When I had a final list of foods that should allow me to lose weight, and keep that weight for years, I decided to google all of them to check all their benefits and make sure that I'll get all necessary vitamins and minerals from them. I wanted to avoid any supplements (if possible) and I wanted to check whether I'll have any side effects because I'm missing some mineral or vitamin. I also wanted to determine if I should exclude some of them due to something negative. For instance, goitrogens found in raw cruciferous vegetables are detrimental to a low thyroid when consumed in excess and when iodine intake is inadequate. Nightshade vegetables cause arthritis in some individuals. Legumes can cause stomach problems.
After carefully examining every item on my list, I decided to call this diet the Superfoods diet. Most people associate the term superfoods with some sort of exotic berries, like Acai berry, Goji, or Noni. Those berries are wonderful; they are rich in antioxidants, but you cannot subsist on them alone. Consider regular superfoods, such as spinach, broccoli, quinoa, olive oil, garlic, kale, salmon, and ginger, i.e., food that contains no harmful substances and provides health benefits.
I also wanted to have a diet that will keep my appetite and cravings under control. Some people might think that counting calories is all that matters, but they don't take appetite and cravings into equation and I wanted to make sure that I don't have any cravings. Think about it, what chances you have to shed successfully off some pounds if you're hungry all the time and you can't take pizza and chocolate bars off your mind? Zero!! It is much easier to be on a diet when you're not hungry all the time and when you don't crave any food. How can this be accomplished? By substituting superfoods! Switching to superfoods will alter your taste buds, eliminate toxins from your body, and stabilize your insulin sensitivity and blood sugar level. This is half the work!!
Glucose drives insulin. Insulin drives fat. If the glucose level is high, fatty acids will not be released into the bloodstream to be used as energy. All energy you consume that is not immediately required will be stored in your fat cells and will not be released if you consume a diet that frequently raises your blood sugar levels. You will not get to use all of the 700 calories you eat at one meal, only the 100 or so you need immediately, and thus you will soon be hungry again, and will overeat. But if your blood sugar is stable and you can access that stored
You will not be hungry and will not overeat due to the energy you consume. Whether you consume fat or glucose, your body will convert what it has into what it needs. Every major nutritional theory identifies sugar as a significant problem. Circulating saturated fatty acids in the blood (referred to as triglycerides on the lipid panel) are a major risk factor for heart disease; however, the majority of these saturated fatty acids are almost always the result of liver secretions and a diet high in refined carbohydrates.
Some individuals are more sensitive than others to the hormonal effects of insulin and cortisol. The more sensitive you are, the more likely you are to gain weight. Insulin is the primary hormone responsible for storing fat in fat cells. Type I diabetics lose weight because they do not produce enough insulin. Since insulin is produced directly in response to carbohydrates, if you do not consume them, you will lack the ability to store fat.
Since superfoods are whole foods and the polar opposite of processed foods, switching to them will have a multiplicative effect on your body. You will stop eating processed foods, which means you will no longer consume any chemicals, additives, food colorings, flavor enhancers, or other nasties found in processed foods. Also, you will no longer receive chemicals found in the packaging of processed foods. Consider the negative health effects of plastic and bisphenol-A (BPA) found in can linings. And at the same time you'll be eating whole foods superfoods which do not contain any chemicals found in processed food, but contains phytonutrients and antioxidants and that whole food superfoods will detox your body. This detox will regulate your blood sugar and insulin sensitivity, reducing your desire for sweets. After 10-15 days all these changes will result in your palate change and you won't crave processed food with flavor enhancers and you will learn to appreciate natural taste of the whole foods. That is half the battle on your path to better health.
After making this change, you will feel great, have more energy, and your body will no longer crave the salty and fatty foods you used to snack on or the sweet and fatty foods you used to consume daily. 280 calories from a chocolate bar and 280 calories from a salad loaded with lean protein and fiber are not equivalent. In addition to the antioxidants, minerals, vitamins, and phytonutrients you'll receive from that meal, a greater amount of water and fiber will allow you to consume a much larger quantity of food. As a result, you'll feel fuller and for a longer duration.
When you select the proper foods and comprehend how these foods interact with your body, you will no longer crave processed foods. When I first began this diet, I occasionally thought to myself, "Hey, I've already lost weight!"
Some weight, I deserve a treat, so I'll have pizza for lunch or a small chocolate bar, but after a few weeks, I realized I don't need it and I have no desire for it. And each time I had it, I realized that I had no need for it. Therefore, I skipped it and that's that. And I felt much more pleased with myself.
So, after 8-9 months on Superfoods diet, I went from 275 pound (125 kg) to 195 pounds (89 kg) in the beginning of 2010. I felt great, looked decent and decided that additional weight loss would have to wait for a while. Since then, my weight went from 195 pounds (89 kg) to 210 pounds (95 kg) and back. And in March 2014 I decided to try to go under 195 pounds and describe that effort in a blog. But because I wanted to share everything about Superfoods diet, my investigation turned into a book. As of this writing in June 2014, I weigh 180 pounds (82 kg) and hope to drop below 180 pounds in the coming months. My family as a whole felt better because of the Superfoods diet, my wife lost weight (I am not permitted to say how much), and her waistline has been perfect ever since.