by Mark Hyman
Here is the protocol for the lifelong Pegan Diet:
Avoid liquid sugar calories such as soda or juices (fresh green juices are fine).
Continue to eliminate all artificial sweeteners—now and forever!
Minimize all forms of sugar, but especially avoid foods with added sugars. You can always add a little bit of sugar, maple syrup, or honey to the food you cook yourself. That way you know exactly how much you are getting. Note that you should watch to see if any sweetener (sugar, maple syrup, honey, etc.) triggers an addictive pattern of eating. If so, you may have zero tolerance, and I’d encourage you to stay away from any type of sugar or sweetener and get your “sugar” exclusively from whole fresh fruit.
Enjoy a little alcohol if you want (optional). One glass of wine or alcohol three to four times a week can eventually be well tolerated by most people. Just pay attention and notice how alcohol makes you feel. Avoid all other liquid sugar calories.
Continue to avoid processed foods.
Include as many nonstarchy vegetables as you want in all meals and snacks. Remember, if half to three-quarters of your plate is filled with nonstarchy vegetables, you’re on the right track.
Include up to ½ cup of gluten-free grains in their whole-kernel form: quinoa; black, brown, or red rice; buckwheat.
Avoid all processed grains or flours (with the exception of the pasta you will use to test gluten according to the instructions provided in the section following, “Reintroducing Gluten and Dairy”).
Include nutrient-dense starchy vegetables such as sweet potatoes and winter squash, up to two servings per day (see here for portion sizes).
Include ½ to 1 cup of low-glycemic fruit such as apples, pears, berries, pomegranate seeds, watermelon, kiwi, lemon, and lime, one to two servings per day.
Include a moderate amount of beans and legumes, ½ to 1 cup cooked or canned per day.
Continue with your daily practices: supplements, thirty minutes of physical exercise, relaxation, hydration, and seven to eight hours of sleep.
Use your favorite recipes from Eat Fat, Get Thin, or experiment with some new ones from The Blood Sugar Solution Cookbook or The Blood Sugar Solution 10-Day Detox Diet Cookbook.
Reintroduce gluten and dairy by following the steps detailed in the next section.
How to Dine Out Without Getting Sick and Fat!
Eating out not only costs more money; it can cost you your health, too. Food scientists and industrial food–based restaurant chains have tantalized us with addictive, salty, sugary, high-calorie, nutrient-poor foods that negatively affect our health. But you can enjoy delicious, real food when you eat out, without getting sick and fat.
I want you to succeed on your journey through Eat Fat, Get Thin, and I understand that business luncheons, family gatherings, and other social obligations are a part of life that you can’t always escape. I also think eating out is one of life’s great pleasures and can be done without jeopardizing your health or expanding your waistline. Many people have started to demand better-quality food at restaurants nationwide.
I travel a lot and have become a connoisseur at scoping out the good from the bad and knowing how to pinpoint hidden ingredients in seemingly “healthy” meals such as salads or soups. I have created a guide, The Restaurant Rescue Guide, which empowers you to make the best of any dining experience outside the home. You can download this free e-book at www.eatfatgetthin.com. It will show you how to choose the best restaurants and what and how to order from the menu so you can navigate your way to health and well-being while enjoying delicious food.
REINTRODUCING GLUTEN AND DAIRY
The process for reintroducing gluten and dairy is slow and systematic. This is a unique chance to really see how your body tolerates these high-sensitivity foods. We want to add these foods to your diet responsibly and without compromising all your hard work. Here are the steps I recommend:
1. Start with dairy.
2. Eat it at least two to three times a day for three days. Stick to plain milk or plain yogurt without anything added to see how you feel.
3. Track your response for the next seventy-two hours using the food log that follows.
4. If you have a reaction, stop dairy immediately.
Wait at least three days before testing gluten next. Follow these steps:
1. Eat foods containing gluten at least two to three times a day for three days. Use only plain wheat without added ingredients. The best thing to try is pasta, because most breads also contain yeast and sugar. Or you might try cream of wheat cereal for breakfast.
2. Track your response for seventy-two hours using the food log that follows.
3. If you have a reaction, stop gluten immediately.
Tracking your symptoms and reactions is pretty straightforward. You can use the following food log and monitor your progress. (You can download it at www.eatfatgetthin.com and print out as many copies as you need to keep track of all your reactions as you transition off the program.)
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Each person’s body is unique; everyone responds differently to food sensitivities. But to help you know what to be on the lookout for, here are some of the most common food-sensitivity reactions:
Weight gain
Resurgence of cravings
Fluid retention
Nasal congestion
Headaches
Brain fog
Mood problems (depression, anxiety, anger, etc.)
Sleep problems
Joint aches
Muscle aches
Pain
Fatigue
Changes in your skin (acne, rashes, or eczema)
Changes in digestion or bowel function (bloating, gas, diarrhea, constipation, reflux)
Gluten and dairy are by nature inflammatory (dairy may raise your insulin level even if you are not sensitive or allergic, so I recommend eating it only occasionally if you have diabesity). If within seventy-two hours you don’t experience any reactions like the ones listed, you should be fine and can incorporate the food.
In general, if you tolerate gluten and dairy, it is okay to eat them from time to time, but don’t make them staples of your diet. For dairy choices, be sure to stay away from industrial processed cheese, as it is full of chemicals, additives, and hormones. Also, modern forms of wheat have much higher starch content and more gluten proteins than more ancient forms of wheat, which make them more likely to cause inflammation. Try to find “heirloom” sources of gluten and dairy, such as locally sourced cheeses from grass-fed, heirloom cows. They may be more expensive, but they taste better and you’ll need less of them to satisfy your appetite.
You can also experiment with other grains such as spelt, rye, or kamut. If you are not gluten sensitive, whole-kernel German rye bread can be a wonderful addition to your diet. Or try einkorn wheat, which was eaten by the ancient Sumerians.
If you do experience a reaction, I recommend eliminating the offending food entirely from your diet for twelve w
eeks. Often, one primary problem food, either gluten or dairy, can trigger a reaction to a lot of other foods. Once you remove the trigger, other allergens simply won’t affect you as much. For most people, twelve weeks is enough time to allow the inflammation to cool. After that, you will likely once again be able to consume the food in small doses. I suggest limiting any problem food to once or twice a week so you don’t trigger a cycle of illness.
If you still react after eliminating that food for twelve weeks, avoid that food entirely, or see a physician, dietitian, or nutritionist skilled in managing food allergies.
REINTRODUCING TREATS
Treats should be enjoyed as an occasional pleasure, not a staple of everyday life. Some good options include dark chocolate, chia seed pudding with maple syrup, berry coconut ice cream with honey (made from coconut cream and coconut milk), and chocolate chip cookies made with almond flour. You can find healthy sweets and treats in The Blood Sugar Solution Cookbook.
Remember to pay attention and track your responses. If you notice that cravings get triggered or you have other negative reactions, it’s a sign to scale back on the treats.
THE CONTINUING JOURNEY
As with any journey, there may be times when you veer off course. You may find yourself thrown off your plan by unanticipated circumstances, distractions, or stresses. If this happens, be kind to yourself. Just acknowledge what happened and return to your plan without judgment or shame. If you’ve veered very far, I recommend doing the full twenty-one-day Eat Fat, Get Thin Plan again to hit the big reset and get yourself back on track. Then, in a very short period of time, you’ll be back to feeling good again. Veering off course is easily fixable, because now you know the way back home.
PART IV
EAT FAT, GET THIN COOKING AND RECIPES
Cooking is all about connection, I’ve learned, between us and other species, other times, other cultures (human and microbial both), but, most important, other people. Cooking is one of the more beautiful forms that human generosity takes; that much I sort of knew. But the very best cooking, I discovered, is also a form of intimacy.
—Michael Pollan, Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation
15
Simple, Healthy Cooking 101
Just like you, I get busy. I really do. As rewarding as my work is, it’s also pretty demanding. I founded and run The UltraWellness Center in Lenox, Massachusetts, and recently launched the Cleveland Clinic Center for Functional Medicine, which is growing and expanding daily. I travel back and forth from Massachusetts to Ohio twice a month. I have written a dozen books in as many years. I serve as the chairman of the board of the Institute for Functional Medicine, where I help teach and support the development of training for the next generation of Functional Medicine practitioners. Oh, and I’m also a single parent taking care of four kids (my two kids plus my sister’s, since she died a few years ago)—and a dog!
I’m not telling you all this to give you the idea I’m superhuman, because I’m not! I am telling you this to dispel the myth that you can’t take good care of yourself in the midst of a busy life. With everything I just listed above, I exercise regularly, get eight hours of sleep a night (well, most nights), and make sure I eat well even when I am on the road speaking and teaching. Believe me, if I can do it, you can, too.
But preparing healthy food is a skill, like riding a bike or driving a car. It takes a little time to learn, but it’s really not that hard. All you need are a few simple techniques, some basic tools, and a plan. There is no excuse these days. You can even learn to cook by watching YouTube videos. Just type “how to sauté salmon” in your search engine and in three minutes you can learn how to cook the perfect fish.
Healthy meals can be simple and easy to prepare when there is little time and your schedule is spread thin. I don’t have time to cook elaborate recipes. So I have learned how to prepare three meals in a day in thirty minutes total. Yes, that’s right, three meals in thirty minutes total. Here’s how:
For breakfast, I make a whole-food protein shake (you’ll find some of my favorite recipes for these here). The key is to have all the ingredients ready so I can just pop them in the blender. Prep time: three to five minutes.
For lunch, I make a salad (with prewashed greens and veggies, to save time). My favorite combo is arugula, avocado, a can of wild salmon, cherry tomatoes (no cutting required!), and pumpkin seeds sprinkled on top. Dressing is a mix of extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper. Prep time: five to ten minutes at most.
For dinner, I’ll cook a piece of fish, a lamp chop, grass-fed beef, or organic chicken in a skillet with a little bit of coconut oil. For veggies, I’ll stir-fry chopped greens like bok choy or broccoli with garlic (the prepeeled kind to save time), and have that along with a sweet potato (baked the night before and heated up) with salt and a little grass-fed butter. Super-simple, delicious, and easy—fifteen minutes total. Less time than it takes to drive to the takeout and order.
In the next few pages, I’ll give you some basic ideas for simple cooking, which, along with the Eat Fat, Get Thin recipes, will help you turn your kitchen into your new favorite eating establishment.
PLAN YOUR EATING FOR THE WEEK
The single most important ingredient in any healthy diet is planning. If we don’t plan, we might be tempted to make unhealthy choices out of sheer desperation. Think about it: How often have you found yourself at 6 p.m. without a plan for dinner or ingredients to make a healthy meal? More often than not, that leads to takeout, fast food, or packaged, prepared foods… and then lots of remorse!
The easiest way to make a healthy eating plan is to pull it together over the weekend. Make a list—in writing—of what you are going to cook each night during the coming week (or, if you know you’ll be dining out at a particular restaurant, what you’ll order). Start with dinner, as that is usually the most difficult meal to get on the table. Plan for one to two kinds of vegetables, a protein source, healthy fats, and maybe a tossed green salad for extra vegetables at every meal. With this basic framework, you can’t go wrong.
Choose your proteins first: chicken, fish, shrimp, beef, lamb, turkey, duck, and so on. Maybe your list for a week is one to two chicken dishes, one to two seafood dishes, one beef, one lamb or turkey dish, and one vegetarian dish with tofu or tempeh, for example.
Next, choose your vegetables. Choose one or two cooked vegetables from the list of basic vegetables here, along with a salad. As a general rule, you always want to have lots of salad greens on hand. Prewashed greens save time and might cost a bit more, but you can buy heads of dark lettuce greens, wash and spin them dry, and refrigerate them in containers for quick salads.
Do the same for lunch throughout the week. Make a list of the fresh greens, veggies, nuts, and other proteins you can add to a salad to premake and store in a container to take with you on the go. Or choose from the easy recipes here and get all the necessary ingredients.
Breakfast is also pretty easy to plan for. Choose a few of the delicious smoothie recipes here and stock up on the ingredients you need. The Chia and Berry Breakfast Pudding is another easy option that can be made ahead and enjoyed for a few days. It’s also always a good idea to keep eggs on hand, as they take only a few short minutes to prepare (eggs are also great in a pinch for dinner, if you have a night that’s especially short on time).
I strongly encourage you to take the time to write out your weekly meal plans, as opposed to just having a loose idea of what you’ll make. This removes the guesswork and last-minute scrambling and enables you to enjoy your meals rather than feel stressed about them.
HOW TO COOK VEGETABLES
A few simple techniques can help you get vegetables on the table in just minutes without a recipe. First, though, get veggie savvy! Here are a few essential tips:
For best taste and maximum nutrition, don’t overcook your vegetables. Many vegetables can be enjoyed raw or just lightly cooked.
Finish your vegetables with a dri
zzle of olive oil, coconut oil, sesame oil, melted clarified butter, or ghee for healthy fat and flavor. Or try a dollop of one of the sauces in the recipe section.
Chopped nuts and seeds are a great way to add healthy fat to basic vegetables, as well as a nice crunch. For more flavor and eye appeal, add chopped fresh herbs and a sprinkle of sea salt, pepper, or a specialty salt like sea salt with truffle.
Here are the basics you need to know to prepare all your veggies quickly and easily.
To Blanch (cook quickly in boiling water)
Fill a large pot three-quarters full of water and bring it to a boil. Add 1 teaspoon of salt. Drop the vegetables in and cook for 1 to 3 minutes or until crisp-tender. Serve immediately. Vegetables can also be cooked ahead. When done, plunge into a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process, drain, dry, and refrigerate. Reheat when needed.
To Broil
Preheat the broiler on high with the oven rack one level down from the top. Arrange the vegetables on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, sea salt, and black pepper. Broil the vegetables until crisp-tender, turning once if needed. Most vegetables will take 3 to 5 minutes. Test by piercing with the tip of a sharp paring knife.
To Grill
Heat a grill pan or an outdoor gas grill with cleaned grates over high heat. Brush with a little oil to prevent sticking. Place the vegetables on the grill and cook, turning once, until browned but not limp. For an outdoor grill, a nonstick grill basket works great. Many vegetables, like zucchini, mushrooms, tomatoes, and onions, can also be skewered, then grilled.
To Roast
Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil or parchment paper for easier cleanup. Toss the vegetables with olive oil and season with sea salt and pepper. Arrange in a flat layer on the baking sheet and roast until crisp-tender and the edges are browned. Times will vary by vegetable. Asparagus will take just 3 to 4 minutes, cauliflower or broccoli might take 20 to 30 minutes, and root vegetables 45 minutes. The smaller the pieces, the faster they cook, but don’t cut them too small because they will cook too quickly and burn.