Rosedale Rules?

Here are some basic rules to follow which will keep you on a path to ultimate health and longevity:

FEEL GOOD ABOUT YOURSELF
You are about to embark on a program that will produce wonderful results for your body. You will learn a new way of eating that will make you look better and feel better than you have in years. Within a short time--usually within two to three weeks–most of you will notice that you look leaner, your clothes fit better, and you have energy to spare. There will also be some amazing things happening to you that aren’t visible, yet are ever more important. Your Longevity Profile--that is your biomarkers of aging--will be vastly improved as you regain your leptin sensitivity, and along with losing excess fat you will be de-aging your body and reinventing your body. So smile, feel good about taking this positive step, and get started.

AVOID SUGAR AND STARCH
To jump start the fat burning process, during the first 3 weeks on the meal plan, eat as little non fiber starch or sugar as possible. You don’t have to count carb grams; just don’t eat non fiber carbs. Avoid all starches such as potatoes, bread, rice, pasta, cereal, corn and ALL GRAINS (yes, even whole grains.) Fill up with your plate with vegetables, with the exception of those high in sugar including beets, yams, carrots or tomatoes (though a few sliced carrots or cherry tomatoes in salads is okay). Limit your fruit intake to a small amount (1/4 cup maximum daily) of berries, preferably blueberries. (Diabetics should avoid starch and sugar all the time.) After the first 3 weeks, you can add a bit more starch to your diet (such as a couple of slices of high fiber, low carb bread) as long as this does not increase your cravings for more.

EAT THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF PROTEIN FOR YOU
Remember, this is a high fat diet, not a high protein diet. You should eat the right amount of protein for your body type.

DON’T BE AFRAID OF FAT--BUT EAT GOOD FAT
This is a high fat diet, so if you are hungry, you may eat fat! But stick to the good fats found in nuts, avocados, fatty fish, olives, etc.

LIMIT SATURATED FAT FOR THE FIRST THREE WEEKS
When you want to lose weight, what you really want to lose is saturated fat. So stop eating it, at least for the first three weeks you are on the meal plan. Pass on the beef, pork, lamb and most dairy products and eat primarily fish, nuts, chicken, vegetables and no fat cheese. After the first three weeks on the meal plan, you can eat foods that are higher in saturated fat (such as lean beef, lamb and pork) although those wishing to continue losing weight should not eat very much of these foods.

EAT WHEN YOU ARE HUNGRY
I don’t want you to walk around hungry. When you are hungry, eat good fats, protein (if you have not exceeded your protein limit) and fiber (like vegetables.) Good snacks include raw or dry roasted nuts, nut butters, guacamole and vegetables and dip. (See recipes page xx.) You should not be hungry on this diet, I mean it! If you are hungry, have a handful of nuts or any of the healthy snacks listed in the menus. If you have trouble feeling full without eating a lot of starch, fill up on vegetables. Your cravings for sweets and starches, which are similar to an addiction, should subside within three weeks.

DRINK LOTS OF WATER
Stick to water, seltzer, or flavored water (tea and herbal teas.) No soda of any type, even diet soda, and no juice.

DON’T EAT A LOT AT ONE TIME.
When you are hungry eat a small meal or snack rather. It’s far better for your metabolism to eat several small meals or snacks throughout the day than three large meals.

EAT SLOWLY
If you bolt down your food, your brain will not have the chance to know that you are no longer hungry, and you will keep eating. If you eat slowly, your brain will get the message that you are filling up, and you will know when it’s time to stop eating.

DON’T EAT FOR AT LEAST THREE HOURS BEFORE BEDTIME
Your last meal in the evening should be at least twelve hours from your first meal of the morning. This will give your body the time it needs to rest and heal, and you will find that you are sleeping better. Digesting food is hard work. Let your digestive system sleep also. Drinking water, however, is okay.

EXERCISE AFTER THE LAST MEAL OF THE DAY (IF POSSIBLE)
Do 15-20 minutes of mild resistance exercise (see chapter xx) or take a short walk (preferably uphill.) This will help burn up sugar, and prime you for a night time of fat burning. Then you should keep burning fat all night long, and the more fat you burn, the better you get at it. Even broccoli has some sugar and I want you to burn it off as soon as possible. What I don’t want you to do is to eat late, lie down on the sofa and go to sleep. This will force your body to be working hard trying to digest all that food just when it should be winding down for sleep.

And finally......

DON’T SLIP UP– AT LEAST FOR THE FIRST THREE WEEKS
It takes about three weeks for your metabolism to retool so that you switch from being a “sugar burner” to a “fat burner.” Once your body and brain have made the switch, you will feel the difference. You will have more energy, better mental focus, and you’ll even be sleeping better! In my experience, I have found that after feeling the difference, and "retooling" the brain's needs and desires, few people want to go back to their old eating patterns. NOBODY’S PERFECT It is far better not to, but IF YOU DO SLIP UP...EXERCISE IT OFF. If you “forget” and eat a sandwich with two slices of bread, or eat a cookie, go for a brisk 20-30 minute walk or undertake other exercise immediately after eating. If you don’t burn off those starchy calories right away, they will raise your blood sugar, raise your leptin and insulin levels, prevent fat burning, and turn to fat, all of which get you right back to a deranged metabolism.