As per many reader’s requests, I just filmed a video where I give you all the details of my own personal weight loss journey.

To hear more about…

• What healthy foods I eat all day
• The specifics of my own workout regimen
• Exactly what motivates me
• How I overcome life’s challenges and what strategies I use when things get tough
• The details of my own weight loss journey
• What are some staple items in my kitchen

…listen to the audio interview I did just a few weeks ago here:

http://fitpro.thedsp.info

You’ll also get access to interviews with interview with 10 other top fitness professionals.  People like Joel Marion, Holly Rigsby, Tom Venuto, Vince DelMonte and many many more.

Check out those really great stories here:

http://fitpro.thedsp.info

I’m pretty used to people coming to my home and saying “Wow, this place is so super healthy. I can’t believe it,” but last week was the funniest.

As you may or may not know, it does take quite a few people to keep the Diet Solution Program running. Last week I had a bit of a “retreat” at my house where I invited 3 of our employees to come and work from my house and spend some time together.

I always try and be the “hostess with the mostess” and in my best Martha Stewart impression I asked “Can I get anyone anything? Some food or a drink?”

One of my employees replied, “Yes, I would love some juice please.”

As I did everything in my power to hold back the look of death, I said “We don’t have any juice. How about water or a tea?”

Without going through the entire conversation, this particular employee couldn’t believe there was no juice in the house. Moreover, she absolutely could not believe that my son does not drink juice and only drinks water (and yes, I did let her keep her job).

She has, of course, read and knows the DSP inside and out, but she admitted that she really didn’t believe that I completely lived my life that way until she saw it with her very own eyes.

But back to the juice…

Juice is one of those drinks that many people perceive as healthy, especially when it’s labeled natural or organic and it says it is made from all natural ingredients. Let me clear this up right now…Juice is NOT part of a healthy eating plan unless you are freshly squeezing it right in your kitchen with your own hands or through a juicer.

“But Isabel. My juice says its organic, natural, 100% juice with no sugar added. Is that ok?”

Well, I spent a significant amount of time reading the label of almost every single juice container, juice box, and juice product and they all came up the same…with tons of SUGAR. Read the label clearly and you will see that every gram of carbohydrate contained in the juice directly comes from sugar.

“But Isabel. All the carbs from fruit are from sugar too right?”

Yes, fruits are almost entirely sugar (coming from fructose), but a whole fruit also contains plenty of fiber and vitamins that are lost when you make a juice, bottle it and store it for any amount of time.

“But Isabel. My juice is fortified with calcium, Vit D and iron (or whatever they are fortifying juice with these days).”

When you “fortify” any food or drink with a vitamin and/or a mineral, your body is smart enough to know that this is not the real version of this particular nutrient. So much so, that it will choose not to use it. Yes, all of these fortified products are not giving you the vitamins and minerals you need. You must obtain these from natural sources like real fruits and vegetables (i.e. real food).

So if you’re a juice lover like many people are or have fallen for the “juice is healthy” trap, here are a few strategies to help you get your juice fix while simultaneously following a healthy eating plan.

1. Buy a quality juicer and make your own juice. There are so many different delicious and nutritious juices you can make in a juicer that will give you a super boost of vitamins/minerals and super nutrition. One of my favorite is carrot, apple and ginger. Be careful though! If you’re anything like me and sensitive to too much sugar at once, I would suggest having a serving of 4 oz or less or mixing your 4 oz with some water. I would also suggest juicing primarily vegetables and not as many fruits. This is a great way to get in some serious nutrition without having to eat vegetables all day long (a great option for children). I would also combine your fresh juice with a protein and healthy fat to keep your blood sugar balanced.

It is best to drink freshly made juice right away, as the longer it is stored, the more it will decline in nutrition. You can put your juice in a glass jar with an airtight lid and fill it to the very top. There should be a minimum amount of air in the jar as the oxygen in air (air is about 20 percent oxygen) will “oxidize” and damage the juice. Wrap the jar with aluminum foil to block out all light. Light damages the juice.

2. Make my favorite “tea juice“. If you haven’t seen this recipe in the Diet Solution Recipe Guide, here it is again:

5-6 bags caffeine-free herbal tea (e.g., peach, mint, chamomile, or fruit tea)

3 quarts boiling water

Stevia powder (or liquid) to taste

Pour water over tea bags in a large pot. Add stevia while tea is hot. (Adjust amount
according to the desired sweetness.)
Let the tea cool, remove tea bags, transfer tea to a serving pitcher or individual water bottles, and refrigerate.

3. Make your own DSP approved lemonade. My business partner loves this and drinks it almost daily (be careful if you’re sensitive to citrus or too much lemon.) Mix the juice from half a lemon, 5 drops of liquid stevia and 12oz of water in a large cup. Add more stevia or lemon based on your taste. This drink is a great alternative to people who need a bit more flavor than plain water all day.

So what did I end up serving my thirsty employee? Water! (And she bought juice when we went out to lunch). Oh well, I tried.

Just yesterday I did a great tele-call with my friend Craig Ballantyne, author of Turbulence Training. He is going to be sharing this call with his own readers and clients, but he asked me such an awesome question yesterday, I had to share the answer with you.

“Isabel, how can someone take any recipe out of a regular cookbook and make it Diet Solution friendly?”

I thought this was an awesome question because it is something I do on a regular basis and is how I am able to keep all of my meal plans new, interesting and most importantly….delicious!

Here are my step by step, do-it-yourself, DSP recipe creator rules (ok, that’s a mouthful but you know what I mean):

First, I search the internet or one of my many cookbooks for exactly what I want to make. We’re going to use shepherd’s pie as our example. When I Google shepherd’s pie, I click on the first link that comes up and here is what came up (I have inserted all of my substitutions in italics):

Easy Shepherd’s Pie Recipe (taken from simplyrecipes.com)

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 lbs ground round beef (I might use buffalo or even turkey for a little leaner option depending on your metabolic type)
• 1 onion chopped
• 1-2 cups vegetables – chopped carrots, corn, peas
• 1 1/2 – 2 lbs potatoes (3 big ones) (I would use cauliflower instead or do ½ potato, ½ cauliflower)
• 8 tablespoons butter (1 stick)
• 1/2 cup beef broth (use low sodium)
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• Salt, pepper, other seasonings of choice (use unrefined sea salt)

Method

1. Peel and quarter potatoes, boil in salted water until tender (about 20 minutes). (Steam cauliflower so you can mash it or put it in the blender so they resemble mashed potatoes.)

2. While the potatoes are cooking (or cauliflower), melt 4 Tablespoons butter (1/2 a stick) in large frying pan.

3. Sauté onions in butter until tender over medium heat (10 mins). If you are adding vegetables, add them according to cooking time. Put any carrots in with the onions. Add corn or peas either at the end of the cooking of the onions, or after the meat has initially cooked.

4. Add ground beef (or buffalo or turkey) and sauté until no longer pink. Add salt and pepper. Add worcesterchire sauce. Add half a cup of beef broth and cook, uncovered, over low heat for 10 minutes, adding more beef broth as necessary to keep moist.

5. Mash potatoes (or put cauliflower in the blender until they resemble mash potatoes) in bowl with remainder of butter, season to taste.

6. Place beef and onions in baking dish. Distribute mashed potatoes (or cauliflower) on top. Rough up with a fork so that there are peaks that will brown nicely. You can use the fork to make some designs in the potatoes as well.

7. Cook in 400 degree oven until bubbling and brown (about 30 minutes). Broil for last few minutes if necessary to brown. (Watch this carefully, as your cooking time will be less because you are using cauliflower)

Yummy! Is anyone ready for dinner?

Just as a side note, there is nothing wrong with having white potatoes if your metabolic type can handle it, but I find with sheperd’s pie you end up eating too much potato, well beyond what one serving should be and there are many people who cannot eat white potatoes because it effects their blood sugar too much (me being one of them).

The recipe above was an easy one (but I just love it and wanted to share it.)

Let me give you some possible substitutions to many other recipes.

1. When a recipe calls for vegetable oil such as canola oil, which we know we should be avoiding, replace it with coconut oil or butter. This can be done in 90% of most recipes. If you can’t use either of those, use olive oil and cook on low heat (below 350F). If the recipe is for a cake or other baked goods, you can use the same amount of unsweetened applesauce instead of the oil.

2. When a recipe calls for bread crumbs, I either make my own from sprouted grain bread or I purchase gluten free bread crumbs that are made from rice. You can make your own breadcrumbs by drying bread in the oven at 250F for 15 minutes and then putting it in your food processor or blender. Add Italian spices like oregano, parsley and basil to make Italian bread crumbs.

3. If a recipe calls for pasta, many times you can replace it with spaghetti squash.

4. If a recipe calls for sugar, you can use a Stevia blend instead. 1 cup of Stevia Blend (from http://www.stevivasweetener.com) is equal to 2 cups of sugar.

5. Replace all the ingredients listed with organic ingredients instead. Ok, ok, you don’t have to replace all of them, but I just had to throw that in there…hehe.
I highly recommend you give this a try yourself and look for one of your most favorite dishes and see what you can do to serve it “DSP Style”.

Happy Cooking!

With the popularity of our new Facebook Fan Page, I’ve been able to talk and interact with thousands of DSP followers…it’s been great!

But I seem to be seeing the same question come up over and over again…

“Isabel, I’m not losing weight as fast as I would like.  What should I do?”

Listen to my answer in this video (and I promise I don’t yell at anyone).

Not a fan yet? Come join us:

http://facebook.com/thedietsolution

You can also get the low down on Vince DelMonte’s new Maximize your Muscle program.

http://maxmuscle.thedsp.info

Last year I created a Facebook Fan Page where all Diet Solution followers could ask questions, post meal and recipe ideas, share success stories and just be there to support each other on good days and bad days. Yes, it’s our own little therapy group except we don’t lay on the couch and talk about our problems, we type them on Facebook instead.

http://facebook.com/thedietsolution

On Tuesday, after one “fan” asked for meal suggestions for Easter Sunday, I decided to pose the question to the whole community.

Here was my question…

Many people celebrate Easter on Sunday. Does anyone have any healthy Easter recipes to share? It can be for an Easter lunch or dinner.

We had some great ideas posted that I wanted to be sure to share them with you.

Marko Bartscherer

I found that if you take a Ezekiel 4:19 tortilla, put them in the oven till they are crunchy you get great chips. Take an avocado and some hot sauce or tomatoes and the perfect snack is born

Rachael Smart

I’ve made deviled eggs using organic plain yogurt instead of mayo.

Freddy Yanez

Maybe roasted leg of lamb using extra virgin olive oil, sea salt, pepper and fresh rosemary, sweet potatoes whipped with butter a touch of greek yogurt (or half&half) to make it creamy topped with walnuts and asparagus grilled with olive oil salt and pepper?

WOW, does anyone else want to go to Freddy’s house? That sounds yummy!

If you’re looking for a community of people to get more meal ideas, share your own ideas or just say “Hey, I need some help here!” Come join us here:

http://facebook.com/thedietsolution

Coming next week…more videos!!! I know, I know, it’s been a while since I’ve gotten in front of the camera. Next week, I’ll be wiping the dust off the camera and will be showing you some of my own favorite recipes in the kitchen (and wait until you see how big my baby has gotten. I’ll make sure he makes an appearance.)

For now, make sure you come and see us on Facebook:

http://facebook.com/thedietsolution

Based on the feedback I received from my last blog post, it looks like I’m not the only one who has suffered an attack from the craving monster. Yup, it happens and I would be kidding myself, actually, lying to myself, if I thought I would never want another piece of cake, cookie, or sweet treat ever again even after eating healthy for so many years.

I mention more “sweet” stuff than anything else because that seems to be most people’s problem, but there are many that also crave “salty” and when I say “salty” it’s usually not salted broccoli and cauliflower, but more like chips and dip (and not the healthy kind).

Since cravings are something we’re all going to have to deal with from time to time (some more often than others), I decided to share my….

Top 10 “Beat the Cravings” foods and meals. (Some of these I have mentioned before, but they are so good they are well worth repeating).

1. Cut up some fresh fruit (berries, an apple, a pear, 1/2 banana) and put 1 tsp of raw, natural honey on top. One teaspoon goes along way and gives your already sweet fruit a bit more of a kick.

2. Make your own healthy Vegetable Chips. Cut up Kale and sweet potatoes and coat them with olive oil or butter. Add some Celtic sea salt and bake in the oven for 20 – 30 minutes at 250 – 300 degrees C. You really have to watch these, especially the kale, because you don’t want it to burn. You’re looking to get them crispy but if you’re not paying attention, they could easily burn.

3. Drink some Tea Juice (this is the first recipe in your Diet Solution Recipes). Essentially it is herbal tea sweetened with Stevia and cooled to be enjoyed as a cold drink. This really hits the spot at 3pm when I “think” I want a sweet treat but this naturally sweetened beverage is enough to calm my cravings.

4. Get some sliced turkey and/or roast beef (I get the natural kind that is store baked and does not contain nitrites and nitrates) and lay 1 or 2 slices flat on a plate. Add 2-3 pieces of raw cheese and wrap it up into a roll. You can also make this into a lettuce wrap by adding a lettuce leaf.

5. Mix some almond or peanut butter with unsweetened organic apple sauce and sprinkle cinnamon on top. A great mid morning or afternoon snack.

6. Go do something you love…haha…I know…I stuck a “non food” one in here. Sometimes we’re not really craving food, we’re just “bored” and need to go and consume ourselves with something we enjoy. For me, sitting at the book store with an herbal tea, reading magazines, is such a treat! (Although I always come home with more magazines than I will ever possibly be able to read, but, hey, everyone’s got their addictions right?)

7. Cut up one apple, spread almond butter or peanut butter on top and sprinkle some crushed raw cacao or organic dark chocolate on top.

8. A fruity or chamomile herbal tea sweetened with stevia or xylitol in the evening is perfect right before bed to calm you after a busy day.

9. After you’ve made your own veggie chips, get some salsa and have your own chips and dip party. I am going to keep experimenting with different kinds of veggies and see which one work the best but so far, I love the kale.

10. 1 piece of organic dark chocolate with a dab of natural peanut butter or almond butter. You’d be surprised how 1 piece can go a very long way as far as knocking out a chocolate craving!

Remember you want to stay away from processed sugar and artificial sweeteners as much as possible. I personally use Stevia for all of my sweetening needs, but I know many people who also enjoy xylitol which is also a great choice.

As I mentioned before, if you’re still struggling to stay on track, a good alternative that I highly suggest is considering a medical hypnosis program. The most powerful one that I have already researched for you that has already proven incredible results for so many is here:

http://hypnosis.thedsp.info

You can read people’s experiences right on that page and personally, I have found this to be the best, most complete and effective hypnosis program on the market today.

If you’ve struggled with your weight over and over again, this bit of “extra help” may just be what you need and are looking for. Also never let pride hold you back because you think you should do this on will power alone. I’m here to help make this easy for you and trying out what works best for you is always the right choice.

Best of all, the program is guaranteed to work or you get your money back. And you have a full year to try it out.

Get more information here:

http://hypnosis.thedsp.info

I’m no stranger to the ugly beast called “Cravings”. For some it may be sweet, others salty and some even just all food, but I can remember way back when I first started my new healthy eating strategy, I really missed my sweet stuff and I missed it bad.

To be honest, I’m not even sure if it was so much physical as much it was emotional. Physically, I felt more satiated, more energetic and was actually enjoying the food on my new meal plans much more than the unhealthy sugary and processed foods I was eating before. But emotionally, I think the morning sweet Danish or chocolate muffin with coffee and tons of sugar gave me a sugar high that helped me to deal with the fact that I was exhausted and going to a job that I didn’t enjoy.

I’m not going to get too deep into what my life was like back then, but the funny part is that here I was walking around exhausted all the time, thinking that the sugar was helping to keep me awake, but it was the very reason I was so tired! I proved this to myself clearly when just 72 hours after starting my healthy eating regimen, the exhaustion lifted like a dark cloud.

I’m not going to lie to you though. Cravings did sneak their way in to my life every so often. So how did I deal with them in those moments?

1. Know that once you start eating the right foods for your specific Metabolic Type, your cravings will subside significantly. Cravings are your body’s way of telling you that you are not getting something that you need and if you are craving sugar, you may need more carbs…healthy carbs that is. If you are craving salty, you may need more fat…healthy fat that is. The point is, once you give your body specifically what it needs, it will not be screaming “feed me Danish, feed me cake, feed me potato chips”.

2. The less sugar and processed foods you eat, the less you will crave them. Believe it or not, it usually only takes about 72 hours of staying away from the bad stuff before your body calms the ugly cravings dragon. Why 72 hours? I’m not quite sure. I do know it works and if you can get yourself to commit to 3 days of keeping away from the ugly foods, you will see a dramatic shift in your cravings.

If you have already tried my first 2 suggestions above and could still use a bit more help, there is another technique that many of my readers have used with great success that you may want to consider. It’s called “medical hypnosis” and of course I wanted to know if it’s something hokey or it’s the real deal so I decided to research it fully. It’s not something I have ever tried myself, but after many reader inquiries and successful testimonials, it was well worth looking into and sharing with you.

After much research, I found a specific program that has been getting normal people just like you results for almost 5 years here:

http://hypnosis.thedsp.info

I wasn’t quite sure about the whole “medical hypnosis thing” at first, so if you’re skeptical, I understand.

Many people are when they first hear about this. But I wouldn’t even be writing about it if I didn’t think there was a significant amount of value in this program. Actually, once I found out that this particular program was one of the best of the best as far as hypnosis is concerned, I contacted the owners and they sent me a whole package of CD’s for my personal review right away and just as I thought, they were great! As a matter of fact, they were beyond my expectations because the CDs were not only thorough, but extremely easy to use with just 20 minutes of time each day.

Look, some people,(maybe you) may not be able to stick to my 72 hour strategy or are having a really hard time sticking to their metabolic type meal plans. Trust me. I get it. I was there too, which is why when one strategy doesn’t work, you have to try a new one and continue to find ways that will help you achieve your health goals. I do believe medical hypnosis is a wonderful option to try.

There are piles upon piles of scientific information proving the effectiveness of medical hypnosis, but I’m not going to bore you with any of those. That’s my job to decipher and then pass on to you the important stuff you need to know.

Here are just some of the many benefits that you can and will experience by implementing this technique:

There are many things in our society today that have a bad reputation…politicians, car salesmen, and carbohydrates. But if you’ve taken the time to watch the informational video on www.TheDietSolutionProgram.com, you know that not all carbs are the same and we do not need to be pointing the nasty blame finger on all of them equally.

When I break the bad news to people that the whole wheat they think is healthy is a major weight loss No-No, they automatically think I’m suggesting they go ride the Low Carb Train.

That’s not what I’m saying at all!

The good news for all of us is that there are plenty of other healthy carbohydrate and grain options that fit into your Diet Solution fat burning meal plans perfectly.

White Rice vs. Brown Rice and every other rice on the shelf

If you’ve ever even spent 2 minutes in the rice aisle at your local grocery store, you know the varieties and the choices of rice are endless.

Are any of these a good option for you on your DSP plan?

Yes, yes, and yes.

Brown Rice goes on the top of the “good” list (oh come on, you knew I was going to say that right?)

Many people know brown rice is better than white, but why?

Well, although brown rice and white rice have similar amounts of calories, carbohydrates, and protein. The main difference between the two forms of rice is in the processing and nutritional content.

Only the outermost layer of a grain of rice (the husk) is removed in producing brown rice. To produce white rice, the next layers underneath the husk (the bran layer and the germ) are removed, leaving mostly the starchy endosperm.

Several vitamins and dietary minerals are lost when you remove this very important layer (especially Vit B1, Vit B3 and iron). Not to mention magnesium, where one cup of cooked brown rice contains 84mg of magnesium and one cup of white rice only contains 19 mg.

Another very important source of nutrition that is lost in white rice is fiber! This is so vital because fiber plays so many important roles in the weight loss process.

Did I lose my mind today and all of a sudden decide that Crème Brulee, Cheesecake and Hot fudge sundaes can be included in your DSP meal plans? I’m sorry to report that’s not the case. But anyone who knows me (and my husband) knows that we do not deprive ourselves. We love our delicious meals and enjoy cooking and eating great food. What you also may know is that we both have a sweet tooth…actually I have internal chocolate radar that starts beeping whenever it’s near…yup, I love it that much.

You and I both know that’s not something to be included every day in your eating plan if you want to drop your excess weight, maintain your weight loss or just keep your health at its best.

The solution?

Finding sweet treats that contain all DSP approved ingredients that taste delicious too.

The first 2 recipes I searched for after my husband ordered the “raw apple pie” at our local health food store (they have a cute little deli where we eat on Saturdays before we shop). It was so good, we asked them for the recipe. You know what they said? NO….boohoo!! So I did the next best thing and got on the internet and searched for raw apple pie recipes.

I haven’t tried these recipes yet, so we will be experimenting with these recipes together (mad scientist Isabel, remember), but I decided to pick one fast and easy one and one that would take a bit more time (but still easy). Normally I wouldn’t send you a recipe before I tried it myself, but I was so excited to discover these I wanted to share them right away.

Fast and Easy Raw Apple Pie

Crust

1/4 cup pecans

1/4 cup walnuts

5 medjool dates-pitted

Mix in food processor. Spread thin in a pie tin. If you like thick crust, you can double this.

Filling

3 apples chopped in processor

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp juice from a lemon

Spread mix over crust. Chop 3/4 cup pecans spread around circumference of pie.

Refrigerate in the fridge for 30 minutes before serving but can also be eaten right away.

You may also want to top it with berries or even banana slices.

Not so Fast Raw Apple Pie (a little bit more time required)

Pie Crust

1 and 1/2 cups raw almonds

1 cup pitted dates

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon virgin coconut oil
Process almonds in a food processor until you have a coarse almond flour. Add the dates, coconut oil, and cinnamon to the food processor and process until the mixture forms dough. Press the dough into a pie pan.

Apple Filling

7 small fuji apples

juice from 1/2 lemon

1/4 and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup dates

1/8 teaspoon lemon zest

Roughly chop 5 apples and pulse them in the food processor until they are in tiny pieces. Pour the lemon juice and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon over them and dehydrate them on low for a few hours. You can dehydrate apples by placing them in the oven at a low temperature (135 degrees) for 1-2 hours. Apples should have most of the moisture removed, but still be a best soft. No need to make them crispy. (Check them often. Yours may take longer or a shorter amount of time.)

In a blender blend 2 finely chopped apples (add to the blender first), 1 cup dates, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, and 1/8 teaspoon lemon zest to make an apple sauce. Mix the applesauce and the dehydrated apples in a bowl. Pour the mixture into a piecrust. Refrigerate for at least two hours.

I can’t wait to try this one. It sounds dee-li-cious! And only contains super healthy ingredients.

The only problem with the above recipes is that apple pie does not taste like chocolate. So what do you do when you’re a recovering chocoholic like me?

My first strategy is I do allow myself a small piece of organic dark chocolate when I just feel like having a little treat. I also found this great recipe that I’m actually going to try before I make the apple pie (a girl’s gotta have her priorities right?)

Coconut Carob Truffles

1 cup raw walnuts

3/4 cup medjool pitted dates

1/4 cup coconut milk

4 Tablespoons carob

4 Tablespoon honey

shredded dry coconut

Blend all ingredients in food processor (except dry coconut). Refrigerate until cold. Roll into balls and roll into shredded coconut.

I’m so excited to make these and, of course, I’ll let you know how my desserts turn out.

If you want to watch me in my kitchen and the exact foods I keep in the house and especially the foods that I DON’T keep in the house…you can watch my 6 part Fat Burning Videos that come along with Mike Geary’s incredible book Fat Burning Kitchen.

Get your copy today, along with my “In The Kitchen” videos:

http://fatburningkitchen.thedsp.info

As many of you have heard me say before, I love to be a mad scientist in the kitchen. When healthy eating is your way of life, you’ve got to keep your meals new and interesting which is why I love to experiment with new recipes all the time, making them (of course) Diet Solution approved.

Today from the “mad scientist” kitchen of Isabel, I have these two recipes for you:

The first recipe is something my husband still likes to make fun of me for. He says it’s “too weird” and “looks gross”…but you know what? I love it! It’s my own creation (at least I think so).

Isabel’s Oatmeal Concoction

Ingredients