According to Texas firefighter Rip Esselstyn, the author of Engine 2 Diet, you can lose weight, reduce cholesterol, and look fabulous by being on the Engine 2 diet for 28 days. What Engine 2 Diet does is that it plans your meals and shopping lists so that you can dish up easy-to-make meals. You will have to shop for the food items at a store that retails only natural foods. Your food intake is then logged and along with the planned exercise regime, you find yourself on the way to a new you. Importantly, you connect with all the others who are on this diet so that you get the support you need.
Whole grains, nuts and seeds, vegetables and fruits, all are sources of low-fat protein and are the main ingredients to be consumed while following the Engine 2 diet. The author himself agrees that it is very difficult to follow this diet. You are used to the regular diet of eating so many different varieties which you have followed for so many years, which makes following the Engine 2 diet a bit difficult. To make the diet more interesting chicken and fish have also been included which can be eaten in the initial stages of the plan. Whole grain crackers and whole grain pastas, as also tofu, soy yoghurt and vegetable burgers are allowed. In this diet every 1000 calories you consume will have just less than 2.5 grams fat content. You are not allowed to add oil while making these foods. Sugar used will also have to be the natural sweetener only.
In the Engine 2 diet plan you are required to consume less salt. This diet is a vegetarian diet and concentrates mainly on plant proteins. People usually tend to consume dairy products, meat and eggs which are considered as rich sources of protein. Proteins which exist in the form of chains are actually made up of around twenty amino acids out of which only eight amino acids can be ingested from the food that we eat. These amino acids are important for our body and as per the Engine 2 diet plan the plants also can give us the necessary amino acids. Carbohydrates provide energy and fuel to the body and our body absorbs at least 70 percent calories from the carbohydrates that we consume daily.
The Engine 2 diet lays a lot of emphasis on proteins obtained from the plants. Different quantities of amino acids are available in different plants. The Engine 2 diet selects different vegetable combinations which complement each other so that the right quantity of proteins and amino acids are available to the body. Proteins available from the plants are much safer than proteins obtained from non vegetarian foods. Our whole body requires energy at all times, be it working, exercising, breathing or for that matter even digesting food, all require energy which can be obtained from carbohydrates. After the digestion process sugars available in both the complex as well as simple carbohydrates get converted into glucose.
Glucose obtained from carbohydrates remains in our blood in the form of glucose. Carbohydrates are stored in the form of glycogen in the liver and muscles. But since the body knows how to regulate itself, any excess carbohydrates in the body are converted into fats. Health friendly complex carbohydrates are found mainly in vegetables like sweet potatoes and beans and also in fruits and different other grain cereal breads. Complex carbohydrates release sugar in a very controlled manner in our system so that we have enough energy in our body to carry out our daily activities throughout the day. One can now know and understand from the Engine 2 diet, that even plants can supply our body with the necessary fat content.
Most foods give us simple carbohydrates which may give you instant energy and give you a very high feeling but then they get stored in the form of fat in your body. So the simple carbohydrates that are stored in our body and that make us fat are actually very dangerous for the well being of our body. Good fats that are either poly saturated or mono saturated fats are found in different kinds of plants. Different fruits and vegetables contain various fat contents, for example bell peppers contain 6%, spinach 11%, strawberries 5%, broccoli 8% and the super food soybeans contain 41% fat content. Fats obtained from plants are a good source of fats.
In a case study given by Esselstyn the author of the book Engine 2 diet, he states that a gentleman, Tony Gonzalez beat breast cancer so that he could win more than a thousand triathlons. Martina Navratilova, a hugely competitive tennis champion was on a plant based diet. Even Salim Stoudamire, NBA player, Dave Scott went on to win the famous Iron man triathlon in Hawaii. They too were on a plant based diet. From this study we can realize that the best nutrients can be obtained from plants. Essential calories can be obtained from different plants. Good nutrients obtained from the plants are always slowly released into our body system. Very essential supplements like Vitamin B 12 can be richly obtained from fortified soy milk.
To enjoy good health, it is better if one can substitute fish oil with soybeans, flaxseed and walnuts and other leafy vegetables. Rich omega 3 supplements can be obtained from these and also from plankton. Plants contain high fiber content and are packed with nutrients. You may enjoy tasty food containing margarine, sour cream and butter which are all sources of high fat content, but then you will not be able to enjoy good health.
We all develop certain tastes, right from our childhood. So when we try out the natural plant food, in the beginning, we find the taste a bit different, but as the time goes by one can get used to it and it becomes a kind of a habit. Once you find that you are fitter than before you realize the actual benefits of plant food in comparison to non vegetarian foods.
