8 Weeks to Optimum Health: Week One

"The eight-week program consists of small steps that build on each other until, by the time you complete it, you have laid the foundation for healthy living. You can then decide how much of the program you want to maintain on a permanent basis. It's all about changing behavior. You are probably not addicted to drugs, but you may have other habits that are keeping you from experiencing optimum health." -Andrew Weil,  author of 8 Weeks To Optimum Health

I found this book on my mothers bookshelf... or it found me.  - M-Z

WEEK ONE. (of Andrew Weil's Eight-Week program)
Congratulations! You are about to embark on an exciting and healthy adventure of restyling your life in order to attain optimum health.

Projects:

The Pantry & Refrigerator Make-Over

-throw out all oils other than olive oil (The best all around oil to use is olive oil. Olive oil contains mostly monounsaturated fat, which is much better for our bodies than either polyunsaturated or saturated fat.)

-get rid of any margarine, solid vegetable shortenings, and products made with them (the process of hardening vegetable oils to create solid spreads increases the advantage over butter in the realm of cardiovascular friendliness. If it comes to choice between butter and margarine, always take butter.)

-throw out any artificial sweeteners, any products w/ artificial coloring (there is not a shred of evidence that the availability of artificial, noncaloric sweeteners has helped anyone lose weight. You are much better off eating moderate amounts of sugar than any of these unnatural products.)

-start reading food labels! Do not buy products whose labels list more chemicals than recognizable ingredients.

Diet: 
-Have fresh broccoli twice this week. (one of the most healthiest members of the cabbage family.)
-Eat salmon at least once this week. (excellent source of omega-3 fatty acids, special fats that have beneficial effects on many body functions.)

*the dietary changes recommended in the eight-week program are intended to move you in the direction of eating less fat.

Supplements:
Start taking vitamin C. 1,000-2,000 milligrams with breakfast, dinner, and at bedtime.

*Only human beings , other primates, and a few other species have lost this ability and need to get the vitamin every day from dietary sources, principally fresh fruits and vegetables.

Exercise:

Try to walk ten minutes a day five days this week. (Walking is the best exercise. It will satisfy all your exercise requirements throughout your life, even into old age.)

*Exercise is the key component of a healthy lifestyle. 

Mental/Spiritual:

Think about your own experiences of healing. Make a list of illnesses or injuries or problems you have recovered from in the past two years. Note down anything you did to speed the healing process. (Illness in the physical body is often the result of imbalance in the mind or spiritual realm.)

Begin to practice observing your breathing for five minutes every day. (The very simplest technique of breath work is simply to observe it, to do nothing other than follow the breath cycle with your observing mind, without trying to influence it in any way.)

Buy some flowers to keep in your home, where you can enjoy them. (Flowers manifest the beauty and wonder of nature and delight the senses. It feels good to be around them. They raise our spirits.)

*Recommendations that fall under this heading are most important. 

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Good luck, have fun, see ya on Sunday !

Love,

Maryam