22 RULES YOU MUSTN’T BREAK
1. Eat more plants and less of everything else
I HAVE one simple guideline: I don’t eat anything produced from or by something that has a face.
2. Nobody ever plans to fail — people just fail to plan
SELECTING healthy, life-giving foods for each of your three meals a day is possible, but just like any lasting change, it requires planning. It requires effort.
3. Eat more, weigh less
FOLLOWING a plant-based diet fights fat around the waistline. That’s because plant foods are much denser in nutrients but lighter in calories. The American Cancer Society found that men and women who ate 19 or more servings of vegetables a week did not develop muffin tops or love handles, while those who ate meat more than seven times a week did.
4. Water is life fuel
WATER kick-starts your metabolism and helps you feel full before a meal.
5. Protect your heart
PLAQUE has been identified in the hearts of children as young as five, and a sizeable amount of build-up has been detected in the arteries of teens — the result of diets high in saturated fat and cholesterol. Plant-based living, and lots of dark leafy greens, is the key to preventing — and even reversing — heart disease.
6. Take care of your mind
WHAT we put into our mouth makes a big difference to our brain health. To slash your risk of dementia, eat plenty of whole grains, legumes and fresh fruits and vegetables.
7. Fasting for health and longevity
HAVE dinner at 6pm and breakfast later the next day, say 10am. By following this timetable, you have a 16-hour gap of potential fat-burning between meals and it will help your body stay naturally thin and fit.
8. Think about the Earth before you eat
BECOME a ‘locavore’ — someone who, wherever possible, eats only food grown locally, thereby reducing carbon footprint and the use of chemical preservatives.
9. Love food that loves you back
BY the middle of this century, scientists say one in three people globally will have diabetes. Once you understand the implications for health, you won’t mind trading junk food for salads or cutting out fizzy drinks and simple carbohydrates. It won’t seem right that you should eat bacon over fruit.
10. Movement begets movement
COMMIT to exercising every day, even if it’s only for 15 minutes. If you want a healthy body, you have to treat it like it is the most precious thing you own. Because it is.
11. Trash must be taken out
A WIDE range of symptoms, including headaches, fatigue, pains, coughs, chronic respiratory or sinus problems, gastrointestinal problems and problems from immune weakness, can all be related to toxicity. The simple act of eating plant foods detoxifies your body naturally.
12. The world doesn’t need us to survive — we need the world to survive
MOUNTING evidence suggests every step of meat production, from feeding the animals to processing their meat, depletes resources and stresses an already fragile environment.
13. Change starts with you
SCALE back your food budget and the amount that you waste. For every bit of food you don’t need, that much less fossil fuel, pesticides, fertiliser and water are required to produce it.
14. The best time to start is today
BECOME a vegan and in the first month, according to cardiologist and longevity expert Dr Joel Kahn, you’ll avoid the death of 33 animals, the destruction of 900 sq ft of forest and the creation of 600 lb of CO2.
15. Perfection can be the enemy of progress
DON’T aim for perfection — it’ll end in disappointment. Instead, make small incremental steps towards a bigger change. Over the course of a year, skipping meat and cheese for one day a week is the equivalent of taking your car off the road for five weeks.
16. Listen to your body
NO ONE knows your body as well as you do, so don’t ignore abnormal symptoms. Visit the doctor. Remember, too, that in so many cases, lifestyle changes can cure ailments like insomnia and high blood pressure.
17. Focus on what you can eat, not what you can’t
WHEN you’re an optimist, good things happen to your health. Free yourself from meat and know that you’ve made a conscious effort to be healthier and smarter — the best version of you.
18. Plants have the power
YOU don’t need meat to work out at the gym. There is plenty of protein in a nutritionally balanced plant-based diet, and plant protein is much better for muscle building than animal protein.
19. A behaviour rewarded will be repeated
IDENTIFY foods you enjoy eating. Choking down a veggie burger and hating every bite is not going to help you change your food habits. Find plant-based foods you like to eat!
20. You cannot give what you do not have
YOU can’t take care of family and friends, or do your best at work, if you’re not taking care of yourself. Make time to unwind in whatever way you like.
21. Mindful eating
SLOW down and take pleasure in food. Eliminate distractions — mobile phones, television and so forth. Stay present and focused as you unhurriedly enjoy your food.
22. Practise Kaizen
JAPANESE for ‘good change’, kaizen is the concept of small improvements. Lose 1lb, eat one extra serving of veg a day, walk for ten minutes. These actions put you in the right frame of mind to develop a new habit.