Dr. Fuhrman - Eat to Live

fatboy235

Good afternoon all,

I've been doing some research on how to not eat so much red meat, fish and other processed food and came across Dr. Fuhrman. Has anybody heard of him or tried his eating plan of more plant based foods rather than processed? Any recommendations or success stories?

Thanks

Gary

BinaryPulsar

There was a whole thread about it recently with nutritarian in the title. It probably didn't go the way you would like.

Sunbrooke

I am striving to follow the Eat to Live diet. I have never followed diets before, but this one was exactly what I wanted to achieve; getting the most nutrition for the calories. Dr. Fuhrman's plan isn't glamorous, and most of his success stories in the book are from people who needed to lose weight/ improve cholesterol/ control sugar, or die, but the book explains how people who don't need to lose can also follow his plan (more nuts, beans, grains, avocado, and more moderation in food choice). He has a strict, short term, plan for the people who need to lose badly, and I have seen others follow it who want to lose weight quickly. He also has a less strict plan that is meant to be a life long change in eating habits. It is more of a new food pyramid than a diet. His plan does allow for all foods, but in moderation. His plan is also based on nutrition as a percentage of total calories, rather than serving size. So, you have to eat A LOT of raw and cooked veggies to reach 30% of total calories.

Feel free to add me. I have an open diary and the categories are set to make it easier to follow Dr. Fuhrman's plan. You will notice that my calories are pretty low. Thats just me, not the diet. I'm only 4'11" and about 96 lbs. I'm near maintenance on calories. I also tend to follow the diet less on weekends when we go out to eat and stuff. I have personally noticed a big improvement in my digestion, energy level, mood, and skin, on this diet.

There is also an Eat to Live group on here and a Nutritrarian group.

GreatSaltLuke

I also started following this plan about 3 weeks ago after getting sick of the rollercoaster ride and realizing that I'm a food addict who has a hard time with moderation and finding myself drawn to the nutritarian strategy of re-sensitizing taste buds to crave healthy food instead of the bad stuff. I've probably eaten more veggies in the last 3 weeks than in the previous 3 months. I dropped from 302 lbs to 285 lbs so far. Not bad! I've also noticed a significant increase in energy and motivation to exercise. Eating all those veggies really keeps my hunger at bay and I notice I don't think about food that much between meals. I think I got rid of my toxic hunger problems the first week. I also seem to like the taste of the healthy food more and more over time. Don't get me wrong, I still fantasize about a juicy cheeseburger and a large shake when I drive by my favorite fast food joints, but I think of how good I'm feeling these days compared to the food coma those things used to put me in followed by the guilt and it's so plain to see how worth it it is to avoid these temptations that just seem to keep getting easier to avoid.

lemurcat12

I've been doing some research on how to not eat so much red meat, fish and other processed food and came across Dr. Fuhrman. Has anybody heard of him or tried his eating plan of more plant based foods rather than processed? Any recommendations or success stories?

I guess I don't understand the question--if you don't want to eat red meat and fish, can't you just stop? Are you asking about how to get adequate protein without them?

sunseeker43

You could google a group called Peertrainer. They are believers in the Joel Furhman way of eating. They have some neat recipes on there. One in particular is their 'Energy Soup" which is so much goodness in a bowl.

AllonsYtotheTardis

he's a crack pot . What else would you like to know?

thavoice

anything that doesnt have me eat red meat and fish is something I want NO PART OF!!!!!!

rockmama72

While I don't follow any particular plan, I have been trying to use plants more in cooking for the past few years. It's been fun to learn how to cook with vegetables and grains beyond nuking some green beans in the microwave so my dinner is balanced. I love all meat and still eat it plenty, but I'd say that about 75% of my meals don't have any.

It's definitely cheaper (I buy produce from a local Italian market with great prices or I grow my own) and it's a good value calorie-wise. I don't know what it's done for me health-wise, but I hope it's just one of those things that I'll be glad I stuck with when I'm 80.

GreatSaltLuke

he's a crack pot . What else would you like to know?

Typical...

rockmama72

I've been doing some research on how to not eat so much red meat, fish and other processed food and came across Dr. Fuhrman. Has anybody heard of him or tried his eating plan of more plant based foods rather than processed? Any recommendations or success stories?

I guess I don't understand the question--if you don't want to eat red meat and fish, can't you just stop? Are you asking about how to get adequate protein without them?

It takes some adjustment and learning to cut down on meat, especially how I grew up (in Iowa, land of pork). We got the "adequate" 1/2 cup of frozen veggies or a bowl of iceberg lettuce with our dinner when we were growing up. I'm a good eater and a good cook, but it was a challenge to learn what to do with a pinto bean so that I'd like it as much as the aforementioned pork. (Which is stupid for me to say, now that I think about it. Nothing is better than pork, except for beef.)

fatboy235

Thank you for responding. I could just stop eating red meat and fish altogether if I had to. I was just making a general statement to see what others may be doing to cut down on their consumption. That and I came across the Eat to Live way of eating and wanted to get peoples input.

fatboy235

thank you sunseeker 43 for the group name

lemurcat12

It takes some adjustment and learning to cut down on meat, especially how I grew up (in Iowa, land of pork). We got the "adequate" 1/2 cup of frozen veggies or a bowl of iceberg lettuce with our dinner when we were growing up. I'm a good eater and a good cook, but it was a challenge to learn what to do with a pinto bean so that I'd like it as much as the aforementioned pork.

Interesting. I eat fish and red meat, as well as other kinds of meat, but until recently I ate meatless meals a lot, and usually go vegetarian all of Lent. It just doesn't seem that difficult, except for missing foods I personally like. For me the biggest challenge now would be keeping my protein levels at where I currently want them to be (it's why I didn't go vegetarian this Lent), so that's why I asked what the concern was.

Hmm, but come to think of it my parents still get all weirded out by meatless meals, like they aren't complete, so I understand your point about how you grew up, but I wouldn't think that would be an issue for someone considering vegetarianism or the like.

rockmama72

It takes some adjustment and learning to cut down on meat, especially how I grew up (in Iowa, land of pork). We got the "adequate" 1/2 cup of frozen veggies or a bowl of iceberg lettuce with our dinner when we were growing up. I'm a good eater and a good cook, but it was a challenge to learn what to do with a pinto bean so that I'd like it as much as the aforementioned pork.

Interesting. I eat fish and red meat, as well as other kinds of meat, but until recently I ate meatless meals a lot, and usually go vegetarian all of Lent. It just doesn't seem that difficult, except for missing foods I personally like. For me the biggest challenge now would be keeping my protein levels at where I currently want them to be (it's why I didn't go vegetarian this Lent), so that's why I asked what the concern was.

Hmm, but come to think of it my parents still get all weirded out by meatless meals, like they aren't complete, so I understand your point about how you grew up, but I wouldn't think that would be an issue for someone considering vegetarianism or the like.

You are not wrong! Once I got over feeling like I needed a half a plate of meat to make a meal and adjusted the way I cook, it was very easy... And it gets easier and easier.