The truth is simple and easy to understand. That is why it is not so popular
Weight loss, health, exercise and happiness have captured my attention in the past 7 years. I’ve learned a lot in this period. Unfortunately when you learn, you catch a lot of crap in the process. Thankfully among that crap there was also a lot of really precious information. These I have successfully used on myself and the people, who decided to trust me.
Today I want to share some of that non crappy information with you. The main purpose of that is that you don’t fall for the same lies and myths I had. You will learn that the truth is simple and also cheap. This is precisely why it not so popular in our culture and you will not hear about it often enough.
Difficult kid that was asking too many questions
Let me introduce myself to you first. My name is Špela, I’m 28 years old and I’ve always been some sort of different child. I always do stuff the majority of people don’t. It all started when I was in primary school. While all the other kids were checking their watches and couldn’t wait for the break, I preferred learning and staying in class. Hanging out with the immature crowd didn’t interest me. My favorite idea of spending free time was going to the library not the playground. Besides that, one of my beloved “hobbies” was asking questions to teachers about things they lectured.
I never accepted things as they were especially when I got that gut feeling that something wasn’t right. Because of this feature I was considered a weirdo and was excluded from the groups of other kids often. Even today some people are giving me the “look” at the lectures because I am usually a lonely rider when it comes to asking questions.
However, what happens more often today is that people come to me for answers to their problems. I think that is because they never bothered themselves with asking enough questions. I think that’s because people who ask questions get specific answers. On the contrary, those who don’t, get their heads filled with content somebody else wants them to believe.
Two of the main fields I have been exploring for the past 7 years were the fields of human health and weight loss.
One of the reasons why I got so caught up into that was the desire for an extra student income. The second was curiosity. I stayed in that field because of the latter. At the end my desire to obtain material fortune was never as great as my desire for knowledge and finding out the truth.
Change your diet, change your life
I forgot to mention another reason, why nutrition stimulated my mind so much. See, as a young girl I had way too many health issues. Doctors didn’t really know how to solve them all. But for me, these issues were very disturbing.
Eczema made me scratch myself constantly, skin on my face was itchy and was peeling off regularly. My nose was constantly full of phlegm. I could fully breathe only through one nostril. Colds I have had lasted from the end of August to the beginning of June. I was allergic to every other food. Going on a number 2 was a great effort and challenge for me. Many times I spent a lot of time on the toilet, pushing and suffering. Last but not least, my thighs could easily shrink to half of their size and I would still look normal. Weight loss was a must for me to happen. All pants were too long for me. Since I’m only 155 cm high, when I had to buy a size 36 instead of my optimal 32, of course they needed shortening.
Not very pleasant memories, I tell you.
Don't wait for others, help yourself
Luckily, most of those issues are way behind me today and I can only thank myself for it. I found a way to get rid of almost all the nasty symptoms that doctors wanted to treat with drugs.
There has always been a better way to deal with health and weight loss issues – it was the food.
But I didn’t really know what the right food was. Sure, my mom has been saying all my childhood: “Špela, eat more vegetables, don’t eat so many sweets. Too many eggs are bad for you”. However, these advice were so vague, I couldn’t really rely on them or follow them exactly.
And frankly, which kid would pick broccoli over chocolate if both were on the table?
By the way, I do have some answers on how to make your kid like and eat the right food. Make sure you subscribe for the newsletter not to miss them. However, today I wanted to share with you the reason on why I even started that blog and what you can expect from it. That is why it is absolutely essential for you to know the story of my weight loss and nutritional education.
Experience with dietary supplements
Most of the health issues described above I have successfully resolved quickly after starting my weight loss journey.
All of that happened soon after I stared working for a big company that manufactured herbal nutrition, namely meal replacements and dietary supplements. I used those same supplements I recommended to my customers and also improved my main my diet slightly. The results were quite cool and I lost 5 kilos in two months and dropped one dress size without tremendous effort.
Only after I started working for that company, my mind started to realize, that most of our health and wellness is not something genetic. It is something we can severely influence with our lifestyle and food choices.
Because of this discovery I wanted to make a place, where I could teach people about things I thought I knew about health, nutrition, workout and weight loss. I wanted to give them information that could help them get a fit and healthy body. But there was something holding me back. I already taped my first vlog, cut it properly but never published it.
Something was missing and I didn’t clearly know what.
Why I haven't started blogging before
At the end of 2017 a light bulb finally went on in my head. My wish has always been to help people, but at the same time, I wanted to have something out of it. That is why my ideas for contents were biased, commercially oriented and not helpful enough to truly make a difference for somebody.
I’ve came to realization that even though I achieved very good results with good nutrition and moderate exercise, I couldn’t help others to optimal results. Almost all my customers had results, but I couldn’t help them with all of their issues. And since they came to me to fix all because I claimed that proper food can do so much, I was disappointed. The products I was selling couldn’t solve their issues entirely. That bugged me very much.
Also, what bothered me even more was that some products of the company contained that same foods that I strongly disapproved. According to my research they were related to many diseases (dairy and it’s protein for example). Moreover, later I discovered a way of eating that gave people at least the same if not better results than any meal replacement or a supplement.
Lightning kind of revelation
I got to this conclusion after I stubled across a Walter Veith’s lecture on the negative impact milk has on health. Although he is an ex professor and a 7th day Adventist that promotes the bible, that doesn’t make his content false. Many reasearchers and doctors have come to same conclusions. I haven’t been using dairy products for at least five years. Luckily I got good information about its negative impact on weight loss and health at the beginning of my journey. Here and there I ate some dairy to be honest. That was when we went to eat out or when my relatives had some parties. The choice I had there was very limited, since I didn’t eat meat, so I held on to cheese.
The dairy lecture was a reminder for me that some products I was using and recommending contained those same foods that I consciously rejected. I wasn’t buying cheese or milk for my fridge. That is precisely why it started bothering me very much, that my morning meal had dairy protein inside it (even if just a little).
After I saw once again how much harm people are doing to themselves by eating dairy, I started digging deeper into this issue. I was listening to lectures and borrowed a big pile of books from “the food” doctors. I call them so, because they have been proving the benefits of a whole plant based diet on their patients for decades. They all agreed that optimal human nutrition consists of almost no meat and eggs, no dairy and oils. Of course, also no modern processed foods. The last category also included supplements. That is why, even though I can say I had no bad experience with supplements, I decided I wanted to continue living my life without them. I just figured natural food was a better option.
You only know something, when you actually DO IT
I renewed the knowledge I got from T. Collin Campbell, whose China study convinced me to stop eating meat and dairy on the first place. I also get to learn from others. Lessons from dr. Neil Barnard, Dr. Klepper, Dr. Esselystin, Dr. Ornish, Dr. Garth Davis, Dr. Michael Gregor were priceless on my journey.
At the end, there was one doctor that forever convinced me into my natural plant based eating. That was Dr. John McDougall. I think I ran out of his videos on Youtube, I am planning to read all his books and buy the best ones, plus make his nutritional license.
Why he was the one that finally convinced me?
The major reason was that he turned the perspective of human nutrition away from the self-centered model to the model that benefits all. His way of nutrition is the most simple, sustainable, environmentally, animal and human friendly. His main claim is that the food, that is best for the planet is also best for the well-being of our planet and the animals. Of course, last but not least, it is also great for human species.
Optimal human nutrition is simple and ridiculously cheap
To be quite honest, the money argument has been quite powerful. I couldn’t believe how inexpensive and easy his nutrition plan was. Even the most nutritionally uneducated man or a woman could follow it. The price was cheap because he promoted cooking your meals from natural foods. Same type of meals, if they were bought in store, would have been much more expensive.
That is also one of the reasons why I stuck so long with that nutrition company. Their products were simple and you could eat them while driving to work or in an office. They were cheaper than non-healthy already made meals. Fact is, most people are not nutritionally prepared, so they buy what’s convenient on the streets (pizza, kebab, burek, croissants etc.). These foods are not only unhealthy, but also expensive when you put numbers together.
However I can honestly say, Mcdougall’s plan was way cheaper than anything I was selling and still quite easy to follow.
Natural plant based food where meals are based on starches is the cheapest and most universally accessible healthy diet on the planet. You simply can’t find more nutritious and inexpensive foods than potatoes, rice, unrefined grains, legumes and seasonal fruits and veggies.
After spending months for renewing my nutritional knowledge I realized how pure and cool this diet style was.
No supplement can fix the problems of the fundamentals
From that moment on I simply didn’t want to tell people, what they should add into their diet. Instead I wanted to teach them which foods to stop eating in order to stop hurting their bodies. I also got the strongest desire to teach you guys online how to easily cook and eat tasty and non-violent natural meals. My goal was to take you back to the right and simple principles. What doctor McDougall was so good at, were exactly the basics. He taught me how to eat the food our grandmothers had to eat in times of poverty. Little did they know, that was the food that made them so tough, healthy and long lived.
Finally I found my purpose and a way to have a healthy and efficient weight loss accessible for anybody. I was beyond happy.
But even more than all the health benefits, dr. McDougall convinced me with other aspects of his diet. That plan is totally synchronized with “God’s” creation of the world and the history of all big and successful civilizations. The major advantage of this plan is that with its help, the world could easily feed twice the size of its current population. The second advantage of course is that by adopting this strategy, we wouldn’t cause unnecessary violence among other living creatures and ecosystems. And of course, we would become healthy, energetic and fertile in the process.
You don't need a nutrition degree or a thick wallet for health and weight loss
Moreover, this way of eating doesn’t require of you to eat super complexed meals with 10 different superfoods on your plate.
It is quite the opposite of that.
This ultimate weight loss and health plan is based on a simple philosophy. Even a very simple person can reach an optimal state of health and wellbeing, simply by knowing which foods to say no and which to say yes.
You also don’t need to have superb cooking skills, tons of money and you don’t even need to know how to spell or prepare hundreds of different fruits and veggies. Yet, you can still have the weight loss and transformation that will leave your friends speechless.
And guess what, you can find all the ingredients for healthy living in the most god forsaken, poorly equipped village store. You can smash the McDougall plan without and advanced knowledge of food with only 2€ to 3€ per day to spend on food.
Yes, 2-3€ for all the meals you wish to eat, without starving or depriving yourself. This way of eating doesn’t limit you in the size of your portions and you can eat as much as you want and can eat. And lastly, this food is not only healthy, but it also tastes great!
You get to eat the food that even the babies love. And for once in your life, you have the permission and the instruction, to eat to abundance.
What this plan includes and excludes? I will tell you all about it, but this topic deserves a whole article on its own, so you will have to subscribe to newsletter not to miss it.
The content you can expect on this site
My main goal today was to show you the vibe and the general orientation of this blog and my own story. After I have described you the concept of McDougall’s program, you can assume, what kind of content I will share with you. I want my blog to be honest, fair and to enable discussion on a high level. Most importantly, its main goal will be to search for solutions to your problems, not just to pack my own opinion in a nice way.
I will share with you recipes that I use to feed myself and my family. You will also find instructions on how to avoid the traps that prey upon you in stores and family parties and gatherings.
Together we will dig for causes on why some people are more successful in the field of weight loss and habit changes than others and much, much more.
Of course I will also share my own reasons, why I firmly support McDougall’s nutrition plan.
Plus sometimes, I will share with you some non-nutritional but still important knowledge and discoveries that brought me towards healthful and happy living. Together we will dig for causes on why some people are more successful in the field of weight loss and habit changes than others and much, much more.
After all, even though health is of major importance, people also want to have good relationships, enriching careers, a nice home and happy kids and probably some other stuff as well. I will discuss with you all the areas I feel in control in my life and also the areas I am not quite there. After all, nobody knows everything but everybody knows something.
Seek to understand before you trust
What I want from you instead, is that you don’t trust my word.
At least not right away. The point of my writing is to encourage you to do your own research and to take control and responsibility over your own life and body and weight loss.
Don’t you just be a small ship with no vessels that the course of the river of life is twisting and turning according to circumstances! Nature has given you brain and eyes and mouth for a reason. You should use them to learn important things that will benefit your life. Nature also gave you legs and arms so they can be servants to your mind and decisions. I want you to wake those organs up. It is not wise to sleep with eyes wide opened. If you don’t design your own life, somebody else will take over that task.
Trust me his plan will be in his interest way more that it is in yours.
That is why I dedicate this blog to food and all the misconceptions I’ve had (and we all have) about it. I also dedicate it to rights of creatures, that can’t speak for themselves (animals and ecosystems).
At the end of the day, I firmly believe that by respecting the rights of the last group, we are way more likely to build a world that respects human rights in a proper way.
From now on, being misled is your choice
I believe you have a right to know how you have been misled when it comes to nutrition.
And I am sure a lot of you are, because I have been also. Today I know that was mostly because people I listened had way better proof that their plans work. People who were giving me the opposite advice were sad representatives of their opinions. Mostly they were fat and sick. Even if their advice had some truth in them, their bodies weren’t proof of that.
That is why I didn’t change my opinion for long 6 years. I had to first discover people, who have gotten permanent weight loss and health results in a way that make sense for me today. That was a point where I was willing to change.
I am actually glad I didn’t change my mind without a solid proof.
See, anybody that knows me, knows that I am the kind of person, who is hard to be convinced into anything. However, once I get proved beyond reasonable doubt, that I am wrong, I do it. I also admit where and how much I was wrong. It is tough for my ego, but good for my consciousness.
Not to be defending my wrongs, but good information is quite difficult to find these days.
Food, weight loss and health are too big of a business
You have to know, that nobody earns money by teaching you to eat a pound of potatoes. That is why there won’t be many people who will teach you to do that. Even I won’t have much from it. But luckily, that is not my concern any more. I will get something much better though:
Every day I will get to go to bed with a warm feeling that because of me, there is one person more, who doesn’t wish to buy death for his plate or contribute to the fall of a tree in rain forest. I will be glad when my advice will help somebody to poop easily. If one person will know how to prevent phlegm and bronchitis in his child because of my advice, that will be an awesome reward. It will also make me happy, when a non-confident girl will turn happier by getting rid of her acne with my nutritional advice. Plus of course, every successful and healthy weight loss made I will count as a big victory.
I would lie if I said my advice here is purely non-selfish. I admit I am selfish. I want my parents to live long and healthy so they can babysit my kids and so that I don’t have to take care of them due to some nonsense preventable chronic disease.
So what if I am selfish?
I think anybody wants his loved ones to be as healthy and happy as they can possibly be. After all, what’s the fun in being 90+ and full functional while all your friends are dead or in a bad condition?
You can’t even tell them I told you so.
Message to take home
That is why this blog will come across quite annoying for some people. But since I don’t do it for people to like me and nobody is paying me to do it, I can say things as I see them. I don’t need to put on a pink ribbon and a shiny wrapping paper. I will do whatever is necessary in order for my message to reach people, who are eager to learn and take care of their own health.
Being conceived (like I was and like many people today are) is not only costly and unpleasant; some people pay for following the wrong advice with their own health. That is why I want people who don’t want to be sick, to see these messages. These are people who are willing to fundamentally change their habits and culturally rooted beliefs, so they and the world can get benefits.
Some people will see my blog as insulting, extreme and (too) emotional and I’m sure some comments will be far from nice.
Comments are of course allowed and appreciated. However, there something I wish to warn you about:
Think before you publish it.
Event hough my blog is simply written without complicated graphs and charts, I have invested many hours into studying. I have also spent a lot of time practicing these principles on myself and other people as well. That says a lot about who I am. Your comments will speak about who you are.
I am sure you will want to come across as smart and considerate as you actually are.
Since I value my time I will only response to well-formed and fair comments. In general I will not delete the comments. This will happen only when comments are rude and have no connection to the actual content but are mainly written to provoke or insult. I will not tolerate comments with violence, sexism, racism, etc.
Make sure not to miss next week's news
In the next few weeks, you will be able to read different things on the topic of healthy happy and fit life: success stories, healthy cooking tips, advice for sustainable weight loss that will not make you lose your mind, traps of modern foods etc. Make sure you don’t miss them, so you better subscribe for the news.
Don’t forget, you are the only person who can impact your health and who can have a weight loss without a yoyo effect. You are the only one who can create a life according to your terms. I can only be your little helper.
Stay curious and allow yourself to make mistakes. This is the only way to learn.
Until next time!
Lucky Shelly
