Throughout this book, I’ve encouraged you to do a five-week challenge and follow the principles I’ve outlined for (at least) five weeks in a row. This will give your body a chance to flush out some toxins, soak in some nutrients, and begin all kinds of healing
processes. Five weeks is usually long enough to notice some big changes.
So, what happens after the five-week mark? Great question.
At that point, I strongly encourage you to keep going…and going.
Forever. Don’t revert back to your old way of eating and living. Keep riding the wave of momentum you’ve created these last five weeks.
Keep eating real food. Keep drinking nutrient-dense juices, at least one glass per day. Keep detoxifying your body with coffee enemas, keep on scraping your tongue, doing lymph massage and other gentle forms of detoxification. Keep taking your supplements, if you need them. You might not.
After five weeks, I have clients who tell me they want to incorporate a small amount of organic eggs, dairy, or even meat back into their diet. There’s no dietary or nutritional reason to do so, but if you really feel you want to, then that’s OK. Just make sure that your animal sources are clean and healthy. I have others who want to keep things strictly plant-based. That’s OK, too. I have some clients who tell me they really miss pickles or kimchee, or healthy bread made with spelt, or some other specific type of food, and they want to add that back into their diet. That’s fine.
I’ve noticed that most people want to maintain the positive changes they’ve made and want to stay completely away from heavily
processed food.
“I feel so much better now, it’s unbelievable,” a client recently told me. “Putting crappy food into my body just isn’t an option
anymore.”
Most of my clients just “feel different” about food. They tell me things like:
“I shop differently now. I really pay attention to where my food comes from.”
“I’ve started going to the farmer’s market with my kids every Saturday, and it’s become one of our favorite family rituals.”
“I used to eat so quickly, sitting in front of my computer or the TV, and now I’ve slowed down so much. I can actually taste my food.
The whole experience feels so much better.”
“I buy everything organic now. I used to think it didn’t matter, but now I realize how much it does.”
“I feel like I’m setting a better example for my kids. I know they’re going to grow up with healthy eating habits, unlike I did. I feel proud that I’m creating a better future for them.”
Who knows where you’ll be, and what you’ll feel like, five weeks from today? I’m excited for you to find out.
If you haven’t started yet, start now. Even if it’s 10:00 or 11:00 p.m., it’s not too late to do something kind for your body today. Do five minutes of stretching. Make a glass of juice. Give yourself a
massage to wake up your lymph system. Take ten minutes to chop some veggies for lunch tomorrow. You don’t have to wait until tomorrow or next week or Monday to upgrade your life.
Creating Your Whole Health Plan
We all know that cigarettes are toxic, but spending too many hours in your office chair? Just as bad. In fact, some researchers are
saying that “sitting is the new smoking.”
Most people here in North America sit at a desk for six to ten hours a day. As a culture, we’ve become incredibly sedentary, and this carries so many consequences for our health. A sedentary lifestyle is directly connected to chronic diseases like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, many types of cancer, and obesity.
And then, there’s our stress levels. I feel stressed just thinking about stress!
This last year, in particular, I had to work really hard to keep my stress levels in check. Between running my two restaurant locations, opening six additional locations, preparing for a major TV
appearance (competing on the reality TV show, Dragon’s Den),
creating this book plus a salad dressing cookbook, opening a brand- new wellness retreat center in British Columbia, giving my first TEDx talk, and managing the daily demands of being a wife and mom…
whoa. It’s been a wild ride.
I’m super-passionate about my work, which is a good thing, but too much of a good thing can be overwhelming. Like so many people, I have workaholic tendencies that I need to monitor closely and rein in.
So, why are we talking about sitting, smoking, and stress? Because for this final section of Eat Real to Heal, we’re stepping outside of the kitchen. We’re going beyond food. We’re going to talk about the other components that make up a healthy lifestyle—your Whole Health Plan—which includes movement/exercise, stress-relief techniques, detoxifying your home environment, learning how to navigate the health care system as an informed, empowered, and savvy patient, and writing your own prescription for optimal health.
Yes, what you eat is important. I’d argue that changing your diet is
the single most important change you can make. But there’s a lot we need to consider, beyond food. So, let’s dive in!
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