Healthy Weight Loss Stories

Healthy Weight Loss — Without Dieting

Healthy Weight

Loss Stories

I started the George Mateljan Foundation ten years ago with one

aim in mind—to help people discover the World’s Healthiest Foods,

so they could enjoy better health. This goal guided the creation of

our World’s Healthiest Foods website (www.WHFoods.org) and The

World’s Healthiest Foods book.

During the past 10 years, I have been delighted to receive thousands

of letters of gratitude from Readers, who have taken the time to

share with me how eating the World’s Healthiest Foods has changed

their lives. They have written to tell me that they have experienced

greater energy, better sleep, more lustrous hair, clearer skin, enhanced

concentration and memory, and many other signs of overall vitality.

Others have also shared that eating the World’s Healthiest Foods has

helped their cholesterol to drop, their blood pressure to normalize,

their blood sugar levels to stabilize, and their headaches to dissipate.

Over the years, Readers have shared with me how much they have

learned from the WHFoods website and The World’s Healthiest

Foods book. Yet, this learning is definitely a two-way street: as

Readers have learned from us, we have also learned so much from

them. One of the discoveries that I find most exciting has been the

recognition of yet another incredibly positive benefit of the World’s

Healthiest Foods:

Enjoying the World's Healthiest Foods is the perfect way to

lose excess weight and maintain a healthful weight without

dieting.

Healthy Weight Loss Stories

Here are just a few of the inspiring stories I’ve received from

Readers telling me about their experiences:

One benefit I've discovered from eating high-fiber, nutrient-rich

World's Healthiest Foods is that I'm losing about 2 pounds per week

without any change in my exercise habits. I don't feel deprived

because I don't consider myself to be "on a diet." Thank you again

for your outstanding website. Eating the right foods has changed

my entire outlook on life. - Mike

The two weeks we have been on your program has proved not only

to be nutritious but extremely tasty. Members of my household are

for the first time eating fish and not complaining. My partner has

lost half a stone in two weeks so would just like to say a very big

thank you. - Lara

The World’s Healthiest Foods are possibly the cure to the American

problem of obesity. From my own experience, I decided to change

my way of eating in the New Year. I was obese—at 5’8.” I was 240

pounds. Now six months later, I have lost 32 pounds and am still

losing. I feel and look a lot better. - Astrida

Because of your great website, WHFoods, you have helped change

my health for the better. I went from 24% body fat to 13% body fat.

Thanks again for your generous knowledge. - GVU

Through diet and exercise I lost 170 pounds. I have your list of the

World's Healthiest Foods on my refrigerator. - Mark

For more testimonials see page 216.

Readers found that the World’s Healthiest Foods were helping them

to lose weight by eating healthier without going on a diet or requiring

undue deprivation.

Healthy Weight Loss and Improved Health

While excess weight in and of itself may be cosmetically undesirable,

Healthy Weight Loss — Without Dieting

its most serious harmful effects result from the fact that excess fat,

particularly around the mid-section, greatly increases risk of developing

a myriad of other health conditions, including high cholesterol, high

blood pressure, and elevated blood sugar levels. Many Readers have reported

that eating World’s Healthiest Foods not only helped them lose

weight, but also alleviated weight-related health problems as well:

By using some of the guides, recipes, and tips from WHFoods, I've

lost 40 pounds. I feel better and my thinking is more clear. I had

high blood pressure but that went away when I lost the weight.

- Kmuzu

Since I started eating the World’s Healthiest Foods, my blood sugar

has stabilized, and I have lost 50 pounds! I have truly turned my

life around. - Cindy

I changed the way I ate, and I have the World's Healthiest Foods to

thank. I have lost over 75 pounds. My blood pressure medication is

gone. I didn't count calories and I didn’t even care about portion

control. - Mary

With your help, I have lost 80 pounds; my cholesterol was 280 and

is now down to 170! - KC

Thank you so very much for your food information. I have been

religiously following your advice for about two years. I've lost 100

pounds. You literally don't have time to read my long litany of health

improvements, but they range from dramatically improved mood to

amazing night vision. - BI

For more testimonials see page 216.

Scientific studies show that chronic preventable health conditions,

including high blood pressure, high cholesterol, type 2 diabetes,

heart disease, and stroke are increasingly being associated with

excess weight. For example, experts estimate that one-half of all type

2 diabetes cases could be prevented simply by controlling obesity!

Healthy Weight Loss Stories

Healthy Weight Loss and Increased Energy Levels

Many readers commented that the key to losing weight was forgetting

about counting calories and focusing instead on eating more of the

World's Healthiest Foods. Readers told us that these foods not only

helped them feel more vibrant and energetic, but they successfully

lost weight without feeling deprived or sacrificing anything—including

enjoyment—in the process:

I’ve been researching and preparing meals based on WHFoods.org

for the past month. I feel far more alive, alert, enlightened, and

energized. I now experience greater degrees of balance, equilibrium,

and sound sleep and no more mood swings. - Michelle

I have lost weight while I eat more. I have also found more energy

and strength. And for that reason, I wish to thank you very much.

- Mitch

It has been nearly six months since I began changing over to the

World's Healthiest Foods, and I am pleasantly surprised at my increase

in energy, the loss of dress sizes, and the overall feeling of

good health. I find that my refrigerator is not filled with "empty

calories" and that I can always have great snacks and healthy delicious

food to eat. - Terri

Thank you!!! I just needed to thank you for changing my life. This

information has created a better, healthier, and more energetic me.

I have lost close to 30 pounds by changing my way of eating. I was

a terrible fast-food, processed-food eater, never drank water or ate

any kind of fruit; now I think I would die without those things. Just

the thought of fast foods makes me sick. I just couldn't let this

change in my life go without thanking you so much for helping me.

- DL

For more testimonials see page 216.

Every moment of every day our bodies need energy to keep going.

Energy is needed not only to move our muscles, but also to keep us

Healthy Weight Loss — Without Dieting

breathing, keep our heart beating, and maintain our body temperature.

Actually, it needed for every body function to occur.

Nothing helps to make day-to-day life more enjoyable than abundant

energy levels. Maintaining a healthy metabolism is key both for

having plenty of energy for your daily activities and for losing those

extra pounds. What is metabolism? It is the rate at which your body

burns energy. And a healthy metabolism requires optimal nutritional

support—the kind of support you will get from enjoying foods like

the World's Healthiest Foods—especially those rich in metabolismboosting

protein, magnesium, iron, sulfur-containing compounds,

and vitamins B1 (thiamin), B2 (riboflavin), B3 (niacin), B5

(pantothenic acid) and B6 (pyridoxine).

Healthy Weight Loss and the Healthiest Way of

Cooking

I have spent years developing cooking methods and recipes to make

the World's Healthiest Foods taste great because no matter how

nutritious your food, you won't enjoy it, and won’t keep eating it, if

it doesn't taste good. Readers have written us about how much they

love our easy-to-prepare recipes using our Healthiest Way of Cooking

methods:

I started using the Healthy Sauté method of preparing food. I am a

65-year-old male who now weighs 172 pounds. I began at 245

pounds. I only use fresh veggies, fruits, etc. and the Healthy Sauté

method for cooking. I do grill and eat meat/fish in moderation. I

want to thank you so much for changing my life. I have maintained

my current weight for 6 months and increased my exercise regimen

from swimming to a full gym program. Food now is so important to

me because you have been there to help people like me. Keep up the

good work. I love the recipes. I have discovered so much. - DD

With your assistance I have lost 17 pounds, which previously

seemed impossible. Your recipes taste so good—easy and fast, which

is what we all need. I have purchased your book for my mother,

Healthy Weight Loss Stories

sister and two friends. I share your daily recipes with my co-workers

who also want your book. Thanks so much for providing all of us so

much help. - Cheryl

I bought George's book, The World's Healthiest Foods, in January

and began to look at how I ate, what I ate, how much I ate. After less

than four months, I found my weight down almost 20 pounds; my

husband (who had not meant to go on a diet, but whose cook is,

yes, me) had lost seven pounds as well. My energy level has increased

as well, and the level of fruit and veggie intake has increased

dramatically. Salads became an adventure, and the use of nuts and

spices added zest to the foods. - Ann

Your Plan meets all of my requirements for becoming healthy: simple

prep time, quick and easy cooking methods, and gourmet tasting

meals every time! I've lost over thirty pounds in three and one-half

months. I have more energy than I can use, and better skin than I

ever would have thought possible. The World's Healthiest Foods are

truly the best guide for those of us who want to pursue health while

having time to enjoy life outside of the kitchen. - Rosemary

I am loving this site, and my interest in whole foods and preparing

(with your methods of course) my meals has never been like this.

- BI

The style of cooking you have perfected makes food preparation so

easy and the outcome so richly flavorful. - Marie

For more testimonials see page 216.

So, not only were Readers losing weight, they were enjoying great

tasting food that was easy to prepare. They loved eating the World’s

Healthiest Foods and preparing the quick-and-easy recipes included

on the WHFoods.org website and in The World’s Healthiest Foods

book. They reported feeling healthier, having more energy, and

enjoying food like never before.

Usually when you embark on a weight loss diet, it means giving up

Healthy Weight Loss — Without Dieting

the pleasure of eating! They often require letting others make all the

decisions for us, and usually involve having to give up the joys of

eating for a promise that we will lose weight.

Many weight loss diets ask us to turn our lives completely over to a

predetermined script not of our making. We are often asked to build

our breakfasts, lunches, and dinners around highly processed foods

that we didn’t select, cook, or even choose from a list of favorites.

By letting someone else make all of these decisions for us, and by

give up the joys of eating for a promise that we will lose weight.

On the contrary, I am of the opinion that selecting and preparing

your own meals—like I did when I lost my own weight—is one of

the best ways to help you lose weight, save money, and make healthy

eating a regular part of your lifestyle; you don’t experience this from

a temporary diet. That's why I developed my new Healthiest Way of

Cooking methods to help you prepare the World's Healthiest Foods in

hundreds of healthy, great tasting recipes, which make weight loss an

easy and enjoyable pursuit that anybody can undertake.

Healthy Weight Loss – Without Dieting

What Readers had written about turned out to be an unexpected

finding about World’s Healthiest Foods—without additional effort

they watched extra pounds melt away!

Their letters were an inspiration to me! Not only were they rewarding

to read but they also clearly made me see more about how improved

health and weight loss go hand-in-hand. Their successful weight loss

stories are the foundation for my insights about the way to achieve

healthy weight loss without dieting, which I share with you in this

book. I want to express my sincere appreciation to these readers

for taking the time to relay their stories to me. I hope this book will

help you to realize that healthy weight loss is not merely an idealistic

goal but one you can readily achieve with the World's Healthiest

Foods.

Healthy Weight Loss Stories

I found from Readers that losing weight doesn’t have to come from

being on an onerous diet, where you look at your food intake

through a special, and short-term, lens. Rather, they easily lost

weight just by following the healthy lifestyle principles of eating a

cornucopia of the World’s Healthiest Foods and preparing them

using the Healthiest Way of Cooking Methods that enhance their

flavor while preserving nutrients. This is not a diet; it’s a delicious

way of losing weight and at the same time enjoying your food.

This is what our Readers discovered; and I want to congratulate

them in identifying a weight loss approach—one that emphasized

the World’s Healthiest Foods—that will help many others that

struggle with the epidemic problem of weight gain. To continue our

shared learning in this area of health promotion, I would like to

encourage you to send us your weight loss stories; we will post them

to our website, WHFoods.org, so that everyone can benefit.

What is the Secret of Healthy Weight Loss?

So, by now you must be wondering, “What is it about the World’s

Healthiest Foods that made them so effective in producing healthy

lasting weight loss, vibrant health, and energy for the Readers who

shared their success stories?”

It’s simple, actually. The World’s Healthiest Foods are nutrient-rich

foods. I believe that this is the secret of why the Readers were losing

weight –the wide range and quantity of nutrients these foods deliver

for the small amount of calories that they contain (what I refer to as

“nutrient-richness”).

Nutrient-Rich World’s Healthiest Foods = Maximum Nutrients

Minimal Calories

The classification of a food as nutrient-rich reflects its ability to

provide a wealth of nutrients (vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients,

antioxidants, fiber, protein, omega-3 fatty acids, and other health-

Healthy Weight Loss — Without Dieting

promoting compounds) for a minimal amount of calories. In sharp

contrast, nutrient-poor foods are ones that provide a small number

of nutrients, but a large number of calories; these include processed,

refined, and fast foods.

So by enjoying their meals composed of nutrient-rich World's

Healthiest Foods, it was much easier for Readers to get all of the

nutrients their bodies required for vital health and energy without

exceeding the amount of calories that their bodies needed to maintain

optimal weight. And, at the same time, they were satisfying their

appetite and taste buds. For this reason, when they relied on the

World’s Healthiest Foods, they lost weight naturally, effortlessly,

and surprisingly quickly—a winning combination. These foods are

nutritional bargains; they provide an abundance of health-promoting

nutrients without a lot of calories.

The World’s Healthiest Foods are whole foods that contain all of the

nutrients that nature provides to ensure the health and life of plants

and animals. When we eat nutrient-rich World's Healthiest Foods,

especially when they are organically grown, we enjoy the protective

qualities nature has supplied; nothing is contained in these foods

that doesn’t need to be there. Because the World’s Healthiest Foods

provide what is essential and leave out what it unnecessary, they are

custom-tailored for weight management. And the more you eat them,

the better they will taste. Nutrient-rich World's Healthiest Foods are

the new force for change—they can make a healthier and slimmer you.

Why the Nutrient-Rich World’s Healthiest Foods

Promote Healthy Weight Loss

What is it about nutrient-richness that helps promote weight loss?

Several factors are involved. Nutrient-rich foods provide our body

with outstanding nutrient support that enables our body to carry out

its metabolic activities in an optimal way. Metabolic activities, such

as the burning of unwanted fat (a process called beta-oxidation), are

best supported by a diet that is rich in nutrients.

Healthy Weight Loss Stories

Nutrient-richness also means that we provide our body with ample

nutrients at a minimal calorie cost. (Many researchers use the term

“nutrient density” to describe this special dietary combination of

high-nutrients plus low-calories.) It’s helpful to think about nutrientrichness

by comparing it to its dietary opposite. Imagine a person

whose diet is largely composed of nutrient-poor highly processed

fatty foods and fast food, i.e, extremely low-quality food containing

very few nutrients. If that person consumes enough food, he or she

will eventually obtain a supply of some nutrients; however, many

vitamins and minerals necessary for a healthy metabolism—as well

as most recently discovered antioxidants and phytonutrients abundant

in plant foods that research is now showing to play important roles

in maintaining a healthy weight—will be virtually absent.

In addition, how many calories of low nutrient-density food will it

take to get even some nutrient basics? With very low-quality foods,

if a person eats somewhere around 6,000 or 7,000 calories’ worth of

food, he or she will probably get an adequate supply of basic nutrients.

But the caloric cost will be far too high. Body fat and weight gain

will increase from excessive calorie consumption.

In contrast, the use of low-calorie foods to increase food volume

and the use of nutrient-rich World’s Healthiest Foods to support

metabolism are core research principles in the science of weight

loss. When your weight loss strategy centers around low-calorie and

nutrient-rich World’s Healthiest Foods, the research odds are

strongly in your favor for weight loss success. And this is not difficult

to do; in fact, I will show you how to get most of the nutrients you

need in the Healthy Weight Loss Eating Plan (page 91) and spend

less than 1600 calories.

Why the World’s Healthiest Foods are Health-

Promoting Foods

The health-promoting nutrients contained in the World’s Healthiest

Foods are necessary for body systems, tissues, and cells to function

at their peak, which is essential not only for enhancing healthy

Healthy Weight Loss — Without Dieting

weight loss, but also for vibrant health and energy. (For more on

nutrient-rich foods on page 30.)

Hundreds of epidemiological studies have looked at the relationship

between nutrient-rich foods, such as the World’s Healthiest Foods,

and health conditions such as obesity, high cholesterol, high blood

pressure, and elevated blood sugar levels. Not only can these foods

reduce your chances of experiencing chronic conditions but they can

also enhance your day-to-day health. For example, they will give

you more energy, help you think more clearly, make your hair and

skin more lustrous, and contribute to an overall feeling of vitality.

What makes them beneficial to health is the health-promoting nutrients

they contain. Not because they are rich in one or two specific

nutrients but because they contain the whole range of important

ones. This is essential because what researchers have consistently

found is that nutrients working together provide greater health

benefits than those working alone. What that means is that there is

no miracle food or miracle nutrient. There is only the miracle of how

the different aspects of your nutrient-rich World’s Healthiest Foods

work together to provide you with optimal health and weight loss.

How the Health-Promoting Nutrients in World’s

Healthiest Foods Contribute to Health and Healthy

Weight Loss

If healthy cells can be considered the spark plugs that jumpstart your

metabolism and if systems that generate energy and increase

metabolism are one of the keys to healthy weight loss, then, of

course, we want to do everything we can to ensure that our cells are

functioning optimally. That's where the nutrient-rich World's

Healthiest Foods come in. Scientific studies have shown that healthpromoting

nutrients are the key to having your cells and all of your

body systems function at their best. This includes your nervous

system, cardiovascular system, digestive system, musculoskeletal

system, detoxification system, and, key to your ability to lose excess

Healthy Weight Loss Stories

weight, the systems that generate energy and spark your metabolism.

We now know that excess fat, especially visceral fat, is not merely

a storage depot for extra calories, but functions as an endocrine

organ significantly increasing inflammation. Many of the healthpromoting

nutrients found in nutrient-rich World’s Healthiest Foods

help keep inflammation under control, which is especially important

if you have excess fat that you are trying to lose. Since excess fat

stored into your fat cells acts as a trigger for unwanted inflammation,

when you lose your unwanted fat, you will also be reducing unwanted

inflammation. This is one of the key reasons that excess weight is

associated with so many health problems. (I’ll cover inflammation

and weight control in more detail in Chapter 10).

A balanced intake of the World's Healthiest Foods enables you to

meet your nutrient needs without exceeding your caloric needs—

the ideal formula for health and healthy weight loss. Unlike traditional

diets, which only focus on reducing calorie intake, leaving

you at risk of being nutrient-deprived (and remember, those nutrients

are needed to run your metabolic engine), Healthy Weight Loss –

Without Dieting focuses on nutrient-rich World’s Healthiest Foods,

which deliver lots of nutrients for few calories, literally priming

your metabolic pump to burn stored fat. When enjoying the World's

Healthiest Foods losing excess weight is not only effortless but

virtually inevitable.

In addition to providing you with the health-promoting nutrients

your body must have if you are to feel your best and lose weight, the

nutrient-rich World’s Healthiest Foods naturally satisfy your appetite

because they contain a diversity of all the nutrients that play a

biochemical role in satiety (quenching your appetite). These nutrients

include soluble and insoluble fiber, amino acids, fatty acids, and a

number of other unique food components. All of these are in the

World’s Healthiest Foods pre-packaged in just the right amounts.

For all these reasons, the World’s Healthiest Foods fill you up without

filling you out. You’ll enjoy what you eat and feel satisfied by your

Healthy Weight Loss — Without Dieting

foods. You’ll gain vitality and lose weight since you’ll be receiving

an abundance of all the necessary nutrients instead of just taking in

empty calories.

The Healthy Weight Loss Eating Plan Will Show You

How Easy It Is To Enjoy Nutrient-rich World’s

Healthiest Foods

I have found that one of the most difficult aspects about changing to

a lifestyle of healthier eating is that people don't know where to

begin. It all seems overwhelming at first. That's why I created the

Healthy Weight Loss Eating Plan that combines the World's Healthiest

Foods and our Healthiest Way of Cooking methods and integrates

them into a menu filled with great-tasting recipes. Readers love these

recipes that take few ingredients, little time, and are easy to prepare.

I have done all the work for you. For 4 weeks, you won’t have to

worry about what to eat for breakfast or what you’ll cook for dinner.

Everything is spelled out. By the end of the 4 weeks you will have

a good idea of how to fit a healthy eating lifestyle to your personal

tastes. They say it takes about 4 weeks to change a habit so after

these 4 weeks the Healthiest Way of Eating will become almost

second nature to you. And because eating this way is enjoyable and

you will be feeling so good, you won't want to quit. You will be on

the delicious path to a slim and vibrantly healthy life.

The Healthy Weight Loss Eating Plan is powerful because it provides

a combination of nutrient-rich World’s Healthiest Foods that contain

many nutrients that work together synergistically. And never

underestimate the importance of the health benefits from the synergistic

effects of the World’s Healthiest Foods. Synergies among the

matrix found in nutrient-rich World’s Healthiest Foods add up to

much more than sum of their individual parts. If you want to be on

the cutting edge of the Healthiest Way of Eating, enjoy delicious

meals composed of a variety of World’s Healthiest Foods like those

in the Healthy Weight Loss Eating Plan.

Healthy Weight Loss Stories

New Paradigm in Weight Loss

Most weight loss plans require you to follow some new type of diet

for the first time in your life. These weight loss plans depend upon

a certain amount of novelty. They are betting that you’ve never eaten

this way before (and chances are, you will never eat this way

again!). They are also assuming that you aren’t familiar with the

“special twists” in their theory of weight loss. They give you a diet

that includes these special twists in the hope that you’ll find it new

and interesting enough to make you willing to put up with whatever

unbalanced regimen is prescribed through a period of initial weight

loss. Then you get bored, go back to the way of eating that put on

those pounds in the first place, and gain it all back – just in time for

the next weight loss novelty book to hit the market. As I present in

this book, the World’s Healthiest Foods as the key to Healthy Weight

Loss is different.

The World's Healthiest Foods aren’t part of a diet relying on some

new gimmick to be followed on a temporary basis. These foods are

part of the everyday eating habits that will make you lean and

healthy. Our focus is a package of nutrient-rich World’s Healthiest

Foods and very quick-and-easy recipes and menu suggestions. The

basis of Healthy Weight Loss –Without Dieting is simply enjoying a

cornucopia of World’s Healthiest Foods prepared using the Healthiest

Way of Cooking Methods, which enhance flavor while preserving

nutrients. It’s not a diet; it’s a way of eating that serves up a delicious,

potently healthy way of life.

Our new paradigm parts company with the catchy fad diets that ask

you to follow unusual food rules or dietary restrictions. Our new

paradigm insists that the “tried-and-true” principles of healthy eating

can be followed at all times in life, including those times when you

most desperately want to lose weight!

These basic rules include a focus on:

• Nutrient-rich foods like the World’s Healthiest Foods that

Healthy Weight Loss — Without Dieting

give you the largest number of nutrients for the smallest

number of calories.

• Simple, quick, cooking practices that preserve as much of

a food’s natural constituents as possible.

• And, just as important, that magical kind of pleasure that

comes from the delicious tastes and textures of real food.

I’ve incorporated these guiding principles into this book, Healthy

Weight Loss – Without Dieting, an approach that features no gimmicks

and no temporary food restrictions. As you are making changes in

your meal plan that facilitate your weight loss, you’ll be making the

exact same changes that you will be depending on in the future to

maintain your lower weight. The World’s Healthiest Foods set you

up for optimal weight and vibrant health for life, not just for the next

diet to appear on the block.

Our new paradigm does not involve counting calories, carbohydrates,

grams of fat, or any other food component. It’s not that these

components are unimportant, however. Unless you burn more calories

than you obtain from your food, you will not be able to lose weight

in a steady or lasting way. Nobody ever—I repeat, EVER—lost

weight and kept it off while consuming excess calories (excess, in

this case, simply means more than the body needs). And if your

carbohydrate and fat intake soar outside of a healthy range, you’ll

have difficulty maintaining a healthy weight loss. The wonderful

benefit of our nutrient-rich World’s Healthiest Foods and our

Healthy Weight Loss Eating Plan, however, is the ability of these

featured foods to help do your counting for you!

We're confident that you will be able to balance your nutrient-rich

World’s Healthiest Foods intake effectively! The reason is simple:

our recipes and food preparation tips already combine whole, natural

foods in a balanced way. Our recipes are naturally balanced when it

comes to nutrition and also naturally delicious! That’s the beauty

and the magic of the World’s Healthiest Foods. They are foods that

combine tastes and textures in a way that gives you the most food

Healthy Weight Loss Stories

satisfaction and the best weight loss opportunity together at once;

they don’t taste like diet foods. The Healthy Weight Loss Eating

Plan will provide you with great examples of how to enjoy delicious

World’s Healthiest Foods and recipes.

Other approaches usually force you to go in one direction or the

other—delicious taste without a reasonable chance of weight loss,

or great weight loss without the pleasure of eating. Our World’s

Healthiest Foods approach gives you both experiences together!