I’m helping a close friend, a high powered attorney, turn his health and diet around so he can lose 30 pounds and hopefully avoid back surgery. I have put him on a 30-Day Vegan Challenge. Before I show you what I found in his refrigerator let me start by telling you about what we did. First, I started by introducing  a healthy breakfast because he so often runs out the door without eating any and that is not good for anyone! Your brain and body needs the right kind of fuel to get you through the day! And we all know that if you aren’t eating, then your body just stores what you later eat as fat, thinking that you’re “starving” and on a “diet”! Personally, I’m a huge fan of Steel Cut Oats from Trader Joes. I make up a large batch (6-8 portions) every week, saving it in glass containers, reheating a portion for a minute in the microwave, and then adding an organic banana and a few walnuts on top. Otherwise, I just have a banana and some fresh fruit! Perfect time right now, since so many delicious fruits are in season! Then we discussed lunch options. Here’s a few samples of what we’ve made together so far. This is an all organic salad with spinach, tomatoes, red bell pepper, carrots, cucumber, and beets.

Simple Organic Salad 

The next day for lunch  we used the same items (minus the beets) and made up the following wrap, adding lentils from Trader Joe’s to the mixture. The spread is hummus! This healthy lunch gives you loads of vitamins, minerals, and plenty of fiber, which is essential to healthy weight loss! Plus, you get full and satisfied. The wrap we used is Ezekiel 4:9, which is a Sprouted Whole Grain wrap that can be purchased from Trader Joe’s! (Yes, I love that place!)

A Healthy and filling Wrap

Then I set out to work on his refrigerator on a day when he was at work…Here’s what I found:

Dairy Products Up the Wazoo!

To his credit, I should add that they were all expired and he hasn’t been eating or drinking any of them…some were even as old as from a year or two ago! Well, I dumped them all in the trash and recycled what I could. NO, yogurt is NOT a health food, folks! Trash it! As Chef AJ would say, “Milk it does No Body NO Good!” Get rid of it, please! I also found three types of butter and these unhealthy Cinnabon rolls. (My mother, however, would have loved these!) 

How much butter does one person need? I say none, but if you must there’s Earth Balance Butter!

My friend has switched to hummus instead of butter! This is HUGE! A year ago, you would never have thought this man would have made this type of change, but he’s making it and I am very proud of all his efforts! In exchange, he has promised that he’s going to keep a “food journal”, writing down what he’s eating and also commenting on how he feels while making this shift! I’m looking forward to posting what he has to say about it! This week he called and invited me out to lunch…hold your breath folks…at a Steak House! BUT my friend knew the vegan options on the menu because [applause] he had ordered them before! SO, until next time… Enjoy your weekend!