When people come to see me for weight loss I always ask them if they’ve tried anything in the past.  The typical answer is, “Oh I’ve tried everything!”

They then proceed to rattle off a long list of popular diets.  The most frequently mentioned is Weight Watchers. Keep Reading »

Welcome back to part 4 in my continuing blog series about the Weston A. Price Wise Traditions Conference. 

To salt or not to salt, that is the question.

According to your doctor, your government, just about every major health organization, and probably your mother (at least mine) salt will raise your blood pressure.  This thinking is so pervasive that it’s taken as a fact by just about everyone. Keep Reading »

Welcome back to part three in my continuing series about the annual Weston A. Price Wise Traditions Conference.

Last time I discussed the remarkable accomplishment of cooking for 1500 people without the use of industrial vegetable oils.  I discussed what I termed the “Quadruple Bypass,” namely corn, cottonseed, canola and soybean oil.  Remember, if you see any of those oils in anything, bypass them!

This time, we’ll look at another common industrial “food” that has insidiously crept into our food supply. Keep Reading »

Last time I asked the questions, “Who was Weston Price?” and “Why does he have a conference named after him?” I hope you enjoyed it and learned about the remarkable research of Dr. Price and the foundation that bears his name.

Today and in the next several blogs I want to bring you inside the Weston A. Price Wise Traditions annual conference and highlight some things about it that can perhaps change the way you look at food on a more practical, every day level.

So just like last time I’ll premise this blog with another two questions.

Question #1: When you go out to eat, do you know what oils are being used in the food?

Question #2:  Why does this matter? Keep Reading »

Two weekends ago I attended my first Weston A. Price Wise Traditions Conference in Dallas.  This conference is becoming the premier nutrition conference in the country.  It brings together a varied and passionate group of scientists, doctors, researchers, alternative healers, chefs, farmers, activists and concerned parents and citizens.  We are all united in supporting the recovery of our damaged food system by returning to real, traditional foods.

I can’t tell you how refreshing it was to be around 1500 like-minded folks who really get it.  I didn’t have to debate anyone on why saturated fat and cholesterol are vital for health.  I didn’t get strange looks when I discussed the symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast (otherwise known as a SCOBY or kombucha mushroom) fermenting in my kitchen.  And I didn’t get a bunch of drama queen (and king) reactions at the sheer mention of fermented cod liver oil.  It’s like I’ve come home to my people!! Keep Reading »

“I’ve been searching my whole life for a diet that can explain and reverse all manner of chronic health problems including serious mental health problems.  This is as close as it gets.”

I can’t remember who said it.   It could’ve been a medical doctor, could’ve been a naturopathic doctor, massage therapist, acupuncturist, nutritional therapist or the many psychotherapists that were in the room.   It was during a break, over a casual conversation that someone said it and it stuck with me because it’s a sentiment that a growing number of health practitioners express when they come across the GAPS diet. Keep Reading »

Do you someone suffering from mental health issues?  Chances are you do.  Over the past twenty years the rise in things like depression, ADHD, anxiety, learning disabilities and behavioral problems is nothing short of staggering.  And the rise in pharmaceuticals to treat these issues is equally staggering.  About one in five Americans are on some form of anti-depressant.

A few weeks ago I asked one of the members of my GET AT THE ROOTS 12 week weight loss program to shoot a little video.  We were on week 11 at the time and the topic for week 11 is Brain Chemistry Deficiencies (Mental Health Issues would be an equally suitable name).  It was a bit off the cuff but I think we captured a good testimonial to the power of nutrition when working with these issues. Keep Reading »

Summer sure seems to fly by here in the northeast.   Seems like one minute it’s the Fourth of July and the next it’s Labor Day.  I hope you enjoyed yours and were able to get away for a little bit.

Other than a few glorious days on Cape Cod I spent much of my summer teaching three weight loss classes around the Pioneer Valley.  It was my first time teaching them and I spent tons of time hunkered over my computer preparing for each week’s class.  That’s OK though because I enjoyed teaching them and now that I’ve taught my first round of classes, I feel a lot more confident, prepared and excited to teach them again. I’m also excited to announce the new Fall dates!  And to offer an early bird sign up discount.

But first let me explain very briefly what makes this program different from others.

It’s a new 12 week program called GET AT THE ROOTS and it’s truly different from any other program out there.  Because at its core, it’s not so much about weight loss as it is about getting the body healthy.  When the body becomes healthy, weight comes off naturally and easily.  It does this in two ways:

1) Via food. Class members learn the difference between real food and processed food.  Most Americans have become so disconnected from real food that they don’t know what it is anymore.  For example, breakfast cereal is not real food.  Neither is skim milk, margarine and most vegetable oils.  And then of course there’s the obvious junk that comes out of a box, a can or a drive through window.

There is no calorie restriction.  No counting points. No weighing food.  No pre-packaged meals. No synthetic shakes. No gimmicks. We simply learn what foods to choose that switch the body’s metabolism from fat storing to fat burning.

Exercise is encouraged but not absolutely essential.

Here’s what John Devries, who lost 20 pounds had to say,  “I’ve been exercising regularly for years but couldn’t understand why I wasn’t  losing weight.  With Craig’s program, it became clear and more importantly, easy.  I never went hungry, never felt deprived or bored with my meals.   I will continue to follow these common sense dietary principles for the rest of my life.”

2) Via education. Class members learn to address their underlying issues that prevent both weight loss and good health.  For example, the first four weeks of the program are spent on various aspects of the digestive system and learning how to correct things like heartburn, bloating, IBS, food sensitivities, constipation and yeast overgrowth.   Further modules address fatty acid deficiencies, stress and mental health challenges like depression and anxiety.  For that reason, anyone with a chronic health challenge can do this program.

Here’s what Carol Anderson had to say, “I wanted to lose a little weight but I did this program more to learn more about the connection between diet and health.   Diabetes and heart disease are in my family and I’ve seen the toll it’s taken on my loved ones.  After 12 weeks I lost 6 pounds, my blood pressure went down and I’ve stopped taking my cholesterol meds.  Most importantly, I feel better.  I don’t feel that need for a sugar or caffeine fix in the mid-afternoon anymore.  I’m even sleeping better.”

New classes will start again at the end of September.  The dates, times and locations are listed on the link below.

As for the early bird discount, starting today, September 6^th and ending next Monday night, September 12^th, anyone who signs up in that time will get one week free on the program.

Space is limited so don’t delay!

All the details are included here:

http://www.pvnutritionaltherapy.com/weight-loss/

As always, if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact me.

A few weeks ago I wrote a series of blogs on the three resources I use most to convince and inspire people to shop for real, local foods.  The first was Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon, the second was the documentary Food Inc. and the third was the experience of shopping at farmers markets compared to supermarkets .

Now when it comes to farmers markets in America, there’s good news and there’s bad news.  The bad news is that many places in our country still have little access to fresh, real foods.  I call these real food deserts.

I grew up on Long Island, the classic example of a real food desert.  There are still some farms here and there but they’ve mostly been converted to parking lots, condos, golf courses, shopping malls and suburbs with lawns that soak up chemicals instead of the roots of real food.  We’re all familiar with these real food deserts.  If you live in a real food desert, this blog is for you.  And if you don’t, I bet you know someone who does.

The good news is that as the awareness of our broken, toxic food system grows more and more people are looking for ways to opt out of the conventional system.  Many businesses and farms are becoming savvier by using the internet and online ordering systems to reach concerned consumers who are seeking organic, non-GMO, pastured, grass fed foods.

One such local business here in the Pioneer Valley is Valley Green Feast.  Valley Green Feast is a local, organic foods delivery service.  All you have to do is go to their website, www.valleygreenfeast.com, order from a wide variety of foods from a variety of small farms in the area and they bring it right to your door.  How great is that?!  Literally, the farmer’s market at your doorstep.  No check-out lines, more time at home, smaller gas bills and of course, great quality food!

More than that, Valley Green Feast is a worker-owned collective that supports local farms by expanding their consumer base.  They are working to make real, healthy food more accessible to more people.

I think there’s a huge market for this sort of thing out there and I hope more services will be offered like this around the country.

In fact, the last year I lived on Long Island I was part of a food co-op that received weekly shipments of food from Amish country.  A number of Amish farms had partnered together and set up an online ordering system.  Once a week they would deliver to various locations around the New York-New Jersey-Connecticut tri-state area.  It was absolutely fantastic.  I had dozens of amazing choices right on my computer screen – pastured eggs, cultured vegetables, raw cheeses, yogurt, butter, soup bones, soup stocks and an amazing variety of grass fed meat products.   It was a one stop real food shopping heaven and saved me tons of time.

Certainly setting up these online systems and having the capacity to ship and truck fresh food around to different locations is no small task for many farms.  But I see a huge potential in this sort of thing.  And hey, if the Amish can do it, I think others can too.

Regardless of where you live though, many farms are starting to do this.  This is great if you live in a real food desert with no access to healthy local foods.

A fantastic online resource is www.eatwild.com .  They have a state by state directory of over 1300 pasture based farms.  In particular, check out their “Farms that Ship ” link.

Here are two such sources that are quite popular online:

www.uswellnessmeats.com
www.vitalchoice.com

Another great resource for finding these farms is the Wise Traditions quarterly publication put out by the Weston Price Foundation .  It’s included with your membership to the foundation which is only $40 per year for individuals and $25 if you’re a student or senior.  At the back of the publication you’ll find a section called “The Shop Heard ‘Round the World” with dozens of businesses and cottage industries selling various nutrient dense foods.  In recent years I’ve noticed this section keeps growing and growing.

So if you know someone who lives in a real food desert, please help me spread the word about these wonderful online resources.  In particular, if you know someone who lives in the southern Pioneer Valley where’s there’s less access to the farms of the upper Valley, please help me make them aware of Valley Green Feast. They’re a very new business and many people could really use their services.

Finally, I know what you may be thinking, “Yeah but this is all so expensive!”  Maybe.  But maybe not. As I’ve said repeatedly in previous emails, what is the cost of your health?  Even if your health insurance can cover the costs of medications, doctors visits and even hospitalization, what’s the cost of living with sickness?  What is the cost to not develop the lifestyle diseases of type II diabetes, obesity and heart disease?  I can only answer that question for myself which is to say that for me personally, the extra money I spend each month on real food is well worth it to me.  Most importantly, I feel better.

And I think you will too.

When people come to see me we go over a handout called The Blood Sugar Control Diet.  It helps get sugars out of the diet and thus is useful for a myriad of chronic health issues.  This handout details what to eat for proteins, carbohydrates and fats.  It further differentiates the good carbohydrates from the bad carbohydrates and thus has further sections for grains, fruits, vegetables and dairy.  I’ll tweak things depending on what I think each person can or cannot handle.  For example, some people are more ready than others to give up all sugar, refined grain products or say, diet coke.

Regardless, there’s one thing I underline on this handout that is essential for everyone and it has nothing to do with specific dietary changes.  It’s so important that I always have a red pen on hand to underline it for emphasis.  As I’m underlining I always say this, “This is absolutely the most important thing on this handout.  None of this is possible unless you do this one thing.”

This is exactly what I underline:

This way of eating does take a little planning, but is well worth the effort.

In other words, you have to cook a little more to eat healthier.   It’s hard to get around the fact that to minimize processed foods, to stop eating sugar and to start making real changes, that you have to spend a little more time in your kitchen.  This doesn’t mean you have to be Julia Child!  As I like to say, “You don’t have to be a chef, but you do have to be a cook.” Big difference.

This can be intimidating for many people, especially those with full time jobs.  But with a little planning and a little preparation it’s amazing how quick and simple it can be to eat well at home.

I have yet to find a fish or a vegetable that does not work beautifully with a simple sauce of butter and lemon.  Olive oil, salt, pepper and an herb or two work equally well.   Soy sauce, ginger and garlic are pure magic in my book for red meats and green vegetables as well.  And as far as I’m concerned, the crock pot is one of the greatest inventions of all time.

I always try to help my clients with simple strategies for eating well in a way that isn’t completely overwhelming.   Trust me I’m certainly no chef myself.  But I am a cook.  I’ve realized that I have to be in order to nourish myself and feel well.  With a little practice, patience and persistence, you can have quite the repertoire of delicious home cooked meals within a very short time.

There are so many great cookbooks and websites that can turn almost anyone from a microwaving, hot pocket eating, processed food junkie into a real food cook.  As I’ve mentioned previously, Nourishing Traditions is a personal favorite of mine.

However, there’s nothing quite like learning from others in person.  And it’s a heck of a lot more fun.

On that note I’d like to give a shout out to my friend Molly Merrett.  Molly is very active in the local food movement here in the Pioneer Valley and she has recently started a series of cooking classes using local foods.  I’ve taken a few of them and they’re really great.  I always learn something new from Molly’s classes be it a recipe, a new technique for chopping vegetables or a new way to hold a knife so that I don’t slice my finger off!  Trust me that last one is an important skill to learn.

Check out this short video of Molly and myself at her last class:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9OChvWBuCg

If you’re in the Pioneer Valley, Molly’s next class is this Saturday, August 20^th from 2-5pm at the Friends Meeting House in downtown Northampton.  You can find out more about her classes at www.localfeastcookingclasses.blogspot.com .

If you’re not in the Pioneer Valley, I bet if you google your town name with “cooking classes” you might find more options than you realized.   It’s a great way to learn some new recipes and meet some people as well.