Luke's Advice that Helped Me Get Back on Track

I signed up for a nutrition consultation with Luke and his team. They reviewed my blood reports and my lifestyle (as reported by me), and came up with the following suggestions. I will be adding detail links to explain how I did each step (cos they were simple but difficult). These were rolled out gradually, because it was too much change for me to execute in one shot. Also I don't do all of them, but I try.

Its not just about what you eat, though that is a big part of it. It is Eat Smart, Move More, Sleep Right, Breathe Deep

In the sections below, I will be updating this piece with links to Luke's videos on the related topic. Links will be underlined.

Eat Smart

1. Increase water intake to 3 Liters / Day. 
2. Lemon Shots first thing in the morning and after lunch and dinner
3. A series of spices and supplements to reduce the chronic inflammation that was causing pain. 
4. A set of spices to improve my digestion post lunch and dinner. 
5. Manage your Acidity Levels - stick to a specific schedule for breakfast, lunch and dinner. 
6. Eat 5 times a day, keep the portions small - this included a snack between breakfast and lunch, and between lunch and dinner. 
7. Express gratitude for your food before starting to eat
8. Chew the food well. Luke on How To Chew
9. Stop eating when you feel full - no need to finish everything on your plate.
10. Do not watch TV or read or occupy your mind with anything other than the business of eating while you eat.
11. Drink water 30 mins before and or 30 mins after your meal. 
12. Eat fruit on an empty stomach only (morning and post lunch snack) 
13. Have raw vegetables/salad/ or raw vegetable juice with every meal.
14. Include a balanced portion of Carbs, Protein and Carbohydrates at every meal - there must be one cooked green vegetable and one raw one bin every meal,
15. Ghee is good for you. So are cold-pressed oils. 
16. Rice, white rice, in an appropriate quantity is better than eating wheat. 
17. Okay to have all kinds of foods except the 3 poisons in moderation
18. The 3 poisons are sugar, dairy products and wheat. Eliminate or mimize consumption. 
19.  From time to time they encourage you to do different cleanses. Instructions are on Luke's website. 
20. Vary the fruits, vegetables, dals you eat. Each one  brings a different set of essential nutrients to the table
21. Dinner should be finished atleast 3 hours before bedtime. And you should go to bed by 9. (i am not there yet)

Move More

1. Try to complete 10,000 steps in a day. If you live a sedentary life, build up to it gradually
2. Most smart phones include an "accelerometer" this has the ability to measure your daily steps.There will be a built-in app you can use, or ask someone near you if they have a preferred app. I use an App called Argus. There is a certain amount of inaccuracy with all the apps. But as long as you use the same one and try and improve with it.. you will get there. Wear good shoes that support your feet else you will end up with other challenges
3. Try and incorporate some workout into your schedule about 3-5 times a week about 30 mins is enough. Walk, Dance, Step Ups, Burpees, Planks, Surya Namaskar anything. Again build it up slowly. You can also do 2-15 min sessions instead of a single 30 min session. 
4. The more you move and workout, you will get hungry. Don't starve your body incorporate a small fruit or a carb/protein as a snack if you get hungry. 
5. Not having enough protein will make you hungry when you are working out. Balance! Too much protein will make you gassy and bloat. 

Sleep Right

1. Sleep is an essential part of the body's recovery process. It is during deep sleep that the body heals itself and eliminates waste. Some people theorize that weight is converted to carbon dioxide when you sleep and eliminated trough the breathing process.
2. They say that the liver does some of its essential elimination work between 9-12. Therefore going to sleep by 9 is the best way to give the liver time to do its job properly. I have not been able to sleep at 9pm - and I am in the state I'm in. My mom falls asleep at 9 like clockwork. She's a happy 89 year old. 
3. I measure my sleep with a free app called Sleep Cycle. It helps you keep track of the hours you sleep as well as whether it has been a deep sleep or not. I find the reports and stats quite fascinating. It also records when and how long you snore and saves clips for you to listen (in case you found it interesting). What I like about it is that it works based on sound rather than movement. So you don't have to keep the phone next to you in bed, it can sit on the night table.
4. Lots of people seem to think waking up once in the night is normal.Since a sleep cycle is 3.5 hours or 210 minutes, that makes sense.I have good nights and then I have not so good nights. 
5. I have a very hard time falling sleep and I've been adding 1/4 tsp of nutmeg powder and 1/4 tsp poppy seeds to my nightly lemon shot. It does make me sleep more soundly. 

Breathe Deep

1. Luke strongly recommends deep breathing several times a day and before going to bed at night. 
2. Deep breaths between morsels makes you mindful of what you're eating and helps you slow down the rate at which you are eating - hopefully it encourages you to chew more. 
3. Right nostril breathing (cover left and breathe deep in and out through right) is also advocated. 

Gratitude

1. A relatively new addition to the list of things to do is Gratitude. Listing out the things you're grateful makes you feel good and has a positive impact on the rest of your body. If you notice in the Video on Commonalities across people with cancer, he talks about the Biology of Belief and about how the environment inside your body and mind and around you results in a "bad" gene from either expressing itself or staying dormant. 
2. I find that Gratitude yanks me right out of my state of feeling like a victim and lightens my mood. 
3. One thing to do is practice Gratitude before starting an activity e.g. blessing your food just as you are about to eat, or doing a quick scan across your body (yoga nidra style) and mentally expressing gratitude for the health and the body you enjoy. 

Mindfulness

1. I interpret this as being present in the moment, concentrating on the task you're doing and giving it your full attention. 
2. The second interpretation is meditation. I am still trying to learn how to do that.