Food Transforms: Gently Motivating You to A Healthier and Happier Living 1770842985, 9781770842984

Citation preview

F on”

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Arie M V Reyden BA MA Ed.D(c}) & Sharon J Cusack © www.livefitlivefood.com

LIME Fn FOOD TRANSFORMS Gently motivating you to a healthier and happier living

By

Arie M V Reyden BA MA Ed.D(c) & Sharon J Cusack

www.livefitlivefood.com

Copyright ©2013 Arie M V Reyden BA MA Ed.D(c) & SharonJ Cusack

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means — electronic, mechanical, photocopying, and recording or otherwise — without the prior written permission of the author, except for brief passages quoted by a reviewer in a newspaper or magazine. To perform any of the above is an infringement of copyright law.

Note for Librarians: A cataloguing record for this book is available from Library and Archives Canada at www.collectionscanada.ca/amicus/index-e.html

ISBN — 978-1-77084-298-4 Printed in Canada wf

ee

on recycled paper ("= AZ

CHOICE BOOKS DEMAND PUBLISHING & BINDING

www. firstchoicebooks.ca Victoria, BC

1098765 43

TABLE OF CONTENT

INTRODUCTION rrscnseccccewecttnpececernesisovrerannsctemmeneresineeste eens 1 CHAPTER 1:

We all want to be healthier 00.0... eeceeeteeeeeeeees 6

CHAPTER 2:

The challenges we face!? .........cccceccceeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeees 10

CHAPTER 3:

We know healthy food is good for US. ............6006 14

CHAPTER 4: . WHALIS SIODDING US?

seccecccssicisssxscrceseesscesseasessesanse 19

CHAPTER 5:

What will motivate US?

CHAPTER 6:

The recommended steps 1 tO 3 .........cceeeeeeeeeee eee 34

CHAPTER

7:

Steps 4 tO 6..........cceecececeseseeeeeeeeeeeeeeeenaeeeeeseaaaeeeenenes 39

CHAPTER 8:

The ideal LIVE FOOD ......... eects eter ereeeeereneees 44

CHAPTER 9:

LIVE FIT LIVE FOOD ............ ee cc cececeeseeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeees 49

CHAPTER

SUMIM Ary

10:

oo... eceeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeees 25

...........:cccccsseeeeeseeeeceeeceeceeeeesaeeeeeaueeeeenaeeess 53

REFERENCES: 1.00.0... cccccccccccccceeeeeeeeeeeeeeceeeeeeeaaeeaeeeeeeeeeereeeeeeeeeennnens 57 GLOSSARY OF TERMS: ....00.......::cccescseeeeeeeeeeeeeeneeeeeeeeeeeeseeeeeeeeeeenees 58

INTRODUCTION

‘Patterning your life around other people's opinions is nothing more than slavery.

(Lawana Blackwell) ‘My definition of a FREE society is where it is safe to be unpopular.’ (Adlai Stevenson) There is an ever increasing awareness of the need for health and fitness. The evidence can be seen everywhere. Gym facilities are opening everywhere. Memberships are being promoted at discounted prices, special deals, sales, etc. to motivate people to use the facilities. And they all need your dependency on them to make money.

Personal trainers are sprouting up like grass in spring, and training programs for them can be attended almost anywhere. The ‘boot camp’ approach to fitness is everywhere. And they like you best if they manage to keep you dependent on them.

Yoga Is being practiced by about 30 million people in North America. There are so many different styles of yoga, hatha yoga, hot yoga, vinyasa yoga etc., competing for clientele that it is becoming progressively more difficult to know what type of yoga to choose for your particular and personal

Health

has

become

main

focal

needs. Very confusing?

point

for

women’s

newspaper sections, and on the internet home

like Yahoo,

Google,

etc.

Never

ending

magazines,

pages of providers

information

is sent

out

targeting the consumer. Most of it has become a complex confusing information overload.

Pharmaceutical actively

industries

promoting

have

their health

jumped solutions

on and

this

trend

health

and

food

are

stores

shelves are loaded with a great variety of choices confusing the public even more. It takes a determined effort to stay educated and know what is available and what is beneficial. The food industry, the pharmaceutical industry, and the medical industry are all loudly competing for the consumers’ attention

and, their dependency

on them.

Since all of these industries are

primarily interested in their own profit and financial gain, it has become difficult to know what is really in the best interest of YOU, the consumer - the client who pays for their existence. What do you think makes you FIT in the most effective and most economical way? What creates optimal HEALTH for us, the consumer? These are the questions we aim for and address in this book. Because of the confusing information overload, our goal is to appeal to your common sense and logic. And our interest is in assisting you to be motivated to become healthier and ultimately FITTER. We

believe that to achieve this we must start with love ... LOVE

THE ANSWER;

Love and respect for your body and the EARTH.

This is Sharon's story: February 14, 2003 | lost my relationship, my job, and my health, in that order all within two weeks. My world had come crashing down. | was drowning. My only light was my angel; Alix, my daughter. The

emotional,

physical,

and

mental

pain

was

unbearable. | was bedridden, couldn’t walk, or stand up. My lower back had corkscrewed in a car accident. | was

in a very dark place. At times

pity seemed

to

meet my emotional needs. My thoughts of fear, hopelessness, and despair were overwhelming. Fortunately | did know that eating healthy was key to my recovery! The question was though ‘this injury, a corkscrewed sacrum, how do | heal this?’ The western approach, physical therapy, x-rays, MRI's

— the gambit, | tried in vain, there was And the pain was unbearable at times.

no solution.

My self image was caving in. ‘Who am I?’ | asked. ‘Am | disabled?’ My now 10 year old daughter was embarrassed to walk with me. Her embarrassment came primarily from others’ looks and stares of pity. For one and a half years | couldn't walk, my sacrum was jammed, my left leg wouldn’t go back, my, heart was aching, and my desperation was growing,

IS

| needed hope. Then | stumbled across Dr. Brad Walllace a Dr of TCM. He was my hope - we started acupuncture and Chinese massage. For months three days a week | stumbled into his office. Whatever small relief | got from the treatments kept me going back. My goal was to walk again with a proper stride; however this took me three and a half years of more needles and massages. Five years into my injury | was walking pretty normal,

still in pain, but pain | could at least live with. | remember when | first met Dr. Brad and he told me ‘l was the healthiest injured person he had ever met. That filled me with pride; | never lost my belief in healthy eating. No injury could take that way. My world had come tumbling control what | ate, so | did. Ten years back. I’ve always be fully how

down,

but

| could

later | still experience weakness in my lower overcome the pain, and | will probably protective over my body, since | now know vulnerable it can be.

I've reflected on this journey and | am most grateful for my caregivers that opened doors for me, loved me, and gave me hope. But most of all I’m thankful for the gift my pain gave me being ‘present’, The ability to appreciate the moment | live in, cherish every breath | take, expand my intuitive self, and to be able to share these experiences to help others who are suffering from pain and injury. This is Arie’s story: Allow me to tell you what influenced me and really changed my life. | lived in China for almost two years. This was shortly after the Red Revolution in the 1980s. Living conditions were tough. Things like a daily shower, LIVE

FOOD

that | was

used

to, a car or motor-cycle

just weren't available. A muddy bath every two weeks that was barely warm, food that was totally foreign to

my body and a

rickety bicycle was the best they could

provide.

| was teaching at Chinese

universities.

My teaching

consisted primarily of trying to teach Chinese English teachers the methodology of motivating their students to ‘speak’ English. They had a fairly good grasp of vocabulary and grammar, but their xenophobic attitude made it difficult for them to speak it. The Chinese government was pushing hard to make connections with the outside world and was into the ‘Four Modernizations Movement.

A few other foreign teachers, which were Japanese and European, and | were invited on a trip. It was to

one of the ancient sites, an old monastery on top of a mountain. The idea was to see the moon rise in the evening and the sun in the morning. | have forgotten

the

reasons

why

we

were

invited

to do

so,

but

it

seemed like a nice break from the routine. | was

and

have

practitioner

always

been

of fitness and

Taoist exercise were

an ardent student

health.

and

Martial Arts and

the focus of my

research then.

So | was highly motivated to take this trip. We discovered when we got to the mountain that we had to climb 5,000 steps to get to this monastery. | am not sure if we actually climbed that number

of steps

or this was

monastery. What

just a ‘saying’

| do

remember

related to this

is that it took five

hours of constant climbing these stairs to get to the top. | also remembered that after every hour we had to catch our breath for a while, rest, and deal with our perspiration. Then this miracle happened.

When

we were

about

half way

a couple

of Chinese

monks would pass us. They were half naked, although it was

cold

and

windy,

they were

balancing

a stick

over their shoulder with a bag of cement in front and one in the back, and they were practically running up the stairs. | will never forget this.

Once we got to the top of the mountain | discovered how they managed to stay in such incredible shape: their diet consisted of raw fruit and vegetables, they did Taoist breathing exercises for about five minutes in the morning, and they practiced iso-muscle for several minutes early in the morning and before

sleeping

at night. And

that was

it: simple,

easy

&

gentle! Because

of

my

very

limited

Chinese

vocabulary,

and the monks not speaking any English, they had to show me their practice, demonstrate it as they attempted

to make

me

understand. That was

most

fortunate. If it had just been a verbal explanation it probably wouldn’t have made that much impact on me. Showing me did.

CHAPTER

1:

We all want to be healthier

That is just COMMON Isn't it? And

SENSE.

don’t we all?

I'm sure you can relate! And chances are pretty much everyone you know feels the same way. Just keeping in shape takes a lot of effort these days. It takes discipline and the type of ‘get-up-and-go’ that we don’t necessarily have. Regular trips to the gym, watching our calories, not over indulging, and sticking to a rigid regime of exercise and food is a challenge. We are all battling the taste buds and the consequent battle of the bulge. | can only healthier.

speak

for

myself.

But

| know

that

| sure

want

to

be

And | am pretty healthy already: haven't had a cold or any type of disease or discomfort for almost sixty years. The last time | was sick

was when

| had the mumps

as a teenager. It took three weeks of

misery, which included being forced to stay in bed while my friends were playing outside.

It probably taught me to make sure | didn’t have to go through that again. And so | didn't. But,

it has

been

a battle. And

| do wish

| was

today.

healthier then

| am

‘Why?’ You may ask. There are just so many temptations to cope with. And, each one of them had the potential of making me less healthy. Beer when | was in the navy. Then | smoked for a while because it was ‘cool’. | rolled cigarettes from very black tobacco. The blackness was more

or less an indication of how tough | was.The sissies smoked filtered

cigarettes. Not me, | had hair on my chest.

And yes, peer pressure had a lot to do with it. If you didn’t drink then you weren't really part of the ‘crowd’. And smoking added a touch of swagger, especially when you rolled your own. Today | have evolved to more refined temptations, like expensive dark chocolate truffles, or a glass of a deep aroma wine. And the peer pressure is still there. When offered to me it is usually accompanied by words like ‘Come on, drink up. Or ‘One more won't hurt’. It’s a social thing, and consequently an emotional one. It feels more comfortable to give in then to refuse. And when | overindulge | pay the price of physical discomfort, mental frustration, and emotional guilt. Peer pressure! Sound familiar? When | look at my friends | see the same pattern. To most of my women friends the battle of the extra inches seems to be never ending. The battle for everyone rages between indulging in this emotional and social comfort of just having that pleasure now, or, being ‘different’ and ‘disciplined’ , which often means to be scorned by well meaning friends and often family. For these women it is challenging to pursue the discipline that it requires to stay healthy and hopefully become healthier. And this usually means keeping the weight off. My

male friends aren’t worried

as much

about

possible tendency

towards obesity. Their concern is more about remaining as competitive as possible, on the golf course, in business or work, or just the competition of sex-appeal and virility. Back and forth we go on this battlefield. Sometimes we gain a little and sometimes we loose ground. And then comes Christmas, or Thanksgiving, or some other festivity, and back we go again. Sometimes we keep loosing ground. One of my woman friends has a cyst the size of a grapefruit on her ovaries. Another is trying to loose at least twenty pounds, although ideally it should be thirty. A very good friend of mine has prostrate problems. In my extended family a young man in his early forties is battling with kidney problems. People everywhere are seeking better health. The list goes on and on.

Come to think of it | don’t really know anybody who doesn't have at least one health concern.

When | say | would like to be healthier | am pretty sure | know what | want. My main concern is ‘more energy” | never seem to have enough of it. | live a very active life. But | frequently get exhausted. Although when | reflect on it and try to remember what it was like when | was younger | remember that | always wanted more energy. | never seemed to have enough of it. There was just so much more | always wanted to do that | just didn’t have the energy for. Jumping out of bed take on the world’ has happens these days is doing something truly that ‘fun’ with some of

in the morning and feeling like ‘ready to become too infrequent. The only time that when | take a day off and am planning on ‘fun’. And it works even better if | am doing my favorite people.

How is that for you? When | check around it seems that most people feel the same way. Healthier to me also means having more strength. Or maybe the more accurate word is ‘stamina’. Maybe aging has something to do with it but | feel lately that | don’t seem to be able to do as much. Maybe that is just a ‘state of mind’ because when | reflect about the past it seems that | always was in need of more strength to get things done. Looking around it appears that most people are always short on time. In other words they don’t get everything done on their list. So | guess they want more ‘strength’. Last but not least when | say healthier a big part of me is focused on ‘appearance’. Who doesn’t want the body-toning of an athlete and the sex appeal of a movie star? | have heard it said that athletes and movie stars train for many hours a day to keep their ‘good looks’ and ‘sex appeal’. That wouldn't be

very practical for me. As a matter of fact that would be impossible not just for me but for almost everybody | know. What

is the

answer?

Well,

read

on. This

solutions and lead you on your journey.

book

will

show

some

CHAPTER 2:

The challenges we face!?

If it wasn’t for my taste buds | would have been in perfect shape all of my life. So, why am | not? Because, my taste buds are intrinsically tied to my feeling, my emotions that in turn are tied to past experiences, memories of pleasurable but toxic food experiences. Those darned taste buds.

=

‘does

It's everybody's problem but in this North American society we live in it’s the worst. Allow me to introduce you to a few statistics related to our insatiable desire to satisfy our taste buds!

Obesity in the US is now in 2012 at about 35% of the population. In 2002 It was only about 31%. That means an increase of one percent per year. Consider this, the current population of the US is about 315 000 000, that means each year an additional 3.2 million people have become overweight. Allow me to clarify ‘obesity’: defined as more than 30% of total body fat. This 30% is not taking into account the ‘overweight’ people. Battling the bulge of the total population therefore is more like about 60% taking into consideration both obesity and overweight. Childhood obesity is at 17%. That means that in children and adolescents every fifth child is obese and at least one other child of those five is overweight with all its unfortunate consequences. And it is a logical deduction, since adult obesity is twice that amount, when they become adults the risk of becoming obese doubles. Why is this happening? What could be the possible reason? And what are the consequences of being overweight or obese? Let’s look at some other data. We know that obesity stigmatizes health in us. Here are some of the results of that obesity:

10

47% of the US population dies of heart failure. It was 42% ten years ago SO an increase of 1% per year. 27% die of Cancer. That was 22% ten years ago; an increase of 2% per year. 10% death caused by respiratory diseases. All these diseases are directly related to how the respiratory, circulatory, and digestive systems in our body operate. Since obesity is created by toxic overload, we can then conclude that all these diseases are the result of toxic overdose in the body. When the lungs are only 25% functional and 75% atrophied, when our veins are in poor shape because of toxins, and when our intestine is obstructed with plaque and parasites, then our body is in trouble. And that is directly related to our food. In other words, our choice of food in North America has created the result of a high percentage of obesity. That in turn causes these diseases and results in unnatural and painful causes of death. The good answer!

news

of course

is that it can

be corrected. There

is an

Even better news is that it is all preventable. And the best news yet is that we never even need to go there. LIVE FIT and eat LIVE FOOD results in more enjoyment of your life. And it is so easy to do if we transform GENTLY, one step at a time. That is of course the purpose of writing this book: FOODTRANSFORMG......

IME It isn’t that great a challenge if we pick the right program for both fitness and food choices. A few years back, before the last economic collapse, there was quite a lot of attention paid to child obesity. The government of Canada implemented a policy to reduce obesity in school age children. And they did it in a pretty smart way. It became policy to have children in every classroom in elementary school to do at least 40 minutes of physical exercise a day. 11

My partner and | started a magazine that published articles about schools that did a great job in implementing this fitness program. We singled out teachers that had created exciting, and new ways of implementing this fitness policy. The idea behind it of course was to motivate other teachers to copy these projects. We

realized

that the biggest challenge to implement these policies would be to assist teachers to introduce this into their classroom and make this happen.

Then we had the big economic crash. Because of budget restrictions the project practically disappeared.

So child obesity remains a big problem in North America. One of the things that influence our - especially children’s - eating habits is the manipulation by the media. Advertising of different fast foods or processed packaged foods is specifically focused on children. Influencing the population at an early age will create

habitual consumers of their products. We all know examples of this and one that stands out is the BIG M. Interesting also that because of consumer criticism and consequent publicity the BIG M Company had to change the ingredients in many of their products. The good news is that there is constant pressure and greater focus on healthy food!

Part of the focus on healthy food has been spearheaded by Dr Joel Fuhrman who has quite a following with his TV show, his books, and his diet plan. Although one of the challenges here is that he promotes a lot of supplements, pills, potions, etc. That is yet another

set of challenges we face. Who do we believe when these supplements etc.?

it comes to all

There are now so many conflicting messages sent out to the public

about health and wellness that it has become a jungle of information and we are overloaded by it. And the more we are inundated with information, the more confusing it all becomes. We would like to simplify all this. The RAW FOOD movement has all kinds of gurus and devotees. You can find them on Facebook in abundance.

The number of books focused on miracle solutions to your dietary concerns seems to be multiplying every day. Magazines, like women’s magazines especially, have a lot of focus on health tips, dietary plans, weight-loss solutions, the next quick fix, boot camps, the list is endless. 12

This multi-media inundation we are experiencing has increased the hype that has created many ‘myths’ How do we choices?

choose?

How

Well, we do have common

And that common and then FITNESS:

is what sense’. | check out LIVE FIT

do we

make

sure we

make

the

right

sense.

| am appealing to in this book ‘down to earth encourage you to please do your own research, and experiment with our program for FOOD and and LIVE FOOD.

Our book FOOD TRANSFORMS

explains the many benefits of LIVE

FOOD. And our book FITNESS TRANSFORMS explains the reasons why the right exercise is a crucial element for health. When it comes to those two, FOOD and FITNESS it is reasonable and common sense to conclude that what we want are: 1. Energy 2. Strength 3. Body Toning and good looks. | think most of us will agree that to be so. And it is quite achievable if we start GENTLY.

LOVE will guide us there.

$

"9

13

CHAPTER 3:

We know healthy food is good for us.

{ive How do we know that healthy food is better for us? One

answer

to that

question

could

Another answer could be: It makes

be:

It makes

us

healthier!

us happier. Or yet another one

might be: We feel better when we eat healthy, we feel lighter. Those are all pretty positive answers. They make sense. But we could probably summarize them in the one answer: It makes us happier. All people are in the pursuit of happiness. No question about it! Without exception that holds true. The problem is, how do we determine, define, specify what happiness is or means to different people? It varies, doesn’t it? Different sexes, different age groups, families, communities, cultures, countries, or ethnicity, these all hold different opinions about what happiness means. The answer to the

question ‘What makes you happy?’ has a huge variety of possible answers. | do believe same across to defining you happy?’

there are some common denominators that are the the various differences between people when it comes happiness. The answers to the question ‘What makes do have some similarities.

It is probably easier to determine that by paying attention to the opposite. What makes us less happy, or, better yet, what makes us unhappy? What we beyond any doubt all agree on is that when we are sick we are not happy. The experience of disease, sickness, ill health, physical discomfort of any other nature is miserable for everybody. When we turn that around what we can deduct from this is that one of the most basic requirements for happiness is that our body feels at peace, happy and strong. Does a healthy body make us happy?

14

—" . x

| think so, although probably not directly or consciously. With a healthy body | do have energy, strength, and my body is toned and supportive of my needs. When | am healthy | do feel more attractive, more at ease, and more optimistic. But | think we tend to take it for granted until such time that it becomes dis-eased, or creates discomfort for us. When we are sick or dis-eased that is when we are forced to direct our attention to self-love. Our emotions direct our thinking, so in order to acquire a happy body it probably needs our love first.

| also think that if your thinking is negative, or stinky, then we are not happy or at peace. The that we have cause to do so, us unhappy and therefore thoughts. It is a chicken/egg think stinky because we are create our unhappiness?

reason for negative stinky thinking is or so we believe. Something is making we have unhappy, negative, stinky argument in what comes first. Do we unhappy, or, does our stinky thinking

Good question and we could philosophize about that for a while. However we have found another reason for happiness: positive, upbeat thoughts!! So our mind needs to be happy. So, in order to be emotionally happy, our body and our mind to be happy and healthy.

need

We think it fair to say that our body is healthy when it is not toxic in any way. That means our body is clean. We think it is also fair to deduct that our mind is healthy when it doesn’t think toxic thoughts. So our mind

needs to be clear.

Finally we think it is fair to conclude that our emotions need to be non-toxic. So when the emotions are at peace, without any toxic turmoil, we feel happy.

CLEAN BODY = CLEAR MIND = PEACEFUL FEELING We believe it all starts with the body. And we also believe it is the easiest way to pursue our happiness. That means each one of us must make a determined effort to keep toxins out of the body.

15

And that’s where FITNESS TRANSFORMS comes in. “But,” you might say — “What about those taste-buds? Don’t they control me ---or do they?” The question is: How do we control our taste-buds? And how do we keep the toxins out of the body?

The answer we are offering is: GENTLY! Allow us to explain further. A healthy body requires lots of oxygen. Of course we take oxygen into our body from moment to moment when we breathe. Oxygen is needed for practically every human cell in our body. It is therefore at the cellular level where we create our healthy body. Every cell needs oxygen to ‘burn’ the food supply that has been delivered by our blood. In the human body, oxygen the following processes:

uptake is carried out by

Oxygen diffuses through membranes and into red blood cells after inhalation into the lungs. The heme

group (that consists of an iron) of hemoglobin binds

oxygen when it is present, changing color from bluish red to bright red. A liter of blood which

is much

hemoglobin’s

can dissolve 200 cc of oxygen

gas,

more than water can dissolve.

After being carried in blood to a body tissue in need of oxygen, O2 is handed-off to an enzyme (monooxygenase) that also has an active site with an atom of iron. The enzyme uses oxygen to catalyze many oxidation reactions in the body

(metabolism).

Carbon

dioxide,

a waste product, is released from the cell and into the blood, where it combines with bicarbonate and hemoglobin for transport to the lungs. Blood circulates back to the lungs and the process repeats. So there are waste products to be carried off by our blood. Well that carrying off might go no further than the fat on our body. Or it might get deposited somewhere where we don’t want it as in the intestine, lungs, or any of our internal or external organs. Or, it accumulates in veins and arteries as plaque. And when those toxins become too much of a burden to those organs we become dis-eased. There goes our happiness, our body is not at peace. 16

It seems obvious then that we need to keep our blood clean and free of toxins. FOOD IS THE BUILDING MATERIAL OF THE BODY. Logically then the food that is the cleanest, is the richest in oxygen, and most free of toxins is the healthiest for us.

Which FOOD is that? LIVE FOOD. And since we don't have the teeth, the mouth, or the intestine of any animal, we mean by LIVE FOOD the type of food that is most suitable for human consumption. And that is fruit, vegetables, nuts, and seeds that are fresh, and alive. All animals in nature eat LIVE FOOD. The carnivores hunt and eat their prey immediately. Herbivores graze from living plants, shrubs, and trees. Omnivores eat a combination of both including the living organism of the process of decaying. Insectivores gather living insects. So what are we? Humans are by nature frugivores. Frugivores eat fruit, vegetables, nuts, and seeds. And, originally all Earth’s creatures ate from what light, air, water, and soil produced. Then people discovered another element: fire. That changed everything not just for people but for the Earth and our planet’s many other living organisms. People could now

live in environments

that were

not

naturally theirs

because

they could keep warm, and they discovered that they could cook. Today our typical way of eating is the end result of using and misusing that element: FIRE. As

naturally frugivorous

beings

to find our ‘natural’ LIVING

it has

FOOD.

become

very

challenging

Fresh, organic, local fruit and

vegetables are not that easily accessible. become progressively more necessary.

Growing

your own

has

Clean, non-toxic food and clean air is essential for our health and happiness. Although we do need one more ingredient to make sure that LIVE FOOD and clean oxygen keep us healthy. And that is: proper EXERCISE! Notice the word proper. That means that the exercise in order not to create toxins in the body because of stress, anxiety, strenuousness, or over-exertion, needs to be efficient and preferably pleasurable. That is where we recommend to you our LIVE FIT program.

17

Heart

BODY MAP

i

R

L

Lungs/Oxygen in take

Oxygen

Arteries a All cells in our physical body receive oxygen and food from our blood. Food

-_» |

Then waste products are returned to the heart in order for the blood to be replenished.

Small intestine Veins

Waste products

Arrows show the flow of blood from the heart through the arteries and veins. The heart pumps it first through the lungs to pick up oxygen. Next it picks up nutrition/food from the intestine. .

18

CHAPTER 4:

On the next explain it.

page

What is stopping us?

you

find

a diagram.

Please

refer to it while

|

The question ‘What is stopping us’ from eating healthy in order to improve our chances of happiness’ can be worded ‘What is causing us not to eat healthy?’ That is the question | am addressing in the diagram. What and how we breathe in order to get the proper amount of oxygen, and what and how we eat in order to take in the proper building blocks for our body is a choice we have to make almost from moment to moment. Often we make the wrong choice. And if we habitually make the wrong choice our body becomes highly toxic and the venous system collapses. There is a saying ‘we are only as old as our veins’. Or, ‘we are as young as our veins are healthy’. That’s it in a nutshell. The choices we make are mostly habitual and those habits put us on automatic operation. The only thing that can change this automatic, habitual behavior is our attitude, our emotions, our taste-buds at the moment of choice. If we are certain about our commitment to eat as healthy as possible it is easy to make choices. When we are certain, it is just a matter of which

fits our rationale, our budget,

our needs

best. On the other

hand, if we have even the slightest doubt about whether or not this is really healthy for us, then we trigger an inner dialogue, or even argument, inside our head. We argue for and against, the pros and the cons, reasons for why we should, and reasons for why we shouldn't. And if that doubt remains even after we have made a choice, then that doubt will stay and eventually creates irritation. If we have made a choice from certainty then we automatically invite the feeling of gratitude for making the right choice. That certainty triggers all kinds of wonderful feelings. We will be inclined to experience the warmth of compassion not only for our own body and consequent happiness, but also for our family if they share our diet and meals.

19

The

wonderful

thing

is that

if we

constantly

operate

from

that

certainty then those healing feelings of compassion turn into joy and we are at peace with ourselves. Current research has proven how those types of feelings actually influence, and not just our physical body at a cellular level, but it also influences our thinking and our feelings. It steadies our thinking and clears our mind resulting in peace. When we are in that space we are open for more of the same. And, because we are clear in our mind, and at peace in our emotions, we cannot be swayed into doubt. We will question, and then research, or study, or investigate. But we won't be swayed or manipulated. Instead we are in control and self-reliant. The opposite happens when we are in doubt. We know, inside ourselves, that a better choice could have been made. However either habitual taste-bud gratification, social pressure, or the media hype has made the choice for us.

2

20

++++++++Clear questions Certainty

research

MIND MAP ¢——__—.

DECISIONS

info overload

—------»_

conffusion

ATTITUDE Argument (inner)

Agreement (inner)

(I)irritation

Gratitude

40% Anger

LOVE

Habitual behaviour

JOY

Fear

PEACE

Shame

ACTION

SELF RELIANT/independent

DEPENDENCY

A

Vv

EXERCISE

30% CHOICE

CHOICE MEDIA

SELF CONTROL

aad.

FOOD

A

MANIPULATED

EL the building material)

26% »

A

yr

OXYGEN

Al

Ri.

the essential catalyst)

10% The graph

shows what drives us to make

a choice about what to

eat.

When we allow ourselves to go into doubt mode it will trigger irritation. We will tell ourselves, or others, that ‘We should have’ or ‘could have’ or ‘would have’ done something different and ‘better’.

21

For example, assume we want to keep our weight down, keep the fat off, stay in shape. Now we bought a food item that tastes wonderful. The media assured us that it is good for us, and a friend that might be coming over would be happy to share it with you — if you had chosen a healthier alternative those friends would not share it with you, or worse, they would make fun of you. For example the other night my daughter made a salad as a bedtime snack when she had a friend over. The next morning her friend made fun of her choice. | was proud of her and my daughter said she felt great. Yes,

doubt

anger with them

invites

irritation.

If it becomes

habitual

ourselves, the friends, the media,

it will

create

and we will blame

all for our weakness.

The fear of not being able to break that adding instead of loosing weight, is sure and guilt gets hold of our emotions. Those the opposite effect of healing emotions. ourselves.

habit, and consequently to follow. Finally shame negative emotions have We created a ‘trap’ for

That trap is exactly where companies and organizations benefit; they will try to keep you there. | think we all know which companies and organizations | am referring to. However let me refresh your memory and allow me to name them for you: 1.

The food industry that engineered food products

produces

processed

2.

Industry that markets meant to consume

3.

The pharmaceutical industry that sells the enormous array of medical pills, potions, etc.

4.

The medical industry since they would business if everyone ate LIVE FOOD

5.

Industries that create a vast array of supplements that are not healthy and can’t be assimilated

food that our bodies

be

or

are not

out

of

If you would try to figure out how much money there is at stake for these industries then you can see why ‘trapping you’ is not only beneficial but essential to their survival. It will not happen that the entire population will to LIVE FOOD. If that happened it would create for a lot of families. However | do believe that a happening. More and more people are becoming that: 22

suddenly change a lot of hardship transformation is aware of the facts

1.

LIVE FOOD

is the way to health and happiness

2.

LOVE and appreciation for their own body is essential to health

3.

The EARTH can be a LIVE FOOD

healthy planet with LIVE FIT and

One of the ‘traps’ that the media create - through the influence and finance of the benefitting industries - is called ‘misinformation’ or ‘myths’. These myths are constantly created and reinforced by the media. 1.

Not enough

protein in plant LIVE FOOD

2.

Not enough LIVE FOOD

3.

Not enough calcium in LIVE FOOD

or the

right type

of carbohydrates

in

All you need to do is do your research. The internet provides us with constant and updated information about the quality of LIVE FOOD. What you will find out is that not only is there enough protein in plant based food but the quality — as in simple protein — is much more suited to your body’s nutritional needs. And the same applies to carbohydrates and calcium. Plant based food provides simple protein and carbohydrates that are easy to process by our cells. Processed, cooked and industrially manipulated food as well as any type of meat has complex protein and carbs. These are difficult, challenging, and create waste products when processed by the cells in our body. Mind you the truth has never stopped those who want to trap and manipulate. And of course the younger generation is the main target for manipulation because they need to become habitual — as in ‘trapped’ — buyers. The big industries need to lock them in at an early age. Our youth is simply not educated about simple proteins, complex carbohydrates, toxins, etc. That is why they are an easy target for the media. The good news is that it is not that hard to get out of the ‘trap’. And we all live in a ‘trap’ to a certain extent. | still crave dark it. When | see taste-buds put loose? Simply:

chocolate. And | dark high quality up one heck of a taste is driven by

have to admit that | am still buying chocolate truffles on display my fight. And often | loose. Why do | emotions.

23

The great thing is that when | actually taste and eat that chocolate it doesn’t even taste that great. So you see it is primarily an emotional attachment that triggers my taste-buds. And | know why. When my mother was still alive it was one of those delightful sharing moments we had when we tasted those truffles with our coffee. We both loved dark chocolate truffles. Manipulation at an emotional level works best. That is why fear is a

great motivator. And manipulation through fear is the backbone of the pharmaceutical medicine industry.

The good news, again, is, it can be done. We can get out of the trap. But we need to use the right emotional motivation.

24

CHAPTER

5:

What will motivate us?

Love is the answer! Love, respect, appreciation for our own life! And your life starts, and ends, with your physical respect, appreciate your body!!!! It’s that simple.

body. So, love,

Why then do we make it so complex, so complicated? We so much take it for granted, our body! And our body needs to be loved in gratitude for serving us all our life. And that is in spite of the fact that we abuse it consistently. With toxic air, toxic food, toxic thoughts, and toxic feelings we bombard our body, ourselves, with stress. The most harmful part is that we don’t take responsibility. We allow doubt to create blame. Most of the time we externalize that blame. Circumstances, other people, our situation are to be blamed. Those, or they, are the cause of our doubt. And that’s the real ‘trap’. And that is exactly what the media advertising wants us to buy into, and, to accept as ‘truth. How many times do we hear ‘they ‘said to do this, or, ‘ they’ said to do that? Who are ‘they’? The saddest part of all? Who do you think are the people who are ‘policing’ this trap, who are ‘promoting ‘this trap, who will ‘frown on you’, ‘ridicule’ you for moving out of this trap and stepping out of this trap-box? The people who are most inclined to enforce this trap, who want to make sure that you stay well inside that trap, are those who are most solidly entrapped themselves. Those who are totally manipulated

25

want you to be manipulated. People who completely buy in to the spin, blindly accept the myths of the advertising by the food, pharmaceutical, and medical industry giants, they will put pressure on you to stay trapped. The trap of habitual behavior is like an addiction. We all can relate to this. We all are trapped in some way. We can be trapped in our relationship, our job, our social circle, our community, or our excuses for ‘why we don’t feel well’, or, ‘why we don’t have energy’. How do we escape that trap? Love is the answer! Love yourself enough to rely on your common sense, your own research and search for the truth. The award will be a longer happier peaceful life. Longevity has been researched extensively. And although there have been different findings there is one thing that the researchers agreed upon: ‘Live a healthy lifestyle’. And that LIVESTYLE consists

of the following: Develop a positive attitude Se

Eat a mainly plant based diet Have a Spiritual practice that gives you peace Be active physically and mentally Be part of a loving community/family

There you have it. We can sum it up in one sentence: happiness makes us live longer. HOW

DO WE

MANAGE TO TRANSFORM?

The answer to that is in this book: GENTLY! !!!

26

Health and

Whatever we love deeply, we treat gently. Our most beloved, our baby, our pet, our favorite plant, our revered toy, whatever it may be, we treat it gently. Therefore let us treat our body gently! What

GENTLY

means

here is:

DAM

PF WNP

Not to challenge beyond our ability to accept change To take it one step at a time

Add desired behavior and make it habitual Avoid fighting unwanted

habits

To make it as pleasurable and acceptable as possible To always reward progress

oN

To address the specific needs at that moment Journal the experience

How do we apply that to LIVE FOOD? Let us apply the seven points to our eating habits. 1.

Don’t attempt to go ‘cold turkey’. Drastically trying to change habitual behavior is very difficult. Just look at the various addiction programs. Most people who try will give up. It is guaranteed to make you miserable so it doesn’t work as motivation. The only time it works from my experience and observation is when it has become a life-and-death struggle of survival. And then you need a strong support network and environment to help one through this struggle. Don’t change your entire diet over night to LIVE FOOD.

2.

That takes us to the next step which is ‘take one step at a time’. In food that means start snacking on healthy, LIVE FOOD snacks. Fruit, nuts, seeds, or even some veggies like small carrots are ideal. The constant snacking will make you less hungry when meal time comes and you are facing the habitual eating habits of less healthy or dead/toxic food.

3.

Next introduce healthy snacks as appetizers or desserts to the main meals. And make that habitual, that is most

important.

or desire to eat much

Again,

it will reduce

hunger

of the less desirable and

less

healthy habitual food we are used to. This also helps to introduce LIVE FOOD to the family or friends or whoever you share meals with. 27

4.

Remember that it is all about the taste-buds and habitual cravings. | still have the problem of dark chocolate and coffee. So | have a piece or a cup when the craving gets strong. The amazing thing is that after a nibble or a sip it doesn’t taste that great anymore. The fact that | have programmed my body to like healthy LIVE FOOD is helping me to get rid of my craving for chocolate and coffee. So whatever your taste-buds still crave satisfy that craving but cut down to progressively smaller portions. Eventually those craving will disappear. | guarantee it!

5.

Not only choose snacks, appetizers and desserts that are healthy, but make them look as tasty and appealing as possible. Presentation really helps to motivate eating it. Especially when it comes to appetizers

and

desserts,

decorate

them

up

with

flowers, dips, or whatever you can create to make it look and taste great. Of course snacks are a little trickier, do the best you can. 6.

7.

It’s been a long time since | started LIVE FOOD. And very seldom am | 100% LIVE FOOD devotee. | remember times that | was tempted to veer too far of course. Usually that was around Christmas when parties and invitations by friends to share meals were abundant. So when January came with my good intentions | would reward myself for getting back to healthy LIVE FOOD meals. And the reward would be something different than food: A purchase of a gift for myself, a break from the routine, or an experience like a concert with a friend, or tickets to a game, anything that would be slightly out of the ordinary. It worked for me. | think rewarding desired behavior works for everybody. That includes my cat. “Specific needs’ goes back to not making a battle out of our LIVEFOOD transformation. When we make drastic dietary changes it makes our body react. And when we suddenly change to LIVE FOOD, or from ‘inactivity’ we practice LIVE FIT intensely, we invite a healing crisis. The body suddenly starts cleansing and eliminating whatever toxins we have accumulated.

Healing crisis can be very uncomfortable. We could start eliminating through diarrhea, sweating, sinus 28

discharge, mucus coughing, and even vomiting. None of these are very pleasant. This is not motivating us

to continue. Usually it is accompanied by headaches, nausea, perspiration, even dizziness. GENTLY

means

to

restlessness,

avoid

reduce their impact. We

healing

insomnia, crisis

or

at

and least

still need to detoxify but it

can be done slowly and gently over a longer period

of time. What was created over a

life time of habitual

eating cannot be undone or rectified quickly without putting us into a crisis situation.

Specific needs means that everybody’s body is different and lifestyle has created uniquely individual physical conditions. So address your personal dietary needs according to taste.

8.

That is why journaling is so important! Journaling

creates

a

dialogue

with

your

own

body. The type of journaling that works best is created by writing your positive experiences. Avoid a motivational is attempting

forget our

journey. And the same

positive

share

journey. We

experiences.

it with whoever tend

to quickly

It is amazing

how

quickly we also take things for granted. Writing in your

journal

is like a memory

substitute. The Journaling

can be very simple: two or three words, point form, sketchy ....... What matters is that it will retrigger you

into remembering the wonderful experiences.

One of the effects of eating LIVE FOOD, especially if it is combined with LIVE FIT lifestyle, is that we will feel much lighter. This often panics people. They are used to heavy meals and feeling full in order to feel satisfied. When they feel light and not quite full — stuffed is probably a better word — they might feel that they just didn’t get enough.

And

the major focus. LIVE FOOD

in our society

quantity

has

become

is about quality that makes

us light,

energetic, strong, and makes us move lightly. Tiredness and feeling heavy are closely related.

What makes us feel tired is the acidity in our body. Low oxygen level creates that acidity. And the wrong choice of food adds to that

29

acidity. While LIVE FOOD is very high in oxygen and alkaline. The chart below shows the increase of acidity and decrease of alkalinity. Alkalinity

Food Choice

Acidity

low

A high

y

Meat products

Highly toxic and dead

Processed/cooked

Toxic and dead

Raw plant-based

Healthy

LIVE FOOD plant based

Clean and healthy

high

low

It seems logical then that we are meant to eat plant based LIVE FOOD. Acidity creates diseases. Alkalinity is good because there is no disease

associated

with

it and

excess

can

be stored

for future

use. Nature meant for us to eat alkaline food. Our teeth, our intestine, our mouth, our stomach, are very different than those of animals whether carnivore, herbivore, or omnivore. Our teeth and intestine are ideally suited for fruit, nuts, seeds, and young plants. It is interesting that the Chimpanzee’s anatomy comes closest to ours. And they are primarily frugivorous.

—

Another animal that has great similarities to us, their DNA of diseases they attract are virtually the same as humans are used on a large scale for medical scientific research, are physically as different from humans as is possible, they have one major thing in common with humans, they same diet as humans are meant to eat, is: the Fruit-Fly.

1.

Incisors for biting and cutting

ss

“2.

Canines for tearing and piercing

3. Molars for chewing

©7

and qrinding

30

and types and they but they however, have the

CARNIVORES:

a

Be

MOLARS

HERBIVORES:

INCISORS

HORNY Pap

CANINES

MOLARS

OMNIVORES: am

_ MOLARS

LF me ee me

%

-

| —Oe

‘‘

{eo

ey

a

~

:

CANINES

Eating LIVE FOOD will make us feel lighter. Eating the food that our body is meant to eat, because that is what our anatomy is designed for, will make us feel light. We are not typically used to feeling light. Often we relate being full to being heavy. So the feeling of ‘lightness’ will take a while to get used to. So feeling light is good, very good, and most healthy. A smile is light, a compliment is light, a reassuring hand on our shoulder is light, and a loving gentle touch is light. Sunlight creates all life on Earth. Nothing will grow without light and love. Love

is the answer.

And love is light, enlightening, and delightful.

31

> Mole

(Jalpa europaea) Body length: 14 cm

Fr

-_

Dog

Pig

(Canis familiaris) Body length: 90 cm

(Sus scrofa)

Body length: 125 cm

=

cern

aa =

8

et Rabbit

Pony

Body length: 48 cm

(Equus cabailus) Body length: 164 cm

(Oryctolagus cuniculus)

Sheep (Ovis aries) Body length: 110 cm

Stomach

human

32

33

CHAPTER 6:

The recommended steps 1 to 3

‘Start by doing what's necessary; then do what's possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.’ (Francis of Assisi) ‘The person who starts alone can start today; but who travels with another must wait till that other is ready.’ (Henry David Thoreau) These are two of my favorite quotes by two of my favorite people. | like to believe that both of them would have strongly supported LIVE FOOD and LIVE FIT if they were living today. From my experience movement towards LIVE FOOD is usually started by women. And that makes a lot of sense considering that the inclination to be nurturing and nourishing is natural in women. Usually the transformation to LIVE FOOD starts with one individual. That also makes sense since every transformation is a very personal and individual experience. Mind you | have found that when men attempt to transform to LIVE FOOD, and they cannot get there partner to join, it becomes a very difficult battle for them. However | have experienced it happening. It takes a very strong man to manage that. And | definitely am not referring to ‘macho’ strength. On that note here is a quote from Eleanor Roosevelt: ‘Do what you feel in your heart to be right — for you'll be criticized anyway.’

7s? ITs

S

Well that applies very much to LIVE FOOD and LIVE FIT. If, or better yet, when you are researching and discovering the many benefits of LIVE FOOD for your health and happiness, but also for the EARTH and all its inhabitants, creatures, and living organisms, 34

then you will feel in your heart that this is ‘right’. Be prepared for criticism. All those who attempt to trap us in habitual unhealthy behavior have strongly influenced people. Not only will your need to transform be criticized but most likely it will be ridiculed. So be it. GENTLY works. And

LOVE

is the answer.

Here are practical suggestions about how to start. We recommend a series of gentle steps that are easy to implement and might just reduce criticism and ridicule. The steps work for you but also, and maybe even more so, for the family.

STEP 1 Drink alkaline water often during the day. You can research these on line but here are some the best known benefits:

1.

Alkaline water neutralizes acidity

2.

It supports pH balance

3.

Optimizes detoxification enzymes

4.

Promotes healthy weight loss

of

| only recommend this when you are starting a LIVE FOOD program.

And

if you

that you

combine

it with a LIVE

will be detoxifying

is very

FIT program high.

then the chance

It doesn’t

matter

much

how GENTLY you introduce the LIVE FOOD diet - keeping in mind that this affects us at a cellular level - these waste products will be eliminated and they can only be eliminated by entering the blood-

stream. | recommend drinking small quantities of alkaline water frequently during the day. This will help to reduce the acidity of the detoxifying

process in your body. This will also help to reduce the impact of a healing crisis. And that can only assist you in staying motivated to continue your transformation.

Once

you

are into a regular

LIVE

FOOD

program

of fruit, nuts,

seeds, and vegetable meals, your food is primarily alkaline so the

need for alkaline water is drastically reduced. As a matter of fact the need to drink water might almost entirely disappear. | have often heard from my clients that they find it hard to believe how their

35

need been

to drink water affected.

has decreased

while their elimination

has

not

It makes sense to drink a lot of water when the body is very toxic and the food we eat highly acidic. In that case drinking several glasses of water a day is somewhat beneficial. Once you are on LIVE FOOD the need to drink water is eliminated. There is already plenty of water in the LIVE FOOD you eat. Potential health problems start when the body pH balance shifts to below 7.2. The process of acidosis occurs and the result is inflammation. At a cellular level the cells are strained severely to remain ‘normal.’ Excess acid is problematic for the body. This creates stress and ‘disease’. Excess alkaline in the body is simply stored for future need. But the main thing is to keep balance and in this case pH balance. Everything in moderation is the GENTLE way. Small quantities of alkaline water often during the day is the most moderate and effective way.

STEP 2 Add herbal tea, like rooibos or green tea, and fresh fruit juices to your diet. Pretty well all of these liquids are alkalizing in nature. So that is a good thing. On top of that the teas and juices have

many

antioxidants.

Most

important teas

and juices are liquid and it takes little effort for the stomach and intestine to break them down. The small intestine — where most of our nutritional elements are absorbed by the blood — has immediate access

to the nutrition. Make the juice from fresh fruit of course. And make it taste as delicious as possible to motivate habitual use. Also it is important to vary the types of fruit you use. Nature provides abundantly for Our nutritional needs. However, the abundance is distributed over a large variety of plants, fruits, nuts, and seeds so it is important to create variation.

When you have specific nutritional needs then research it on line. | encourage you to Google it as information is readily available. | do caution answers are

you not to make your research too complex. The truly really simple when it comes to health and 36

happiness. However the more complexity there is the more confusion is created. The more confusion there is the more people will experience doubt and become easier to be manipulated. We know who benefits from that. So implement the KISS method — Keep It Simple Stupid.

STEP 3 Introduce the ‘blessings’ of smoothies.

What a wonderful blessing they are! Here is where technology is a true gift. When we introduce smoothies we move toward more

intake of LIVE FOOD. The wonderful thing about the smoothies is that they are close to liquid, broken down already for the stomach and small intestine to assimilate. They are rich in fiber and we can make them as tasty as we want. We

can

mix and

match

nuts, seeds, fruit, and

veggies

all at once.

Don’t worry about the myth of food mixing because none of it applies when the blender has already broken it down for us. There is such a variety we can create. There is already lots of literature available about smoothies and how they can meet varying nutritional needs. For pure cleansing | recommend a mono-smoothie that consists of only one type of fruit. Apples and grapes have the most cleansing properties. Make a smoothie from just apples or grapes and drink it first thing in the morning and last before retiring and sleeping. That is when they have the greatest impact. However be prepared that they will create potentially strong healing crisis. When that happens you can either slow down to ease the discomfort it creates, or go all out and cleanse. Just be prepared to rest a lot and experience the body detoxifying. 37

Another wonderful benefit of smoothies is that they are so easy to make, can substitute a meal, help with body toning and weight loss, and take very little time to prepare. It is therefore one of the easiest ways to get the rest of the family involved in the LIVE FOOD transformation. Last, but not least, we can in essence meet all our nutritional needs through smoothies. And, remember the eight points to motivate us, it covers the first 6 points of ‘implementing it GENTLY’. a

38

CHAPTER 7:

Steps 4 to6

STEP 4 Create and add salads

Salads are next because they are also easy implement. | would recommend the following:

to

=

YY

Start with fruit salads Next do green salads garnished with some fruit

Then do mainly green salads And last make salads that are green with additional root, stem, and flower veggies

lots

of

Because fruit salads are the tastiest and can be presented in the most attractive way | recommend starting with those. The easiest would be to make them part of lunch or breakfast. Then they could be appetizer for the main meal. When we make it an appetizer it reduces the need for much food during the main meal and helps to cut down on the type of food that might be less healthy. Green salad for breakfast is challenging recommend it at first. Green salads for lunch or as appetizer for the main meal, is an excellent idea. And the greens can be introduced and added slowly and gently. Add whatever makes it more tasty or presentable. It is still an early stage of transformation so what it tastes and looks like is important.

so

| don't

Once you get used to salad mixtures of fruit and veggies start moving towards just greens and eliminate the fruit. This does make it easier for the digestive system. Add fresh herbs, tomatoes, avocado, green or red peppers for color and taste.

39

4.

The best green salad nutritionally is the one that is made up of all parts of a plant: root, stem, leaf, and flower. This creates lots of opportunity for variety and really helps in the presentation as it makes it colorful and appealing. Typical root are beets and carrots. Stem are celery or broccoli stalk. Leaf of course creates the greatest abundance of choice and remains the main part of the green salad. Flower would be broccoli or cauliflower. And then there are combinations of stem and leaf like cabbage, Brussels sprouts.

Choose according to taste and nutritional needs. There is plenty of information available on line in terms of nutritional characteristics of different vegetables. STEP 5 The main meal challenge The challenge depends a lot on what you are used to. The typical American diet might be the starting point. That usually consists of meat, staple, vegetable. All of them cooked or fried of course. If you have followed the recommendations mentioned in STEP 1 to 4, then chances are portions have been drastically reduced.

Imagine having had a fruit appetizer and a salad as part of the main meal. That doesn’t leave much room for meat, staple, and cooked vegetables. The cooked vegetables are the first one to target towards LIVE FOOD. Depending on how they were cooked before, move towards progressively less cooking time. Stir fry, preferably in water, and steaming are the easiest way to do that. Progressively reducing the time to stir fry or steam brings the vegetables closer to being LIVE. Add flavoring to your heart’s content when you start. Of course | recommend the type of flavoring you do your self, which is fresh, live, and made just prior to consumption.

Z 40

| use a combination

of:

Lemon

Fresh herbs of any variety

Lime

Organic cold pressed olive oil

Avocado

Organic Tamari sauce

Beet

Apple-cider vinegar

Coconut

Umeboshi

Celery

Miso paste

paste or vinegar

Staple is the next to be replaced. This is more challenging as there is limited choice. The Paderno Company makes a kitchen gadget that produces spiraled beets, turnips, zucchini, or apple, or sweet potato. | haven’t been able to use the spiraler with any great success to replace staple with anything other than those five. In the typical American diet there isn’t much variety in the staple either as there is potato, rice or other grain, or pasta.. In LIVE

FOOD

staple, the best we can do is to create a number

of

different dressings, spreads, and flavorings. There are a myriad of choices available on line although most of them move away from LIVE FOOD. As far as | am concerned if your breakfast and lunch are already LIVE FOOD then the desire for a large main meal with a substantial serving of staple is drastically reduced. | make pasta substitutes by grinding soaked almonds or other nuts, to a paste. Or | use sprouts as a main staple. However the need for me to do so is very small since | eat LIVE FOOD and my food portions are getting progressively smaller. Also | try to avoid being fanatic about LIVE FOOD. | have yet to be 100% on LIVE FOOD. At the present | vary between 90 to 97%. And that is good enough as far as |am concerned. | feel happy, am healthy, and love life. What more to achieve? Love

is the answer!

rMel ive When it comes to replacing meat, | don’t go there. If | do have a strong craving for it | get some fresh, local, wild fish and steam it. It not only satisfies the craving but it reinforces that it doesn’t taste anywhere near as good as | had imagined. So | happily go back to plant based LIVE FOOD. 41

There are numerous recipes on the internet or in various books. Just

look at the reference list at the end of this book to find resources. Whatever it takes, keep it tasting wonderful, present it in the most beautiful way, and make it as close to LIVE FOOD as possible. STEP 6 Party time with dessert of LIVE FOOD

Amazingly easy to create LIVE FOOD desserts, just serve fruit in all its marvelous variations. Add dips, spreads, sauces, flavorings preferably all made from raw food and you are done.

Delicious smoothies or pastries from raw food can be part of it.

LIVE FOOD

or

It is by far the easiest way also to get people interested in LIVE FOOD. People are turned on by pleasing the taste-buds, and showing how easy it is to prepare LIVE FOOD. The additional benefits of health and LIVE FOOD being most economical will keep people interested. In the

Reference

section

there

are

a number

of on-line

resources

for recipes. We don’t want to provide recipes in this book. Our purpose is primarily to motivate you to at least attempt to get into LIVE FOOD. Once you have seriously tried LIVE FOOD, the many benefits of LIVE FOOD will keep you there. And if you really become a LIVE FOOD advocate you will spread the word. And that can only benefit all of us. Food is the building material of our body, mind, and emotions. Love makes LIVE FOOD the right choice.

42

43

re

CHAPTER 8: