Think Natural

Think Natural

The most important rule you need to learn about good nutrition is to choose foods that are natural, such as fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts, and lean meats

Natural means that the food is as close to its original state as possible and has not been or is only minimally processed. On the show, trainer Jillian Michael's often told us to think of it like this: when you choose a food item, does it have a mother or does it come from the ground? If the answer is yes, great. If not, don’t eat it.

Why is this important? Your body functions at its best when nourished by natural foods. If you eat foods that have been chemically or otherwise altered, your body doesn’t know how to properly process it. Did you know that many people are undernourished? It’s not because they don’t eat, but because they eat lousy fake food that does not properly feed their bodies.

Our bodies are efficient at healing themselves with the right foods. The more natural you eat, the less often you are sick. Americans are among the sickest people in the world. I believe it comes back to our diet. Many people in our country eat frequently at fast-food restaurants. All that preservative-filled food could be sending us to an early grave. It’s time to stop eating fast food. Let’s drive past the drive-thru.

I recently met a lady who had ovarian cancer ten years ago. She was diagnosed when the cancer was in stage III or IV, and she was told she had only a few months to live. She immediately had surgery, and the doctors removed as much of the cancer as they could. She was supposed to start chemotherapy right away, but she refused the treatment. She told the doctor, “Thanks, but no thanks,” and instead made some radical changes to her diet.

She started eating only foods that were all natural. She juiced fruits and vegetables, which naturally boosted her immune system with a ton of vitamins and minerals. You know what happened? She started getting better even without chemotherapy. Today, this lady is alive and healthy. I think about myself. When I started the program, I had a fatty liver, an enlarged heart, was prediabetic and, of course, grossly overweight. After only six weeks of working out regularly and eating natural foods, all my vitals were turned around (though I still needed to lose more weight). It’s amazing what the right foods will do to your body.

Below is a list of foods Amy and I regularly eat that have helped us lose weight and keep it off. As you can see, these are all natural. Appendix B offers a more comprehensive shopping list that we use to choose our meals and snacks. We also provide you a seven-day meal plan in appendix C, but for most of the “Challenge,” you will be responsible for planning your own meals.