I can’t wait to read this new book by one of my favorite bloggers, Dr. Mike Eades and his wife, Mary Dan: “The 6 Week Cure for the Middle-Aged Middle: The Simple Plan to Flatten Your Belly Fast!”
Belly flab and sweets…
While I’m thankful that I’ve been able to stay in the same size jeans through the years, I still struggle with belly flab (even when I was super consistent with my running, which was very frustrating…it’s all those tempting carbs I tell ya…), so I can’t wait to read this new book for some hints. I’m sure these hints will include eating less sweets, darn it, even though I’m leaps and bounds ahead of where I was even a year ago. It’s funny that I just don’t crave sugary stuff like I used to now that I’m eating more and more healthy fats like butter, cream, bacon fat, tallow, etc. Keep in mind, this doesn’t mean I never crave it, I just crave it much less.
Don’t be messing with my coffee
What has me really worried were hints at Dr. Eades blog about the book’s recommendation of limiting (cutting???) caffeine consumption. Come ON, I don’t even put anything in it! No sugar, nothing. So I think I should still get a cup a few days a week, don’t you? When I met Sally Fallon last year, she said the same thing: “It’s not good for your adrenals.” (Picture me plugging my ears and humming loudly.)
Here’s an excerpt from Dr. Eades' blog about their new book:
“We’ve spent the majority of our medical careers helping people of every description with just this battle, combating overweight and weight-related health issues. Although some were in their teens and twenties and some were in their seventies and eighties, the vast bulk of the many thousands of patients we guided to better health and lower weights were in middle age. What we learned from these many years in the diet trenches is that middle-aged weight is stubborn; it’s different to deal with; it doesn’t respond readily to modest dietary changes or the incremental increases in exercise usually recommended by the purveyors of received medical and nutritional wisdom. The factors driving middle-aged weight gain—which really does go straight to the middle—are like a perfect storm, metabolically speaking. A confluence of changes in hormones, stress, lack of sleep, alcohol intake, medications, fat and cholesterol phobias, and a mountain of other nutritional misinformation combines to create a mid-life tsunami that seems to swamp the metabolism and fill every nook and cranny of the middle of the body with fat.”
If you read it, let us know what you think: “The 6-Week Cure for the Middle-Aged Middle: The Simple Plan to Flatten Your Belly Fast!”
Alex says
First Kitchen Kop, wanted to say how much i LOVE LOVE LOVE your website…second, i agree with you about those last ten pounds…its all about loving yourself and not your BMI…thirdly, I love coffee too–recent studies have shown that coffee is actually healthy for you in a number of ways, partly due to its high antioxidant levels. Studies show a protective benefit for certain cancers, Parkinsons disease, dementia and Alzheimers. it also shows that older people who consume coffee have greater mental recall that decaffers…
nice to hear that things like chocolate, coffee and wine are good for you!!! 🙂
I also strongly believe that if something FEELS right to you you should do it–take all DR.s and experts advice with a grain of salt–YOU are your own best judge of what is right for you…
Sara says
Yes, I want to know how you’re taking the CO, Ann Marie. I don’t generally like to mix the flavor with anything but chocolate. lol. I did enjoy it in my coffee until I gave that up. I would LOVE to find a way to get in 4T!
Marcy says
Ann Marie, how are you taking the coconut oil? Every time I try to increase my coconut oil intake I have trouble figuring out how to get it down. Sometimes I make chocolate ‘bark’ or nut bars, which are mostly coconut oil, but I am not sure I am getting anywhere near 4 TBS a day like I’d like.
KitchenKop says
Emily, I’m with you, girl! 🙂
emily says
I know that coffee isn’t the perfect drink but I did read one brief ofa study which found those drinking 3 cups a day had less diabetes type 2 then non-coffee drinkers. perhaps due to the appetite suppresive qualities of caffiene.
Ann Marie @ CHEESESLAVE says
I’m FINALLY starting to lose my post-baby tummy fat. After 2.5 years! My tummy is the smallest/flattest it’s been since before I got preggo. I still have weight to lose but I feel so much better!
What’s helping me: COCONUT OIL, The Liberation Diet by Kevin Brown and a little app on my iPhone called LOSE IT!
I have tried for months to lose but they say the last 20 pounds or so are the hardest to lose. I read Kevin’s book and it made sense — it’s fairly low-carb, but it’s based all on eating real foods like butter and bacon.
I was at a plateau until a week or 2 ago when I started increasing my coconut oil. Now I am doing anywhere from 1.5 to 4 TBS of coconut oil per day (depending on how vigilant I am). And the weight is just falling off.
Since Sept 1st, I have lost 8 pounds. Just since I started the coconut oil in the past couple weeks, I lost 4 pounds.
So in other words, it took me 6 weeks to lose the first 4 pounds, and then I lost the next 4 pounds in just 2 weeks (less than a THIRD of the time!) The ONLY change was I added the coconut oil. In fact, I’ve been exercising a lot less this past 2 weeks (if any).
I am doing carb & calorie restriction. This little app I got for my iphone (it’s FREE you can download it) lets you enter foods and exercise each day and it tallies up your total calories and carbs. It tells you how many cals you can have each day and you try to stay under that. Really makes it easy!
I am interested in reading this book by the Eades — LOVE them! Thank you for posting this!
Sara says
I’ve always struggled with the same worries about not eating what the rest of the family eats, but I decided that I was doing this diet (I NEVER talk about dieting, just eating healthfully) to get healthier (meaning get off the sugar and the bonus is weight loss). So, I did it.
Everyone knew I was on a Diet but I had frequent talks with my 7 yo daughter about how it wasn’t about getting skinny but about getting healthier. She understands that sugar is bad for us and I was giving that up. I made sure to point out that I was having 3 big shakes that have plenty of calories and they’re specially made to be healthy and help heal my body from the sugar and cokes. And of course, that one healthy meal of the day.
I never had any intestinal distress from the shakes. I think others may have, but I’m not sure why.
Liz F. says
Kelly,
Thank you. I think more women need to hear from other women that it’s okay to not be perfect, whether it be weight or any other area of our lives.
I’m not so sure if the ten’ish pounds is okay. It constantly wants to creep up, it’s mostly all in my belly and it has not responded to any of my attempts to rid it from my body. I’ve been working out like crazy and my trainer measures me and my total body fat has been reduced. I’m not too caught up with the number on the scale, but I am very tuned in to the way my clothing fits.
Remember I’m old than you — I’m trying to figure this out and pave the way! 🙂
Liz
KitchenKop says
Liz,
I struggle with those same 10# in that same spot, and did so even when I was running every other day. (I’m much less consistent these days.)
This brings me to the question that I’ve wondered about lately…do those 10# really matter? Could that actually be my “OK” size, especially since I eat fairly well? (For the most part anyway.) Sally Fallon says that people need to keep more pounds on than we usually think.
Or am I justifying the weight that I’m not in the mood to fight off?
As long as my 10# doesn’t creep to 15#, I’m not too worried these days, although I’ll never quit wishing (and trying occasionally) to have those # gone.
Something to think about…
Kelly
Liz F. says
Sara,
Thanks so much for the update! I haven’t made it past three days yet without caving in and eating. This past time, I cooked myself a piece of fish mid-day, but even with two more shakes I was still famished and I really, really wanted to EAT — you know, chewing and swallowing and enjoying the taste! I’m wondering if it’s okay to be so hungry. My struggle with eating my low carb meal earlier in the day and doing the shake for supper, is that I don’t want to draw attention to myself on this. My husband would support me on it, as long as it’s short term, but I’m worried about the perception of my seven year old daughter. You know, body image and all that. I don’t have a lot to lose, probably 10 lbs or less, but I’m carrying my extra weight primarily in my belly. Nothing else has worked, including intense workouts and regular exercise. I’ve been off caffeine for over 3 months in an attempt to give my adrenals a rest. I still miss coffee, but it’s not a problem. The only other thing I’ve struggled with is intestinal distress. I’ve gone back to the book and back to whey protein and double checked ingredients and proportions, but I think I have the right stuff. Did you have any troubles like this? I might try your mix of meat meals and shakes and see if I can make any progress there. Thanks again for your response!
KitchenKop says
Liz,
Thank you for your honest comment that will help many who are going through it!
Kel
Sara says
Liz—I stuck with the Cure for 6 weeks, 8 actually. I did the 2 weeks of shakes, which I loved. I did the 2 weeks of meat which was harder for me because I prefer lean meat which makes it hard to get fats in. Since I’m still 25 lbs. from goal, I went to a combination of shakes & meat meals instead of one or the other.
My energy level was good after the first few days of detox and I’m totally off caffeine. Still. I lost a total of 10 lbs. before I caved on the evil halloween—it happened to fall at a really bad time hormonally. Now, I’m struggling to let go of the carbs again. Even though I didn’t lose as much weight as I wanted during that time, I was very happy that all my carb cravings were gone and I was feeling great.
On the low-carb discussion board I frequent there was a thread on the Cure. There were other people like you who struggled with the shakes and were happier on the meat weeks. I wasn’t hungry on the shakes, but I did want to EAT. Maybe it would help if you had your meal in the middle of the day? Extra protein powder was the cure for some. I used a lot of ice so it was a BIG shake even though it was mostly water. And lots of CO, probably a 1/4 c.
HTH!
Liz F. says
Hey Kelly,
Just wanted to let you know that I checked the 6-Week Cure out of the library and I’ve tried to do the first two weeks, but I keep failing miserably. After two days I get soooooo hungry and the thought of drinking another shake is more than I can take. I’ve stopped and started several times. I’ve tried adding coconut oil, or an egg, or an extra tablespoon of cream but it hasn’t really made a difference for me. Today I’m trying extra potein powder to see if that will help. I’m curious if the commenter, Sara, was able to stick with the program. Either way, I hope she checks back soon and lets us know. 🙂
Suzanne says
Donielle, the Mocha Teeccino is my favorite too! 🙂
Kelly, no I have not tried the dandelion tea. I usually don’t like tea but I’ll be willing to try it and see what it’s like. Teecinno tastes the closest to coffee for me. I do sometime’s like spiced teas like Chai. Is the dandelion simular? I’ll have to try it sometime.
KitchenKop says
Suzanne & Donielle,
Have you ever tried Dandelion Tea? Just curious how the taste compares to Teecino?
Donielle @ Naturally Knocked Up says
I love my Teecino too!! Especially the mocha flavor! And this is coming from someone who’s parents owned a coffee house. Talk about a coffee addiction! After years of multiple lattes and mochas a day – it was rough to give it up!!
KitchenKop says
Great info, Dana!
Does it say *why* we’d want to pasteurize our eggs and kill enzymes?! Maybe that’s for when you don’t trust the source where you got them…?
Protein powder, darn it, I was afraid of that. It’s just so unnatural, protein doesn’t naturally come in powdered form! I’ll still have to read the book before I say for sure what I think of this diet, but I don’t know why they wouldn’t push something like this instead: https://kellythekitchenkop.com/2009/04/want-a-real-food-protein-shake-real-food-wednesday.html.
Interesting test to see how much visceral fat you have. I’m going to go get my jams on so I can check! Just to be sure, you said that if you lay down and still have belly fat in the middle and not flattening out to the side, that means we have *more* of the bad belly fat, right? But if most of it flattens out to the sides, that’s better?
Thanks for some sneak peaks into the book!
Kelly
Dana says
I have the book and tore through it in a day. I have not tried it yet but I’m willing to give it a shot. I have to do some prep work before I can start, though.
The other commenter was correct that you only have to skip the caffeine the first two weeks. Actually, you have to skip all elective drugs. Reason: You’re defatting your liver. That gets tricky when it has to simultaneously detox your blood while it is fat-dumping.
The first phase involves defatting your liver because the book is actually about losing visceral fat. This is to answer the other commenter’s question about whether it’s healthy to lose the fat that quickly. Um… the last kind of fat you want in your body is excess visceral, so yes, dumping it quickly would be a really good idea, provided you find a way to do it that preserves lean tissue. That’s what the book’s about.
Interestingly, they also provide a way to test and see how much of your “middle” is visceral fat and how much is subcutaneous. Rule of thumb: the more the shape of your abdominal cross-section flattens when you lie down on your back, the less visceral fat you have. And you can appear to be slender and still have marbleized internal organs. The easiest way to find out if you’ve got fatty liver in this instance is to have your doc check your liver enzymes.
The shake recipes in the book involve protein powder, but they’re open insofar as to how you sweeten it if you add sweetener at all. Stevia is one of the options they list. I’m curious to know whether the breakfast shake recipe in Nourishing Traditions might be an acceptable substitute. Their “Power-Up” shake uses whey protein and heavy cream, so something kefir-based or yogurt-based might work out for someone who doesn’t want to mess with the protein powder. You add an egg too, if you don’t get enough of them elsewhere in your diet, and they tell you how to pasteurize it in the shell beforehand.
Oh and, getting back to the commenter who objected to “quick-fix schemes” (would you also object to a quick cure if you had an infectious disease?) and what they said about not all carbs being alike? The chemical definition of a carbohydrate is that it is a sugar. All carbs on a chemical level are sugars. Even fiber is a sugar, but we’re not capable of breaking it down into something usable. Every single carb food with non-fiber carb content sets off an insulin reaction. With the immense amounts of table sugar and corn syrup the average American gets in their diet, and all that fructose in both sweeteners messing up the liver and the insulin response and so on, eventually you get to the point where you can’t handle very many carbs at all. If you’re in that kind of situation then it is irresponsible for a doctor to tell you that you “must” have carbs in your diet. There is no such thing as an essential carbohydrate, since your body can make what little glucose it needs from protein (dietary or bodily, doesn’t matter–dietary is preferred, obviously). So there’s no reason to tell a pre-diabetic or a diabetic to eat their grain. You’re much better off telling them to have a Porterhouse steak. Mmmmmmm.
Ashley says
Is there a brand of “healthi-er” coffee?? My husband does starbucks…I’m sure that is the chemical laden stuff ya’ll are talking about…right??
Ashley
KitchenKop says
Shauna,
I’m with ya sista!!! I wish I liked cream in mine so as to give it a BIT of nutrition, but I like it black…
Kelly
Shauna says
Hi Kelly,
Long time no post! 🙂
I’m joining you in pluggin my ears and singing “la la la la la la la la la la” in re: to coffee……. I’m sorry…. life is too short not to enjoy a well brewed cup of coffee with some wonderful rich real cream in it. I can ditch the sugar and junk food…… but don’t touch my coffee! It’s the one last luxury that I’m hanging on to. (I love real tea too!) I eat very healthy, run regularly and am in great shape….. I am not giving up my coffee.
🙂
Shauna
Suzanne says
I see what you mean.
I just knew decaf just was not gonna work for me weaning off my daily cup(or 2, or 3) of joe. Myself, I really dislike the taste of decaf and since I suffer from G.E.R.D. it would just cause more problems with that. So that was when I went on a desperate search to find maybe an herbal tea or something to trick my mind by just having a warm toasty cup of something. That was how I found Teeccino I was just so delighted with it. Especially the fact it was natural caffien free and that was my goal in the first place. I have numerous other chronic issues that caffien alone of any kind agrevated. I also save a ton of $$ now from not having to have my several days a week Starbucks Frapp habit! 🙂
Gina says
Yes, most decaf is still terrible for you and has small amounts of caffeine — I am aware of this. I figured that was common knowledge.
My comment was really for Kelly and those who really love the taste of coffee a few times per week, the point being if you want to wean yourself off from caffeine, why not use some decaf for a while instead?
I should have been clearer.
However, decaf is still, for most people, the “lesser of two evils.” Especially if you can find the “Water processed” decaf as opposed to the chemical-laden stuff.
Suzanne says
“Why not just drink decaf?”
Even decaf coffee has at least 7
Gina says
This book sounds pretty bogus to me. They admit that middle-age fat is “stubborn” but claim you can lose it (safely) in 6 weeks? Pfffft. And then what happens? I think the Eades’ are really trying to benefit from our society’s “quick fix” mentality.
Yes coffee/caffeine is VERY bad for you and will rob your adrenal hormones and make you fat. It’s like this: caffeine causes adrenaline to surge, which also causes cortisol to be released; these hormones tell your liver to dump sugar (glucose) into your bloodstream, which then causes insulin to put that sugar away, most likely into your fat cells. But because cortisol is present, it tells insulin to only store that fat around your belly! Hormonal chaos, I tell you!
So why not just drink decaf?
I think the quote about blood sugar above is also way oversimplified. Not all carbohydrates are the same, or have the same affect on blood sugar. Yes, refined carbs will cause you to have high blood sugar especially when eaten alone.
We’re all better off following the Schwarzbein Principle II, where fat-weight is shed slowly and healthfully.
Suzanne says
This book sounds great and I am gonna give it a try.
A tip about the caffiene; I just recently went cold turkey after year, I mean YEARS of an extreme coffee addiction. I mean I tried many times over the past 20 some years to kick the caffiene/coffee habbit and I never could do it. Even trying 2 weeks as I was told that after 2 weeks the migraines would go away, not! I just couldn’t do it until a few months ago when I found Teeccino. Now that is what I drink every day and I do not really miss the coffee. If you just wanna do the suggested 2 weeks without caffiene, I Highly recomend drinking this to take the edge off. https://www.teeccino.com/default.aspx it does it. I got no migraines or caffiene withdrawel and it’s pretty yummy 🙂
by the way, I am in no way affiliated with Teeccino. I just LOVE the stuff and it was a miracle product for me 🙂
KitchenKop says
I can’t wait to read more about these shakes (if it’s not something I can make at home I’ll be very disappointed and probably wouldn’t do it), and no caffeine for only 2 weeks? That I can handle, phew! (Just don’t tell me I have to give it up for life.) 🙂
Kelly
Sara says
I’m on day 4 of The Cure. I’m feeling pretty good today, but the first 3 days were HARD. The Cure involves 3 shakes per day + 1 low carb meal for the first 2 weeks! Sounds like Slimfast, but these shakes are much better for you and bigger/filling than those little cans.
It’s definitely a “diet”. Something you do for 6 Weeks and then you’re done—well, on to maintenance. Although he does allow you to cycle through the weeks if you have more weight to lose.
I’m hoping the strictness will break me of my bad habits that I’ve gotten into lately, and help with a couple of other minor health issues.
Oh, and NO caffeine for 2 weeks!!!!
Ben says
Dr Eades LOVES his coffee and even has a youtube video on how to make an Americano (I think that’s the name of it, anyways it’s the espresso shot topped up with water). Maybe coffee is just limited for the 6 weeks? Can’t see Dr Eades going cold turkey on the arabica beans :-))
Organic and Thrifty says
My husband has this book on hold from the library! I’ll let you know what we think!
I love the Drs. Eades….they are awesome and revolutionary! I wish the Biggest Loser show would hire them as their medical consultants.
When I realized that the USDA rec. amount of carbs per day was 300 grams—-that’s absurd!
The other night I watched Fathead the Movie and it shared the following quote: