The Ultra-metabolism Life-Changing Nutrition Plan

Between my husband and myself, we've got more than a fair share of ailments and conditions, some long-term and some just recent 'gifts' of normal aging: Diabetes Type II, intermittent Fatigue Syndrome, Joint Pain, Migraines, High Blood Pressure, and a multitude of other lovely multisyllable aches, pains, and conditions. We had tried the South Beach Diet (ugh!), the Atkins Diet (boring!), Weight Watchers (expensive!) and homegrown 'diets' that didn't work. We wanted something that would be life changing. We wanted something that would teach us how to live our life together longer, happier and certainly, healthier. We even dreamed about being able to reduce or eliminate the numerous pharmaceutical prescriptions we had to re-order from the local Walgreen's Pharmacy each and every month, to the tune of $540 a month! (And, that was WITH decent health insurance!) We found the Ultra-metabolism Diet!

The basis of this food plan, developed by Mark Hyman, M.D., to me, is color. Yes, color! Fruits and vegetables rich in color, the reds, blues, oranges, yellows, etc., also are rich in nutrients necessary and beneficial to our bodies. Dr. Hyman is anti-processed foods, anti-white foods, and a proponent of learning to eat in a new way to promote health and longevity. White sugar, white flour, white starches and carbohydrates are relatively unhealthy for human consumption. And dairy products! Well, when you think of it, human infants are weaned fairly young, so do we really need milk as adults? Dairy products often cause discomfort for adults, maybe we should be looking at the causes of that discomfort. Tissue inflammation can be exacerbated by various components in processed foods, in fact, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Joint Pain can be directly related to the presence or lack of certain enzymes. Detoxifying your liver can remove many of these 'bad' things from your body, and improve the 'good' things. Caffeine, sugar, sugar substitutes, processed (read: all healthy nutrients destroyed or damaged) foods, the list goes on and on!

I really recommend studying the book, "Ultra-metabolism, The Simple Plan for Automatic Weight Loss" by Mark Hyman, M.D. as your first step to changing your life and health. Hyman also supports a great web site, http://www.ultrametabolism.com , and you don't even have to buy the book to get all kinds of great information and ideas from the web site. Dr. Hyman says, "If you want to fit into your jeans, you have to learn to fit into your genes!", and my husband and I found out he is correct. Our bodies are changing in many ways, after just 7 weeks following the Ultra-metabolism Diet, and we love it!

We both feel lots more energetic, we both have lost weight (he, 23 lbs. and me, 19 lbs. since starting with the ultra 'thing'). But even more important to me, is that we finally have found a diet that doesn't feel like a diet. The meals are fantastic. I am even learning to love cooking again! Last night, we had Wild Salmon with Rosemary Sweet Potatoes and Lemon Asparagus, and for a light and enjoyable dessert - ½ cup of semi-frozen mixed berries that I lightly mashed before freezing. My verdict? Better than ice cream!

Grocery shopping is a bit weird: our local grocery store doesn't carry a whole lot of organic foods, and very little gluten-free, sugar-free French Toast. Where DO you find gluten free no sugar added blah blah blah extra grape seed oil french toast? Oh wait, French Toast isn't on the menu! Darn.

Despite sneaking in French Toast on Sunday mornings, my husband's blood pressure has lowered from 180/90 to 155/80 and his diabetes is totally great at a 123 blood sugar count, instead of his old 197 (and that was WITH diabetes meds from the doctors that cost over $350 a month combined!) My joint pains have reduced so dramatically that I rarely even need to take an anti-inflammatory!

We both sleep better, feel happier, and fit into clothes that have been packed away in boxes for years. The down side? The only downside we've experienced is learning from the ground up how to prepare smaller, better, more flavorful meals from scratch. No more eating out every night.

We still do eat out occasionally. Places like Panera with their awesome Crispani pizza-like dish and P.F. Changs for their excellent salads, but hitting the drive thru at the 'Golden Arches' won't work on this plan.

And, we've been able to work with our doctors to reduce the medications we take, because we were able to provide positive proof and documented research about the lifestyle changes we've made. We are now saving hundreds of dollars in pharmacy charges alone, and even with the addition of supplements to our daily regimen, the cost savings alone is a great reason for us to give our best shot to the Ultra-metabolism Diet.

We buy all our supplements online, for cost savings and for convenience. The web stores http://efoodpantry.com , http://shopnatural.com , http://www.vitaminworld.com are three of our favorites for online shopping for food and supplements. Cinnamon, Gingko, Ginseng, Co-Q 10, and a Omega 3 Fish Oil capsule that gives me fishy burps but is so healthy! Dr. Hyman writes about the importance of supplements in the trek to changing your lifestyle, and you can find out for yourself, what works for you.

The grocery aisle magazine First - for women on the go, August 7, 2006 edition has a great concise and easy to follow article about Ultra metabolism. There is a clear short quiz to learn 'how to find your genetic glitch and flip your metabolic switch', with easy tips to start your own Ultra-metabolism Diet and Life Changing Plan. The Ultrametabolism Diet and changing your life through a new food plan isn't about dropping a few pounds, then going back to your regular eating habits. It is about changing the quality of your life through changing your metabolism and patterns of nutrition. I say "Viva, Viva, Viva!"