Avoid 7 Foods to Lose 7 Pounds in 7 Days and Feel 70% Better

I love talking about food sensitivities because I have personally witnessed the power of identifying and eliminating them to transform a person's health.

Today, it’s refreshing to share with you someone else’s take. Someone who’s changed millions of people’s lives by bringing light to these 7 foods that cause weight gain and digestive upset at every meal.

When her book, The Virgin Diet and corresponding PBS special was released, JJ Virgin helped millions of people to lose 7 pounds in 7 days by eliminating 7 foods.

Sure, most of America was concerned about weight loss, and they got that, but what they also got was the ability to think more clearly, have more energy, sleep deeper, and have infinitely improved digestive health.

All of these are things that offset chronic disease and give you a better quality of life so by avoiding these foods, you are literally saving and extending your own life.

Do you know the 7 most common foods sensitivities? Here they are…

• Gluten
• Dairy
• Soy
• Eggs
• Corn
• Peanuts
• Sugar and artificial sweeteners

Food intolerances or sensitivities are associated with symptoms such as fatigue, headaches, joint pain, skin problems, GI issues, and mood disorders. Once trigger foods are taken out the diet, these symptoms disappear and the “side effect” is rapid weight loss.

Many other symptoms that we are used to accepting that are connected to one of these 7 foods are gas, bloating, low energy, fatigue, cravings, skin issues, and inability to lose weight. If you have any of these symptoms or have an autoimmune disorder, you should start by doing the elimination diet.

The best way (if you are not going to run a blood test because not everyone needs to avoid organic corn, peanuts, raw milk, and eggs) is to take them all out at once and see how you feel. Afterward, you should reintroduce them one by one and check for any symptoms immediately following consumption and up to 4 hours after consumption.

The old method of eating foods in moderation and watching calories is not enough to control symptoms caused by food intolerances, even small quantities of “trigger” foods may create problems.

Genetics play a role, so do immune and hormonal issues.

We tend to crave the foods that we have an intolerance to, which can lead to addictions and the inability to lose weight. In her book, The Virgin Diet, JJ explains how to pull these foods out for three weeks and when to bring them back one at a time and check for any symptoms. She gives simple food swaps so you won’t feel deprived and also offers great recipes in her cookbook.

It’s a great book to give anyone who is just getting into this field and needs to have their “light bulb” moment about how what they eat truly affects them.

I typically have people introduce one new food every four days after a three-week elimination diet. The body will let you know what foods work for you and what foods don’t.

Sleep is Your Friend

JJ talks about how sleeping well and consistently getting 7-9 hours of sleep per night is a top priority. One poor night of sleep makes your body more insulin and leptin resistant, which sets you up for weight gain and a cycle of hormonal disaster because your body learns how to get good at storing fat while it gets worse at burning it off.

If you can’t burn fat, then your body is running on sugar, which makes you crave more sugar. Your serotonin (feel-good neurotransmitter) is lower, so you again crave more sugar.

I always suggest my clients create a sleep routine where they truly wind down 30 minutes before bed, get off all technology, stretch, read, breathe, take a bath, or meditate. I love rubbing magnesium oil on my feet before bed to help me relax.

The body needs transition time and we often expect it to go from 0-60 or 60-0 without that, and it’s unrealistic. Take a minute to let the day go, and to trust that tomorrow will take care of itself. And then let yourself relax and get a restful night’s sleep.

Preventing Autoimmune Disease

Autoimmune is the number one umbrella disease worldwide. If you have an autoimmune disease, you may get other autoimmune diseases. You must be extra careful with foods that are newer to us or with food that has been genetically modified such as gluten, soy, and dairy. I love how JJ states, “the sicker you are, the further back in your ancestry you need to go” and then brings up how those with autoimmune issues pretty much MUST avoid gluten, soy and dairy if they want to reverse them, or at least feel better.

For people without an autoimmune condition, avoiding foods you are sensitive to will prevent autoimmune disease and chronic inflammation.

You have enormous power every single time you sit down to eat with the choices you make.

I know we don’t always make the best choices for our bodies. That is just not realistic, which is why I preach and teach an 80/20 balance. If you are going to eat of these 7 foods (please don’t ever eat artificial sweeteners though, there is absolutely no reason for that when you have Stevia and coconut sugar), then take a digestive enzyme beforehand.

JJ suggests starting your day with a healthy smoothie so that you set your body up with stable energy and prevent overeating later in the day.

We are partial to our Breakfast Smoothie Everyone Loves. If you haven’t already, try that and let us know how you like it!

If sugar is your main craving, then you need to sign up for JJ’s information in her latest book, The Sugar Impact Diet here.  She’s got one of the best plans I’ve seen out there and really shows how and why the glycemic index is wrong. Her book is a safe way to drop 7 hidden sugars that will enable you to lose 10 pounds in 10 days, which is pretty cool.