How to Lose Those Last 15 Pounds

(Alan Cleaver, CC BY 2.0)
(Alan Cleaver, CC BY 2.0)
One of my favorite quotes is by famous nutritionist Adele Davis, who so eloquently said, “We are indeed much more than we eat …but what we eat can help us to become much more than who we are.” I am continually amazed at the results I witness in my private practice. After people have abused their bodies for years – whether it is smoking, stress, poor food choices, eating too much, or lack of exercise – with the proper changes, they still bounce back to healthhy and energetic living in 1-2 months time!

In my research and clinical practice, I have found the “tipping point” of whether you have a future of health, energy and disease free living, or whether you end up gaining excess weight triggering low energy, moodiness and a variety of associated disease (i.e. Type II diabetes, heart disease, stroke and cancer), all comes down to 15 pounds. Of course, the Last 15 principles are applicable for people of all different weights, and for those wishing to lose more (or less) than 15 pounds. It does not matter if you have 5, 15, or over 50 pounds to lose the principles are scientific and, when applied properly, can work for anyone. The concept of the last 15 pounds is in regards to a specific crossroads of health that depends on the choices and information you receive. In other words, what you do, or do not do, with what seems like a small amount of weight to lose can develop into health problems allowing disease processes to proliferate, or, if given the proper nutritional tools, transform into health and longevity.
Perhaps you have struggled with weight loss and weight loss programs in the past. In a nutshell, it is not your fault. Currently, the dieting paradigm in North America is based on marginal and temporary gains that keep you coming back for more. Think about the number of times you have been enticed by a weight loss ad that promises to take off 20 pounds by Christmas, or drop two dress sizes in time for the beach. Weight loss is routinely marketed as a magic pill, with a limited time offer requiring little investment of time and energy, and often leaves your pocket book feeling significantly lighter! It is also incredibly disheartening for a man or woman, who loses 20 pounds on a “system” or “program”, to gain it back only a short time later. No wonder people become fed up and give up. In addition, this constant up and down weight loss battle results in a sluggish metabolism, and causes feelings of frustration, deprivation, and even despair. Without proper nutritional knowledge and the understanding of the “why” and “what” behind certain food choices, people will either try yet another diet, or will give up and fall into acceptance that “I am just an overweight person.”
(Shutterstock*)
(Shutterstock*)
Although this article can not offer enough detail to review all of The Last 15 principles, I can offer some very helpful weight loss tips that will get the ball rolling and lead you to a path of optimal health and wellness. For example;
  • Choose thermongenic foods such as protein, celery, fatty fish, or green tea. Thermogenic foods are harder to break down and therefore burn more calories when eaten.
  • Do not skip meals. In order to lose weight permanently, it is critical to maintain proper blood sugar control. Having 3 meals and 1-2 balanced snacks daily is recommended.
  • Make sure you have a protein option at every one of your main meals. Protein will help fill you up and triggers the secretion of a hormone called glucagon. Glucagon breaks down fat and causes the pounds to melt away.
  • Eat carbohydrates! You do not need to be scared of carbohydrates if you would like to lose weight. In fact, carbohydrates break down into glucose (blood sugar) which is the body’s main source of fuel. Critical for weight loss are low glycemic index carbohydrates such as vegetables, most fruits, whole grains, and beans. Avoid high glycemic index carbohydrates such as mashed potatoes, refined flours and sugars, and soda pop. These food items tend to facilitate over secretion of the hormone insulin which leads to fat storage.
  • Water yourself down! You must drink a minimum of 6-8 glasses of water per day to lose the weight and stay healthy.
Start today by implementing five simple steps above and you will be one step closer to losing those last 15 pounds for life!

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Sandhurst's sheikhs: Why do so many Gulf royals receive military training in the UK? A parade outside the building at Sandhurst Continue reading the main story In today's Magazine The death list that names 5,000 victims Is this woman an apostate? Voices from a WW1 prison camp The Swiss selfie scandal Generations of foreign royals - particularly from the Middle East - have learned to be military leaders at the UK's Sandhurst officer training academy. But is that still a good idea, asks Matthew Teller. Since 1812, the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, on the Surrey/Berkshire border, has been where the British Army trains its officers. It has a gruelling 44-week course testing the physical and intellectual skills of officer cadets and imbuing them with the values of the British Army. Alongside would-be British officers, Sandhurst has a tradition of drawing cadets from overseas. Many of the elite families of the Middle East have sent their sons and daughters. Perhaps the most notable was King Hussein of Jordan. Continue reading the main story Find out more Matthew Teller presents Sandhurst and the Sheikhs, a Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4, on Wednesday 27 August 2014 at 11:00 BST It will be available on iPlayer shortly after broadcast Four reigning Arab monarchs are graduates of Sandhurst and its affiliated colleges - King Abdullah of Jordan, King Hamad of Bahrain, Sheikh Tamim, Emir of Qatar, and Sultan Qaboos of Oman. Past monarchs include Sheikh Saad, Emir of Kuwait, and Sheikh Hamad, Emir of Qatar. Sandhurst's links have continued from the time when Britain was the major colonial power in the Gulf. "One thing the British were excellent at was consolidating their rule through spectacle," says Habiba Hamid, former foreign policy strategist to the rulers of Dubai and Abu Dhabi. "Pomp, ceremony, displays of military might, shock and awe - they all originate from the British military relationship." Sheikh Hamad Bin Isa Al Khalifa, King Abdullah, Sultan Qaboos Sandhurst alumni: King Hamad of Bahrain, King Abdullah of Jordan and Sultan Qaboos of Oman It's a place where future leaders get to know each other, says Michael Stephens, deputy director of the Royal United Services Institute, Qatar. And Sandhurst gives the UK influence in the Gulf. "The [UK] gets the kind of attention from Gulf policy elites that countries of our size, like France and others, don't get. It gives us the ability to punch above our weight. "You have people who've spent time in Britain, they have… connections to their mates, their teachers. Familiarity in politics is very beneficial in the Gulf context." "For British people who are drifting around the world, as I did as a soldier," says Brigadier Peter Sincock, former defence attache to Saudi Arabia, "you find people who were at Sandhurst and you have an immediate rapport. I think that's very helpful, for example, in the field of military sales." The Emir of Dubai Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum with his son after his Passing Out Parade at Sandhurst in 2006 Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Emir of Dubai, with his son in uniform at Sandhurst in 2006 Her Majesty The Queen's Representative His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, The Emir of Qatar inspects soldiers during the 144th Sovereign's Parade held at The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst on April 8, 2004 in Camberley, England. Some 470 Officer cadets took part of which 219 were commissioned into the British Army Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, the Emir of Qatar until 2013, inspects soldiers at Sandhurst in 2004 Emotion doesn't always deliver. In 2013, despite the personal intervention of David Cameron, the UAE decided against buying the UK's Typhoon fighter jets. But elsewhere fellow feeling is paying dividends. "The Gulf monarchies have become important sources of capital," says Jane Kinninmont, deputy head of the Middle East/North Africa programme at the foreign affairs think tank Chatham House. "So you see the tallest building in London being financed by the Qataris, you see UK infrastructure and oilfield development being financed by the UAE. There's a desire - it can even seem like a desperation - to keep them onside for trade reasons." British policy in the Gulf is primarily "mercantile", says Dr Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, of the Baker Institute in Houston, Texas. Concerns over human rights and reform are secondary. The Shard at dusk The Shard was funded by Qatari investors In 2012 Sandhurst accepted a £15m donation from the UAE for a new accommodation block, named the Zayed Building after that country's founding ruler. 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Over the years donations like this have saved the UK taxpayer a considerable amount of money." But what happens when Sandhurst's friends become enemies? In 2001, then-prime minister Tony Blair visited Damascus, marking a warming of relations between the UK and Syria. Shortly after, in 2003, Sandhurst was training officers from the Syrian armed forces. Now, of course, Syria is an international pariah. Journalist Michael Cockerell has written about Libyan dictator Colonel Gaddafi's time at the Army School of Education in Beaconsfield in 1966: "Three years [later], Gaddafi followed a tradition of foreign officers trained by the British Army. He made use of his newfound knowledge to seize political power in his own country." Ahmed Ali Sandhurst-trained Ahmed Ali was a key player in the Egyptian military's removal of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi That tradition persists. In the 1990s Egyptian colonel Ahmed Ali attended Sandhurst. 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"He happened to see me talking to heads of state - the Sultan of Brunei, the Sultan of Oman, the Bahrainis, the Saudis - and he said 'How do you know all these guys?' The answer was because they went to Sandhurst." Today, Sandhurst has reportedly trained more officer cadets from the UAE than from any other country bar the UK. The May 2014 intake included 72 overseas cadets, around 40% of whom were from the Middle East. "In the future," says Maryam al-Khawaja, acting president of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights, "people will look back at how much Britain messed up in the [Middle East] because they wanted to sell more Typhoon jets to Bahrain, rather than stand behind the values of human rights and democracy." "It's one thing saying we're inculcating benign values, but that's not happening," says Habiba Hamid. Sandhurst is "a relic of the colonial past. They're not [teaching] the civic values we ought to find in democratically elected leaders." line Who else went to Sandhurst? Princes William and Harry, Winston Churchill, Ian Fleming, Katie Hopkins, Antony Beevor, James Blunt, Josh Lewsey, Devon Harris (From left to right) Princes William and Harry Sir Winston Churchill Ian Fleming, creator of James Bond (but did not complete training) Katie Hopkins, reality TV star Antony Beevor, historian James Blunt, singer-songwriter Josh Lewsey, World Cup-winning England rugby player Devon Harris, member of Jamaica's first bobsleigh team line Sandhurst says that "building international relations through military exchanges and education is a key pillar of the UK's international engagement strategy". Sandhurst may be marvellous for the UK, a country where the army is subservient to government, but it is also delivering militarily-trained officers to Middle Eastern monarchies where, often, armies seem to exist to defend not the nation but the ruling family.

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