Chapter 8: Change Your Stars

I often hear or read up on fad diets that say “loose 10 lbs easily in a month FAST!” I look into gimmicks and plans designed to help your metabolism work better. I watch the commercials for franchised diet programs and I just cringe because I know their products are full of the things you shouldn’t be eating. Plans that cost you EXTRA money than your normal cost of living are likely a waste of that extra money.

Most diets fail because they don’t work with everybody’s metabolism, the portions are not right for everybody's body and people are not eating foods they like. That doesn’t have to be the case. You can change your stars.

Change your stars and live a better life than I have.

— John Thatcher to his son
from the movie 2001 "A Knight's Tale"

If you've never seen the movie, that's fine. The story is about a impoverished thatcher's son named William, who one day sees a parade of knights passing through his childhood town. As he watches in awe at them he says to his father confidently "Someday, I'll be a knight." A man looks up and says to William laughing, "A thatcher's son?  A knight?  You might as well try to change the stars!" William looks to his father and asks  "Can it be done, father?  Can a man change the stars?" to which his father replies, "Yes, William. If he believes enough, a man can do anything." Shortly after William  becomes a knight's squire. Years pass to the time when William is a young adult and the Knight dies just before he is about to compete and William takes his place to prove he can be a Knight too! After becoming a champion among other Knights, William returns home to his father, now blind and tells him that he had in fact 'changed his stars.'

If it isn't apparent my metaphor is simple, this: you don't have to be fat and unhealthy forever with diets that fail -- you too can change your stars! It’s not going to happen over night, and it will take some time. But if you believe you can do it and make the effort to change your stars, then you can.

Challenges will be there, but if you have the Will Power to change your stars, you can overcome them.  Know that my diet might not work for you – I know it will not work for everyone, but it worked for me. If my diet program doesn’t work for you and you did all the math and ate well to your body type, try something else or talk to your doctor (and I mean a real MD, not these phony doctors pitching HCG through Med-Spas).  Don’t have insurance and want to review other diet plans easily then join http://www.fatsecret.com: it’s free and there are 100’s of diets to look into. Find something that works for you and you can stick with. Try to avoid fad-diets and crash diets. Remember “keep it healthy!”

However if you decide to diet the Diet Royale™ way, there are challenges like cookies in the break room at work you will want to turn a blind eye too. A challenge you might face could be that you cook for more than just yourself. Whatever the challenges you face, you can work though them with Will Power, eating healthy and remember that you are a King or Queen of your diet kingdom, and to keep calm and carry on and you can change your stars!

Just The Facts Ma'am

An interesting personal challenge has emerged for me on this “second term.” When I first designed this diet I was single and I lived alone. Now, on this second term of  Diet Royale™ I am thankfully to be no longer single and with someone I love. I cook and plan our meals. My “other half” or King, has a “faster” metabolism than I and needs to eat more than me at meals to compensate. At first it was a challenge, but then when I looked at the situation and figured out how to make it “work” for us, it no longer became a problem.

I make our meals the exactly same, except I remember to dish out my portions healthier for my body. Notice I didn’t say “smaller.” Remember to stick to the facts for single serving sizes listed at the top of every Nutrition Facts listed on your foods (if your food doesn’t come with Nutrition Facts, check http://www.fatsecret.com).

Stick to the Facts: If a bottle of vegetable juice says 8 oz. is a serving, then that is your serving. If you are hungry and all you have is 16 oz. of vegetable juice with you then go ahead and have all 16 oz. of that bottle, but know you are having two servings not one. Basically don’t have two servings of something and count it as one in your daily foods. Remember just because you’re not counting it, doesn’t mean your body is too. If you ate it, then it counts.

Don’t Let Calories Rule Your Realm

Speaking of counting. Don’t let calories stop you from enjoying your food, just keep them in mind to prevent you from over eating. If you don’t want to count calories, then count sodium. You might find that by keeping your sodium levels low, (1500-2300 mg of sodium) you may no longer need to count calories, and the challenge then becomes “how can I get enough calories.” Do not short-change yourself on calories. Eating too few calories can turn your body’s metabolism over to “starvation mode.” It will tax your liver and you will stop losing weight. Reduce your calories if you are eating too many.

What about Carbohydrates (carbs)? Do I count those?

You can, but I personally wouldn’t make it your daily mission. From my perspective it is better to count the amount of sodium over. Reduce or eliminate refined sugars. Sugars that come from fruit and vegetables are different from sugars that come from junk food. Low starch foods are best. If you are going to have a potato, choose a sweet potato instead. Know that there are good carbs out there and that you need carbs to function and they can help you burn fat.

Good Carbs for fat burning:

• Sprouted grain breads made from rice or spelt
• Fruits and vegetables
• Rice such as millet and quinoa
•  Sweet potatoes

Fats are good for you too, so long as they are “Good Fats.” There are good fats that will help you burn the unhealthy fat in your body. Monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats are considered to be Good Fats, whereas saturated fats and trans fats are considered “Bad Fats,” because they increase your risk of elevated cholesterol and disease. You want to avoid the Bad Fats.

Good fats include:

• nuts (almonds, peanuts, macadamia nuts, hazelnuts, pecans, cashews)
• coconut oil
• olive oil
• Sesame oil
• avocados
• olives
• flaxseed

Say “Au Revoir” to Processed Foods and go Au Naturale with Diet Royale™

You want to eat foods that have one ingredient or simple ingredients in them like steak, eggs, fruit, vegetables, olive oil, coconut oil, rice, butter, sweet potatoes, etc.  The less your body has to “break down” removing harmful hydrogenated oils, artificial sugars, flavors, high fructose corn syrup and processed soy products, the better it is for you. Avoid these things and you can change your stars without too much effort:

• sugar (as much as possible)
• orange juice and juices made of mostly water
• processed foods
• whole wheat breads, pastas and crackers
• hydrogenated oils, canola oil, vegetable oil, margarine and artificial or substitute butter
• artificial sweeteners,
• high fructose corn syrup
• processed soy products

Embrace every challenge for what it is. A challenge is like a story: it has a beginning, middle and end. Often times it is the beginning that has us giving up so easily. The middle is actually the fun part (well for me it is). It is the opportunity to learn something new. For example:

• Challenge Beginning: I was drinking plenty of water to go along with my fiber, but I was still gassy. What was causing my excess gas?
• Challenge Middle: I reviewed what I was eating and what was different about it in compared to previous days. I noticed I had drastically increased my protein from 30 g to 100 g over night. I researched “protein and gas,” and found that the drastic increase of protein was causing excess gas. But how do I fix that?
• Challenge End: To reduce gas from protein, I should gradually increase my protein intake until my body has time to adjust to the new levels – and know that protein powders, shakes, meal bars and any processed protein form will likely cause excess gas. Beans have protein and fiber: enjoy them, but be warned you will toot!

If I had stopped at the beginning or never bothered to ask the question, “what was causing my excess gas,” and looked into it, it could have hurt my progress. Your body WILL send you messages to tell you something is wrong, different or not entirely right. Listen to your body. If your body is hungry, please, please, please feed it, but feed it with healthy things. That candy bar may satisfy your craving, but it’s not healthy for you … and you know that.

You can change your stars, if you choose to and do what’s best for your body. Don’t let me or any other diet tell you what to do with your body. You decide what is right. You decide what you want to eat, but know what you are eating. Ignorance may be bliss, knowing is half the challenge and ignorance won’t make you skinnier – just dimmer. Diet smarter, Diet Royale™.

Chapter 3: The Full House and the Royale Flush™

Get out your playing cards, this is going to be fun! No seriously, there are no card games involved here. Just simple basic facts and secrets to my success. As I eluded in Chapter I, the secret of my success is following a very basic philosophy about daily eating, “Eat like a king for breakfast, a prince for lunch, and pauper for dinner.”

This means you consume a larger number of calories, fiber, protein, sodium, potassium, fat, carbohydrates and sugar at breakfast then you will all day, 45% of your daily requirement. Then at lunch you consume 23%, and at dinner you only consume 15%, leaving the other 17% of your meals for your three snacks starting with 10% between breakfast and lunch, 5% between lunch and dinner, and only 2% after dinner. 

This and other worksheets are available here: https://sites.google.com/site/dietroyale/chapter-3-the-full-house-and-the-royale-flush

As you see everything is downhill from the moment you wake up. If you think of your nutritional values as fuel, you are starting your day with a full tank and burning off that energy gradually throughout your day. Most diets and food regimes have you eat the same amount of fuel throughout your day, which makes cheating easier to do. This diet makes you aware of what you are eating and how it helps your body burn fat and use what you eat more efficiently. However before you can determine your percentages, you must figure out what you need to consume. A simple form for figuring out all these charts can be found in Chapter 9: Patents of Nobility or by visiting https://sites.google.com/site/dietroyale/chapter-3-the-full-house-and-the-royale-flush

This chapter is broken down into sections:

1. Calories
2. Fiber
3. Protein
4. Sodium
5. Potassium
6. Fat
7. Carbohydrates
8. Sugar
9. Magic Numbers
10.  The Royale Flush™

Calories

Calories are your primary fuel to function. You need calories, without them your body cannot function properly. However, you can consume too many.

Think of your body as a house, and the calories are the occupants in that house. If you have too many occupants, you have to add on space to make room for them. If you're house, has too few occupants the utilities are wasted on empty space. However if you fill your house with the right amount of occupants, the utilities are used efficiently, and you don't have to add on or make room for expansion. A full house is what you want to be successful.

Yet that's the challenge isn't it: Getting the right amount of anything. Let's take the first step together and determine how many calories you need to function. The calories you need to maintain your current weight are determined by your gender, age, height, and present weight. This is used to assess your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR). The formulas below are based on the Harris Benedict Formula found online at http://www.bmi-calculator.net. Use this equation below to figure out how many calories you need in a day to maintain your current weight:

Queen	655	+		+		-		=
(Female)			4.35 x weight in lbs.		4.7 x height in inches		4.7 x age in years		BMR
King	66	+		+		-		=
(Male)			6.23 x weight in lbs.		12.7 x height in inches		6.8 x age in years		BMR

Based on: http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/bmr-formula.php

Using you BMR, use the equation below to determine how many calories you need in a day to function. There are 5 levels of functioning based on your Activity Level:

Level	Activity Level That Best Describes You	BMR	x	Level Value	=	Calories
I	Sedentary: little to no exercise		x	1.2	=
II	Active Light: Light exercise and/or sports 1-3 days a week		x	1.38	=
III	Active Moderate: Moderate exercise and/or sports 3-5 days a week		x	1.55	=
IV	Active Hard: Hard, very active exercise and/or sports 6-7 x a week		x	1.73	=
V	Active Extreme: Extreme exercise 7 days a week plus a physical job and/or extra training		x	1.9	=

Based on the information you have filled out, the calories listed on the last column of the second chart are the amount you need to maintain your weight with your currant activity level. Now if you want to lose a pound or two a week, you need to subtract 400-500 calories from this result.

Calories are merely the foundation of your diet, you will also need to determine how much fiber, protein, sodium, fats, carbohydrates, and sugars you can have to actively burn fat and help your cells work to their full potential.
I've learned over the years that despite these numbers, if you want to lose weight, you need to subtract 500 calories from your final calorie total. For example: If you are a 34 year-old woman at 188 lbs. and 65 inches tall, you're BMR will be 1618.5, and your sedentary activity calorie intake to stay exactly how you are will be 1,942 calories. However if you want to lose weight, you should subtract at least 500 calories from this total and your new calorie intake becomes 1,442 calories.

How many Calories can I  have a day?	calories
Write this number in the corresponding box in the table found in the Magic Numbers section of this chapter.

Fiber

Fiber is the next item on your list of things you need to regulate and determine how much you should get in a day. Most people do not consume enough fiber in a given day to help their digestive systems work properly. The average American adult should consume at least 24-35 grams of fiber a day. Dieticians and nutritionists recommend that the average American adult should consume at least 35-45 grams of fiber a day. Fiber is a key ingredient in the digestive process and is necessary to stimulate the intestinal contractions, which move food through your intestines. Without going into the graphic details of how fiber works, you should know that it absorbs water. You need water to balance the digestive equation out because fiber without a healthy supply of water will lead to excessive gas. If you don't drink enough water you will find yourself very gassy. I personally recommend for every 3 grams of fiber you consume, you should drink 8 ounces of water to compensate. So idealistically if you consume 24 grams of fiber a day, you should drink 64 ounces of water a day to keep the gas at bay.

How much Fiber should I have a day?	grams
Write this number in the corresponding box in the table found in the Magic Numbers section of this chapter.

Protein

Next we need to focus on Protein. Your body needs it, loves it, and craves it! Protein is very good for you and you need the right amount to help you build muscle, hair, bones, skin and connective tissue that help keep you together. It is the glue, the nails, the framework, and drywall of your house. Without it, there wouldn't be much of a house. Your protein intake is based on your age, weight and height, but for now we will simply use your current weight:

lbs.	X	0.37	=	grams
Weight in pounds				Minimum grams of protein you need daily

Whoo-hoo! I am sure you didn't think there would be math involved, but the key thing is you are learning about your health and that is adding to your Will Power already! But we're not done here. Soon you will have your magic numbers that will help you determine your meal percentages.

How much Protein should I have a day?	grams
Write this number in the corresponding box in the table found in the Magic Numbers section of this chapter.

Sodium

Personally this should be the first thing a dieter needs to be concerned about, but it is critical to understand the value of calories, fiber and protein before we start talking about the other elements of your basic nutrition. So far we've learned we need the right amount of calories to function, fiber to move those calories along, and protein to hold it all together.

Now we need to understand the three necessary evils, that when not regulated can get out of hand and stage a rebellion on your diet. Sodium is the most hidden and over looked necessary evil. You need sodium to help maintain the balance of fluids in your body, transmit nerve impulses and influence the contraction and relaxation of muscles. You only need a little sodium to do this, but most people consume far too much.

According to most researchers, you need a maximum of 1500 mg and 2400 mg a day.  If you want to lose the weight you are going to have to cut your sodium to 1500 mg a day or less. This in my experience has been the trickiest thing to do, as discussed in Chapter I, most prepackaged “diet” foods are jammed packed with sodium. The best way to eliminate sodium is to consume as much raw, organic fruits and vegetables as possible.

BOOOOOO! Who wants to do that? Chances are you are like me and you don't like consuming vast quantities of fruits and vegetables. If you did, you probably wouldn't have a weight problem to begin with.  Start reading the Nutrition Facts on all your foods. Look them up if you have too.

You will be surprised by how many “low calories” items are very high in sodium. A good rule of thumb is, if the sodium is 3 times the total number of calories per serving, avoid it, unless the potassium is 2 times the total amount of sodium.

 Find low sodium foods here: http://healthfinder.gov/HealthTopics/Category/health-conditions-and-diseases/heart-health/low-sodium-foods-shopping-list

How much Sodium can I have a day?	milligrams
Write this number in the corresponding box in the table found in the Magic Numbers section of this chapter.

Potassium

The best offense is a good defense.  Potassium balances sodium like the kingdom to the King. If you want your food to do you justice, you will need twice as much potassium, as you intake sodium: a basic 2 to 1 ratio. Only problem is, federal law doesn't require food companies to list potassium on their Nutrition Facts. Those companies that do list potassium on their Nutrition Facts know that their product is good for you and well balanced, or feel obligated to tell you. Those that list potassium on their Nutrition Facts are likely hiding it from you for a reason. Please note that as of 2010, the top frozen “diet” meal companies do not list potassium on their products or on their websites – you are going to have to hunt for it, or factor in some guesses. Makes you wonder are these “diet” foods really good for you after all?

Your body needs potassium to balance out the sodium you eat and you need it to provide proper function to cells, organs and tissues. It is an electrolyte, which helps your body conduct electricity. Along with sodium, calcium, magnesium and chloride, potassium is vital for heart function. It gives support to skeletal and muscle contractions which aides your body in normal digestive and muscular function. It is recommended that you balance your potassium consumption with you sodium and magnesium consumption to avoid diarrhea, vomiting, excessive sweating, malnutrition and other various colon related syndromes. Talk to your doctor to best decide how much potassium is right for you. Or you take the amount of sodium you factored into your diet and multiply it times 2 to figure out how many milligrams of potassium you will need a day.

How much Potassium should I have a day?	milligrams
Write this number in the corresponding box in the table found in the Magic Numbers section of this chapter.

Fat

The dreaded f-word!!! Like potassium and sodium, you can have too much and you can have too little. Regardless of what you think you need, you need fat, but too much can cause you to be fat. The math for figuring out how much fat you should consume in a given day is complicated. It is based on not just your height, weight, and age, but on the size of your hips, calves, thighs, and your wrists to know for sure. However using the formula below, based on the formula's found on the Maryland Heart Center homepage (http://www.umm.edu/heart/caloric.htm), you can get a rough idea of how much fat you need but should never exceed in a single day:

Gender	Calories Per Day	x	30 %	=	Calories from Fat	÷	9	=	Fat Grams
Either		x	0.3	=		÷	9	=

Or you can follow this chart I found on (http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_grams_of_fat_should_you_eat_per_day).

Calories Per Day	Grams of Saturated Fat or Less	Grams of Fat or Less
1600	18	53
2000	20	65
2200	24	73
2500	25	80
2800	31	90
To Lose Weight
Adult	10	30
Teen	13-22	40-65

(Most women should have no more than 2,000 calories/day, most men no more than 2,500/day.) 

How much Fat can I have a day?	grams
Write this number in the corresponding box in the table found in the Magic Numbers section of this chapter.

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates have become the celebrity of the diet world with the biggest substance abuse problem I can think of. The problem is, thanks to Atkins, South Beach, Dr. Oz and several dieticians, the word carbohydrate is the epic evil.

However, it's not as bad as sodium is for you. Like everything too much of a good thing is simply that, too much: Everything in moderation. The biggest problem with carbohydrates is that they are just so darn tasty! But nobody should ever be afraid of them.

Like fats, there are good carbohydrates and there are bad carbohydrates. Fiber is a good carbohydrate, but too much can lead to unpleasant and gassy situations. Sugar is a good carbohydrate, but too much can make you larger than you should be and mess with you glucose in ways you don't want to think about. Generally, Nutrition Facts only list the two major carbohydrates: Sugar and Fiber and then sum the remaining amount in a lump calling it Total Carbohydrates (TC). Sugar is broken down into 6 different kinds of sugar and lumped together (see Sugar below). The other carbohydrate in the lump of TC is Starch.

Special proteins called enzymes are break down starch into glucose, which is turned into fuel your body needs for energy. Starch in moderation, is good for your body. You need it, and eliminating it is just silly. However, Nutritional Facts generally don't list it, but there are websites out there that do.

If you want to find out the breakdown of your food's facts not commonly listed on the packaging, visit http://www.NutritionData.com . There you will find most of the foods you eat on a daily basis, and what's really inside of them. They too have resources and links to helping you achieve your goals.
Another caluclation can be found at http://nutrition.about.com/od/askyournutritionist/f/howmanycarbs.htm: For example, a person who eats approximately 2,000 calories per day should take in about about 250 grams of carbohydrates (2,000 divided by 2 = 1,000 and 1,000 divided by 4 = 250).  

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However if you are trying to lose weight, that equation is not going to help you, but this chart will.

Calories Per Day	Carbs Per Day
1200	20
1300	25
1400	30
1500	40
1600	50
1700	55
1800	60
2000	70

How many Total Carbohydrates can I have a day?	grams
Write this number in the corresponding box in the table found in the Magic Numbers section of this chapter.

Sugar

‘Ah, sugar! Ah, honey, honey! You are my candy girl! And you've got me wanting you…’

 Sugar is the sweet sister with a bad reputation. Too much sugar can lead to the creation of fat and too little can lead to hypoglycemia and other blood disorders. Your blood needs sugar, but it needs the right kind of sugar. As mentioned in the Carbohydrates section, there are actually 6 sugars lumped together on your Nutritional Facts.

The problem is, determining what kind of sugar it is. Like fat and carbohydrates, there are good sugars and there are bad sugars. The 6 sugars in your food are sucrose, glucose, fructose, lactose, maltose, and galactose. Most glucose and fructose comes from fruits and vegetables and your more organic foods.

Sucrose is also known as table sugar and is the one you want to not consume in excess. The amount of sugar you eat is circumstantial and unfortunately since Nutritional Facts don't do you the favor of breaking it down for you, we Royale Dieters, will have to use the lump sum to help figure out how much you should get a day.
According to the American Heart Association (AHA) a set limit of suggested sugar intake is 30 grams per day max.

How much Sugar can I have a day?	grams
Write this number in the corresponding box in the table found in the Magic Numbers section of this chapter.

Magic Numbers

Now that you're on your way to achieving your goal, it' now time to figure out your perfect royal combination, which will help you design your daily Royale Menu™.

Below I want you to take the results of all the charts listed throughout this chapter and write down in pencil what you basic dietary needs are your special combination.

Calories	Fat	Potassium	Sodium	Carbs	Sugar	Fiber	Protein
FIRM	LESS	MORE	LESS	LESS	LESS	MORE	MORE

The third row indicates the values you should get more or less of and the ones you should get exactly that amount of, no more, no less within 100-200 grams or calories. This is your code that you should write down and take with you when you go shopping or when you are planning out your daily allowances. Writing it in pencil is a good idea, because as you progress to your goals your values will change.

It is best to check your numbers every 10 lbs you lose, to make sure you are doing your body justice. This is your combination for success! There is just one more task we need to understand before we can go further: understanding the Royale Flush™!

The Royale Flush™

In Poker a Royal Flush is the best hand you can have to win the game. Well the same goes for your diet, except for Diet Royale™, we add an “e” to be fancy and hence the Royale Flush™!

For the most part everything that enters your body leaves your body in one way, out the back! This is possibly the most uncomfortable areas we must cover, but it couldn't be more important. When you burn fat through diet and exercise your body converts the lot into energy. It the remains of this energy leaves your body in two ways: through sweat and urine. This is why it is important you drink plenty of water, to help your body move stuff along.

Question: How do you know you are doing well with your diet?

Answer: If you're bowel movement is healthy. Any dietitian  doctor, or health guru out there knows the value of your poop (or stool, if you want to get technical)! Soon you will too.

A healthy poop or “stool” is strong, together, and not runny. It is a milk chocolate brown and feels good when it leaves your body. I believe Dr. Oz aired a special on healthy poop. There are many tips if you just run a search on the internet using this key phrase: healthy poop.

This site will break it down for you: http://altmedicine.about.com/od/gettingdiagnosed/a/stools.htm