Genesis 1:11-12 NKJV

Wow! So many diets! And most of them have you eating foods you don’t really like! Plus, if you’re like me you find a lot of them complicated and confusing.

Actually, eating for weight loss and health doesn’t have to be complex or mystifying. Here’s what I’ve learned, used myself to stay in good health and form, and what I’ve taught thousands of women and men:

Eat Like This and Never Diet Again!

What is “like this?” I like to use the term “clean eating.” And when you eat clean most of the time, the pounds will disappear, the cravings will vanish, and your health will soar.

Here are the primary pillars of this lifestyle change: eating lots of whole, real foods — vegetables and fruit, whole-grains, nuts, seeds, animal and plant-based protein, and healthy oils. Clean eating also means that the foods you eat should be as close to nature as possible — minimally processed, not packaged, or originating from a factory. Plus, cooking at home and finding good ingredients is encouraged.

To put it all in a really simple statement: eat the foods God created to nourish the human body that He created.

When you start eating clean most of the time your body responds quickly because you’re giving it the foods it requires to operate in the optimal way!

The inverse of that is also true: when you’re NOT giving your body the food it needs, and instead eating too many chemicals along with too much sugar, fat, and salt, then your body soon starts breaking down. That’s when you get the tough reports from the doctor about high cholesterol, high blood sugar, elevated blood pressure, and too many pounds for your frame, which can result in all kinds of aches, pains and low energy!

The consequences of each person not giving their body what it needs for good health are bleak. Heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke, and cancer . . . just to name a few!

“Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.”

God made our bodies in such a magnificent way! Our bodies want to heal! Our bodies want to be restored! And if we act before it’s too broken down and rusty, our bodies will bounce back and we can have renewed vitality and health. Even if you haven’t cared for your body in the best way in the past, you can get started now to turn things around and start giving your body what it needs.

So that brings us back to what you should eat and back to “clean eating.”

Here is how you can get started:

Make the decision to Eat Clean most of the time. Plan your meals and snacks for whole foods that are full of nutrients. Don’t have a lot of “junk food” around to temp you. Choose health.

Back away from the sugar! Sugar consumption has soared in the last few decades – and so has type 2 diabetes (even in children). There are the obvious sources of sugar, including candy, desserts, soda, and fancy coffee drinks. But then there are the “hidden sugars” in foods that you think should be healthy, such as flavored yogurt, packaged cereals, salad dressing, prepared meals, and energy drinks.

The average American consumes 22 teaspoons of sugar a day! However, to be healthy women should have not more than 6 teaspoons of sugar a day and 9 teaspoons for men!

Go for real food! Here is how I like to think about me and the food I eat, keeping God in the center of my life. He made my body. And you only need to learn a little about how our bodies function to be amazed at our Creators mastery! The way everything works together and all that it accomplishes to keep us healthy, energetic and sound is truly breathtaking!

Then He created colorful, tasty, and nutritious foods to nourish our bodies. The foods He designed give our bodies exactly what we need with all the vitamins, minerals, and micro-nutrients necessary for optimal health.

The body He created and the foods He created were intricately designed to work together in perfect harmony!

The problem is that for various reasons humans got into changing God’s perfect foods by altering them for longer shelf-life, more intense flavors, cheaper production, or faster yields. That’s the breakdown. And that’s why, since the food industry started producing so much of the food that men, women, and children consume, that health has plummeted to all-time lows, with 70 percent of adults in the United States being overweight or obese; and lifestyle diseases (illnesses caused by the way people life their day-to-day lives).

Prepare more of your meals at home. I know this can be tough for busy folks. So many demands for our attention and our time! That’s why using a few simple ways to plan and prepare meals is the key to making this all work! And again, it doesn’t have to be complicated!

Eating meals that you really like and that are better for you is a huge benefit for preparing most of your meals at home. But another big advantage is that you save so much money! You can prepare tasty, and easy to make meals, at home for a fraction of the price of what you pay at a restaurant!

Watch what you drink! First of all, most adults and children drink way too much soda. And that’s too much with sugar or too much with artificial flavorings. Either way, they are harming your health if you drink too much. Empty calories OR if you drink diet sodas you’re messing with your body’s functions so it actually ends of craving more food and more sugar!

Drinking fruit juice seems like it’s a healthy choice. But the very best parts of the fruits have been left out of the juice so you have a lot of calories and not nearly enough fiber or goodness.

The solution? Drink more water! And again, that doesn’t have to be a complicated process! I coach our members to drink four tall glasses of water each day. When you think that we’re awake for about 16 hours a day – drinking four glasses of water over 16 hours just isn’t that hard. Plus, the hydrated body wants less food!

These are just some of the ways you can start changing so you can turn your life around and begin developing a lifestyle of health and well-being. Taking care of your body is central to a good life. Yet, sadly, so many people have been led down a path and are now really struggling with weight and health issues.

You don’t have to stay that way. And as a follower of Christ, you have the most powerful weight-loss tool ever created! And that’s the power of God and His Holy Spirit working with you to guide you, help you, and encourage you!

If you want to join me and hundreds of other like-minded Christians to reclaim your body’s health and vitality, then I hope you will join us as a member of Choose Life Now. Enter into an experience of growth, discovery, and rich blessings as you submit your body to God and then align your daily life to His best for you!