The Good Life Challenge 2021

Some major research has happened in the past decade in nutrition. The gut biome was thought to be just a digestive process that eliminated waste and processed our food. What science has come to find out that it is critical to our overall health and responsible to keeping our immune system functioning properly, controlling our mood and influencing longevity. The fiber provides food for the probiotic activity in our colons. This fiber is called prebiotics. Prebiotics feed the probiotics which in turn keep your immune system healthy. An unhealthy gut biome contributes to autoimmune diseases, depression and other mood disorders. The gut biome has been shown to influence almost all of the chronic diseases we suffer from. A healthy gut can lower your blood pressure, cholesterol and contribute to weight loss. The gut biome produces about 80% of the feel good hormone serotonin. So literally go with your gut feeling! Healthy gut means a healthy you!

The underlying secret of weight loss using plant based nutrition is the term calorie density. Plant based foods are calorically light but nutrient dense. Meaning that you can eat a lot of plants and feel full but due to being low in calories it won't make you gain weight compared to calorically dense products such as cheese, meat and oil laden products. The chart below shows the concept. Eat above the line to lose weight!

Based on his recent bestseller this is like the cliff note version of his book straight from the Doctor's mouth. This is all based on the latest medical research.

This plant-strong loaf of love tastes just like a visit to Grandma and Grandpa’s house. These familiar flavors warm the soul… especially now that we know the original recipe is no longer clogging our hearts! Feel free to add cooked spinach on the side or fresh greens as a side salad.

Makes 2 Servings

You can adjust recipe serving sizes for leftovers (and company!) in your menu.

1/2 Onion

1/2 Red pepper

1/2 cup Mushrooms

1 Carrot

1 clove Garlic

1/2 can

No-salt canned kidney beans

1/2 can No-salt canned cannellini beans

1/2 cup Rolled oats

1/4 cup Nutritional yeast

1/2 tsp Paprika

1/4 tsp Black pepper

1/2 tsp Dried rosemary

1/4 tsp Onion powder

1/4 tsp Dry mustard

1/2 tsp Dried sage

1/2 cup BBQ sauce

4 cups Spinach

1 tsp Low-sodium soy sauce/tamari

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F/177°C.
2. Wash all the produce. Peel and dice the onion. De-seed and dice the red pepper. Slice the mushrooms. Shred or chop the carrots. Peel and mince the garlic.
3. In a nonstick frying pan, cook the onion for a few minutes on medium-high heat until it begins to soften. Add the garlic, red pepper, mushrooms and carrots and continue cooking for 5 to 8 minutes, or until the mushrooms are soft.
4. Drain and rinse the kidney beans and cannellini beans.
5. In a medium bowl, mix together the kidney beans, cannellini beans, oats, nutritional yeast, tamari, paprika, black pepper, rosemary, onion powder, dry mustard and sage. Add the cooked vegetable mixture to the bowl and stir. Use your hands here to mix, mash and squish most of the beans. When it becomes sort of sticky, it is ready for the loaf pan.
6. Coat the bottom of a loaf pan with ¼ or less of barbecue sauce and then add the vegetable and bean mixture. Try to level the surface before spreading another thick layer of barbecue sauce on top.
7. Bake for 1 hour. Allow the dish to cool a bit. It will cut much better when it has had time to cool and set.
8. If you are cooking the greens/spinach, add a little water to a pan and wilt and cook the spinach while the loaf is baking in the oven. Set aside.
9. Serve warm with a pile of steamed greens or a large green salad.

from the great resource the Engine 2 Meal Planner https://mealplanner.plantstrong.com/recipe/5942017bf83f55a2e4f4f1e8

By Dominique Linden, August 07, 2019

from https://www.forksoverknives.com

I have seen and heard of a whole-food, plant-based diet saving lives in many ways: reversing heart disease, diabetes, and obesity, and causing other dramatic health transformations. The way it saved my life was more discreet. Eating this way was the kickstart I needed to face the depression I have experienced since childhood.

Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms

Since my earliest memories (and I don’t have many) I have always felt sick, tired and unhappy. Having asthma and allergies did not help either. My family, having no idea about nutrition, raised me as best as they could. Boxed food, fast food, and junk food seemed to be in constant supply. I learned how to suppress my feelings with food. My favorite dinner used to be mac and cheese with hot dogs, and if I had a bad day I could eat a whole bag of Oreos by myself.

Lifting the Fog

In February 2018, I went for my annual checkup and weighed in at 202 pounds. I also (for the first time) openly admitted I was battling depression. I was only 27, and I couldn’t understand how I felt so low.

Then I started seeing a therapist (one of my best decisions), and I watched Forks Over Knives. The film was so eye-opening and exciting that I stayed up all night doing research and ordering books. I decided to go all-in on a whole-food, plant-based lifestyle.

As soon as I finished detoxing from all the processed foods and animal products, I quickly found a mental clarity I had never had before. I felt a lift from the constant “brain fog” that I had always considered normal. After a few weeks, I woke up feeling such a natural high that I knew I wouldn’t give up on this lifestyle. I even started loving things I thought I hated, such as sweet potatoes, onions, and mushrooms. It was hard at first, but the longer I kept up with it, the more natural it felt.

Brimming with Energy

Following a plant-based diet has changed everything. I’m 32 pounds lighter, and my energy and love for life are at an all-time high. I’m a massage therapist. In the past, there were many times when I felt as if I were giving from an empty cup; now I’ve got extra!

It is quite the experience to feel better at 28 than I did as a child. I have had to take other roads to work on my mental health such as therapy and living sober, but I definitely acknowledge Forks Over Knives for saving me from a very unhappy existence. I live a very happy and full life now by realizing that the saying really is true: You are what you eat.

By Chadwick Hayward, Sep 14, 2017

Less than two years ago, I remember driving home from work and repeatedly thinking, “I should just go home and hang myself.”

By all measures, I should have been happy. I had a good, well-paying job, a beautiful wife who loved and cared for me and whom I loved, and a wonderful home. This didn’t stop my dark thoughts. Most days I would come home from work, get heavily intoxicated, and remain that way for the rest of the day.

It wasn’t like overwhelming depression was a short phase in my life, either. I remember similar thoughts reverberating in my head as I lay in bed in high school. In university, I remember taking as many pills as I could get my hands on and feeling disappointed and scared when, to my surprise, I woke up the next morning. I don’t know if it was the fear of stigma, but I didn’t want to talk about it. I built walls to hide how I was feeling on the inside. I often felt like an actor playing a part in my own life.

I obviously wanted the depression to end. I just didn’t know what to do. I tried self-medication, and I was prescribed antidepressants. It really wasn’t until after the depression lifted that I was able to look back with hindsight and realize what had changed.

The adage is true: We are what we eat. Our bodies break down the foods we consume and use the base parts to make up every cell—every bone, muscle, vein, and organ. Our diets impact our chemistry and our mental health. It wasn’t until I changed my diet and my mood improved that I was able to look back and see the connection.

I was lucky. Friends suggested we watch the documentary Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead. Wow, am I glad they did. It started my wife and I on a plant-based path that lead me away from depression. I lost 50 pounds and was able to heal myself from lifelong Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Every step along the way I gained health and longevity—and unlocked happiness. For the first time, I could look ahead with hope. Eventually, I gave up all added oil, sugar, and salt, and I was able to quit smoking and drinking.

Knowledge is power. The more I learned, the more dedicated I became. I cannot speak highly enough of the documentary Forks Over Knives for the eye-opener it was. I owe a great deal of gratitude to Dr. Joel Fuhrman, too; his books ignited my thirst for the scientific support of a whole food, plant-based diet. I was elated to find the work of Dr. Michael Greger at nutritionfacts.org, and I’ve watched all the videos available on his website.

I no longer seek to alter my state of mind through drugs, alcohol, and food. Now, each day I strive for optimal health and only consume foods that nourish me. I’m excited to experiment with recipes and spices and am astounded by the amazing variety of foods and flavors that are available with this way of eating. I feel the opposite of restricted.

This year, after being on a 100 percent whole food, plant-based diet for nine months, I set an ambitious goal. I had been hearing a lot about vegan athletes, so I started running at the beginning of 2017. Only six months later, in June, I entered my first race of any kind—the River Valley Revenge Ultramarathon in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. That day I ran for 70 miles, mostly in the rain, in Edmonton’s first-ever 100-mile trail run. Sixty-two percent of racers didn’t finish the race, and I ran the farthest of any non-finisher. This is something that would have been impossible on my old diet, but now my body is able to push farther than I ever thought possible.

This message of health is so powerful, everyone needs to hear it. People likely will not change overnight. It took me some time to change, but now I have shed the darkness that overwhelmed me and found a passion for healthfulness. Know that you are not alone and that you can find happiness, hope, and health.

For more success stories: ttps://www.forksoverknives.com

The pdf chart below is a handy reference for you to help you understand what nutrients you get from plants. We have included the full two page document in the pdf file link below.

oat bowl, steamed kale, and our dinner bowl: purple barley, sprouts, roasted sweet potato, chickpeas, bed of greens and some tahini dressing.