The Doctor's Diet: Dr. Travis Stork's STAT Program to Help You Lose Weight & Restore Your Health (60 page)

BOOK: The Doctor's Diet: Dr. Travis Stork's STAT Program to Help You Lose Weight & Restore Your Health

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MAINTAIN STRATEGY #1: ACKNOWLEDGE YOUR AMAZING ACCOMPLISHMENTS

You’ve made some major changes in your weight and your health. Before you move on to the next stage of your life, I want you to pause for a few moments and give yourself some time to acknowledge your accomplishments. You have done some amazing things—you’ve lost weight, added healthy and delicious new foods to your diet, and taken charge of your health. I am so proud of you!

Earlier in the book we talked about how important it is to be mindful about what you eat. But it’s also extremely valuable to be mindful of your achievements—the goals you’ve accomplished, the mountains you’ve climbed, the changes you’ve implemented, the successes you’ve experienced. Most of us have no problem dwelling on our missteps and weaknesses, but we often forget to celebrate our triumphs.

I want you to take a few minutes now to contemplate how much you have achieved as you’ve implemented The Doctor’s Diet into your life. Write yourself a letter, or fill out the following worksheet. Doing so will help you really focus on the wonderful things you’ve accomplished!

MY AMAZING ACCOMPLISHMENTS WORKSHEET

I’ve lost ______ pounds.

I’ve lost ______ inches around my waist.

I have dropped ______sizes and now wear a size ______.

I have lost my cravings for ___________________________________

________________________________________________________.

I have discovered the following new foods and tastes that I love: _____

_________________________________________________________

My blood pressure has improved. It was ______, and now it’s ______.

My blood work/cholesterol/lipids are in a healthier range. They are now:

_________________________________________________________

My blood sugar is lower. It was ______, and now it’s ______.

Other positive changes I’ve noted (skin, hair, nails, libido, self-confidence, happiness, self-esteem, etc.) include:

_________________________________________________________

My energy levels have changed. Now I feel: _____________________

_________________________________________________________

Next, take a moment to acknowledge the reasons that you want to continue living this new, healthy lifestyle and remain at this healthy weight. In other words, write something that inspires you to continue with your new lifestyle. Remember, my goal was to keep you out of the ER by lowering your weight and slashing your risk of developing chronic life-threatening diseases. What goals do you have for yourself?

_________________________________________________________

Once you finish your Amazing Accomplishments Worksheet, post it where you can see it every day, or keep a copy in your smartphone. Reread it on a regular basis, and use it as a reminder of the path you’ve chosen to take.

MAINTAIN STRATEGY #2: BE CARB-SMART
WITH MY CARB-FLEX PLAN

During the STAT and RESTORE Plans, I gave you specific Meal Plan Equations to follow as you planned your meals. These equations were a great tool to help you focus on which foods to include in your healthy diet, as well as how much of those foods to eat for successful weight loss. But now that you’ve reached your weight-loss goals and become fully educated on the components of a healthy diet, you’ve become your own weight-loss expert. And when it comes to meal planning, I’m 100 percent confident that you’re now ready to make your own choices about what to eat.

In the pages of this book, you’ve learned everything you need to know about nutrition, weight loss, and eating to reduce disease risk. As a result, you are well prepared to start making your own flexible choices about what to eat. You’ve graduated with honors and passed all of the tests: You understand what a healthy portion looks like. You know what kinds of foods foster robust health. You know which foods put your health in danger. You’ve had loads of practice creating balanced meals. Now, armed with information and experience, all you need is a healthy dose of common sense to guide you as you plan your MAINTAIN meals.

It’s pretty simple. You’re used to including a serving of lean protein at every meal, so continue to work that in. You’re in the habit of eating two fruits daily, so stick with eating fruits and continue experimenting with different kinds. You’re on top of the benefits of healthy fats, so continue to make smart choices about them. You’re accustomed to filling your plate, bowl, and mug with Anytime Vegetables, Anytime Vegetable Soup, and Anytime Garden Salad, so keep up with that as well.

When it comes to carbohydrates, the best thing you can do for yourself is to follow my Carb-Flex approach. Here’s how it works: Eat reasonable amounts of the healthiest carbs (carbohydrates from vegetables, fruits, legumes, whole grains), and avoid the not-so-good carbs (simple sugars from “white” foods, fruit juice, sweets, and candy). With the Carb-Flex approach, you use your activity levels to guide you as you make choices about carbohydrates. If you spent the morning hiking, for example, some extra complex carbohydrates are fine and sometimes necessary. But if you’ve been working late hours at the office and sitting around a lot with little or no exercise, go light on carbohydrates, choosing
Anytime Vegetables and keeping down to STAT-level amounts of whole grains. In other words, don’t gobble down a whole-wheat dinner roll the size of your head at the end of a long day of sitting at your desk.

I do this in my own life. If I’ve been busy at work and haven’t gotten a lot of activity in several days and I’m in the mood for a healthy Italian dish, rather than sitting down to a big bowl of whole-wheat pasta with chicken and veggies, I significantly reduce the amount of pasta I put in the bowl. I don’t need those extra carbs because I’m not burning that much energy. Conversely, if I’ve been working out and hitting the trails on my bike and my activity level is through the roof, I might have a little extra whole-grain pasta because I know my body needs it to refuel.

I fully stand by my belief that your body needs complex carbohydrates and that they are good for you. But the reason why those “super low carb” diets work to help you shed pounds in a hurry is because carbohydrates are typical culprits of weight gain if you’re not burning them off. So that’s why I want your carbs to be your variable that changes based on your activity level. And the rule still applies—those simple, refined carbohydrates (white rice, white bread, regular pasta, sugary foods) really shouldn’t have a place in your life, except for the occasional splurge.

MAINTAIN STRATEGY #3: EAT A WIDE VARIETY OF FOODS

There’s a whole world of healthy, delicious, nutritious whole foods out there, and I want you to try as many of them as possible! They are packed with a world of nutrients—some of which we know about, some of which we don’t. Experiment, and if you don’t like something—well, then, try something else! Never stop being creative when it comes to nutritious foods.

For example, venture into the seafood aisle at the grocery store and try some kind of fish or shellfish that you haven’t had before. Or, if you like wild game (or you want to see if you do), try duck, quail, goose, or pheasant. As for vegetables, check out all the bright, colorful, even exotic looking veggies at the store and give them a whirl. Same goes for fruit—you never know what kind of delicious delight you might find on the fruit stand.

To keep things interesting, use flavors that enliven your foods. Those flavors can come from herbs and spices, as well as various condiments, such as:

Pickles