Joe Cross's "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead"

The documentary "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead" is about an overweight guy named Joe Cross from Australia who goes on a 60 day juice fast under the supervision of Dr. Joel Fuhrman.

The idea of Dr. Fuhrman's approach is to consume lots and lots of fruits and vegetables that are full of micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) and few macronutrients (fat, proteins and carbohydrates). The idea is to consume so many fruits and vegetables that it's easeier to juice them than it is to eat them.

Joe was very successful. He lost 82 pounds in 2 months and quit taking prescription drugs for his autoimmune disease called chronic urticaria.

The most interesting aspect of the documentary to me was the ripple effect. Joe met an extremely obese truck driver named Phil Staples. After some time passed Phil asked Joe for help, and Joe helped him. And so Joe's journey turned into Phil's journey. Phil was successful too, losing "six bowling balls" in 60 days and getting off his meds. And his ripple started community fasting, as well as his brother who suffered a heart attack.

There were some funny zingers in the documentary. Joe asked a guy how long he thought he would live. The guy rubbed his belly and replied, "I don't know, but I hope God has ribs in heaven." Phil was talking to his brother who was also obese about just trying 1 week of juice fasting. His brother responded, "I would try to juice a steak, that's my problem."

There were also some tear jerker moments near the end of the movie. Both Joe and Phil lived more balanced lifestyles after losing the weight. Watching both of them run while INXS's "New Sensation" played in the background brought tears to my eyes. And when Phil started his journey, Joe gave him a goal to fit into a yellow T-shirt that clearly wouldn't fit him without big changes. At the end of the movie, Phil was running in that yellow T-shirt. Awesome!

The full movie can be viewed on Hulu: http://www.hulu.com/watch/289122/

or watch this trailer on Youtube:



If you want to try the "Mean Green" juice from the documentary, then check this out:

Baby Steps

A coworker recently became motivated to lose his belly. This meat and dairy loving guy showed me his lunch today: salad, yogurt and grapes. He typically gives me grief for obstaining from meat, so I had to give a little back. When he showed me his salad I replied, "That's not a salad, that's a bowl of shredded cheddar cheese with lettuce flavoring."

He said, "I'm trying." He's right, baby steps.

It reminds me of the small steps that I have taken in the last 12 months:

• September 2011: added more carbs back into my previous low carb diet via starches thanks to a wake up call from Anthony Colpo.
• December 2011: added more fruit back into my diet and removed more meat from my diet when my cholesterol was consistently higher than 220 mg/dL.
• March 2012: added even more fruit to my diet (morning green smoothies and all fruit for lunch) and removed almost all meat/dairy from my diet after watching a lot of raw vegan Youtube videos.
• April 2012: removed diet soda completely from my diet, mainly to eliminate bad flatulance (and it worked).
• May 2012: stopped using shampoo in my hair (only rinse with water).
• June 2012: started running about 5-6 days per week after 4 month rest period.
• July 2012: started drinking orange juice daily after my China trip.
• August 2012: started eating mono meal fruit lunches for easy digestion.

Grow Veggies in Cheap Raised Beds

A few months ago, I shared a view of this summer's garden in my backyard. Being the cheap guy that I am, I started the garden by just digging up a plot of land with a shovel with the intention to plant some starters. But, I didn't get very far. Our house is in built on the side of a hill as are most homes in Tennessee. The soil is rocky and proved challenging to shovel "dirt". So I created a couple of raised beds, 4'x8'. I spent more money than I cared to on the materials.

I should have known that Youtube would provide a better, cheaper solution than what I dreamed up. I particularly love the ingenuity of the raised beds in the video below. These kids from Berkley are very creative, and quite generous as they give their food away to those who are more needy.

If you want a more in depth tour of their farm, Urban Adamah, then check out the second video below by John of GrowingYourGreens.com. John's Youtube channel provides a wealth of information on how to grow fruits and veggies in raised beds, or what he refers to as square foot gardening.