If you’re trying to stay fit and slim this Christmas season, there’s no need for extreme juice cleanses or torturing yourself with deprivation the next time someone brings Christmas treats to work. It’s all about choosing your battles and knowing what holiday foods to totally avoid and what foods may make a healthier substitute.

The Naughty List

These foods spell trouble and definitely land on Santa’s naughty list. You should avoid them unless you want a lump of coal in your stocking (and a few extra lumps around your waistline).

Eggnog

Put that pitcher down! The holiday drink is at every party, yet it’s full of cholesterol — thanks a lot, raw eggs — and saturated fat, to say nothing about the cream, sugar and total calories. A single serving can have 400 calories or more, plus more than 20 grams of sugar. That’s similar to drinking a few candy bars. At the bottom of the page, find an equally delicious alternative to this naughty treat (and all the other holiday bad guys in this list)!

Baked Cheese Platters

They’re easy to make and popular at potlucks, but they’re bad luck for your weight. A single serving of baked soft cheese, such as Brie or feta, can quickly add up to a fourth of your entire daily calorie allowance. And for a true shocker, keep in mind that a serving is about equal to the size of a couple AA batteries.

Prime Rib

Nothing says holiday feast like a juicy slab of prime rib. The quintessential Christmas entree, it’s cut from the fattiest part of the cow. A tiny 3 oz. serving has approximately 300 calories and more than 20 grams of fat, including almost 10 grams of saturated fat. And most people wouldn’t stick to a 3 oz. portion.

Pecan Pie

Who can say no when this decadent treat is whipped out? Unfortunately, a serving of this pie has more than 800 calories, more than 60 grams of fat and more than 50 grams of sugar due to its rich, super-sweet filling. The pecan nuts are about the only healthy thing in this dessert.

The Nice List

These foods aren’t totally guilt-free, but no one wants to have a diet grinch at their holiday get-togethers. These treats work as the perfect, healthier alternative to  The Naughty List.

Holiday Beverages

Reach for hot chocolate, and you’ll skip most of the rich fats you’d get in eggnog. For a similarly festive drink, sip apple cider. It’s warm and spicy and smells delicious while saving you on calories and sugar.

Cheeses

Instead of reaching for soft cheeses, try a firmer, sharper cheese. Thin slices pack just as much rich flavor without all the rich calories and fat. Pair it with a lean meat and you have the perfect bite-sized appetizer.

Meat Entrees

Instead of prime rib, try beef tenderloin — just as flavorful, but much more lean. Or, opt for another holiday favorite: turkey. To save extra calories, stick with white meat and toss aside the skin.

Holiday Desserts

When making pecan pie, try sweetening it with lower-calorie sweeteners instead of the traditional white sugar or corn syrup ingredients. Dates can also enhance its sweetness without as big of a calorie hit. Or, stick with other holiday favorites such as pumpkin pie or chocolate fondue — you’ll satisfy your sweet tooth without the sugar overload.

The easiest way to experience these health benefits is through gradual change:

1. Slowly cut out meat. This stage is actually several smaller stages. You might try starting with Meatless Mondays and then, over time, expanding to other days of the week. Another common idea is to start by cutting out red meat, and then poultry, then seafood, in gradual stages of a month or even six months. There is no rush — do it at the pace that feels good to you. Another important point is that, as you eliminate meat, don’t just fill it with starches (which don’t have that much nutrition). Try new foods, experiment with ethic recipes, and explore different nutrients as you make these changes.
2. Eliminate eggs. After you cut out red meat and poultry, you’ll be pescatarian (seafood). When you eliminate seafood, you’re vegetarian! If you’re eating eggs and dairy, that’s called a “lacto-ovo” vegetarian. You can then eliminate eggs — and no, they’re not cruelty-free. This is one of the easier stages, in my experience.
3. Cut out dairy. This tends to be harder for most people. Not because of milk (soymilk and almond milk are good alternatives that just take a few days to adjust to) … but because of cheese. I hear a lot of people say, “I can’t give up my cheese!” — and I empathize, as this was a sticking point for me too. It helps that there are better and better cheese alternatives these days (Daiya being a favorite of many). But for me, what made all the difference is not focusing on what I was giving up, but on the good things I could eat!
4. Eat whole, unprocessed foods. This is the phase that I’m in, and I wholly recommend it. You can go straight here if you have no problems changing your diet, but people eating the Standard American Diet will find it difficult, because the foods are very different than what most people eat. For example, most people in the U.S. don’t eat many vegetables, and find them distasteful, especially dark green leafy veggies, which are the best. I now love vegetables, and kale is my best friend. Most people dislike protein-rich plant foods like tempeh, tofu, seitan, and beans. Most people don’t eat raw nuts — they eat roasted and salted nuts. However, all of this can change over time, which is why I recommend that you move into this slowly. What exactly is this phase? See the next section for details.

What to Eat

So what do you eat when you’re on a plant-based diet that focuses on whole foods? Lots!

A few categories of foods to include regularly:

1. Beans and other protein. This means the regular kinds of beans, like lentils, black beans, kidney beans, pinto beans, garbanzo beans, etc. But it can also mean soybeans (edamame), tofu, tempeh, and seitan (protein from wheat, not good for gluten-intolerant people). It can also mean soymilk, soy yogurt, and the like, which are often fortified. Get organic, non-GMO soy.
2. Nuts and seeds. My favorites include raw almonds and walnuts, along with ground flaxseeds and chia seeds, and hemp seed protein powder. Almond milk is also good. And quinoa — it’s like a grain, but really a seed, and full of nutrition.
3. Good fats. Fats aren’t bad for you — you should just look to avoid saturated fats. Luckily, not many plant foods have saturated fats. Plants with good fats include avocados, nuts and seeds mentioned above, olive oil and canola oil.
4. Greens. This is one of the most important and nutritious group of all. Dark, leafy green veggies are awesome, and full of calcium, iron and a ton of vitamins. My favorites: kale, spinach, broccoli, collards. Eat lots of them daily! They also have very few calories, meaning they pack a ton of nutrition in a small caloric package.
5. Other fruits and veggies. Get a variety — I love berries of all kinds, figs, apples, citrus fruits, peaches, mangoes, bananas, pears, bell peppers, garlic, beets, celery, cauliflower … I could go on all day! Get lots of different colors.
6. Good starches. Starches are not bad for you — but ones that have little calories aren’t great. So find starches that give you lots of nutrition. Sweet potatoes, red potatoes, squash, brown rice, sprouted whole wheat, steel-cut oats, among others.
7. Some other healthy stuff. I love red wine, green tea, cinnamon, turmeric, spirulina and nutritional yeast.

OK, by now you might be overwhelmed by all of this. How do you put it together? It’s not that hard once you get used to it. Start learning some recipes that combine some of these foods into meals, and over time, you’ll have a few go-to meals that you love that are full of nutrition.

Some examples that I like (but don’t limit yourself to these!):

• Tofu scramble w/ veggies: some organic high-protein tofu crumbled and stir-fried with olive oil, garlic, diced carrots and tomatoes, spinach and mushrooms, and spiced with tamari, turmeric, sea salt and coarse black pepper.
• Steel-cut oats: cook some steel-cut oats, then add ground flaxseeds, raw nuts, berries, cinnamon.
• Stir-fry: Here’s my secret … you can make an endless combo of meals by cooking some garlic in olive oil, then cooking some veggies (carrots, bell peppers, mushrooms, etc.) and some protein (tofu, tempeh, seitan, etc.) and some greens (kale, broccoli, spinach, etc.) and some spices (turmeric or coconut milk or tamari & sesame oil, black pepper, salt).
• Veggie chili over quinoa: Black beans, kidney beans, pinto beans with olive oil, garlic, onions, tomatoes, bell pepper, diced kale, diced carrots, tomato sauce, chili powder, salt, pepper. Maybe some beer for flavor. Serve over quinoa or brown rice.
• One-pot meal: Quinoa, lentils, greens, olive oil, tempeh (or a bunch of other variations). Read Tynan’s post on cooking this all in one pot.
• Whole-wheat pasta: Serve with a sauce — some tomato sauce with olive oil, garlic, onions, bell peppers, diced kale and carrots, diced tomatoes, fresh basil, oregano.
• Big-ass Salad: Start with a bed of kale & spinach, throw on other veggies such as carrots, mushrooms, cauliflower, snow peas, green beans, tomatoes … then some beans, nuts and/or seeds … top with avocado. Mix balsamic vinegar and olive oil, or red wine vinegar and olive oil, sprinkle on the salad. Yum.
• Smoothies: Blend some almond or soy milk with frozen berries, greens, ground chia or flaxseeds, hemp or spirulina protein powder. Lots of nutrition in one drink!
• Snacks: I often snack on fruits and berries, raw almonds or walnuts, carrots with hummus.
• Drinks: I tend to drink water all day, some coffee (without sugar) in the morning, tea in the afternoon, and red wine in the evening.

My Food Journal: If you’d like to see my food journal (admittedly not always perfectly healthy), I’ve started one that you can see here.

Frequently Asked Questions

I’ll add to this section as questions come in, though obviously I can’t answer everything.

Q: Isn’t it hard to get protein on a vegan diet?

A: Not really, as long as you eat a variety of whole foods, and not a bunch of processed flours and sugars (the white kind that has little nutrition). There is protein in vegetables and grains, and even more in beans, nuts and seeds. I often eat protein-rich plant foods like tempeh, tofu, seitan, edamame, black beans, lentils, quinoa, soymilk, and raw nuts. Read more here.

Q: What about calcium or iron or B12?

A: Again, it’s not difficult at all. I’ve calculated the iron and calcium in my diet at various times, and as long as I’m mostly eating whole foods, it’s really easy. Nuts and green veggies are your best friends, but there’s also calcium-fortified soymilk and tofu and the like. Eat some kale, quinoa, raw nuts, various seeds, broccoli, tofu or tempeh … it’s not difficult. Vitamin B12 is a bit more difficult to get from regular plants, as the main source of B12 is usually animal products — including eggs and dairy. But actually, vegans have figured this out, and now if you drink fortified soymilk or almond milk, or use nutritional yeast or a few other good sources like that, you will have no worries. More reading on iron, calcium and B12 for vegans.

Q: Isn’t soy bad for you?

A: No. That’s a myth. I would stick to organic, non-GMO soy, but actually soy is a very healthy source of protein and other nutrients, and has been eaten by very healthy people for thousands of years. More info here.

Q: I follow the Paleo diet and believe this is how humans are meant to eat.

A: Well, if you’re eating unprocessed foods and have cut out white flours and sugars and deep-fried foods, you’re probably healthier than the average American. I admire the Paleo crowd that focuses on whole foods and that eats lots of veggies and nuts and seeds, but when it’s just an excuse to eat lots of meat, it’s not as healthy. It’s also not true that hunter-gatherer societies ate mostly meat — the crowd that believes this has made a flawed review of contemporary hunter-gatherers. Most traditional societies eat, and have pretty much always eaten, mostly plants, including lots of starches — respected anthropologists such as Nathanial Dominy, PhD, from Dartmouth College say that the idea of hunter-gatherers eating mostly meat is a myth. Also read this. I’d also warn against low-carb, high-protein diets over the long run — in the short term, you’ll see weight loss, but in the long run they’ve been shown to increase cardiovascular disease (from June 21, 2012 issue of British Medical Journal).

Q: It sounds difficult and complicated.

A: Actually it’s very simple — you just learn to eat a variety of plants. It does mean learning some new meals, but instead of seeing that as a hardship, think of it as something fun to learn. If you slowly change your eating patterns, it’s not hard at all. Be flexible and don’t be too strict — you’ll find that it’s much easier if you allow yourself an occasional meal with animal products, especially in the first 6-12 months.

Q: What about fake meats and cheeses?

A: There’s nothing wrong with giving them a try now and then when you’re having a craving for something, but in all honesty you don’t need them. They’re more expensive and less healthy. Basically, they’re convenience foods.

Q: What if I’m allergic to soy or gluten or nuts?

A: It’s still possible to get all the nutrition you need from a plant-based diets without a specific kind of food (like gluten or soy), from what I understand. More here.

Q: It sounds expensive.

A: Actually it can be a lot less expensive, if you stay away from the vegan convenience foods (which are fine on occasion). Meat is more expensive than beans or tofu, for example. While fresh, organic veggies can cost a bit, you should get these in your diet even if you eat meat — and in the long run, you’ll save much more on medical bills.

Q: There’s no way I’ll give up (eggs, cheese, ice cream, etc.)!

A: Well, you don’t have to. If you want to eat mostly plants but also eggs and cheese, that’s much better than eating meat. But there are cheese substitutes you can try, and vegan ice cream, and in the long run, you might find that giving these things up isn’t as difficult as you think.

Q: What about eating out at restaurants or social gatherings?

A: I’d recommend you take it slowly at first, and eat mostly plants at home, and be more liberal when you eat out, for a little while. You don’t want to make this too difficult on yourself. But actually, once you learn some simple strategies, it’s not that hard to find vegan food in restaurants — some are easier than others, and sites like Happy Cow make it easy to find veg-friendly restaurants in your area. As for eating at friends’ and families’ houses, I’ve learned to offer to bring one or two vegan dishes, and it’s not usually a problem.

Q: What if my family and friends don’t support this change?

A: It’s best if you don’t start preaching — people don’t like it. This article might seem like a violation of that, but actually I rarely push veganism on this site, and when I do it’s only as a way to show others a healthy and compassionate alternative. Remember that those around you probably don’t know much about veganism, and are likely to react defensively. Take the opportunity, when they bring up the topic, to share what you’re learning, and the concerns you yourself had when you first learned about it. Show them some great vegan food. Share this guide with them. And always be patient.

This might not seem like a massive number, but it can really add up over the years. Plus, as time progresses, that extra weight can cause hormone imbalances, insulin resistance and other side effects that make the weight pile on faster than Santa Claus coming down the chimney.

This winter, make a pledge to yourself that you’ll find ways to work physical activity into your week. And because it’s a festive season, get off that boring treadmill! With snow days and twinkling lights putting us all into a great mood, winter is the perfect time to enjoy the crisp outdoors, burn off a few calories and have so much fun while we’re doing it that we don’t even realize that it’s — gasp — exercise!

Casual Dancing

When the DJ calls everyone onto the dance floor at your next holiday banquet, jingle it all the way! In just one hour of shaking it on the dance floor, the average 175-lb. adult burns 198 calories.

Housework

It’s easy to break a sweat while you dust the cabinets to make room for your Christmas snow globes, and wiping down said snow globes before your mother-in-law comes over also burns a few calories. In fact, cleaning up your home for the next family holiday get-together burns almost 200 calories in an hour.

Snowskiing

Head downhill and you’ll burn off 330 calories worth of Christmas junkfood. Head crosscountry instead, and the calories burned jump to moer than 460 calories.

Snowshoeing

Snowshoeing is the perfect way to immerse yourself in nature and squeeze a hike into even the most snowy of days. This classic Christmas pasttime will burn you almost 530 calories in an hour.

Walking

Take a brisk walk around the neighborhood after dinner, and you’ll burn just over 250 calories. The fresh air can wake you up after indulging in a bit too much food. Research has shown that daily walks can also brighten your mood, the perfect way to keep a cheerful attitude when the days are cold and short (and when family awkwardness often bubbles to the surface).

Practice Winter Safety

While enjoying your favorite winter activities, don’t forget that it also exposes you to a few safety hazards. Don’t let a winter hazard keep you away from the mistletoe. The CDC recommends the following safety precautions this holiday:

• Wear appropriate outdoor clothing: layers of light, warm clothing; mittens; hats; scarves; and waterproof boots.
• Sprinkle cat litter or sand on icy patches.
• Learn safety precautions to follow when outdoors.
  • Be aware of the wind chill factor.
  • Work slowly when doing outside chores.
  • Take a buddy and an emergency kit when you are participating in outdoor recreation.
  • Carry a cell phone.
• Protect your family from carbon monoxide.
  • Keep grills, camp stoves, and generators out of the house, basement and garage.
  • Locate generators at least 20 feet from the house.
  • Leave your home immediately if the CO detector sounds, and call 911.

Kohlrabi

It’s related to kale and broccoli, but looks nothing like either! Both the dense bulb and the crunchy leaves are completely edible, but you’ll need to peel the bulb first. Kohlrabi is rich in vitamin B6, potassium, vitamin C, manganese and more.

Swiss Chard

A single cup of swiss chard packs more than six times our recommended requirements for vitamin K. Plus, like its cousin the beet, it packs quite the nutritional punch when it comes to phytonutrients known as betalains, which may help with detox, anti-inflammation and more.

Nutritional Yeast

Not a “yeast” in the traditional sense you probably think of, this cheesy, flaky stuff is great sprinkled on top of your salad or mixed into your dressing. It may help with red blood cell production and also offers up lots of vitamin B12, which is crucial if you’re on a strict plant-based diet.MizunaA relative of turnips, the fleshy stalks and brightly colored leaves add a spicy bite to any salad (similar to arugula). It’s a rich source of folate, iron and more. Add in small doses because just like arugula, its taste can quickly overwhelm ordinary greens.

I think we are in this great golden age of everyone being aware of the impact that our health habits have on our lives. After all, if we’re not caring for our body regularly, where else are we going to live? Unfortunately, that also means the market has been flooded with products and trends that masquerade as being healthy while really being anything but that!

This Halloween, I want to draw attention to four very popular “health” foods that are so spooky they’ll haunt your gut and your bathroom weight scale for months! It’s time to leave these “treats” in the garbage bin.

1. Juices and smoothies

I love me my kombucha. I’m an advocate of cold-pressed juice as a delicious way to stay refreshed. I cautiously support some of the health benefits of juicing, though there are many skeptics (like this and this and this) that make reputable science-based claims against juicing.

But my real gripe with our current infatuation with juices? Most of the delicious bevvies we see at juice trucks or in stores are loaded with sugar. For example, the exceedingly popular BluePrint brand builds its foundational basic cleanse around its “P.A.M.” juice. Guess how much sugar P.A.M. has? A whopping 49 grams of sugar in a single bottle. And you’re supposed to drink this juice, with three other sugary juices, six times a day to supposedly detox  and cleanse!

Out of curiosity, I checked to see how much sugar was in Coca-Cola. A can of the bubbly has “only” 39 grams of sugar. If we were judging just by sugar alone, chugging Coke is healthier than a juice cleanse! (Yes, flawed argument, but you get the point.)

Not all juices are like this, but many of the most popular and most delicious varieties out there truly deliver a ghoulishly sweet sucker punch to your waistline. If you’re not careful, you won’t be able to fit into your Halloween costume!

Here are a few points to consider as you navigate the juice aisle at Whole Foods:

• Check the ingredients label. Green juices, like kale or spinach, should make up the majority of the ingredients. Fruit juice should always be minimal or nonexistent.
• Consider the price. Juices are extremely pricey and completely devoid of fiber. Real food is always best! Eat an apple, with all its delicious vitamins, minerals and fiber, instead of just sucking on juice like a fruit vampire.

2. Protein bars

I eat protein like it’s for breakfast. No, actually. I drink protein and fiber supplements with my organic almond milk every morning before rushing off to work. Protein supplementation can offer several benefits, especially if you’re an active individual. But protein bars? Exercise extreme caution.

Here’s the ingredients label for a very popular protein bar on the market:

This is actually a great example of most protein bars on the market. Much of what you see in the nutrition facts is decent (not good, but not terrible) until you get to the carbohydrate section. This tiny protein bar manages to pack in 32 grams of carbohydrates, including 16 grams of sugar! In comparison, a standard 52.7 gram bar of Snickers has 33 grams of carbs. How is this protein bar, marketed by a major health company, “healthy”?

As with anything, nutrition facts are just one part of the story. When you dive into the ingredients, you notice a few more alarming things, such as the presence of whey protein concentrate (inferior form of protein) followed by six different forms of sugary sweeteners. Compared to the ingredients in a Snickers bar, Snickers seem positively glamorous!

If you still want to enjoy a protein bar — or a granola bar, as these are often even worse — consider these factors:

• Protein isolates only. Everything else is inferior.
• Try protein powder instead. It’s much cheaper per serving, and if you’re worried about convenience, you can easily pack it into a to-go bag or container. If it’s whey protein isolate, it’ll mix easily without a shaker bottle or blender necessary.
• Watch out for those sweeteners. Quest Bars and other healthier protein bars have just 2 or 3 grams of sugar per bar. There are good alternatives out there, you just need to search for them!
• If you can’t pronounce the ingredients, don’t eat it. The less ingredients on the label, the better!
• Be aware of the environmental impact that common food ingredients have. Palm oil is a key ingredient in many, many protein bars, and it’s one of the world’s leading causes of deforestation, animal extinction and human rights issues. (Read more about the perils of palm oil here and here, and boycott products that contain this oil)
• Get your protein from whole foods as much as possible. Protein bars should be a supplement when time is tight, not your main meal.

3. Agave syrup

When the world woke up to how bad high fructose corn syrup, sugar and other common sweeteners were, people began searching for naturally healthier options. Agave syrup seemed to be the Holy Grail of alternatives, but researchers are now recognizing that agave is a Nightmare on Elm Street (where “Elm Street” is your bloodstream). Even Dr. Oz, who is hardly an angel when it comes to making weird health recommendations, has recanted his endorsement of agave syrup.

While agave syrup is low on glucose, which is good, it’s extremely high in fructose. In fact, it has more fructose than high-fructose corn syrup! Fructose wrecks havoc on hormone levels, such as leptin, which influences your appetite. Extremely high levels of fructose have also been linked to liver damage and heart disease.

There’s no easy way to eat a “healthy” level of sweets. In this case, moderation may still be too much, especially when so much of our food is sweetened. The cumulative damage can be great! For the best results, talk to your doctor and try staying away from unnecessary sweeteners, even if it’s offered to you by a well-meaning trick-or-treater.

4. Added vitamins

I take a multivitamin daily, even though there’s an overwhelming amount of research that shows multivitamins do little good or no good at all. However, marketers often use artificially enhanced vitamin and mineral levels to make their food seem healthy.

When you see labels proclaiming “High in vitamin D!” or “A great source of vitamin C!,” you know what I mean.

The problem? Many products on the market have their nutrient levels boosted with synthetic vitamins. Other products claim to have natural forms of vitamins, though these added supplements may have actually been made in a lab from the precursors to these vitamins, making them anything but “natural.” In summary, so many of the health foods on the market have inferior or even unusable forms of vitamins added to them, which you can see when scanning ingredient labels.

Another huge issue is the fact that because many of our foods now have added vitamins, some people are running a risk of overdosing. For certain vitamins like water-soluble vitamin C, that presents a low health risk and you merely piss away the excess vitamins (and the money you spent on them). But other vitamins and minerals, like iron and vitamin A, may actually build up to toxic levels in our bodies.

• Know the tolerable upper limits of vitamins and minerals for your gender and age, and watch out for these vitamins in your food.
• Focus on getting your minerals and vitamins from whole foods and use commercially prepared foods with boosted vitamin levels as a last resort.

There’s more…

I had the privilege of recently outlining 10 more frighteningly un-healthy health foods in Alive health magazine. Check it out in the magazine or on their website!

Happy Halloween!

We are responsible for our own health, wellness and happiness. When we research and understand the ingredients and overlapping health factors in our foods, we empower ourselves to truly take control of our destiny. All of us must do our part in researching, understanding and acknowledging the role that food plays in our lifestyle, and cutting through the marketing crap that so many health companies throw at us. Be skeptical about everything you put in your body! You only have one body to use on this planet.

Protein shakes pack a muscle-building punch.

I’ve gone from obese to overweight to normal weight to pretty fit, in the last decade, and I’m sometimes asked what someone should eat if they want to lose fat.

I’ve tried many diets: Atkins, Mediterranean, South Beach, Paleo, Vegan, and a handful of others. I’ve created my own meal plans, I’ve tracked calories, I’ve done intermittent fasting.

And I’ve come to the conclusion that while calories do matter for fat loss, the easiest thing to do is to focus on a handful of high-quality foods, especially vegetables, and to avoid eating too much of other kinds of foods.

I should note that this is what works for me — what works for your body might be different. I can eat soy and gluten and nuts without problems, and avoid meat for reasons of compassion, but I don’t expect that everyone is the same as me. Experiment to find what works for you.

High-Quality Foods

Here are the high-quality foods that have helped me lose fat:

• Non-starchy veggies: These are the king, and I can eat an unlimited amount of these and only get healthier. Green vegetables are best, but red and orange and yellows are great too.
• Protein: I opt for vegan protein like tempeh, seitan, tofu and beans (mostly for reasons of compassion), but of course if you don’t care about the compassion reasoning, fish and poultry and smaller amounts of red meat will work too.
• Fruits: I eat these as snacks. Carrots work well too. I love berries, apples, stone fruit (peaches, plums, etc.), tropical fruit.
• Beans: This is actually under the protein category, but beans of all kinds are so good for you.
• Fats: I enjoy modest amounts of olive and canola oil, coconut milk, avocados, ground flaxseed.

I also eat lesser amounts of whole grains (not flour, just the whole grain) and nuts (which are great for you but dense in calories) and starchy veggies. And a glass of red wine at night.

Low-Quality Foods

The lower-quality foods to eat less of — more as treats than everyday items:

• Flour-based stuff: Breads, pastries, cereals, pastas. These are not bad for you (in moderation) but don’t have lots of nutrition nor do they help the fat loss.
• Sugar: It’s in everything. Sodas, coffee drinks, sweets, cereals, sauces. I’m not afraid of sugar, but it’s definitely something to do in moderation, as an occasional treat, not an everyday staple.
• Beer: I love beer, especially craft beer. But it definitely doesn’t help the belly. So I drink it on social occasions, about once or twice a month.
• Fried foods: While I’m not afraid of fried stuff, I know it’s not helpful for fat loss. So I do stir-fried dishes mostly, but also things like chili, baked stuff, fresh food.
• Other starchy stuff: White rice, white potatoes — not bad for you, but not full of nutrition.
• Processed meats: I don’t eat them all, as a vegan, but I’d stay away from them even if I weren’t. Full of fats and salts and nitrates.
• Prepared foods: Not evil, but definitely more expensive and full of fat and salt and sugar, without lots of nutrition. Think of things in the frozen foods section (other than frozen veggies) or that come in cans or boxes.

You’ll notice that these things make up the majority of most people’s diet. This is why people have a hard time losing fat.

What a High-Quality Diet Looks Like

How do we put all this together into a daily diet? There are lots of ways, but here are some examples:

• Example 1: Breakfast of scrambled tofu with veggies, lunch of tempeh & veggie stir-fry (with or without a bit of brown rice), snack of some fruit or carrots, maybe a protein smoothie if you work out, dinner of the stir-fry again, a glass of red wine in the evening.
• Example 2: Breakfast of steel-cut oats with berries & nuts, lunch of veggie chili, snack of apples and almond butter, a cup of green tea in the afternoon, dinner of chili again, glass of red wine.
• Example 3: Have some fruits and nuts for a light breakfast, workout and have a protein shake, have a seitan with kale, mushroom, spinach stir-fry for lunch, another protein shake with fruit in the afternoon, cup of green tea, the seitan & veggies for dinner, glass of red wine.
• Example 4: Oats, nuts, berries in soymilk for breakfast, then lentil curry for lunch and dinner, with carrots and hummus for a snack. Oolong tea after dinner.

There are an incredible amount of recipes online, and finding and trying them is most of the fun!

I tend to cook a big batch of food (the seitan or tempeh stir-fry with lots of greens is my go-to meal at the moment) and eat it for 3-4 days for lunch and dinner. This saves on cooking time.

Does this mean you can never have sweets or breads or French fries? No. I don’t believe in demonizing foods or being afraid of them … but I also believe that too much of those foods will stall any fat loss. So treat them as treats, to be enjoyed once in awhile but not necessarily daily. You can find enjoyment of life out of healthy foods and other activities, not junk foods.

Workouts for Fat Loss

The diet has been the most important factor for fat loss for me, but I combine it with exercise to get super healthy.

Here’s what works for me:

1. Strength training: Doing strength training helps you lose fat without losing muscle, and maybe even gain a bit of muscle, and it gets you strong and feeling empowered and confident. This is important for both men and women. I recommend starting with bodyweight exercises like pushups, bodyweight squats, lunges, and pullups. When you get good at those, add some weights. Barbell training is my favorite (especially squats and deadlifts).
2. Cardio: People who are into strength training often seem to hate cardio, but I think it’s a great combo with strength training. It gets your heart healthy, you burn some extra calories (don’t make up for it by eating more), and you get in better shape generally. I love running and hiking, but if you like to swim or bike, do that.
3. Sports: Do something you enjoy, like basketball, soccer, rugby, rock climbing, mountain biking, skiing, surfing.

A combo of these three, combined with a diet that’s mostly protein, veggies, fruits, with some whole grains and healthy fats, with some tea and a glass of wine … it has worked miracles for me. I hope it does for you.

Throw out your white bread and start using whole wheat bread in your sandwiches instead.

Green veggies: The king of healthy plant food. Kale, broccoli, darker lettuces, chard, collard greens, mustard greens, arugula, green beans. Eat as much of these as you can, every day. Several servings.

Other veggies: Orange and red and yellow veggies like carrots and red bell peppers and squash and tomatoes and pumpkin and sweet potatoes, along with all kinds of mushrooms, onions and garlic, cauliflower. Pile these on, throw them in stir-fries, put them in soups!

Plant proteins: Despite what many people believe, protein is easy to get on a vegan diet. Beans of all kinds (black beans, kidney beans, garbanzo beans, white beans, pinto beans), lentils, soy beans (edamame, tempeh and tofu — and no, soy isn’t dangerous). Raw nuts like almonds and walnuts. Seeds like flaxseeds, hemp, pumpkin seeds, chia seeds. I eat all these.

Fruits: Yum. These guys are my saviors, because I don’t eat many sweets anymore. Berries and pomegranates are the king of this category, but apples, oranges, grapes, mangoes, kiwi fruit, bananas, peaches, apricots, papayas, pears and so forth are all amazing. Don’t be afraid of fruits.

Good fats: Don’t be afraid of fats, but just go for the good ones and minimize trans and saturated fats. If you eat saturated fats, get them from plants (coconuts). My favorite fats: nuts of all kinds, avocados, ground flaxseeds, olive and canola oil. I also take a vegan EPA-DHA supplement (like fish oil, but from algae instead) for extra health — brain, joint, heart health, among other good benefits.

Whole grains: Many people these days who try to be healthy are afraid of grains. I have not seen any good scientific evidence that they’re bad for you, but lots that they’re good. However, avoid white flour, and in fact most flour should be minimized altogether. If you’re going to eat bread, try flourless sprouted grain breads. Other good choices: quinoa (actually a seed, not a grain), brown rice, amaranth, millet, steel-cut oats. If you’re allergic or intolerant to gluten, of course avoid gluten, but most people can eat gluten just fine.

Others: I drink a glass or two of red wine every day, along with at least a couple glasses of tea. And lots of water. Some good spices to add to your dishes: cinnamon, tumeric, cayenne.

Special notes for full vegans: If you’re on an all-vegan diet for long, you’ll want to ensure that you’re getting Vitamin B12, either from a vegan supplement or through fortified foods like soymilk or fortified nutritional yeast. Iron, calcium and Vitamin D are other things to look out for, but it’s not hard to figure out.

But becoming a vegetarian, for me and for many others, is the easiest thing in the world.

As I seem to have become a poster boy for vegetarianism (move over, Pamela Anderson!), let’s look at some reasons to consider this lifestyle, and suggestions and tips for becoming a vegetarian without too much difficulty.

Why Become Vegetarian?

Again, let me state that vegetarianism isn’t for everyone. If you are fanatically devoted to meat (and I was at one time, so I understand), you might not be interested. If you already eat healthy, or you’re not interested in your health, you might not be interested.

But there are some reasons, for the rest of us, to consider it:

1. Cut the fat. While meat provides a lot of protein, it also provides a ton of fat — especially saturated fat. Which means that by cutting out meat, you’ll be cutting out a lot of bad fat, and replacing it with things that are probably not only lower in fat, but that contain some good fats. This greatly reduces your risk of heart disease, and in fact numerous studies have shown that vegetarians tend to have a lower risk of heart disease, as well as hypertension, diabetes, cancer and other diseases.
2. Less food poisoning. Food poisoning gets millions of people each year — and many of them from meat, which is a good breeding ground for harmful bacteria, especially if not stored, prepared or cooked exactly right. Cut out meat and you lower your risk of food poisoning (especially if you also cut out eggs and dairy, but that’s optional).
3. Reduce the suffering. You probably don’t want to hear about the horrific treatment of animals that are raised for food, even before they are slaughtered for our benefit. But suffice it to say, there are great amounts of suffering involved, and by cutting out meat, you are reducing your involvement in that.
4. Help the environment. There are actually numerous ways that the meat industry harms the environment, from a waste of our resources (animals raised for food eat enough grain to feed the world), to a waste of fuel, to the pollution caused by their waste matter, and much more.
5. Help your weight loss. It’s possible to be vegetarian and eat very unhealthy foods, including Coke and fries and fried stuff and pizza and chips. But it’s much more difficult. Studies repeatedly show that vegetarians are slimmer and are less likely to be obese than meat eaters. If you’re trying to lose weight, being a vegetarian can be a good part of your program.
6. Get more nutrition. In general (though not necessarily), vegetarians replace meat with more nutritious foods, such as fruits, vegetables, beans, whole grains, and so on. If you do that, you will be getting more of the nutrients your body needs, giving you better health, less illness, and more energy.

20 Tips for Becoming a Vegetarian

So, if you’d like to become a vegetarian, without too much trouble, here are my suggestions:

1. Have good reasons. If you just want to become vegetarian for kicks, you probably won’t stick with it for long — not because it’s hard, but because any lifestyle change or habit change requires a little bit of motivation. You need to first think about why you want to become vegetarian, and really believe in it. The rest is easy.
2. Read up. Before starting anything new, I tend to read as much as possible about whatever it is that I’ll be doing. I suggest you do so with vegetarianism. Check out a couple of good books from the library (or better yet, borrow from vegetarian friends). And there are tons and tons of good sites on the Internet. One of my favorites is GoVeg.com.
3. Find good recipes. You don’t need to go out and buy a bunch of new cookbooks, although that’s certainly an option. But again, there are many great recipes online.  In fact, it can all be a little overwhelming … but don’t worry, you don’t need to decide on anything. Just look through the recipes, take note of a few that look really good, and decide to try a few of them. You have the rest of your life to test out other recipes!
4. Try one recipe a week. My suggestion is just to try one new vegetarian recipe a week. If you like it, add it to your collection of staple recipes that you eat on a regular basis. If the recipe isn’t that great, try another next week. Soon, you’ll have a good list of five to 10 great recipes that you love to cook and eat. And really, whether you’re vegetarian or meat eater, that’s probably all you really eat on a regular basis anyway (for dinner, at least). Most people only have  seven to 10 recipes that they cook regularly. Once you have that many vegetarian recipes, you are good to go.
5. Substitutions. Also try your regular recipes that you love, but instead of using meat, use a meatless substitute. So if you love to eat spaghetti or chili, for example, substitute a ground-beef alternative from Bocca or Morning Star and just cook it the way you normally would. There are alternatives for just about any kind of meat, and some of them are quite good. You can go on eating what you normally eat, but meatless.
6. Start with red meat. I suggest a gradual transition into vegetarianism … although you can do it all at once, I’ve found that for many people, a gradual transition works better. There’s no need to give up all meat at once. Try a few new recipes, maybe eat one vegetarian meal for the first week, two for the second, and so on. If you do this, start with red meat, as it is typically the least healthy.
7. Then the other meats. After a couple of weeks of going without red meat, try cutting out pork for a couple of weeks. Then cut out chicken, the seafood. With this two-week approach (and you can even make it 3 weeks or a month for each stage if you want to go more slowly), you’ll hardly notice the difference. I’ve found that I don’t crave meats anymore, although I did for about a week.
8. Consider dairy & eggs. Vegetarians vary widely on this, so there’s no mandate to give up dairy or eggs if you’re giving up meat. Do what feels right for you. But if you go meatless for awhile, and want to try to go a little further (in terms of health, the environment, and helping animal suffering), consider these foods. For one thing, they are often high in saturated fat, especially compared to soy alternatives. It was easy for me to give up eggs, as I’ve never been a huge fan, but transitioning to soy milk took a few days to get used to … although I can’t stand the taste of milk now.
9. Think about your staples. A useful exercise is to make a list of foods you regularly eat, for breakfast, lunch, dinner, desserts and snacks. Not meals, but ingredients. And then think about vegetarian alternatives, and make a new list. For example, instead of eating chicken in a stir-fry dish, you might try tofu. With a new list of staples, you should have no trouble stocking your fridge and pantry.
10. All in one go. Some people prefer to give up meat all at once. While this takes a little more determination than the gradual solution I advocate, it’s not that hard, really. Just prepare yourself by taking some of the steps above (finding recipes, substitutes, a new list of staples, and reading as much as possible), and then give it a shot. It should only take a few days to get used to it, and then you’ll have very little trouble after that. The only issues you’ll have to work out, once you’re used to going without meat, are things like eating out, eating at others’ houses, and other similar issues. Read on for more on these.
11. Adequate protein. One myth about vegetarianism is that you don’t get enough protein. Actually, meat eaters usually take in way more protein than they need. Protein requirements for the average adult are lower than people think. If you eat a varied diet (not just junk food, for example) that includes vegetables, grains, beans, nuts, soy protein and the like, you will be fine. It would hard to create an eating plan where you’re getting inadequate protein (the junk food example would be one). Another myth is that you need to eat different types of protein within a single meal (or even a single day) to get complete protein from plants … actually, as long as you eat varied proteins (such as those listed above) over a few days, you’ll be fine. And soy protein is a complete protein, just like meat.
12. Junk food. Again, you can be a vegetarian and be very unhealthy, if you eat junk food. Being a vegetarian is not a license to eat junk food (although you can probably indulge yourself a little more often now that you’re not eating meat). Try to stick with fruits and veggies, whole grains, beans, nuts, soy protein, low-fat dairy and other nutritious foods for the most part.
13. Ethnic food. One of the great things about becoming a vegetarian is that it often spurs people to try new and interesting ethnic foods (or reminds them of foods they love but don’t eat much). Great vegetarian dishes can be found all over the world, from Italian pasta to many Indian dishes to spicy Thai food to Chinese, Ethiopian, Moroccan, Mexican, South American and more. It can be interesting to do a series of theme weeks, trying vegetarian dishes from a certain country for one week, and then moving around the world and sampling other great ethnic foods.
14. Tell friends & family. If you’re really going to become a vegetarian, you’ll have to talk to the people you know and love about it. You’ll still be dining with them, at restaurants, at their homes, at social gatherings, at work, and so it’ll be better for everyone involved if they know what you’re doing (they might prepare a vegetarian dish for you, or you might bring one for them to try), and if they know the reasons why. Some people might have a hard time with it. Just try to explain it to them, without getting defensive or argumentative, and ask them to be understanding (and maybe to give some of your food a try). Don’t try to force vegetarianism on anyone, or sound preachy, but do give them more information if they’re interested.
15. Have fun. Most of all, don’t make becoming a vegetarian be a restrictive, grueling ordeal. If you feel like you’re depriving yourself, you won’t last long. But if you feel like you’re doing something good, and trying out some great-tasting food, you’ll stick with it for much longer (for life, I hope). Have a great time along the way.
16. Plan ahead. Often what gets in the way of new vegetarians is that they go somewhere, and don’t think of what they might have to eat. Going to a party or a dinner can be much better if you prepare a great dish and bring it along (let the host know about it first). An errands trip doesn’t have to result in you going to McDonalds, starving, if you pack a lunch or bring some snacks.
17. Cook ahead. Another problem is when we don’t have any vegetarian food ready to eat, and so we resort to whatever is easiest (if we don’t feel like eating or are too hungry to wait). Instead, you could cook a big pot of vegetarian chili or soup or something, and have it in the fridge for when you’re hungry and don’t have time to cook.
18. Vegetarian snacks. I love to eat fruits and cut-up veggies, but there are lots of other great snacks you can eat. Roasted (or raw) almonds, hummus and pitas or veggies, blue corn chips and salsa, low-fat granola, berries with soy yogurt, whole-grain cereals, Kashi crackers … dozens and dozens of snacks, actually, if you take a look around. Have plenty on hand, at home, at work, and on the road.
19. Vegetarian restaurants. There’s only one vegetarian restaurant where I live, and unfortunately it’s closed on nights and weekends (it’s a Seventh-Day Adventist joint, open for lunch on weekdays, and it’s great). But you might live in an area with dozens of great vegetarian restaurants. Give them a try! You might discover some wonderful food, and thank your lucky stars you decided to give vegetarianism a try. Otherwise, most restaurants will have some vegetarian options, or can cook you a vegetarian dish on request.
20. Vegetarian convenience foods. In your supermarket’s frozen section, you’ll probably find a lot of vegetarian foods that can be microwaved. You might give some of these a try (I love the Amy’s brand). Beware that, like most convenience foods, these are more expensive than home-cooked stuff, and most likely not as healthy. But you can find some fairly healthy foods there too. At any rate, it’s always good to have a couple of convenience foods in the freezer, just in case.

‘The art of living well and the art of dying well are one.’ ~Epicurus

I don’t have health insurance, so I have a big investment in staying healthy. And so I did a little research today — I found the top causes of death, then created a spreadsheet for the controllable risk factors for each.

Some things can’t be controlled, such as your age, family history of diseases and gender. But other factors can be changed. And those things aren’t a huge surprise — you already know not to smoke, drink too much, or eat crappily.

It’s interesting, though, how all of the major diseases are caused by the same things: smoking, diet, exercise, alcohol and stress.

Below, I’ll list the top habits you can change right now, today, and four simple tips for achieving the healthy change you need.

The 8 Habits of Healthy Living

1. Stop smoking. This is by far the most important habit, as it affects almost every single one of the leading causes of death. While it’s also the hardest of these habits to change, it’s not at all impossible — I quit six years ago.

2. Lose weight (if you’re overweight). This is not exactly a habit — the best habit to form to lose weight is to eat less. Or eat more of things that don’t have a lot of calories, like fruits and veggies. Being overweight is just below smoking in terms of the worst risk factors for many diseases.

3. Exercise. You don’t need me to tell you to exercise, but listen to this: Lack of exercise is a major risk factor for heart disease, stroke, colon & rectal cancers, diabetes, breast cancer, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. If you don’t exercise, you’re just asking to get a major disease. It’s almost a magic pill: do a bit of exercise every day, and you get healthy. You don’t need much — start with 5 minutes a day in the morning.

4. Drink only in moderation. Heavy drinking is one of the worst risk factors for many diseases. That’s more than two alcoholic drinks a day for men, and more than one drink for women. A glass of red wine is a good thing, but too many and you’re greatly increasing your risk of disease.

5. Cut out red and processed meats. Eating red meats, and processed meats like sausages, bacon, canned meats and so on, is a risk factor for colon/rectal cancer, stomach cancer, and high cholesterol, which in turn is a leading risk factor for coronary heart disease and stroke. While this won’t sit well with many people, the overwhelming mass of research supports this. I recommend going vegetarian.

6. Eat fruits and veggies. This is obvious, but it’s amazing how few veggies most people eat. Eating fruits and veggies reduces your risk of several leading diseases, and it’s one of the easiest habits to form. Eat a salad (without heavy dressings, bacon or other meats, croutons or cheese). Add veggies to soups or veggie chili. Cook up veggies as a healthy side dish with dinner or lunch. Eat fruits with breakfast and as snacks.

7. Reduce salt, and saturated/trans fats. Salt and saturated or trans fats are in so many processed or prepared foods, and they increase risks of high blood pressure and high cholesterol, which increases your risk for heart disease and stroke. Despite what the Weston Price Foundation and other people on the Internet tell you, saturated fat isn’t healthy — read the sources. Note that this isn’t a controversy in the medical community, but the “harmlessness” of saturated fats is perpetuated by the diary and meat industries, and lay writers like Gary Taube. Cook your own healthy meals instead of eating out or eating prepared foods.

8. Reduce stress. Stress is a risk factor for heart disease and high blood pressure, which is itself a risk factor for stroke. Simplify your workday so that you’re not overly stressed, and exercise to relieve stress.

How to Form the Habits

This might seem like a lot to change, if you’re not already doing these things, but let me share something with you: I changed all of these in the last six years.

In 2005, I was incredibly unhealthy. Then I learned to change my habits, and slowly I:

• Quit smoking.
• Started running.
• Became vegan.
• Lost 70 pounds.
• Cleaned up my diet and got rid of unhealthy stuff.
• Simplified my life and reduced stress.
• Cut drinking down to one to two glasses of red wine a day.

I did it, and so can you. I changed one habit at a time, slowly, in tiny tiny steps, and it wasn’t hard. Don’t try to change everything, and don’t make it hard on yourself. It’s actually very easy if you’re patience and if you just start.

Here’s how to change these habits:

• Change only one habit at a time. It doesn’t matter which habit you choose. Just choose one. You’ll want to do more than one, but don’t.
• Create positive habits you enjoy. Read the last word again — if you enjoy it, the habit change will be easy. Replace smoking with positive habits you enjoy that fulfill the needs that smoking now fulfills (stress reduction, social lubrication, boredom relief, etc.). Replace red meats with healthy foods you enjoy.
• Start as small as possible. Just do five minutes of exercise the first week, and try to be consistent as possible. Then do 10 minutes. Small change is by far the most effective method I’ve used for changing habits. Slow change lasts.
• Make it social. Find a partner or group to change the habit with you, so you’re more likely to stick with it.

These work. I’ve done them many times, and every time I stick to these principles, I’ve changed a habit. Healthy living isn’t impossible, or even especially difficult. It’s just slower to come by than most people care for.

Throw out your white bread and start using whole wheat bread in your sandwiches instead.

It can be a difficult thing to change our diets. I’m not a big fan of being on a “diet” in the first place, one that restricts you to bland food and makes you feel like you’re suffering. These diets are doomed to failure, as they might work in the short term but we will always, always fall off them. Trust me, I’ve tried and fallen off many: Atkins, South Beach, the Abs Diet, Slim Fast, Weight Watchers, and some you probably haven’t heard of.

As others have said before me, don’t go on a diet — go for a healthy lifestyle change instead. That means to make changes that you can sustain for the rest of your life.

Here are some simple lifestyle changes you can make and keep in your diet:

1. Substitute whole grains for refined carbs. Ditch white bread and eat whole grain bread (note that wheat bread and whole grain bread are different – the first uses enriched wheat flour, which is refined, and the second uses whole grain flour, which isn’t). Eat whole grain pasta instead of regular pasta. Eat brown rice instead of white. Whole grain bagels instead of regular. You get the idea. Whole grains are much healthier — more nutrients, slower to digest, more fiber. Refined carbs offer nearly no nutrition in exchange for lots of calories. And after a little while, you won’t want to go back — whole grains taste better and are more satisfying.

2. Eat more fruits and veggies. Yes, everyone will tell you this. But it’s an easy change to make — just stock up on them every week when you go shopping, and snack on them throughout the day. Have berries for breakfast. Snack on fruits at your desk in the office. Eat raw or steamed veggies with lunch and dinner. Fruits are a great after dinner snack. Fruits and veggies not only provide nutrients and fiber, but they fill you up without giving you too much calories and fat.

3. Eat leaner meats (or better yet, other forms of protein!). Switching beef for lean chicken or turkey is an easy switch to make. You might love red meat, but it’s killing you. There are very tasty dishes you can make using lean meat. And even better is soy protein, or nuts and whole grains, beans and other such forms of protein. All the nutrients with none of the saturated fat! If this is difficult for you, try doing it one day a week to start with.

4. Cut back on sweets. This is my most difficult challenge. I have not been completely successful on this, and this will be the topic of a future post, but I have made progress by cutting back on the pastries and candies and other sweet desserts — I usually just have a little now, and find healthier treats to enjoy instead.

Implement these changes one at a time, slowly and over a long period of time. Don’t start tomorrow by saying you’re going to drastically change your entire diet. You will have a difficult time, and suffer, and fail within a few weeks. When the change is very drastic and restrictive, it is too hard for most of us, and it’s just a matter of time before we fail.

A final tip: if you decide to cut back on sweets, or something similar, give yourself one cheat day a week. This will make it easier on you, and give you something to look forward to. It will also increase the likelihood of your success. Give yourself a break sometimes!