I have been following nutritionist JJ Virgin for a few years now and ordered her latest book The Virgin Diet even before it was released (I got around to reading it this week). While the main “hook” for the book is “lose 7 pounds in 7 days by dropping 7 foods” (foods that are often touted by the mainstream media and even doctors as “health foods,” by the way), the book starts the reader on a (relatively easy) health and healing journey that can benefit the majority of the population in many ways. Let me explain.
Although I always considered myself a healthy person (I have avoided all prescription and over-the-counter medications, except for occasions such as when I got my wisdom teeth pulled), about 3 or 4 years ago (when I was in my late 40s) for the first time in my life I began to wake up with stiffness in my back. No, this isn’t just about age, I said to myself, and promised to look for a solution. Not long afterwards is when I first heard about JJ Virgin and enrolled in one of her online classes. I followed the diet recommendations she prescribed, and about a week later, the morning stiffness was gone!
So what are the 7 foods that she recommends you eliminate completely (100%) for a 3 week period? Dairy, Gluten, Soy, Eggs, Peanuts, Corn and Sugar and Artificial Sweeteners. Any food that has any of these ingredients in any form are pulled from your diet, which means most processed foods are out the window. (You will later reintroduce some of these foods in a controlled manner, to see how your body reacts to them. Some foods, for example artificial sweeteners, are never recommended.)
Over 50% of the population has food challenges (food intolerances or sensitivities) to at least one of these foods. The foods listed above are known to be inflammatory, which means they cause disease as well as weight gain and aging. So what do you eat? Clean protein such as free-range chicken (in small amounts), healthy fats such as extra virgin olive oil and nuts, high fiber gluten free grains, fruits and lots of vegetables. (She has tips for vegetarians and vegans as well.)
In 3 weeks of following the JJ Virgin plan, it is highly likely you will lose 10 pounds and look and feel about 10 years younger. (Which will be very helpful in the new year as many of us “conscious folk” would like to have the energy and stamina to create a lot of wonderful things in the world…)
What I like about JJ’s approach is that it’s intuitive and allows for occasional treats. Once you reach maintenance stage, you can indulge in pizza (gluten, dairy) if that’s what you absolutely have to have, you’re allowed an indulgence for one meal a week. (One meal out of 21 meals a week is 5%, so 95% of the time you’re eating healthy. I like 95%. It feels industrious and energetic, yet doable.) Moreover, just knowing that you can have your favorite food occasionally will help you stick to your health plan. And as your healing journey continues over the weeks and months you will find that you might not enjoy that piece of pizza as much as you used too…
Three or four years later I am still free of my morning back stiffness, except when I have some wheat products for a few days in a row (like for example during the holidays)! JJ Virgin shares in her book that when she has gluten occasionally (such as a roll with her dinner), the next morning her fingers swell up and feel stiff.
I plan to live my life healthy and completely prescription-free and rather than supporting the international “health cartel” I choose to spend my money on clean, organic food grown locally as much as possible. In fact, while I was at my local farmer’s market in Saratoga, CA yesterday I overheard a middle-aged couple telling a farmer that they have switched almost all of their weekly grocery budget over to farmers markets. Supporting your local small farmers will help the economy of your community, and it will also help employ more people while at the same time raising the quality of life for the Whole.
Now that we have surpassed the December 21, 2012 date the projects and journeys we embark upon will be easier to manifest, if they are beneficial to the Whole. As Ron Van Dyke recently said, we light-workers have a lot of “boots on the ground” work to do. (While it is about coming from Creation mode, coming from the “Heart,” once you feel inspired you go off and actually work on the things you feel inspired to work on!)
To help with that journey, I would recommend reading The Virgin Diet cover to cover, and then implementing the plan in the book. The book contains the “how-to” details (details that cannot be adequately covered in an article) that are very helpful for the speedy success of your healing journey.
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Interesting concept … and one I feel I can do for three weeks. Thank you for the tip/testimonial. While I do need to lose weight, I am generally healthy and, like you, do not take pharmaceuticals (unless absolutely necessary, which is extremely seldom). The only surprise for me is eggs. BUT, since we “grow our own,” I know what our chickens are fed (grains, fruit/veggie scraps, grass and whatever “wildlife”–worms and bugs–they find). Our chickens are outside EVERY day (unless it’s too windy and they refuse to come out of the coop). The eggs from these chickens have no hormones or other crap … so they will be the first I will reintroduce and PRAY that I do not have a sensitivity to them. Must say, I love a good veggie omelet with a little cheese.
As well, I do not use artificial sweeteners or much sugar. I do use stevia in my coffee and, if we do bake a sweet, we use xylitol (a natural sweetener). In general, we ascribe to “moderation”. As long as I can have fruits (cannot do the diets with no fruit), veggies and the occasional piece of chicken, I believe I can do that … again, thanks for the tip.
Hi Pam, JJ discusses in her book that there IS a difference between pastured eggs like yours and the kind you get from factory farms (which is what you get at the grocery store). Not only in nutrient level, but in how people react to them. A lot of factory farmed animals are being fed genetically modified corn and soy and this has a huge effect on the animals, their state of health and their meat (that we eat). When I was in Poland on my grandparent’s farm I noticed a big difference in the taste and texture of those chickens and those you buy here at the supermarket (the Polish chickens are much tastier). I notice a difference in regular chickens and pastured ones here as well. People respond to raw milk and regular milk differently. There are so many factors to consider, and it makes sense to eat food that is least adulterated, as you have mentioned in your comment. Thanks for commenting! Christine
Hallo Christine, als ich vor einiger Zeit das erste Mal Ihre Mitteilung bei Lucas2012 las, ist mir sofort Ihr deutscher Name aufgefallen. Dann habe ich noch über Sie erfahren, dass Sie in Deutschland gearbeitet haben, somit nehme ich an, dass Sie gut deutsch verstehen.
Ich bin 63 und lebe seit 12 Jahren nun in Teneriffa/Kanarische Inseln/Spanien und bin früher sehr in der kath. Kirche engagiert gewesen. Nach und nach habe ich viele Dinge hinterfragt und danach habe ich mich von der Institution getrennt. Mein Glaube an Gott war immer da, aber seit ich weiss, dass man nach innen gehen muss, um wirklich mit Gott in Verbindung treten zu können, habe ich mich im Glauben sehr viel weiter entwickeln können. Seit ca. 2 Jahren arbeite ich sehr intensiv an mir und befasse mich vor allem mit Spiritualität und dem Aufstieg.
Leider fehlt es mir hier auf der Insel an Gleichgesinnten und Gesprächspartnern und ich fühle mich in manchen Dingen allein gelassen, obwohl ich jeden Tag etliche Websites zum Thema Aufstieg in deutsch und amerikanisch lese und auch manchmal kommentiere. Aber das ist mir zu wenig und ich kann den Aufstieg kaum erwarten, weil ich darin für mich auch die Chance sehe, an einen neuen Bestimmungsort zu kommen, an dem ich mich spirituell entfalten kann.
Womit ich grosse Schwierigkeiten habe, ist das Meditieren. Ich weiss immer noch nicht, was das wirklich ist. Meditieren bedeutet eigentlich, ruhig zu werden und sich nach innen zu wenden, um Botschaften aus der geistigen Welt zu enthalten. Stimmt das? Bei mir fängt es schon damit an, dass ich Schwierigkeiten habe, längere Zeit (30 Min.+) ganz still zu sitzen und die Gedanken aus dem Kopf zu bekommen. Auf der anderen Seite gibt es viele geführte Meditationen, in denen Gedanken-Sätze vorgegeben werden, über die man reflektiert. Also wird gesprochen. Und wieder andere sagen, man kann bei einer Meditation mit Gott wie in einem richtigen Gespräch sprechen, fragen, bitten. Was ist nun richtig und warum muss man beim Meditieren unbedingt ganz still sitzen/liegen und sich auf keinen Fall bewegen? Sind das falsche Ansichten und können Sie mir etwas dazu sagen? Auch wundere ich mich, dass ich von Gott oder der geistigen Welt nie eine Antwort erhalte, die ich spüre oder höre, obwohl ich im Nachhinein weiss, dass die Führung Gottes im Spiel war. Ich möchte so gerne mit Gott, meinem Schutzengel und Geistführer richtig sprechen können. Ich habe vor einigen Tagen gelesen, dass das jetzt in der neuen Zeit für jedermann möglich sein wird. Können Sie mir etwas dazu sagen?
Und dann habe ich auch Schwierigkeiten mit dem Begriff “Seele” und “Höherem Selbst” . Wo ist da der Unterschied?
Christine, ich würde mich freuen, wenn Sie mir einige praktische Tipps geben könnten, wie ich meine Probleme angehen soll.
Ich wünsche Ihnen und Ihrer Familie einen schönen Jahresausklang und alles erdenklich Gute für das neue Goldene Zeitalter
Beate
Christine,
Thanks for this perspective. I didn’t know eggs cause inflammation. I eat these every day. They are free range and organic. Would those still cause inflammation?
One thing is for sure: Good diets are going to be essential going into 2013. GMO’s are going to start popping up in more and more foods. They definitely destroy organs, and when we don’t feel good, its harder to connect with Source.
Hi Josh,
Seeing that you eat them everyday may be a sign that you’re “sensitive” to them. Eggs are a food that probably 50% or more of the populations is sensitive to, and by this nutritionists usually mean that your body develops antibodies against something in the food, in this case it’s the egg protein. This would mean yes, there is inflammation happening. I have had an IgG test done, once when I was 26 and again a couple of years ago. Both times eggs were one of my problem foods. (By the way, I am sensitive to dairy, eggs and gluten, the same foods JJ Virgin is sensitive to, a “popular” combination.)
The way to discover how often your body can tolerate them after you pull them completely from your diet for 3 weeks is to put them back in after the 3 week period. Have them every day for 4 days and see if and when you react with unpleasant symptoms. If you do not react, you can have them every other day. If you react on the 3rd or 4th day, you can have them maybe once or twice a week. If you react on the first day, you should go another 3 months without any eggs and try that reintroduction test again. Your body will have a chance to heal (the digestive system) after some time so that at a certain point you can have them, but not every day. I hope this helps. When you do this test, you put the foods back in only one at a time, so you know which ones you react to. Artificial sweeteners are NEVER recommended. And one should avoid corn and peanuts pretty much the rest of their life as well. (No big deal, right?). I would avoid soy as well. Gluten, occasionally (depending on how you tolerate it.) Eggs and dairy are nutritious, when they are eaten in their natural state. Pastured organic eggs are much, much better than factory farm eggs. The only thing to look at is how often to eat them, which your body will tell you if you follow the protocol in JJ Virgin’s book. Thanks for your comment! Christine
Hello,
I just saw a PBS special with JJ Virgin and would like to follow her protocol. I did not purchase the materials on PBS (too expensive for me at this time). My question is regarding her protein shake. The Virgin shake is $60 per month (again, not affordable for me currently). Is there an alternative you could recommend?
Thank You!
Hi Elizabeth, you do not have to get her shakes. I actually have never bought her shakes, I just follow the guidelines of what to eat and what not to eat. She has a new book out titled, “The Virgin Diet: Drop 7 Foods, Lose 7 Pounds, Just 7 Days.” Just follow the guidelines in her book. Wishing you the best, Christine