Hi Lost Empire Team,
Not sure if you could use this, but it worked for me and I’ve shared my ‘success’ formula with friends that have wanted to feel better and/or improve their heath situation.
As a 53 year old male, here’s what I’ve personally learned that has made a tremendous impact on my high blood pressure, prostate issues (BHP), diverticulosis/IBS, and being almost 50 lbs overweight.
All of the above has been under control for some 5 years now and am completely and I have been completely off any and all pharma meds as well.
Here is my secret from being a previous 205lbs (I’m 5ft 7″ tall) to my current (last 5 years) weight of 158lbs +/- a few pounds:
Diet, Sleep, Exercise
Focusing on these three, and in that exact order, was key for me.
DIET
Firstly, everything hinges on a proper and healthy diet: no amount of exercise will overcome a bad diet. Nor will it bad sleep habits either. Period.
For me, cutting out wheat products, taking a daily probiotic supplement and properly consuming fruit was key. Eating fruit on an empty stomach (do not mix proteins/fats with fruit!) and eliminating wheat products almost immediately cured my IBS/Diverticulosis. Eating proteins with fats, and eating carbs with fats (no proteins with carbs at the same time) was a godsend formula for me. Add non-carb veggies to the meals.
No hunger pangs after a few hours, complete digestion, and no more ‘droggy, sleepy’ feeling after eating a meal! After I eat, I feel GREAT!
Proteins: eggs, fish, beef, chicken, greek yogurt
Carbs: veggies, tubers, fruits
Fats: olive oil, coconut oil, grass fed butter, avocado, nuts, seeds, dark chocolate
I don’t count calories (and stopped a long time ago): eat the above, your body will process it beautifully and excess body fat will come right off. It did for me.
SLEEP
For me: 7.5 hours nightly minimum. Have lived most of my life on 5 hrs sleep, it was no wonder my health used to be a wreck. Our bodies cannot ‘regenerate’ and function properly with lack of sleep.
When I ‘forced’ myself to sleep my now usual 7.5-8.0 hrs nightly sleep, a transformation happened with regard to how I felt throughout the day.
We all lead busy lives and sleep used to take a back seat to daily activities: make sleep a priority as it’s very important for all our physiological systems and plays a huge part in our feeling energized and great during the day. Our immune system is optimized and all our body systems as well when we’re properly rested.
EXERCISE
Once the diet and sleep are on point, it’s almost as if the exercise was optional for me. I did say ‘almost’!
Like most people, our work lives are rather sedentary; I found that for me, walking and body weight exercises (pushups, burpees, squat lunges, etc) absolutely toned and firmed everything up. I do 20 minutes every other day of rather intensive body weight exercises in a Hi-Intensity fashion and I do a brisk walk for about 20 minutes after dinner daily (the beach is about 10 minutes away). That’s it. I don’t hurt myself or my joints doing extreme weight training, etc.
HERBS
It’s only been about the last 2 years or so that I’ve experimented with herbs/supplements. Here’s what’s working for me…
I found that taking a Selenium/Zinc supplement along with Kelp (for Iodine) and Magnesium have absolutely fixed/controlled my prostate issues (BHP). Wow, this combo was a godsend for me and I haven’t had to use any pharma meds for this for a long time. (All symptoms vanished)
For my high blood pressure, my clean diet, sleep and exercise obviously helped but I also found that Hawthorne, Gingko Biloba, and Olive Leaf was that little extra that I required to really bring things under control. I take one of the three herbs daily and rotate them and that seems to be working well for me.
I’ve tried the pine pollen (both megadose and tincture) as well as the tongkat….wow, awesome stuff!! It’s almost too powerful for me, so I use and enjoy them sparingly when I feel I need a boost.
I do take a B complex vitamin and vitamin D daily as well.
I like to season all my foods very well. Here are my go-to spices/herbs: ginger, rosemary, cayenne, oregano, basil, chives, Himalayan salt, black pepper, turmeric, coriander
MISCELLANEOUS
Sounds like a simple formula, and frankly it is simple. But being simple does not mean that it’s easy!
For me, giving up wheat made me experience ‘withdrawal symptoms’! Being that Italian food, bread, pasta, pastries, etc. was a large part of my diet for the better part of my life. I have now come to realize how inflammatory wheat is to my system, and I now only partake on very special occasions, a few times a year.
Organic food is obviously best, but is so limited in availability where I live, (Tropics), but washing thoroughly, seasoning appropriately and using good fat (butter, olive and coconut oil) is effective.
Also, if food comes in a box, I will not eat it. Processed foods are to be avoided. Period.
I find that a regular sleep schedule works for me – try to go to bed at the same time each night. Not easy, but worth it.
Also, for me, the elimination or reduction of stress is very important to good health and feeling energetic. That’s another discussion, but do what you can to either minimize or eliminate excess stress from your life.
Cannot do everything at once: one step at a time! Get the DIET on point FIRST. Then get the SLEEP dialed. Finally, get an EXERCISE program that agrees with you and one that you will follow.
My 2 cents worth….although, it is worth considerably more to me! I think back to how I felt, how I looked, and the condition of my health and I do not want to go back to that! There are no quick, easy fixes and then you’re done – It’s a LIFESTYLE and practicing this improved lifestyle is well worth the effort, as the rewards are outstanding.
This has worked for me and is working for me … and of course, your mileage will vary!
I hope my sharing what has worked for me, may be of some help to anyone that would like to improve their health goals.
Very best,
Luigi Garritano
- Testimonial to Healthy Living - November 1, 2016
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