Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead - Documentary of Awesomeness

[EffEmDoubleyou]

This is a great resource!

I am having daily green smoothies not as part of any complex plan, but simply to get enough vegetables in my diet with a minimum of preparation and to promote weight loss. I have a few questions.

1. For those using flaxseed, are there further benefits by grinding the flaxseed before adding it to the smoothie? It would be a pain in the butt, but is it worth it?

2. The health benefits of spirulina seem to be quite contested. Has anyone reaped real benefit from spirulina? Frankly, after some reading I have no idea if it's a wonder supplement or a load of BS.

3. I notice that leafy greens like kale, swiss chard and collards are not listed in that "superfood" list. Along with spinach and cucumbers, those have been the most common vegetables I use because I read that they are extremely healthy and nutrient-rich. I assumed that foods like bell peppers, cabbage, romaine and carrots were basically low-nutrient roughage. Am I turned around on this?

Thanks

 

[Randomnity]

3. I notice that leafy greens like kale, swiss chard and collards are not listed in that "superfood" list. Along with spinach and cucumbers, those have been the most common vegetables I use because I read that they are extremely healthy and nutrient-rich. I assumed that foods like bell peppers, cabbage, romaine and carrots were basically low-nutrient roughage. Am I turned around on this?

Thanks

This is a resource I really like: http://www.whfoods.com/foodstoc.php

Each of the 130 foods chosen as "the world's healthiest" has a link describing why it's healthy (including references! practically unheard of on the internets) and giving the exact vitamin content. It also has tips on how to prepare the food and so on. It's not catering to any special diet in particular - so of course if you have special needs you could just apply those to the list.

warning - LOTS of information. almost like wikipedia as far as a time sink, if you're interested in that kind of thing.

 

[EffEmDoubleyou]

That looks like a fantastic resource, thanks!

 

[Anew Leaf]

This is a great resource!

I am having daily green smoothies not as part of any complex plan, but simply to get enough vegetables in my diet with a minimum of preparation and to promote weight loss. I have a few questions.

1. For those using flaxseed, are there further benefits by grinding the flaxseed before adding it to the smoothie? It would be a pain in the butt, but is it worth it?

2. The health benefits of spirulina seem to be quite contested. Has anyone reaped real benefit from spirulina? Frankly, after some reading I have no idea if it's a wonder supplement or a load of BS.

3. I notice that leafy greens like kale, swiss chard and collards are not listed in that "superfood" list. Along with spinach and cucumbers, those have been the most common vegetables I use because I read that they are extremely healthy and nutrient-rich. I assumed that foods like bell peppers, cabbage, romaine and carrots were basically low-nutrient roughage. Am I turned around on this?

Thanks

yay for you my friend!

1. I get it already ground because I am lazy. To me it just makes more sense to have it ground up so that your body has a chance of absorbing it... rather than just being a middle man for the flax seed's journey.
2. I have been using it daily since October. I feel like it has benefited me already by boosting my immune system and being another source of protein. Usually I get some sort of bad cold/bronchitis type thing when winter sets in, and this year the worst I have gotten was a week of sniffling. I am sure that all of the fruits and veggies I have been eating have also contributed to this as well. I am getting it in bulk now, and it's so cheap considering... that I am content with continuing to use it. I got a lb for $30 and it should last me 10m-1 year.
3. There are a lot of "superfood" lists running around. Bell Peppers and Carrots are far more nutritious than the cabbage and romaine. But they all have their place in the food arena. I try and go by the rule of "Eat a Rainbow" (yay!! sounds like NF propaganda!) and so I vary what color peppers I pick up at times, etc.

 

[redcheerio]

This is a great resource!

I am having daily green smoothies not as part of any complex plan, but simply to get enough vegetables in my diet with a minimum of preparation and to promote weight loss.

Awesome!

I have a few questions.

1. For those using flaxseed, are there further benefits by grinding the flaxseed before adding it to the smoothie? It would be a pain in the butt, but is it worth it?

If you don't, they mostly go right through you. If you grind them, you get healthy oils plus lots of fiber. It seems to be one of the best kinds of fiber you can get. Apparently it helps pull toxins out of your system.

I have a separate coffee grinder dedicated to flaxseeds. I grind about 3 days' worth at a time, and leave it in the grinder with the lid on cuz I'm lazy and that keeps it fresh anyway. (I have one grinder for coffee, one for flaxseeds, and now one for fresh spices eg. ground cumin seed.)

3. I notice that leafy greens like kale, swiss chard and collards are not listed in that "superfood" list. Along with spinach and cucumbers, those have been the most common vegetables I use because I read that they are extremely healthy and nutrient-rich. I assumed that foods like bell peppers, cabbage, romaine and carrots were basically low-nutrient roughage. Am I turned around on this?

Apparently so! One book I read recommended eating things with intense colors, because that is indicative of high nutrient density. Each color has a different range of nutrients, so [MENTION=13402]Saturned[/MENTION] 's advice to eat a rainbow is good advice.

(PS to [MENTION=9016]mrcockburn[/MENTION] - No, artificial food coloring doesn't count. )

 

[kelric]

Apparently so! One book I read recommended eating things with intense colors, because that is indicative of high nutrient density. Each color has a different range of nutrients, so [MENTION=13402]Saturned[/MENTION] 's advice to eat a rainbow is good advice.

Woo hoo! Chee-tos, Jolly Ranchers, and purple Kool-Aid, here I come!

But yeah, what RedCheerio said about the flaxseeds -- they're sort of um... made to um... pass through the systems of animals and land in a nice um... bit of fertilizer, if you get my drift. You need to grind them up to get the nutrients (including lots of omega-3 oils without having to eat sardines or other fish). I also like mixing ground flaxseeds with hummus - it thickens the hummus up a bit, but it works.

 

[Tallulah]

Roomie bought a juicer this weekend, and we've been trying different combos. Watching the movie again for inspiration. So far, everything we've made has been really tasty, and we've been pretty creative with the ingredients.

There's a delicious breakfast juice concoction waiting for me in the fridge for tomorrow: fresh pineapple, strawberries, blueberries and apple. It has separated into layers of lovely pink stripes. I may stir in some milled flax seed before I drink it. Also took the pulp from it and make delicious, reasonably healthy muffins using Pamela's Gluten Free Baking Mix. I hate throwing away all the pulp!

 

[figsfiggyfigs]

Meh, it was okay. My favorite part was the guy at the end ho called in for help. Now THAT is inspiring. Everything else was a bit of a bore.

 

[Anew Leaf]

Roomie bought a juicer this weekend, and we've been trying different combos. Watching the movie again for inspiration. So far, everything we've made has been really tasty, and we've been pretty creative with the ingredients.

There's a delicious breakfast juice concoction waiting for me in the fridge for tomorrow: fresh pineapple, strawberries, blueberries and apple. It has separated into layers of lovely pink stripes. I may stir in some milled flax seed before I drink it. Also took the pulp from it and make delicious, reasonably healthy muffins using Pamela's Gluten Free Baking Mix. I hate throwing away all the pulp!

Awesome!! I just bought a book called "the juice diet" solely for the myriad of recipes it contains. It may be helpful for you as well .

I like that you are using the pulp for baked goods! I've heard that's what a lot of people do with the remnants.

 

[Tallulah]

Awesome!! I just bought a book called "the juice diet" solely for the myriad of recipes it contains. It may be helpful for you as well .

I like that you are using the pulp for baked goods! I've heard that's what a lot of people do with the remnants.

Cool, thanks! I will look it up on Amazon!

 

[SingSmileShine]

To be honest, my go-to trick is always exercise. Didn't eat enough? Exercise a little. Ate a normal day's amount? Exercise. Overate? Exercise a lot. It really does feel wonderful, and it is a really good habit to get into.

In regards to the documentary, I have never heard of it. But if it's that inspiring, I'll give it a shot!

 

[Dali]

I spent most of past week on a working holiday gorging on pizza and various rich, cheesy pasta dishes. I try not to eat much when I fly so on Friday, which was the day of my return, I just had water.

Buoyed by the memory of this thread and the documentary, which I watched two weeks ago, I decided to continue once I arrived home so, for the past five days, with the exception of two small starch-based slip-ups, I've been juicing and eating only boiled veggies.

I haven't weighed myself yet to know the difference but my trousers already fit far better and I was walking down the hallway at work clicking my heels in the air and stuff (just two weeks ago, I couldnt do that without getting winded). I hope to complete another five days. I also hope to incorporate exercise starting tomorrow.

And oh, best benefit for me, have only had five or six ciggies in the past five days, as opposed to 30 - 40 in the previous five. Hope to bring that down to zero.

Thanks for starting the thread, [MENTION=13402]Saturned[/MENTION].