was crazed jumping around to Rhianna. My roommate turned to me and said, `His grandchildren are going to love him! ‘ He was cracking all of us up.
Today has been mostly about learning to cook and plan meals, Nutritarian style. I’m watching a cashew mushroom stroganoff cooking demo right now with Chef James Rohrbacher from Chicago. This stuff smells amazing!!
The second recipe he demonstrated for us was the Banana Cocoa Muffins that we had for breakfast this morning. They have beans AND greens and you would never know! They were super yummy. I had some almond butter on top and freshly made hemp milk with them and it was sooooo good.
Here were some new things I learned today :
~do not damage the skin of mushrooms by scrubbing at it with a brush. The primary source of flavor is in the skin. It’s better to wash them thoroughly in water instead of scrubbing them.
~browning with water: keep the onions covered, and occasionally add a little water until the onions are browned. Don’t let them burn.
~Dr Fuhrman also showed us how to cut, prepare and steam an artichoke. That was very helpful! I’ve never been able to figure that out on my own.
~We learned about different kinds of bean pasta today. The cashew stroganoff uses mung bean fettuccine. James recommended a brand called Tolerant Pasta that has black bean and red lentil pasta.
~Cocoa powder: be careful about brands, as they can be contaminated with lead. He suggests using reputable brands only, like what we would carry at Whole Foods. He suggests unsweetened non-Dutch processed Cocoa, and not raw cacao. Dutch processing removes antioxidant content.
~wilting fresh spinach for the muffins:
Run hot tap water over the spinach and let it sit for ten minutes. Then press the water out and it’s ready to go.
~you can freeze everything in the Cashew stroganoff recipe except for the noodles. Tofu does not freeze well, so you can’t freeze tofu-based dressings, but you can freeze nut-based and avocado-based dressings.
~Chef James told us that we can use the Broccoli Cauliflower Cheddar soup on the member center to make Nutritarian Mac and cheese. The base from the soup can be used for the sauce. He suggested leaving some of the liquid out to make it thicker, and use one of the bean pastas for the macaroni.
More later–it’s time to take our group Immersion photo!
Day 4: Q & A with Dr Fuhrman, part one
We had an open Q & A with Dr Fuhrman today. Here’s some notes and highlights:
~Arterial plaque can go away with a Nutritarian diet. He’s seen people with occluded arteries be completely free of blockage after two years on a Nutritarian diet.
~Gaining weight rapidly is a huge risk factor for a heart attack because of the soft plaque that forms in the arteries during weight gain
~There was a lot of (snore) discussion about supplements, particularly the specific ones that are recommended for Nutritarians: EPA/DHA, Vitamin D3 and B12 and Zinc in a low dose. Since I used to work for a supplements manufacturer, I kind of dozed off during this part. Take these things, vegan peeps. And add kelp to your foods.
~Sodium: our kidneys get better at holding sodium the longer we stay on a low sodium, Nutritarian diet. It takes a few weeks for us to adapt. The adaptation to a *high* sodium, non-Nutritarian diet ages your body and makes you more likely to have autoimmune issues and allergies (!).
~Eating For Your Blood Type: ‘do you eat for your eye color? Or for your Mother’s maiden name backwards?’ Hahaha! He said there’s no one blood type that is immune to heart attacks or cancer if you are consuming animal products.
~Juicing : he prefers blended salads/green smoothies to juicing, unless you are dealing with specific health issues. He would prefer that juices not be heavy on fruit due to the glycemic load.
~Protein powders: Dr Fuhrman said rice, pea and hemp are more desirable because they do not raise IGF-1 like whey and soy protein isolate do. He doesn’t think we need these soy-free vegan protein powders, but if you wanted to add them occasionally it would be acceptable.
~Hypothyroidism and Hashimotos : this was my question! It was hard to get one in edge-wise. I asked if he had seen patients heal and get off medications, and he said that unfortunately once patients have been on medications for a long time or they are older they can’t get off of the medications. He has had success with people healing when they are young and he sees them when they are first diagnosed. The cruciferous vegetables and the thyroid question came up, and he said there are zero studies that show that people have ever developed Hypothyroidism from eating crucifers. You would have to eat an unnatural amount of raw crucifers. It would pretty much have to be all that you were eating!
I have more Q & A to type up, but I’m going to take a break and go chill out for awhile. Happy Wednesday, Ladies of the Nute!
Day 3 in Fuhrmanlandia
I still have the worst headache ever. Coffee detox suuuuucks. I saw a man in the hotel lobby with coffee and I wanted to mug him.
I thought I would include some of my notes from yesterday’s lectures for my ladies of the Nute. Straight from Dr F:
~sprouting beans increases vitamin content but decreases resistant starch, which is less beneficial for weight loss.
~`Animal protein, sugar and **caffeine** feed toxic hunger’—- a direct quote. Sigh.
~Resistant starch in beans is broken down by bacteria in the gut and converted into short chain fatty acids called butyrates. Butyrates promote fat burning.
~`you cannot escape from the laws of biological cause and effect ‘
~When your body is micronutrient deficient, the brain is stimulated and tells you to eat more
~Dr F mentioned two words repeatedly yesterday : abstinence and cocaine . He frequently likened the dopamine surge from binge eating to the high you get from cocaine, which is also involved in a dopamine surge. He said that people need to abstain for a long enough period of time from addictive SAD foods to stop experience cravings. He said in his experience, it takes
about a year for most people.
~He also mentioned that he’s filming a brand new show for PBS called end Dieting Forever. The filming is with a live audience in NY at the end of April, and will be airing in August. He said we could call his office if we wanted to go!
More later… I will be live blogging from my phone throughout the day, and I can’t save drafts so I’m just going to post periodically
Queen of the Darned 