I know it has been some time since your post. How are you doing? Do you have a weight loss buddy?

I live the Virgin diet every day. It should be called the Virgin Lifestyle. This is a good diet for people with intolerances and who have a very difficult time losing weight, but it's great for everyone I think because it makes complete sense and is super natural. It's a ten-week plan to lose weight and discover intolerances. Take out 7 foods for three weeks then reintroduce them one at a time for the next seven weeks. Below I've explained the reasons for taking out these 7 foods. Gluten: contains lectins that bind to insulin, which creates insulin resistance and can make your blood sugars rise, making it hard to lose weight. Gluten is also an inflammatory. Soy: a phyto-estrogen, a plant source of the hormone estrogen. It's also heavily genetically modified. Dairy: like gluten, acts as an isulin resistant. It's nearly impossible to find hormone-free milk. So, hormones and rising blood sugar=acne and fat. There are studies out there that show countries with the highest dairy consumption have the highest levels of osteoporosis. On the contrary, countries that rely on calcium rich foods have a much lower rate of osteoporosis. I've read that the pasturization process of milk breaks down the protein that allows our bodies to absorb the calcium. I believe all this but there is still a huge debate about it. Corn: inflammatory and a high-glycemic food Peanuts: inflammatory and high in lectins. Eggs: inflammatory. If you have sensitivity to corn and soy, eggs might affect you because the chickens are probably fed corn and soy. I have a huge intolerance to fat so another reason eggs bother me. Sugar: we all know that's bad! And don't be fooled by agave necter...higher in fructose than high fructose corn syrup. I'm 5'8 and was 148 lbs. I'm now 135 and holding. In two weeks, my injured knee from subluxation over a year before wasn't hurting and felt stronger. My ankles reduced by 1/2 inch, something I thought was genetic but I guess was just excess fluid. I never really had bad acne, but what I did have cleared up and my blackheads reduced significantly. Also, my menstrual cycle went from seven days to three. My head felt clearer and I had more energy. I rarely have wind or bloated belly as well. The cellulite on my legs reduced by about 50%. I made a point to not exercise the first three weeks to see how effective just changing my diet was. ALL these changes happened without exercise, though of course after the three weeks I went back to yoga. I don't think everyone needs to cut out all of these foods. I also know some people won't have as many changes as I did. But I don't see how it will hurt to try, just to see what changes might happen to you! I think JJ knows what she's talking about. In regards to sticking to it, I cheat every once in a while but I usually feel so bad when I do that I find myself cheating a lot less. Good luck!

When I finally got serious about taking the extra weight off of my household of fat cats, I adopted a three-point strategy. 1) Remove the all-day kitty buffet and start feeding scheduled, portioned meals instead. 2) Switch to a low-carb/high protein kibble (Innova EVO), and swap one kibble meal for canned (kibble a.m., canned p.m.). 3) Weigh all cats every two weeks (1st and 15th of each month)on a digital baby scale. Adjust food portions after every weigh-in, if necessary, to achieve 2-week weight loss of between .2-.4 lb. Any cat who lost less than .2 lb during the previous 2 weeks had kibble portion reduced a little. Any cat who lost more than .4 lb during the previous 2 weeks had canned food portion increased a little. The ultimate dietary goal was to minimize kibble in the diet while gradually and safely achieving optimal body weights in the cats. I started this feeding strategy in 7/07. It took about 18 mos to return all of my cats to optimal weights. Now, more than 4 yrs later, I still weigh all of my cats every 2 weeks, and I still adjust food portions, as necessary, to maintain those optimal weights. Most of my cats eat 1/8 c of EVO kibble for breakfast and between 2-4 oz of canned food or RPM (Raw Prey Model) for dinner. I would bet that the so-called "diet" kibble you're feeding is high-carb and not doing your cat any nutritional favors at all. Laurie

Rhizo: I'm glad that you brought that up. Thanks. I re-post the info. on grapefruit interaction below. Grainlady: I'm so lucky to have your valuable info. THANK YOU. I agree that homemade probiotics (Kefir, sauerkraut) is best. Long-shelf storage at the store DECREASE the number of viable bacteria. Some yogurt have artificial sugar added (aspartame, sucralose, sorbitol) ... these sugar-substitute are known to INCREASE the bad bacteria, and ZAP out the good bacteria. Men's Health has an excellent article on how certain medications mixed with certain food/drink can have a deadly effect & toxic: http://www.menshealth.com/health/ 1. Limes and cough medicine. You may have heard not to drink grapefruit juice with some prescriptions, including cholesterol-lowering statins. But limes, pomelos, and Seville oranges—although not the more-common navel and Valencia varieties—also may block an enzyme that breaks down statins and other drugs, including the cough suppressant dextromethorphan ... this includes hallucinations and sleepiness; in statins, you may sustain severe muscle damage. 2. Dairy products and antibiotics. Some antibiotics, including Cipro, bind to calcium, iron, and other minerals in milk-based foods. “This prevents the absorption of the antibiotics, ultimately decreasing their ability to fight infections,” Gullickson says. When you get a new prescription for acne or an infection, ask if the drug falls into a class known as tetracyclines or flouroquinolones. If so, avoid milk, yogurt, and cheese 2 hours before and after taking the pills. 3. Smoked meats and antidepressants. Check the label on your happy pills. If they belong to a class called monoamine oxidase inhibitors or MAOIs—brand names Marplan, Nardil, Emsam, or Parnate—combining them with foods rich in the amino acid tyramine can cause life-threatening spikes in blood pressure, says Gullickson. Unfortunately, the list of no-nos includes not only summer sausage and smoked salmon, but also red wine, sauerkraut, hot dogs, aged cheeses, soy sauce, and draft or home-brewed beer. 4. Chocolate and Ritalin. Besides caffeine, chocolate also contains a stimulant called theobromine, says Tom Wheeler, Pharm.D. (It’s the reason chocolate harms dogs—canine bodies can’t break it down.) Combining all these stimulants in humans can potentially lead to erratic behavior and seizures. 5. Apple juice and allergy meds. Nix the nectar from apples, oranges, and grapefruits if you take Allegra (fexofenadine) for hay fever—at least within 4 hours of swallowing the pill, Gullickson advises. The resulting lack of absorption makes Allegra up to 70 percent less effective; lay off these juices while taking the antibiotics Cipro or Levaquin, the thyroid medication Synthroid, or the allergy and asthma treatment Singulair, Gullickson says. 6. Cinnamon and warfarin. People taking the blood-thinning medication warfarin—prescribed to prevent or treat clots—have long been warned to keep their intake of vitamin K steady, says Wolfe. This means you shouldn’t change your weekly intake of foods like leafy greens or broccoli; because vitamin K plays a key role in clotting, doing so could affect the thickness of your blood. But there’s another risk. Cassia cinnamon, the kind on most American grocery-store shelves, contains high levels of a compound called coumarin that can thin blood and potentially cause liver damage, says Eric Newman, M.D 7. Alcohol and acetaminophen. Resist the urge to wash down your Tylenol with a cold one—your body uses the same enzyme to break down the two substances. http://www.menshealth.com/health/