I need to eat more healthily

Mark,

Interesting goal from an MD! I too would like to eat more healthy. It makes me feel better knowing an MD shares the same goals on this subject as me. Good Luck!! Let us know how it turns out.

Hey Mark,

Sounds like it's time to change your taste buds and your mindset. First off, let me challenge your thinking. I bet you don't "absolutely hate healthy foods." At least, not all of them. How can you hate avocado, raspberries, apricots, asparagus, heirloom tomatoes, fresh summer peaches...?

Try this: list a half-dozen healthy foods that you absolutely love, then head to your favorite farmer's market to pick up the freshest ones possible. Get out your best china, a good glass of wine and chow down. In a few weeks, your mind and palate may just come around!

All the best,
Libby

Libby Gill
Executive Coach & Author
Libby@LibbyGill.com
www.LibbyGill.com

Hi Dr. Mark,
Great to see you here on PeopleJam.
We may need to start a Eat Healthy Club with all the people that have this as a goal.
Libby's suggestion is great and there are a few other Experts on here who may be able to help like Susan Marque and Andrea Beaman. Ladies, can you help us?

beth |community coordinator | life coach |seeker of knowledge|

Hi Beth,

Nothing like a little accountability and some good old-fashioned peer pressure to keep people on track, right? Let me know how I can help!

Best,
Libby

Libby Gill
Executive Coach & Author
Libby@LibbyGill.com
www.LibbyGill.com

Mark Goulston, M.D.
"Get Out of Your Own Way"
http://markgoulston.com
http://markgoulston.com/blog

Thanks for the encouragement. My fasting sugar is 98, down from 120 range and I've lost three pounds. Morrie Shechtman another expert at peoplejam has an interesting notion that life is about learning to grieve what you can't have in such a way that you are able to let go, without feeling a hole in your wholeness. I have been trying to apply that to letting go of eating stuff that tastes good to me and I'm taking it a day at a time. BTW for anyone else trying to eat healthily, I am also finding the instant feedback of elevated blood sugar when I test for it to be a helpful deterrent to slipping. If blood sugar isn't a problem for you, maybe using a scale will provide the same reality check.

I also find it helpful to stay away from the human blood suckers in life. After I have dealt with one of them I often want a quick fix (of food that isn't good for me) and the last thing I want to do is exercise. On the other hand, after I have had an interaction with people that give me energy (as opposed to sucking it from me), I find there's nothing I need to fix with crap food and I have increased energy to bear doing some exercise.

Will keep you posted.

Thanks to all again.

What are things that you like?

Hey Doc,

I'm not a doctor but I do know a bit about "health" food and turning folks around to be able to create what they want. In order to coach you properly I really need to see what you are eating, the foods you do like and then we can create from there. Whole foods can taste wonderful but we need to find ways for you to be able to enjoy them. I am not sure oatmeal is the best morning cereal. In other countries they call it porridge meaning any whole grain made with enough water to get a creamy consistency. In Chinese medicine, millet is good for the pancreas and that is the organ that regulates blood sugar. (I know you know this....) So how about a millet porridge for breakfast with bit of fruit (blueberries anyone?) tossed in and drizzled with maple syrup to get your palate acclimated to some whole grains in the morning?

There are so many things to do with whole grains. I would also suggest millet burgers with mustard and pickles and sauted onions. Millet cooks up very similar to polenta and so also can be nice as a millet square topped with a protein and sauce like
Layered Millet
Here is just one version of a layered millet creation. Each of the three recipes are simple to do and come together nicely.

To Make the layered Millet you will slice the Millet Loaf down the middle to have two thinner sheets of Millet. On one sheet, spread the filling and then top with the other sheet of millet like a sandwich. Top with the sauce and cut into desired serving size. Add a salad on the side for a complete meal.

Millet Loaf
1 Cup of Millet
3 Cups of good water
Pinch of sea salt

Sort and rinse the millet. Bring the water to a boil in a pot and add the millet and a pinch of sea salt. Turn the heat to low. Put a lid on the pot and simmer for 20 minutes. Transfer the creamy millet to a Pyrex square baking dish or pie plate to cool. It will set like Polenta and you will be able to slice it through the middle to create two big sheets that are the same size as the pan you allowed it to cool in.

Cheesy filling
1/2 Lb. Tofu (regular works nicely, any would work)
1 tsp. Tahini
1 tsp. Ume paste
1 clove garlic mashed. ( I use a garlic press myself)
1/2 tsp. White miso paste
3” X 3” mochi grated
1 Tbsp. Parsley chopped fine

In a saucepan put in the tofu mashed up with the tahini, ume paste, garlic, miso and mochi. Stir over a low flame until all the mochi is melted. Turn off the flame and add the parsley.

Carrot Marinara Sauce
You may be wondering why no tomatoes? Being a nightshade tomatoes are not just acidic but also are not the best for digestion or B-vitamin absorption. Here is a wonderful alternative sauce that looks pretty similar and has a wonderful flavor.

6 or 7 large carrots, chopped
1/2 - 1 small beet (for color), peeled and chopped
1 bay leaf
1 onion, sliced
1 celery, sliced
1 1/2 Cups water
3-4 cloves garlic
1 onion
Oregano
Basil
Thyme
1/4 Cup parsley
Olive oil
2 + T. organic barley miso paste. (dissolve in a small amount of water)

Place the carrots, beet, bay leaf, 1 sliced onion, celery and water in a pot and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat and put the lid on to simmer for 20-30 minutes until the carrots and beet are soft enough to blend. When they are soft, puree in a blender adding extra water if needed for desired consistency.

Then sauté the other onion, garlic and spices and miso in a couple teaspoons of olive oil. Add the spices to your own taste. 1 teaspoon of each may be enough for most. Sauté for 5 minutes or so and add the puree mixture to the pan. Add the parsley and simmer with a lid on for 5 or 10 minutes to meld the flavors.

I learned long ago, when working informally with the Pfeiffer Treatment Center, that we each have a unique biochemistry, and that a "one-size-fits-all" nutrient regimen was not as effective as a personalized program. Later, I also learned that we can enhance our mental, emotional and physical health and well-being through food choices that are also personalized according to our Metabolic Types.

What's good for one person, may not work for another, and in some cases certain foods may actually make one feel worse. So if you want to get started on the road to enhanced well-being without the need for complicated or unsuccessful dietary regimens, then the Advanced Metabolic Typing (MT) Diet Program could be very helpful.

The MT Program takes your Individual Metabolism into consideration, and makes personal recommendations based on an extensive computerized assessment and guidance from a Trained Metabolic Typing Adviser, such as myself.

If you are experiencing fluctuations in your energy, mood, blood sugar, food cravings, hunger levels, ability to focus and concentrate, and/or your weight, go to http://www.consciousconnections.com/metabolic-typing-diet.html
for more information, and a Free Consultation.

I have said that a sign of mental health is not how long you keep from slipping, but how quickly you can bounce back from a slip and also prevent it from turning into a slide. I'll have a chance to practice what I preach, because I just got back from a 4 day business trip to NYC and just blew my low carb diet on the last day. It was just too difficult to resist an eight course meal on top the Grand Hyatt above Grand Central station hosted by Matt Adams from Hyatt and planned by my business partner, Keith Ferrazzi, author of "Never Eat Alone." Now I'm back in LA and I'll wait a couple days to test my blood sugar in the morning.

I find that I feel much better when I eat Quinoa. In fact, I use Quinoa instead of rice and other grains, and my blood sugar remains balanced. No drops in energy like with all other grains, including millet.

Follow the link below for lots of great info about Quinoa. Did you know that Quinoa contains L-lysine, which is missing from grains? That's why Quinoa is a complete protein. That, and the fact that it's really a seed and not a grain.

It also has a ton of calcium so it's great for bone health. Read more here:

http://www.vegparadise.com/highestperch36.html

Feel free to substitue Quinoa in any grain recipes you like. Amaranth ( a cousin to quinoa) actually is higher in Lycine but is not a complete protien like Quinoa is. You might find it enjoyable too as it's texture is entirely different. I add cooked amaranth to bread recipes sometimes as it keeps the bread very moist like when using pumpkin or banana.

I am a vegetarian and these are all great ideas! Keep up the good work Dr. Mark!

I wanted to thank everyone who has rooted for me to succeed in my effort to eat better. I slip occasionally, but I don't slide and it helps to have people caring. BTW as a dyed in the wool caretaker, it's not easy to let myself be cared about, but I'm working on it.

test

asdasdasd

Boy this is tough. I'm tempted to blame my family for eating such unhealthy but tempting foods. I would like to follow my own advice that a slip is not a slide, but it's not easy eating green.

I have found, personally, that the best way to change habits is to do it slowly and make it as convenient as possible. I've made big changes to my diet and eat really cleanly now, but it took me a couple years to get there. First I started with switching to all organic, then taking out processed foods and starchy foods, then switching to the Zone Diet. When, two years ago, I tried to dive right into the Zone I failed, but after having made gradual improvements over time and adjusting to them, I've had great success the last 5-6 months on the Zone.

Also, the more convenient you can make something, the more likely you are to do it -- find premeasured foods, for instance, I know a certain container of strawberries is roughly 3 cups. I know 1 slice of deli turkey is roughly 1oz. Be strict about weighing and measuring at first, but then use that knowledge to make things easy on yourself, and always make sure to have your fridge (at work and home) stocked with the RIGHT food so bad things don't become the convenient thing.

Keep up the good work -- it IS hard, but as you know from beind a doctor, the benefits are worthwhile, and so are you! :)

All of this information shared has been wonderful! Yet, I've got to ask... how do you find the time it takes to first of all, get educated on what we should really be eating and where to find it? That feels like a lifetime away! Then, secondly, who has the time to prepare these meals? I so agree that eating clean and green is optimal. I even paid someone to prepare macrobiotic meals for me for a time. But I feel Dr. Mark's pain in saying, "This is hard!" I barely remember to eat once a day now because the day slips away, even the thought of scheduling time for shopping, preparation, etc overwhelms me! Isn't there someone we can afford that would just feed us! LOL Someone make this simple, please!!

Food preparation CAN be a hindrance, and in the past I found it frustrating as well -- these days I only really "make" one meal a day, in the evenings when I'm at home. And frequently, I will cook enough on Monday evening that I can divide it up for other meals later in the week.

Also I choose items pre-prepared by nature! lol! Fruits are easy to eat in short time. A snack might be a cheese stick or two, an apple and some cashews. No prep time at all!

Or buy prepackaged chicken salads and just don't use the dressing or leave out the croutons, or whatever it is that fits your nutritional plan.

I've heard people have had good luck posting a craigslist ad for a cook to prepare several meals for the week for a house of roommates (all done on one day and stored in the refridgerator). They said it cut both costs and time for them.

What a fabulous idea! Thanks for sharing. Now I guess I need to look for a houseful of roommates!! LOL No, really, only one that is a great, educated chef would do, in exchange for their room (hmmm, if they could be a good massage therapist as well, that would be fabulous!!). Hey, now you've got me thinking! I truly do think there is a growing market for clean, green food preparation in each community. Who wants to start the next great franchise opportunity? I know if you live in Santa Monica or parts of L.A., it isn't quite as difficult to find good, healthy restaurants - but this appears to be an up and coming market for the rest of the USA! Who is going to capitalize on it?! Will they come from our PeopleJam Community? Hope so!

Libby Gill
Brand Strategist
-The Power of Personal Branding-
AskLibby@LibbyGill.com
www.LibbyGill.com