Tag: carbs

Chef V Q & A – She Answers your Questions About Cleansing – Headaches, Hunger, Exercise

Chef V


veronica

Below, “V” answers your questions about how to maximize your CLEANSE success and why it’s so important to do a brief pre-cleanse. 

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard someone say they are about to feast on fast food because they’re starting a cleanse the next day.

But if you don’t want a pounding headache or feel like you’re having a mild flu, make sure to check out my responses to our awesome Chef V customers below…


headache

Question:

I’m on day 3 of my 5 day detox…. Any tips on getting rid of a headache?  Everything else is going well.

V answers: 

I’ll admit that sometimes headaches are unavoidable. This is especially true if you did not do the precleanse for at least 2 days before Day 1. When you purchase a Chef V CLEANSE, you get clear instructions on exactly what to eat and what to avoid – check out my article – (EAT THIS/NOT THAT!). So make sure you stick to my recommendations to the “T” or “V” as I like to say (haha). Also, during the cleanse phase, take it easy on the exercise since you won’t be eating solid food. Walks are good. Zumba: not so good.

Question:

I’m on Day 1 of Day 5. I’m not very hungry, but I feel light-headed and my brain is ‘fuzzy.’ Are these normal detox symptoms? When will I feel better?

V answers: 

It depends on how your diet was before the cleanse. Obviously, most people do a cleanse because their diet before the cleanse is not super clean. Has your diet been nowhere close to clean?

And by that I mean plenty of low-starch veggies, moderate servings of fruit, whole grains, lean protein, a little bit of healthy fats/oils/seeds/nuts and no added sugars? The more processed foods, alcohol and caffeine you’ve been consuming, the longer the pre-cleanse should be.

Even if you follow my precleanse recommendations to a V for 2 days, there’s no guarantee you won’t feel detox symptoms—especially if you’ve been overindulging lately.

healthy foods

Question:

I ordered my 5 day detox and will start next week! HOW important is pre-cleansing? I live in a household where I am not allowed to cook. It’s complicated. Any ideas for what I could eat for a pre-cleanse dinner that does not involve cooking?”

V answers: 

The precleanse is extremely important to your success! It helps prep your system. If you drink alcohol and eat fast food and then start a cleanse the next day, your body will need to eliminate and detoxify that stuff first. So you won’t get as much benefit out of the cleanse. By eliminating alcohol, caffeine, red meat, gluten and dairy, you’ll kickstart the cleansing process.

As an added bonus, you’ll probably lose a couple pounds during the precleanse phase. And you’ll likely have less detox symptoms during the CLEANSE phase.

Now as far as what to eat during the precleanse, you can get some precooked chicken or salmon (prefer organic and wild) and eat that with a large salad of mixed greens and chopped veggies. You can also eat that with brown rice or quinoa and broccoli for another easy meal. A good low-sugar dipping sauce is honey mustard.

Finally, in addition to learning what to eat and avoid during the pre-cleanse, this may be a good time to start learning how to prep some easy healthy meals for yourself. For some healthy recipes that Brandon and I love, check out my cooking videos. Wishing you much success!


cooking videos

Question:

I’m on day 11 of my 21 DAY DETOX. I have lost 20 lbs. Did I read somewhere that it is okay to drink coffee in moderation on Healthy Routine days?

V answers: 

First of all, Wow! Congratulations on your amazing results. So inspiring!!!

Now look … I realize how challenging it can be giving up caffeine, at least temporarily. And caffeine isn’t really toxic on its own. The problem is that during a CLEANSE or longer 21 DAY DETOX, the goal is to reboot the body’s digestive organs. Caffeine over-reliance is a sign that the body needs to detox. So I don’t recommend any caffeine on the 21 day challenge. You can have decaf if you need to but it’s best to supplement organic herbal tea. If you absolutely MUST have green tea you can have a little bit.

Question:

Can I take a probiotic supplement on the cleanse and if so when’s the best time? Thanks!

V answers: 

You can take a probiotic supplement before or after your cleanse. But I don't recommend using any probiotic or supplement during the cleanse. I ask you to stick to just what we give you.

probiotic

Question:

Just wondering why eggs aren't allowed on the pre or post cleanse. What is bad about them?’’

V answers: 

Eggs are a major food allergen. Most people don’t know they’re allergic to them. So for this reason we are cutting it out of the cleanse to help heal the gut.

Question: 

Day 3 on the 21 DAY DETOX. I actually have struggled more than I ever thought. First days days were rough. I felt ok in the morning but by late evening I had headaches and nausea due to hunger. I've done lots of cleanses but never purely liquid. The support is needed. The good news is I’m down 5.5 lbs and looking less bloated. My husband commented on this morning.

V answers: 

Typically hunger is in the mind not in the stomach. True starvation is in the stomach whereas our brain often tells us we’re hungry because of boredom, emotions or habit. This cleanse will teach you to listen to your body, not your mind (which is filled with tons of marketing bs around food). I have confidence this cleanse will really help you! If you absolutely need something, have a piece of fruit, or a handful of raw nuts. Or if you can hold out until dinner and add some avocado or coconut oil to your soup at night, it won’t derail your efforts.

Question: 

I’m new to cleansing and trying to be more proactive about making healthier choices. My metabolism took a nosedive once I had my baby so now I need to work harder at eating better. My question is after you cleanse, do you eat less carbs? Follow a lean diet? I guess I'm trying to ask what kind of meal plan (diet) do you follow to continue losing weight?

V answers: 

When it comes to carbs, choose smart carbs like fruits and veggies and whole grains.  Avoid high starchy carbs like white bread, wheat pasta (gluten-free & corn-free pasta like brown rice, quinoa or lentil pasta is ok) and potatoes (sweet potatoes are ok). Also avoid processed foods. Stick to Whole Foods, a little protein, veggies and some rice or quinoa. I hope that helps!

To your cleansing success,

Love, V

veronica

Don’t be so ‘Resistant’ to Eating These Carbs

Jean Yates

resistant starches

I used to be a carb shamer.

I mean, other than trans fats, carbs are the worst thing for health, right? You don’t have to be a certified nutritional therapist like yours truly to understand that out of the 3 macronutrients, carbs have the highest impact on blood sugar and insulin. (Eating a lot of animal protein can also raise insulin.)

Carb-phobia is why I flirted with ultra low carb diets like keto. But after feeling awful switching to keto, you couldn’t pay me enough to swear off carbs again. Life’s too short to feel miserable.

The fact is that 99% of Americans can’t live without eating grains (which are carbs). Not because grains are necessary for survival, because they aren’t. You can go the rest of your life consuming carbs from only fruits and vegetables (which are technically carbs, too). But how realistic is it to eat grain-free for the rest of your life.

That’s why I’m excited to tell you about the healthiest carbs that aren’t fruits and veggies. They are called resistant carbs and I encourage you to get lots of them in your diet.

In fact, there’s one simple trick I’ll show you in just a bit that transforms one of the worst carbs for your health into a much healthier one.

So stay tuned…

What Are Resistant Starches? 

The reason why the most common grains and high-starch carbs are bad for you is that they quickly convert into glucose (sugar) in the small intestine. This drives blood sugar levels higher and causes a release in insulin. And it’s the reason why even though sushi is one of my favorite foods, I don’t get it that often. That’s because I feel like white rice gets digested too quickly. Then, after spending $100 on a sushi meal, I’m hungry a mere two hours later.

(Keep reading because the simple trick I teased above turns even white rice into a healthier carb choice!)

Unlike quick-burning carbs, resistant starches (examples below) don’t get digested in the small intestine. Instead, they pass into the large intestine where they ferment. This fermentation creates prebiotic fiber. (I just checked out my nutrition articles; can’t believe I haven’t written about prebiotic fiber. I’ll add that to my to-do list.)

Prebiotic fiber, also called “prebiotics,” have all the makings of a new health trend, and for good reason. Prebiotics are the food that fuels your healthy bacteria (probiotics) in your gut. You can swallow probiotics until you’re blue in the face and bloated in your gut.

But you can’t colonize your gut with healthy bacteria if the microscopic friendly bugs don’t have anything to feast on.

Besides, many probiotic supplements might be a waste of money. This is because the overwhelming majority of bacteria in the capsules die before reaching the large intestine. Having a healthy gut is vital for immunity, mood, digestion and basically all other functions.

Could it be that eating carbs is the answer for obtaining gut health? Maybe, but only if you’re eating resistant carbs.

apple cider vinegar

More Reasons To Be Less Resistant About Eating Carbs

When you eat lots of prebiotic fiber, it makes you feel full. Feeling full of fiber prevents cravings for unhealthy carbs (basically, anything that contains white or wheat flour) that I will still shame you for eating. (Just kidding. Do what you like. I’m not really a shamer. I just help people get their daily dose of leafy green veggies in the easiest, most affordable and convenient way.)

If you need to improve your health metrics, you’ll be happy to know resistant starches also lowers cholesterol and is associated with a lower risk of developing colon cancer.

Best Resistant Starches

If you love bagels, cookies, muffins, bread and other baked goods, sorry, these aren’t on the list of best resistant starches. However, as I promised, in the next section, I’ll reveal a way to make a couple common carbs more resistant to digestion.

Do you remember this song from your childhood:

“Beans, beans, they’re good for your heart, the more you eat, the more you…”

You can fill in the blank yourself. The good news about beans and lentils (which are in the family of legumes) is that many varieties are high in resistant starch. Some people who have type 2 diabetes are concerned about the high amount of carbs in beans. But I think, considering the amount of fiber and resistant starch (a double dose of fiber, really), beans are perfectly healthy for those living with diabetes. Just make sure to closely monitor those A1C levels before and after meals.

The bigger concern with beans is that they contain anti-nutrients, which interfere with your body’s ability to digest and absorb minerals. A simple thing you can do to greatly reduce these anti-nutrients is soaking the legumes overnight in water.


probiotic flora

More resistant carb sources:

  • Unripened bananas
  • Peas (especially shriveled ones; peas are also legumes)
  • Barley
  • Raw potato starch
  • Glucomannan flour
  • High-maize flour (corn)
  • Arrowroot starch
  • Corn starch (buy organic for the same reason as oats)

How To Make Starchy Carbs More Resistant To Digestion

So what’s a potato, pasta and rice lover to do? These staple carbs aren’t on the best resistant starches list….

But here’s how you can get them to be.

Simply cook them and let them cool overnight in the fridge. Then you can simply reheat them. And voila, you’ve got what otherwise would be a blood-sugar-spiking carb transformed into one that is actually good for your gut! The same goes for sweet potatoes and corn tortillas!

Cooling simple starches like white rice overnight changes the molecular structure of the carbohydrate chains. Science magic!

Of course, as the diet professional I am, I should leave you with a warning to moderate your portion sizes. But that’s how life should be lived, enjoying your favorite foods without overdoing it.

Here’s to “carb” no longer being a naughty four-letter word.

© 2021 Chef V, LLC.