A Better Way to Lose Weight and Feel Better

I was having lunch with a friend the other day and he mentioned how slightly changing his eating habits resulted in noticeable changes in his weight and how he felt.

In a world of diet fads and quick fixes, A. didn’t do that much. He cut out Coca-Cola and Snapple (two or three of each per week), replacing these sugar-laden drinks with water. In addition, he stopped his daily ritual of eating two Chips Ahoy! cookies after lunch. Instead, he now eats fruit (blueberries, strawberries, cantaloupe) and granola.

The result? A. lost seven pounds (5% of his body weight) over the course of two months and feels much better.

“My focus wasn’t on losing weight,” he said. “I just wanted to feel healthier, which I undoubtedly do.”

In addition, A.’s palate changed, distancing itself from the sweet and salty flavors with which it had become familiar. Understanding this will happen is a key aspect in altering one’s diet (or toothpaste).

“I had a Coke last week for the first time in a very long time,” A. said. “It was so sweet; it was awful. It made me feel like crap the rest of the day. And I didn't even finish it, whereas I used to drink them pretty quickly.”

A. and his wife are also instituting incremental changes for their family. One decision was to replace conventional milk with organic, grass-fed milk. They are much healthier for it.