Today is the first day of the rest of your life and how you start the day will determine its quality and outcomes.

Forget the past, there’s nothing you can do about it now. What you have is the present and the future. Too often people decide what they’re capable of based solely on past experiences. This is absurd because in each new moment everyone has a chance to become a new person, and this new person can achieve any outcome.

The health of your body and mind is a mirror of how you live your life. Your body speaks to you in whispers at first, and when you ignore the whispers it starts to yell. When you’re listening to your body and correcting your lifestyle accordingly, you’ll experience how amazing an organism it really is and how with the right input (nutrients and minerals) it has the capacity to heal itself from almost any illness.

A lot of modern illnesses are the result of a broken lifestyle that’s incongruent with our evolutionary biology. This lifestyle is often perpetuated by modern luxuries, because instead of having to behave healthily for survival, people have the choice to avoid practices that are designed to keep us healthy. The truth is that if you want to be healthy you have to cultivate and maintain daily personal habits that enhance health survival.

This 5 step program is designed to induce a lifestyle that includes eating without restrictions. Now, before you get too excited thinking that you can start living on cake and cookies, you need to understand that eating without restriction is all about the type of foods you are eating. The good news is that there’s absolutely no reason for you to count calories, points, or use any other type of measurement. As long as you’re feeding your body the right amount of nutrients and minerals and then listening intently to its response, you’ll be as healthy as you can be.

Top Tips

1. How you start the day will dictate the quality and outcomes for that day.
2. The body can often heal itself when given the right minerals and nutrients.
3. A good breakfast doesn’t come out of a box or a plastic bag

Your goal should be to develop practices that keep your body satisfied by eating nutrient-dense foods throughout the day to keep the metabolism fueled. And you can achieve this by creating rituals around your eating habits. The first practice that has been largely disregarded as a priority in the Western world is that of eating breakfast.

Breakfast is a priority because it is the 'set-up' meal of the day for the body. What you ingest in the morning dictates to your body what to expect for the day. Your breakfast meal gives you the chance to wake up your metabolism, regulate your blood sugar levels, engage the brain, and set your mood. So depending on what you eat in the morning, you can literally create a foundation of success or failure for the rest of the day.

In Western society, some common breakfast choices are toast and cereal. Both of these options are made from a base of wheat and sugar, and lead to spikes in blood sugar levels which causes fatigue, increased hunger and cravings only hours after eating.

So what should you eat to feel physically fabulous, mentally alert, and ready to face the day?

The best start to any day includes a range of fresh, whole ingredients that activate your metabolism and satisfy your taste buds. When you’re starting out in this program, there are three great options below that you can try.

Before you head off for a week of new breakfasts, remember that this program designed around the ideas of portion sizes and servings. Instead, you need to focus on filling the body with nutrients and learning to listen to it as a way of healing the self.

So unless the recipe has specific measurements, you can eat until you feel satisfied. By letting your body guide you in this way you will start to build up some trust and give it the nutrients it needs to heal.

Breakfast health check – ask yourself the following questions

1. What does your breakfast look like? Is it highly processed and full of refined sugars, additives and preservatives? Do you rely on toast or breakfast cereals?
2. Are you suffering from morning slumps?
3. Are you craving sugar (this could occur when you have a high-carb breakfast and when you have no breakfast at all)

ACTION STEPS

3 different types of breakfast you might like to try

Eggs With Herbs

CADA

Egg & Banana Pancakes

Take note of how you feel after making healthier breakfast choices

Lunch, sometimes referred to as dinner by older generations, is the next meal of the day and the next meal you need to focus on.

The general, unspoken rule regarding lunch is to eat with the intention of 'getting something down.’ That’s why so many people eat on the run, sitting in front of their computers, or at worst they don’t eat at all because they’re 'too busy.'

Again, it’s no coincidence that many modern day illnesses have increased with the modern focus on productivity and work. People are often too busy and too stressed to take even 20 minutes out to feed their body and mind. This seems insane when you acknowledge that abusing the body and mind could cause damage that would stop them from working at all.

As with breakfast, the normal lunch option for many people is a wheat based choice – a sandwich, some pasta or a wrap.

The problem with eating this type of lunch is the same as with eating cereal or toast for breakfast – it’s based on wheat. Modern wheat is not like it used to be. Wheat grains are very different to traditional wheat such as Einkorn and Emmer wheat. This is because of hybridisation (including chemical and genetic modification), and the resulting grains can cause spikes in blood sugars as well as insulin resistance, which can lead to diabetes.

Top Tips (create as graphic)

1. Give up the sandwich & create new lunch options
2. Do a wheat detox of your pantry
3. Take 20 minutes out and eat your lunch away from distractions

The new wheat also has a morphine type substance in it that crosses the blood brain barrier. This chemical locks into receptor cells and causes a condition called ‘the munchies’. And then there is the gluten problem! Gluten has changed significantly over the last 30 years, which is evident in the explosion of coeliac disease. The new breed of wheat was introduced into the food supply around the mid-1980s – that time when everyone ate bread but no-one seemed to have the issues they have today. From IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) to skin conditions and coeliac disease, the new wheat and wheat derivatives that are a major component in packaged foods are the direct cause of many modern illnesses.

Nothing highlights the changes in food quality over the last few decades like bread. Bread was once a food with 5 ingredients; wheat flour, oil, salt, water and yeast. However, these days there are up 30 ingredients in a simple loaf of bread. This begs the question: if it takes only 5 ingredients to bake a traditional loaf of bread, what are the other 25?

Research has shown that people who don’t eat wheat automatically eat around 440 calories less than those who do. They also have fewer cravings, particularly for processed and high sugar foods. This automatically reduces many ‘sickness symptoms’ including bloating, fatigue, skin disorders and weight gain.

So, once you know what you shouldn’t have for lunch, you need to find options that are better for you, give you energy for the rest of the day, and fill you up. And you need to work to establish a lunch time habit, a ritual that gives you some much needed time away from your job and the demands of your life.

Some good options for the lunch time meal include:

• Leftover meat from the night before with salad. If you make extra meat the night before, this makes a good lunch option
• In the winter months, slow cooked stews and soups are wonderful
• A seaweed sandwich - use a sheet of nori (seaweed roll) or rice paper, and make as per usual with salad and meat
• A freshly made green smoothie
• Sliced vegetables and dips
• Other leftovers from dinner the night before

Lunch time should be like any other activity in your day. It should have a period of time set aside so that you can be present while you eat. Being present when eating is vital for proper digestion. It also forces you to be conscious of your body’s needs, which can prevent overeating. To create a good lunch time habit, block out at least 20 minutes for your lunch and take yourself away from your work to sit without distraction and enjoy your food. You’ll be amazed at how different you feel and how much easier your day becomes.

Lunch health check – ask yourself the following questions

1. What does your lunch generally look like? Is it made from real fresh foods?
2. Are you consuming another wheat based meal?
3. Do you stop to make time to eat?
4. Do you suffer from afternoon slumps? This could be caused by eating the wrong kind of lunch. A meal that has a good balance of protein, vegetables & good quality fats will give you sustained energy for the rest of your day.

ACTION STEPS

• Below are 3 different dinners you can try.
• Take note of your energy levels and how you feel after you try a new type of lunch.

Slow Cooker

One of my favourite dinners is the slow cooked dinner - a one-pot dinner that you start in the morning and is ready by the time you get home. It is just a matter of preparing some steamed greens or rice or sweet potato and you’re ready to eat. If you don’t have a slow cooker, you can also use a heavy based oven pot with a lid and cook the food in a slow oven for the same results. The best thing about a slow cook is the nutritional value.

Try using cheap cuts of meat with the bones still intact. The bones have an enormous amount of minerals as well as amino acids and a string of wonderful nutrition. Add some vegetables to the pot and you have a recipe for health and deliciousness.

Chicken Curry

Another really quick meal is to grab a precooked chicken or some fresh free range chicken from your local store and serve it with some homemade curry sauce. Mix raw or cooked chicken chunks with the curry and place it in the oven to heat or cook. In the meantime, cook up some beautiful brown rice and steam some broccolini or asparagus and dinner is ready.

BBQ Meat and Vegetables

Another easy meal is a meat BBQ - chicken, fish or red meat (lamb, beef or wild counterparts), with a salad and one vegetable. The key is to have the ingredients in the fridge. Try purchasing meat from your local farmer – you can usually buy in bulk and freeze it or have it cryovaced. All you have to do is remember to get the meat out of the freezer in the morning - having the vegetables and salad ingredients organised in the fridge makes it even easier.

Dinner - probably the most difficult meal of the day. By this time you’re tired from working all day, the kids are hungry, and you’re already past hunger and pretty much ready to chew someone’s arm (or head) off!

Desperately you head to the place of your salvation – the kitchen – and begin the search. First it’s the pantry, then the fridge. And as your fatigue deepens you begin to cave to your own hunger. The kids are now screaming and bickering, and as much as you would like to do the right thing - you’re tired and simply can’t be bothered. The next thing you know you’re on the phone dialing for takeaway... AGAIN!

For many people, this is probably a fairly accurate summation of how the evening meal usually goes.

If getting takeaway is an occasional thing you can get away with it, after all moderation is key to health and to happiness. But when the occasional quick fix turns into a regular habit, it causes major problems. Before you know it, your health and energy are decreasing, and you will be stuck in a downward spiral that seems never ending - the more tired you become the less you want to cook and the more takeaway you get, which in turn breeds cravings and increased addiction due to the additives in the foods you are consuming and so on.

So, what is the solution? How do you break the takeaway habit and enjoy daily dinner success?

Top tips

1. Organisation is the key to dinner success – take the meat out of the freezer before you leave for work.
2. When in doubt – slow cook! A slow cook meal is easy, tasty & delicious!
3. When eating out ask questions to help you make the right food choices

Success is being organised

Yes, it is true the key to dinner success is the same as for every meal – being prepared and organised. By committing to the weekly habits of shopping fresh and organising your meals, your dinner habits will go from distressing to simply what you do – and you will enjoy the benefits of eating fresh, nutritious food every night.

There are a few key elements that go into creating a health-filled dinner:

• Some form of meat or protein – whether it be vegetarian or carnivorous, a complete meal will include a serving of
• Vegetable serving – either salad vegetables or traditionally cooked ensure that you are completing your day with a big dose of nutrients and minerals – it is like nature’s medicine and will keep your blood sugar levels stable throughout the night.
• Use fresh herbs and spices as condiments and steer clear of any processed condiments such as table salt, black pepper sauces and dips.
• Eat EARLY – by eating your dinner before 7.30 pm you allow your body to digest the food before going to sleep improving the quality of sleep and health.

To ensure that you always have the right ingredients (and the best quality of produce) to make an easy dinner, I suggest you do a big shop on the weekend and separate your meat and veg into dinner sized portions. Then you can freeze your meat and simply take it out in the morning before you go to work to defrost. If you forget to take your meat out simply stop by your local fishmonger or butcher on your way home and grab something fresh to cook. Or if you are really in a bind you can always grab a pre-cooked chicken or some free-range eggs.

Lastly, there is always going to be times when you can’t totally control the meals you are eating. We as humans are social creatures and we like to go out. When you know what it’s like to feel amazing, with lots of energy and abundant health, you probably won’t be prepared to compromise that feeling, and will find yourself going to restaurants less and less and having friends to your place for dinner instead. However if you do go out for dinner the key is to ask the right questions and choose the right foods.

For example, try choosing a clean meat without sauces, one vegetable and a undressed salad. Ask the person taking your order a few simple questions and advise them of any food intolerances. Once you complete the Real Food Reset and start to become aware of how different foods affect your mood, body and general health, you will most likely start to gather a list of non-negotiables when it comes to how your food is served - the key is to remember you are the customer and you have the right to ask for your food to be prepared how you want it. It is not about being fussy as much as it is about putting yourself and your health first!

Once you are in the habit of being prepared, dinner will become a fantastic opportunity to nourish yourself and connect with family as it supports you on the way to feeling amazing!

Dinner health check – ask yourself the following questions

1. What does your dinner generally look like? Is it made from real fresh foods and made up of mainly proteins and vegetables?
2. Do you feel organised and not always reaching for takeout?
3. What time are you eating dinner? Are you eating at least 2-3 hours before bed? 

ACTION STEPS

Below are 3 different dinners you can try

Take note of your energy levels, how you sleep and feel after eating a healthy dinner.

SLOW COOKER

One of my favourite dinners is the slow cooked dinner - a one-pot dinner that you start in the morning and is ready by the time you get home. It is just a matter of preparing some steamed greens or rice or sweet potato and you’re ready to eat. If you don’t have a slow cooker, you can also use a heavy based oven pot with a lid and cook the food in a slow oven for the same results. The best thing about a slow cook is the nutritional value.

Try using cheap cuts of meat with the bones still intact. The bones have an enormous amount of minerals as well as amino acids and a string of wonderful nutrition. Add some vegetables to the pot and you have a recipe for health and deliciousness.

CURRY CHICKEN

Another really quick meal is to grab a pre-cooked chicken or some fresh free range chicken from your local store and serve it with some homemade curry sauce. Mix raw or cooked chicken chunks with the curry and place it in the oven to heat or cook. In the meantime, cook up some beautiful brown rice and steam some broccolini or asparagus and dinner is ready.

BBQ MEAT AND VEGETABLES

Another easy meal is a meat BBQ - chicken, fish or red meat (lamb, beef or wild counterparts), with a salad and one vegetable. The key is to have the ingredients in the fridge. Try purchasing meat from your local farmer – you can usually buy in bulk and freeze it or have it cryovaced. All you have to do is remember to get the meat out of the freezer in the morning - having the vegetables and salad ingredients organised in the fridge makes it even easier.

Snacks are a controversial topic. When it comes to weight loss, they’re considered to be an important component of the 'weight-loss equation’. However, if you’re not snacking right or for the right reason, (genuine hunger) they can become the downfall of good health and achieving a healthy weight.

Basically, if you don’t eat meals with good nutrition you’re likely to want to snack in between them. The reason people snack is because their body is screaming out for nutrition, or because their blood sugar has sunk so low that the body needs sugar to function. It’s when this happens that problems can occur.

This is usually known as the 3pm slump, and often results in people looking for quick fixes. Because it’s easy to run to the corner store and buy a muffin, cake or biscuit, this is when snacking turns from helpful to harmful. If you feed your body a quick fix filled with wheat or sugar then you put yourself back on the merry-go-round of disappointment and disease!

The meals in this 5 step program are strongly nutrient-focused. And if you’re eating them to the point of satisfaction, there should be little need to snack between meals.

However, sometimes you will feel hungry between meals and one of the worst things you can do is deprive the body. That’s why you should have the right kind of snacks on hand.

Just as with every other step, being organised and prepared is the key to success. A good tip is for you to get into the habit of carrying around an easy and nutritious snack for those moments when you need something to tide you over to the next meal.

After breakfast and before lunch you shouldn’t need a snack, but if you do just go for an in-season piece of fruit. And if you need a snack in the afternoon, try a savoury one. Vegetable strips and dips work beautifully to keep your blood sugar stable, which will sustain you through the afternoon slump. As you continue to eat foods that nourish your body and stabilise your blood sugar, you will find that you experience less of the highs and lows that you may have encountered with your previous eating styles. 

Top 3 tips

1. Always be prepared so that you’re not caught out
2. Snacks can be healthy and tasty too
3. Only eat snacks if you need to, otherwise just wait for your next meal

Snack health check – ask yourself the following questions

1. How often do you snack?
2. Are you snacking out of habit or because you’re hungry?
3. Do you constantly crave sweet treats? This may be because your main meals aren’t meeting your nutritional needs.
4. Are you snacking on healthy foods? 

ACTION STEPS

Do a ‘swap this for that’

Exchange your unhealthy snacks for healthy ones

Go to the Recipe Library and choose 2-3 alternative snacks you would like to use.

Stop and ask yourself if you really need that snack.

By now you have probably realised that this program is more about eating the right types of food in the right combinations than counting calories and restricting yourself. The main goal of this program is to begin the body’s natural healing process by restoring overall health through these healthy food choices. All of the food you are now consuming (if you are following and implementing each step) will be in its whole state – with no additives, preservatives or flavourings. You also don’t have to worry about eating foods that are low-fat, reduced-salt or low in calories! This new way of eating will give your body the energy it needs to clear out some of the toxins that have been building up. It will also give your immune system a boost, so your whole body can function to its best ability!

Once you have your food sorted out, you need to look at what else is going in your mouth, namely what you’re drinking. Different types of drinks take up a lot of aisles in the grocery store and a lot of fridge space in cafes and corner stores. Despite that, it’s fairly simple to choose drinks that are good for you and for your body. Options such as soft drinks, bottled juice, flavoured milk, vitamin waters, sports electrolyte drinks and whatever new drink sensation is on the market, including ALCOHOL, should be avoided at all times. Many of these drinks are packed full of refined sugar or artificial sweeteners. They also usually have additives in the forms of flavours and colours as well as preservatives, and it’s time to get these out of your system.

The natural skincare industry has claimed that by the time you leave your house in the morning you have exposed yourself to around 200 chemicals. These chemicals can be found in everything from cleaning products to skin care, soaps and make-up. And it’s also in your food. Experts estimate that people who eat a normal, modern diet usually eat or are exposed to 200 + food additives and non-food items each and every day.

So avoiding these drinks, and their unhealthy ingredients, will sharply reduce the amount of chemicals your body is exposed to. It will also help to stabilise your blood sugar levels, which will increase your overall energy levels. There really is no downside to this tip!

Drink Types and their Dangers

FIZZY DRINKS

Fizzy drinks, such as cola, lemon, orange and the like, are number one on the list of drinks to avoid! Research shows that soft drinks can damage your cells, especially soft drinks with the common preservative sodium benzoate (211). Research has also found that soft drinks are capable of causing a variety of diseases like cancer, osteoporosis, obesity and tooth decay. Apparently the preservative 211 switches off vital parts of DNA causing serious cell damage in humans. And once the cell is damaged, there is some evidence that the damage might eventually lead to degenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s Disease.

COMMERCIALLY MADE FRUIT JUICES

Commercially made fruit juices are very high in sugar. But more to the point, they’re usually also high in artificial everything! To be sure the fruit juices you consume are free of these additives, make them yourself. If you would like to use commercial juice, the best way is to dilute it down like cordial – mix 20% juice with 80% filtered water.

WHAT YOU CAN DRINK

There are numerous drinks that you can enjoy that will satisfy your thirst and support your new healthy habits.

If you prefer hot drinks, try some herbal teas, especially a good quality green tea. This is great in the morning, and you can actually enjoy it hot or cold depending on the weather and your own preferences. If you don’t really like the taste, try a squeeze of lemon or some lemon slices to take the edge off the slightly bitter taste.

Water is also important, although the amount you need to drink is debatable.

Drinking too much water can overtax your kidneys. If you’re eating foods that are high in water content (which you should be), then drinking extreme amounts of water isn’t necessary. But if you’re eating foods that are low in water content and high in preservatives and additives, you’re going to need a lot of water to flush the system out. So for now don’t be too obsessed with how much water you drink. Just listen to your body, it will tell you how much it needs.

Happy hydrating!

Top tips

1. Remove all soft drinks, electrolyte drinks, flavoured milks, commercial juices, and commercial drinks with additives from your fridge and daily routine.
2. Drink water, but only as much as your body needs. This means no struggling to guzzle litres of water every day!
3. Make sure your hot drinks are from natural sources, experiment with herbal teas

WAKE UP DRINK

> Wakeup Drink # 1: 1 tsp fresh squeezed lemon juice and 250ml filtered water

> Wakeup Drink # 2: 1 tsp of organic apple cider vinegar and 250ml filtered water

> Wakeup Drink # 3: 1 tsp seaweed salt and 500ml water.

Wakeup drink # 1 and #2 are easy to make and they’re wonderful for cleansing and flushing the body’s systems. You can drink them either warm or cold. If the lemon’s too bitter for you, then try it with a squeeze of grapefruit or lime. Each morning, once you’ve finished your Wakeup Drink, drink another glass of water. This is a great habit to get into every morning.

Wakeup Drink # 3 is great for hydrating and cleansing the body. It has a specific effect on the body that will help to flush out all the toxins in your system every morning. When you add salt to water it changes the osmotic pressure of the water and how it functions in the body. If you drink water from the tap that doesn’t have the right electrolyte mix, it will go from the digestive system  into the blood before quickly moving into the kidneys ready for expulsion in the form of urine. But when you add electrolytes to the water in the form of salt, it stays in the blood system longer. This delay allows the water to travel into the body’s cells, washing away their waste products, before the water travels back to the blood system and moves to the kidneys ready for excretion.

Once upon a time, water was full of these essential electrolytes and minerals because it came from natural sources. Water that runs over stones and rocks on its way down a mountain hillside naturally picks up some extra nutrients. Water from the tap is relatively bland and empty in comparison. That’s why by adding some salt to the water in precise measurements, you can change the electrolyte balance of the water and make it much better for you.

Observe how your body reacts to each of these morning drinks and decide which one you want to  make part of your morning routine.

SOME NEW IDEAS FOR HERBAL TEAS

> Slice some ginger, fresh lemongrass, and 1 tsp of licorice root and place into a pot. Pour over boiling water and allow to steep for 5 minutes. Drink throughout the day, topping up with hot water as required.

> Try some herbal teas from your local organic store until you find one you enjoy.

> Rooibos Tea mixed with lemon is a wonderfully soothing tea.

> Steep fresh peppermint in hot water for 5 minutes for a fragrant, stomach soothing tea.

Drink health check – ask yourself the following questions

1. Do you drink fizzy drinks? Think about the amount of sugar in these drinks and what you can have as an alternative.
2. Do you drink enough water throughout the day? Are you drinking good quality filtered water?
3. How much tea & coffee are you consuming?

Action Steps

Over the next week commit to having one of the above wake up drinks & watch how it transforms your day!