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The What the Health documentary has been called ‘the health film that health organizers don’t want you to see.’
As a follow-up from the creators of the award-winning documentary, Cowspiracy, the film details exactly what’s gone wrong in our food and medical systems and proposes how we might begin to fix them. For those of you who don’t have a Netflix subscription, you can watch the film online by clicking here.
In a nutshell, What the Health examines some of the key factors involved in our current public health crisis and outlines some of the benefits of reducing our production and consumption of animal-based products. These are changes that could save countless numbers of lives and save us trillions of dollars every single year.
In the accompanying new book, written by Kip Andersen and Keegan Kuhn, there are over 50 new, plant-based recipes designed to help you reclaim your life and health, in addition to diving deeper into the truth about the food that we eat. What the Health will “guide you on an adventure through this maze of misinformation” as the authors travel across the country, talking to medical professionals, public health advocates and professional athletes to reveal the real truth about the food that we eat.
Some of the awesome, new recipes include:
To celebrate the launch of their new book, Kip and Keegan gave us permission to share a recipe that is both delicious and perfectly suited to the Chipotle Method. Check out the recipe below and let us know what you think!
Sushi Bowl with Peanut Miso-Ginger Dressing
Makes: 1-2 servings
This light and filling sushi bowl recipe is perfect for a light lunch or easy-to-prep dinner. And it’s Chipotle Method certified to boot!
We could all use a few more greens in our diet, and this recipe is a great excuse to use some of the spinach, bok choy or tatsoi that you have lying around the kitchen. The addition of dried nori flakes give this recipe a big nutritional boost, and the brown rice and avocado provide some real substance.
To assemble the bowl, layer each ingredient individually, starting with the greens. Add the edamame and rice, the shredded carrot and avocado, then finish with the nori flakes, sesame seeds, a drizzle of vinegar, and a drizzle of dressing, if using.
Ingredients for the Bowl
Ingredients for the Dressing
How to Prepare
To prepare the dressing, combine all the ingredients in a high speed blender, and blend until creamy. In a medium bowl, layer each ingredient, starting with the greens. Add the edamame and rice, the shredded carrot and avocado, then finish with the nori flakes, sesame seeds, a drizzle of vinegar, and a drizzle of dressing, if using.
Kip and Keegan, in partnership with BenBella Books Publishing, has been kind enough to provide a copy of What the Health to our community, and you can enter to win!
We’ll choose a winner by random drawing on February 15th, 2019.
Here’s how to enter:
*Note: Giveaway is only open to residents of the US and Canada. From What the Health by Kip Andersen and Keegan Kuhn ; BenBella Books, 2018.
We will never sell your information or spam you, ever.
Matt Jager is a wellness activist, yogi and co-founder of True Wellth. His life mission is to transform the healthcare and food system in this country, so that every single person has access to the tools and support they need to look and feel their best, control their health, own their happiness and revolutionize their well-being.
Photo credit: The China Study Cookbook
Chances are, you have heard of the China Study. Back when it was first published in January of 2005, it was met with immediate praise and a warm welcome by the health community. Today, it has sold over two million copies worldwide and will forever be one of the classics of nutrition-based literature. In a nutshell, The China Study examines the relationship between consuming animal products and the occurrence of chronic, long-term disease, including heart disease, diabetes and a number of different types of cancer.
If you haven’t had a chance to take a look at this ground-breaking book by T. Colin Campbell, I highly recommend that you pick up a copy the next time you are browsing around your local bookstore. Almost twenty years later, The China Study is just as relevant today as it was when it was first published and will arm you with a ton of great information to inspire you to live in optimum health.
In this new edition of the accompanying cookbook, written by the author’s daughter, you get a healthy dose of the science behind the China Study right on your dinner plate. The China Study Cookbook includes a number of new recipes (175 in total) that follow core China Study principles, are easy to prepare and use minimal sugar and salt.
Some of the awesome, new recipes include:
This revised and expanded edition includes some truly mouth-watering photos to go along with the recipes. It was so hard to choose just one recipe to use for this post because they all looked so good! The book also takes you behind-the-scenes into author LeAnne Campbell’s garden in the Dominican Republic and inside the work of her organization, Global Roots.
To celebrate the launch of her new book, LeAnn gave us permission to share a recipe that we think is perfect for those serious about living in peak health. Check out the recipe below and let us know what you think!
Lentil Collard Wraps with Salsa
Makes: 4 wraps
Photo credit: The China Study Cookbook
Created by LeeAnn Campbell, this light and filling wrap recipe is perfect for a light lunch or easy-to-prep dinner. Not many people are familiar with how to use collard greens and I think this is a great way to start.
Collard leaves make a great substitute for bread and tortillas. For those who are gluten-free or for those who are just looking to eat more green veggies, this recipe is for you. The collard greens just need a quick blanch in boiling water to soften them and make them a bit more palatable for the wraps.
To assemble the wraps, pile all the ingredients in the middle of each leaf and then fold over as you would a burrito. Feel free to get as creative as you would like with this recipe – the possibilities are endless with a veggie wrap!
Ingredients
Instructions
Learn more about The China Study Cookbook
LeeAnn and BenBella Books Publishing has been kind enough to provide a copy of The China Study Cookbook to our community, and you can enter to win!
We’ll choose a winner by random drawing on August 24th, 2018.
Here’s how to enter:
*Note: Giveaway is only open to residents of the US and Canada. From The China Study Cookbook by LeAnne Campbell, Phd; BenBella Books, 2018.
We will never sell your information or spam you, ever.
Matt Jager is a wellness activist, yogi and co-founder of True Wellth. His life mission is to transform the healthcare and food system in this country, so that every single person has access to the tools and support they need to look and feel their best, control their health, own their happiness and revolutionize their well-being.
Have you ever experienced recipe overload in trying to find something to make for dinner? Thanks to the internet, we live in a world where thousands upon thousands of recipes are available at our finger tips at all times, but how can you separate the wheat from the chaff? If you’re new to the plant-based diet, how can you be sure that that hodgepodge of strange-sounding ingredients is actually going to taste good when mixed together?
In their new book, The Main Street Vegan Academy Cookbook, top-ten vegetarian author Victoria Mann and pressure-cooking extraordinaire JL Fields have teamed up with with over a hundred certified vegan lifestyle coaches to share 100 of their favorite plant-based recipes. Regardless of whether you’re a long time vegetarian/vegan or just dipping your toes in the world of plant-based eating, The Main Street Vegan Academy Cookbook is a great place to put your recipe search to rest.
In addition to 100+ recipes, Victoria and JL’s new book offers practical advice on the following topics:
To celebrate the launch of their new book, Victoria and JL sent us a recipe to share that we think is perfect for soothing the soul when you’ve got a case of mid-winter blues. Check out the recipe below and let us know what you think!
Brooklyn Barley Stew
Makes: 6-8 servings
Photo credit: The Main Street Vegan Academy Cookbook
Created by Victoria Moran and JL Fields, this warming and hearty barley stew recipe is a perfect for deep winter nights when you’re in the mood for something soothing and nutritious. There are few things more comforting than a big bowl of steaming-hot stew, especially when it doesn’t take hours to prepare. You really can feel your body relax and mind slow down with each and every bite.
With this recipe, a few simple ingredients combine to make a healthy, plant-based stew that is packed with flavor. This delicious make-ahead dish only gets better as it sits, so fix it today and eat it tomorrow or save some leftovers…if you can help not gobbling it all down at once.
A few notes: Traditional stew vegetables were used for this recipe, but feel free to substitute with whatever you like and/or have lying around the house. One of the great things about soup and stew is that you really can make substitutions to your hearts content and still get great results. Additionally, for those who are avoiding gluten, you can substitute rice, garbanzo beans or even quinoa for the barley and it’s equally as delicious.
Ingredients
Instructions
Learn more about The Main Street Vegan Academy Cookbook
Victoria and JL have been kind enough to provide a copy of The Main Street Vegan Academy Cookbook to our community, and you can enter to win!
We’ll choose a winner by random drawing on February 14th, 2018.
Here’s how to enter:
*Note: Giveaway is only open to residents of the US and Canada. From The Main Street Vegan Academy Cookbook by Victoria Moran and JL Fields; recipe by Michael Suchman (BenBella Books, 2017).
We will never sell your information or spam you, ever.
Matt Jager is a wellness activist, yogi and co-founder of True Wellth. His life mission is to transform the healthcare and food system in this country, so that every single person has access to the tools and support they need to look and feel their best, control their health, own their happiness and revolutionize their well-being.
Have you ever experienced difficulty in adopting a healthy vegan diet? Have you ever struggled with psychological food issues such as compulsive eating, overeating, or gratuitous snacking?
In her new book, The Mindful Vegan: A 30-Day Plan for Finding Health, Balance, Peace, and Happiness, our friend and certified mindfulness meditation facilitator, award winning health educator, and longtime vegan advocate Lani Muelrath teaches us how to overcome these dietary issues and embrace a long-lasting and healthy plant-based diet through mindfulness meditation.
The book offers practical advice on the following topics and more:
In addition to the above, Lani shared a few recipes from her new book, including one of our own personal favorites, Indian kitchari. Check out the recipe below and let us know what you think!
Indian Kitchari
Makes: 4+ servings
Created by Lani Muelrath, our fragrant Indian kitchari recipe is a perfect recipe for the fall and winter seasons when heavier, warmer foods go a long way towards keeping us grounded and balanced. Kitchari is a traditional Ayurvedic healing food and has been used for thousands of years in India to aid in the practice of yoga, meditation and other mindfulness exercises. Lani’s recipe is simple, authentic and tastes great!
Kitchari is one of our favorite go-to dinner recipes and we eat it regularly throughout the cold season. It uses simple, whole ingredients, a handful of digestive spices, requires very little preparation and just about everyone I know loves it. This is a great dish for when you’re feeling stressed and need something comforting to help bring you back into balance.
A few notes: If your spices are ground and not whole, that works well, too. You can also replace the rice with another ½ cup of dal if you prefer or if you plan to serve over rice instead of mixing it in. Lastly, you can find most, if not all, of the ingredients for this recipe at your local Asian or international food market.
Ingredients
Instructions
Learn more about The Mindful Vegan
Lani has been kind enough to provide a copy of The Mindful Vegan to our community, and you can enter to win!
We’ll choose a winner by random drawing on November 30th, 2017.
Here’s how to enter:
*Note: Giveaway is only open to residents of the US and Canada
We will never sell your information or spam you, ever.
Matt Jager is a wellness activist, yogi and co-founder of True Wellth. His life mission is to transform the healthcare and food system in this country, so that every single person has access to the tools and support they need to look and feel their best, control their health, own their happiness and revolutionize their well-being.
Photo Credit: Heather Crosby
The majority of cookbooks do not capture the improvisational, casual cooking that most people do every day. In fact, most cooking done in homes doesn’t even involve recipes: we throw together dishes that we know and love while adding in our signature twists, and break out the cookbooks when we can get to the store.
Our friend Heather Crosby has a new recipe book out that celebrates the freestyle, stress-free type of cooking we pull off with regularity by proposing healthy “choose-your-own-adventure” templates for cooking. Her book is called YumUniverse Pantry To Plate: Improvise Meals You Love – from What You Have and it’s a one-of-a-kind plant-based, gluten-free recipe playbook that opens up a world of possibilities for home cooking.
One recipe that really stood out to us was the plant-based lasagna. Lasagna is one of those foods that just about everyone grew up eating and still loves today. Because of that, it fills a certain need when we’re craving something comforting that reminds us of mom’s home-cooking. Better still, Heather’s recipe is 100% plant-based and gluten free.
Check out the recipe below and let us know what you think!
Created by the talented Heather Crosby, our Mushroom & Sage Lasagna recipe is perfect for anyone who doesn’t feel like running out to the grocery store for a long list of ingredients or for those who enjoy a more spontaneous, freestyle approach to cooking.
Mushroom & Sage Lasagna
Makes: 8+ servings
People of all dietary preferences love this recipe! This would make a great dish for a potluck or for when catering for family and friends, even if they’re not plant-based. Per Heather’s style, substitutions with what you have available in the kitchen right now are welcome. Have fun experimenting and see what you can come up with!
Mushroom & Spinach Lasagna would be great served with a simply dressed side salad and a loaf of gluten-free bread. To add to the base recipe, feel free to include extra veggies in the lasagna, such as artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes, red bell peppers or squash.
Ingredients
Instructions
Learn more about Pantry to Plate
Heather has been gracious enough to provide a copy of Pantry to Plate to our community, and you can enter to win!
We’ll choose a winner by random drawing on August 31st, 2017.
Here’s how to enter:
*Note: Giveaway is only open to residents of the US and Canada
We will never sell your information or spam you, ever.
Matt Jager is a wellness activist, yogi and co-founder of True Wellth. His life mission is to transform the healthcare and food system in this country, so that every single person has access to the tools and support they need to look and feel their best, control their health, own their happiness and revolutionize their well-being.
Many of our readers write-in to say that they enjoy success in so many areas of their life, but struggle to eat well and maintain their ideal weight. They find themselves in unhealthy patterns of extreme dieting and subsequent binging, never finding the middle ground that they’re looking for to achieve sustainable weight loss in the long-term.
In the midst of such a struggle, many people become exhausted, choose to give up and are left believing that they’ll never lose their excess weight. They ask themselves, ‘how will I ever get where I want to be if I’ve tried so hard and still can’t succeed?’
Susan Pierce Thompson
Luckily, Dr. Susan Pierce Thompson is here to shed a little light on the subject. Instead of relying on sheer will-power to lose weight, Susan brings psychology and neuroscience to the table to help us better understand the science behind the power of food addiction and how we can free ourselves from it.
Her own story is truly moving. In 2003, Susan was taught a method for getting slender that helped her overcome a lifelong struggle with weight. Armed with the tools that she truly needed to succeed, Susan dropped from a size 16 to a size 4 in just a few short months, and later went on to become a professor of psychology to study food addiction and help others find food freedom.
We’ve been a Susan’s work for a long time and we recently sat down with her to talk about her new book, Bright Line Eating: The Science of Living Happy, Thin & Free in addition to getting a glimpse into her thoughts on the science of weight loss.
Show Notes:
Learn more about Bright Line Eating
Dr. Susan Pierce Thompson has been kind enough to provide a copy of her new book, Bright Line Eating, to our community and you can enter to win!
We’ll choose a winner by random drawing on Friday, April 21st.
Here’s how to enter:
*Note: Giveaway is only open to residents of the US and Canada
We will never sell your information or spam you, ever.
Matt Jager is a wellness activist, yogi and co-founder of True Wellth. His life mission is to transform the healthcare and food system in this country, so that every single person has access to the tools and support they need to look and feel their best, control their health, own their happiness and revolutionize their well-being.
You have the answer. In some cases it could literally save their lives. And yet they aren’t even remotely interested in hearing about it, yet alone implementing it.
This is a common experience when we discover the power of lifestyle medicine.
I mean, it’s an absolute crazy revelation. 70-80% of chronic disease, our BIGGEST killers, can be prevented and even reversed with the magic of…vegetables.
It’s proven fact.
And so when the people we love face the nearly inevitable health destiny of the standard American diet, heart attacks, diabetes, weight gain, etc, OF COURSE we want to do everything that we can to help.
But they think we are the crazy ones.
I was looking through recipe books with a client of mine, and he pointed to a veggie-laden dish where the primary color was green. “Does that actually look appetizing to you?”, he asked.
I looked him in the eye and said…YES. I love vegetables! I go crazy if I go three days without eating greens.
I started out just where he was, eating pop tarts for breakfast, drinking crazy amounts of soda and eating fast food multiple times per week.
And now I LOVE vegetables. I think they are so beautiful. I find them so delicious. It’s an incredible pleasure to explore the incredible colorful, delectable variety of veggies, herbs, nuts, seeds, fruits and so on.
To get the glorious health benefits, you don’t even have to eat unappetizing food reminiscent of cardboard. You get to delight in satisfying, delicious, food with a side effect of nourishment.
BUT.
Of course you know this.
But Your sister doesn’t want to hear it. Your best friend doesn’t want to hear it. Your husband REALLY doesn’t want to hear it.
And you have to know when to apply gentle pressure and when to let it be. In most cases, you really just have to wait until someone is ready for the message, as hard as that is.
But often the best way is just to feed them. Show them how delicious the food can be. Give them a 3D experience of how good healthy food can taste!
Delicious food is an extremely powerful catalyst for change.
Which is why I’m so excited to share today’s interview with you.
Mark Reinfeld is a a multi-award winning chef, author and food activist with over 20-years experience preparing creative vegan and raw food cuisine. and more. Through his Vegan Fusion company, he offers consulting, chef services, culinary workshops and chef trainings internationally.
He’s consulted for top companies such as google and whole foods, started an award winning restaurant and is on a mission to change the world by making healthy food taste amazing.
It’s an incredibly effective strategy, and I set down with Mark to talk about his work and his latest book Healing the Vegan Way.
Show Notes:
Mark has been gracious enough to provide a copy of the Healing The Vegan Way to our community, and you can enter to win!
We’ll choose a winner by random drawing on Thursday, September 15th 2016.
Here’s how to enter:
*Note: Giveaway is only open to residents of the US and Canada
We will never sell your information or spam you, ever.
Matt Jager is a wellness activist, yogi and co-founder of True Wellth. His life mission is to transform the healthcare and food system in this country, so that every single person has access to the tools and support they need to look and feel their best, control their health, own their happiness and revolutionize their well-being.
We are giving away a free copy of Dr. Greger’s book! To enter, fill out our 2015 reader survey.
I was shocked when I found out that the leading cause of death in the United States could be eliminated by changing what’s on our plates.
One out of every four Americans currently dies of heart disease — a condition that can be not only prevented, but REVERSED with a whole-food, plant-based diet.
If that was the only benefit of the plant-powered path, it would still be a strong argument for making veggies the main course.
But it doesn’t stop there.
Obesity, type 2 diabetes, high blood-pressure and other chronic conditions can all be improved by simple changes in diet and lifestyle.
And sometimes these kinds of lifestyle interventions are more effective than prescription pills and surgeries.
These powerful statistics carry a personal touch. I don’t know a single person who hasn’t been affected by one of these diseases, whether personally or through a close friend or family member.
It’s absolutely heart breaking. But we can do better.
Today, I’m thrilled to share an interview with Michael Greger, MD, internationally-renowned nutrition expert and founder of what I consider to be the best evidence-based nutrition site on the web, www.NutritionFacts.org
Dr. Greger released his latest book last week which is taking this life-saving message to the mainstream.
In How Not To Die, Dr. Greger reviews an incredible amount of medical literature in order to find the best nutrition and lifestyle interventions for the fifteen leading causes of death — diseases that claim the lives of 1.6 million Americans each year.
The book is a great reference if you are looking for specific recommendations, such as the best foods for treating hypertension.
Greger also provides actionable advice on how to make lifestyle changes stick, and a daily dozen checklist of foods to add to your diet to get the biggest benefit.
I hope you enjoy the interview. But most importantly, please help get this critical message out.
Together we can begin to fix a broken food system, a broken healthcare system, and literally save a million lives. Share this with someone that could benefit from the information.
Watch the interview and learn:
Show notes:
If you like this video, please subscribe to our youtube channel!
Dr. Greger has been gracious enough to provide a copy of How Not To Die to our community, and you can enter to win!
To enter, fill out our 2015 reader survey! We’ll be randomly selecting a recipient from the entires and notifying the winner on Tuesday, December 29th.
UPDATE: The giveaway has now ended. Congrats to Karen R!
*Note: Only open to residents of the continental US.
We will never sell your information or spam you, ever.
Matt Jager is a wellness activist, yogi and co-founder of True Wellth. His life mission is to transform the healthcare and food system in this country, so that every single person has access to the tools and support they need to look and feel their best, control their health, own their happiness and revolutionize their well-being.
Photo credit: Kate Lewis
I once juiced an onion. Yes AN ONION! What was I thinking???? Blood cleanser?! DO NOT DO THIS.
This is just one…let’s say telling…example of my many experiments with smoothies and juicing. And my experience has given me a different viewpoint than most.
Today we are going to laser in on this juicy subject in celebration of Kris Carr’s new book, Crazy Sexy Juice. We have a recipe to share from the book, as well as a free copy to give away!
For starters, it’s important to understand the difference between blending and juicing. Here’s a handy infographic from Kris that outlines the differences.
Now that we know the difference between these two methods, the essential questions remain: Should we be juicing? Should we be making smoothies? Or should we skip them altogether?
Some say yes, others say no. For me, I say it depends on your goal. Let’s dive in.
One of the most common arguments against smoothies and juicing is that it is better to eat whole foods in their natural state, particularly when it comes to weight loss.
For example, a typical smoothie may contain 2 bananas, 3 cups of spinach, 20 almonds worth of almond butter, and a cup of blueberries.
If you were to pour those smoothie ingredients out of the blender and onto a plate, it would take at least 20 minutes of fastidious chewing to finish your meal. I’d also wager that you’d feel quite full afterwards.
Once blended, you can slurp it all down in about 30 seconds, and here’s the important part: You may or may not feel full.
Typically a smoothie will fill me up for about 15 minutes before I’m hunting for something else to munch on, so I rarely use them as a meal replacement.
This is based on the concept of satiety and caloric density. When weight loss is your goal, it’s best to choose foods that leave you feeling the most satisfied for the least amount of calories.
For example, Chef AJ talks about the value of eating 1 pound of veggies for breakfast. Are you going to feel (and stay) full after eating a pound of veggies? You better believe it.
So if weight loss is your goal and you have the luxury of choosing between a smoothie and a pound of veggies, make the veggies your top choice.
However, most of us are insanely busy and overwhelmed as it is.
Our mornings are often a race against the clock to get the kids ready for school, put some food on the table and get out the door in time for work.
In fact, we created our minimalist food prep course the 12 Minute Kitchen in order to provide quick and easy plant-based meal options for just these kinds of situations.
If you are overwhelmed trying to prepare plant-based meals and continually falling short, green smoothies are a fantastic (and realistic) option. It’s one of the best ways to fill your belly with delicious nutrient dense plant foods in a hurry.
Here’s the take away: Choose green smoothies if you are having trouble getting your greens, are not yet 80-100% plant-based, or have trouble finding the time or energy to prepare a plant-based meal.
If you find yourself going through the drive through, or indulging in junk food because you didn’t manage to make the perfect breakfast, then go for the green smoothies!
If your primary goal is weight loss, you aren’t seeing the results you want, and you’ve already cut oil, then skip the green smoothies in favor of a whole food plant-based meal that will leave you feeling fuller, longer.
Photo credit: Stacy Spensley
As I mentioned above, I love smoothies because they are just so darn realistic.
They are a fantastic way to get the good stuff into your diet, are quick and easy to prepare, and you don’t have to be a chef to make a delicious smoothie.
So when should you choose a green juice over a smoothie?
If you haven’t yet had your first juicing experience, you’ll quickly find that it takes considerable more time, effort and produce to make a glass of juice.
When is it worth it to invest all that additional energy? When you need to pull out the big guns.
A green juice is like a concentrated injection of vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients. You are delivering the nutritional potency of several pounds worth of veggies directly into your system.
This can help create and maintain the systemic conditions that promote health and healing, such as creating an alkaline environment and reducing inflammation.
The body is a complex system, and modern life presents many obstacles to radiant health. Between depleted soils, questionable food production practices, and more toxins in the environment than ever before, sometimes we need a boost beyond healthy food.
Do you have a chronic health condition or health crisis? Are you already eating 100% plant-based and not losing weight? Struggling with food addiction?
These are the situations when it becomes especially worthwhile to invest the time and energy in juicing.
When I first went plant-based, I drank a minimum of 16 oz of green juice a day for close to two years.
I have no doubt that this accelerated the change towards a physiology of health and well-being that began when I put plants first.
And during my time at the Tree of Life Center in Patagonia, Arizona, I watched hundreds of people experience profound healing and transformation on a 7-day green juice fast.
But here’s the catch: I spent close to an hour every morning making my daily juice, and it was not an inexpensive endeavor.
I, of course, saw it as a valuable investment, but it just may not be possible for everyone to devote that kind of time and energy towards juicing.
If you’d like to learn more about the ins and outs of juicing, check out the Ultimate Guide To Green Juice.
Photo credit: Kate Lewis
Here’s the takeaway:
Green juice is a powerful tool, but it requires a large investment of time and energy.
When changing our diets, we usually have limited time, energy and willpower. If you are exceptionally busy or overwhelmed just trying to put healthy food on the table, focus on eating more plant-based meals and don’t worry about juicing for now.
If you are in the midst of a health crisis, doing everything right and still not losing weight, or struggling with severe cravings then it’s especially worthwhile to invest in juicing.
Juicing Disclaimer:
As I’m sure you’ve noticed, this is a less than scientific explanation of juicing. I’m still not a doctor or nutritionist, and I am just relating my personal experience and observations.
Consult a qualified medical professional before adopting any of these practices, and do not attempt a green juice fast without medical supervision. Especially if you are on medications.
Smoothies are a great medium for superfoods and supplements
Smoothies are a great way to get in superfoods, such as protein powder, tonic chinese herbs, or any other supplements or superfoods you are including in your diet.
Increase satiety with flax and chia or slowly sipping your smoothies.
According to a study mentioned by Dr. Greger, adding a tablespoon of flaxseed to your green smoothies can increase satiety and suppress appetite up to four hours after consumption.
And according to Regan, too much flax or chia can ruin a tasty smoothie so it’s best to start with a teaspoon or two. Also the longer the flax or chia sits the more gelatinous it will become, so add it in just prior to drinking or grab a spoon.
Sipping your smoothie, rather than gulping it down, can also increase satiety and leave you feeling full longer.
Watch out for sugar
Juicing and blending concentrates the natural sugar content in fruit and makes it more absorbable. You can end up consuming a large amount of sugar very quickly and spike your blood sugar.
Be mindful of the amount of fruit (or other sources of sugar) that you are including in your juice and smoothies. Make it palatable with the least possible amount of sugar, and aim to reduce the sugar content as your taste buds adjust.
I used to include a whole apple in every green juice, but I now think that green juice is incredibly delicious without any sweetener at all.
Learn more about Crazy Sexy Juice
Regan and I have had a crush on Kris Carr for a long time. Her Crazy Sexy Kitchen recipe book is one of our favorites, and we are super excited for her new release Crazy Sexy Juice.
We asked for a sneak peek recipe to share with you and Kris came through. Not only do we have a recipe to share, but Kris also has a number of bonuses available if you purchase the book, and we have copy of Crazy Sexy Juice to give away! Details on how to enter the giveaway are at the bottom of this post.
But first, here’s a great recipe to get you started with green juice.
Green lemonade is the Cadillac of juicing recipes. This is my take on the beloved classic. The juice is a little sweet (thanks to the apple) and a little spicy (gracias to the ginger). The natural bitterness of leafy greens is cut by a bright squeeze of lemon.
You can use almost any type of leafy green in place of chard or kale. Romaine, baby spinach, collard, bok choy, broccoli—you name it! In fact, I love adding broccoli stems to this recipe. Get creative.
This juice is a perfect vehicle for all of your greenest fridge scraps.
Photo credit: Kate Lewis
Ingredients
Instructions
UPDATE: The giveaway has now ended. Congratulations to Anna, the winner of the Crazy Sexy Juice giveaway!
We’ll be randomly selecting one recipient (see entry details below) and notifying the winner on Thursday, November 5th.
Here’s how to enter:
*Note: Only open to residents of the US and Canada
We will never sell your information or spam you, ever.
Matt Jager is a wellness activist, yogi and co-founder of True Wellth. His life mission is to transform the healthcare and food system in this country, so that every single person has access to the tools and support they need to look and feel their best, control their health, own their happiness and revolutionize their well-being.
I’ve never been much of a chef. So it drives me crazy when someone says something like, “oh, just taste it and see what it needs.”
I flashback to spending all this time in the kitchen trying to fix a sauce that wasn’t turning out.
Here’s what “just see what it needs” looked like to me:
Ah the joy of learning how to cook! Eventually I did get better, but I still lack that innate skill that others have.
And it’s funny because when you become proficient at something, you totally forget what it was like to be a beginner.
There is an actual term for this phenomenon — psychologists call it the Curse of Knowledge.
It basically means that once you learn the ropes, you lose touch with what it was like to be a novice starting from scratch. It becomes difficult to relate.
I think this is one of the reasons why so much of the health advice out there doesn’t hit home. The experts have totally forgotten what it’s like when you are just starting out!
I recently had the opportunity to interview Lindsay Nixon of Happy Herbivore fame, and she talked about the process of helping her parents go plant-based.
She said it was eye-opening to see just what it meant to completely revamp your diet at 60, and she was able to gain a whole new perspective and appreciation for what it truly means to be a beginner.
I still remember what it was like having no idea what I was going to eat, shopping for ingredients that I had never heard of, trying to figure out if I was indeed going to spend $20 on this strange substance in a jar called “coconut oil.”
And is it any different than coconut butter?!?! I’m still not sure…
Luckily, there are more resources than ever to make transitioning to a plant-based diet as easy as possible.
And today I’m thrilled to share my interview with Lindsay, where we discuss the joys, trials and travails of our plant-based journeys, and her latest book The Happy Herbivore Guide to Plant-Based Living.
Watch the interview and learn:
Show notes:
Lindsay has gained some serious wisdom over the past several years, helping hundreds if not thousands of people transition to a plant-based diet.
Her guide is the resource that I wish I had as a beginner. Heck, I might even have avoided all those painful (and pretty ridiculous) mistakes I made along the way!
I joke that she has put together the bible on plant-based living. I highly recommend it, especially if you are just starting out on your plant-based journey.
She covers all the common questions on nutrition, how to transition, traveling, etc.
But my favorite aspect of the book is the focus on how to deal with social situations. She has extremely helpful advice on how to attend or host dinner parties, what to do when your friends ask you out to eat, and what to do if your family and friends are unsupportive.
The social aspect continues to be the most difficult thing for me, so I was excited to see so much good info in the book.
If you are interested in learning more about her book, it is available on Amazon.
Lindsay and her publisher BenBella Books have been gracious enough to provide two copies of her book to our community, and you can enter to win!
We’ll be randomly selecting two recipients (see entry details below) and notifying the winners on Saturday, June 27th.
UPDATE: The give away has now ended. Congratulations to Stacy and Casey!
Here’s how to enter:
*Note: Only open to residents of the US and Canada
We will never sell your information or spam you, ever.
Matt Jager is a wellness activist, yogi and co-founder of True Wellth. His life mission is to transform the healthcare and food system in this country, so that every single person has access to the tools and support they need to look and feel their best, control their health, own their happiness and revolutionize their well-being.
