The Maker’s Diet – Making a Believer Out of Me

I used to wonder how my 99-year-old Great-Grandmother could eat only the “white meat” of steak (aka the fat), every single day, with biscuits and sausage gravy rinsed down with glasses of whole milk, and still maintain a very slim figure throughout her very long life. Now I realize, it’s because the food she existed on is now in danger of extinction.

Channeling my inner Julia Child, I began a foray into yet another food adventure yesterday. Adventure is the key word, as it always involves a certain amount of risk. Ultimately, I’ve set a goal for myself that the Maker’s Diet will be more than just the standard 40 day plan indicated in Jordan Rubin’s book of organic, sustainable, and mostly local foods. The risk in this adventure is not to make it a “diet,” but a lifestyle change. Calling it an adventure is an understatement, however – trekking through Farmer’s Markets, weeding through dubious information online, and delving into the world of raw milk and grass-fed meat has been nothing less than mind-boggling.

But, hopefully I will be able to make things simpler for those of you that either a) simply don’t have the time, b) are skeptical about making this work in today’s world, or c) would just rather have someone else give you the information. 🙂

Meryl Streep, playing the convincing role of Julia Child as she shops for fish at a French Market

All that said, I’ll start off with the very basics. The Maker’sDiet is a Three Phase approach to getting you back to eating the foods that your grandparents ate…and their grandparents ate…and Jesus himself ate. Basically up until the early 1900s, no one knew anything about pesticides, Genetically Modified Foods (GMOs), or McDonalds. They ate with the seasons, and they cooked with what nature provided them, usually from their backyards. They also let their animals eat the foods they were meant to – grass, grubs, and dirt. Julia Child was able to do much the same, as Europeans didn’t catch on to the American way of eating until very recently. Her butter-laden meats and whole fat cheeses were actually good for her (in regards to vitamins and nutrients, to say the least).

Since then, the world has rapidly caught on to the fast-paced, “give it to me now” philosophy of quick foods at a cheap price. Why cheap? Because companies can produce this food at an unnaturally fast rate, causing a huge surplus of product and thus driving down costs. Real foods on the other hand – food that lacks chemicals and is full of nutrients that we need – has become more expensive simply because of the competition to keep costs within the same price range as the impostor food. Synthetic foods (think low-fat, skim, processed) have been the primary culprit behind our westernized illnesses such as heart disease, diabetes, obesity and sky-rocketing cholesterol. More information on that at Weston A. Price Foundation. I’ll be implementing the philosophies of both Weston A. Price and the Maker’s Diet, which cross-reference each other frequently.

The Maker’s Diet is not a diet, because the ultimate goal isn’t to lose weight, but to become healthy inside and out. Both WAPF and the Maker’s Diet are about making healthy food choices and learning what nutrients your body really needs. God created us, so implementing his guidelines for how our bodies will best function should only be a natural choice for us.

Phase 1, which I have now been on for a little over 24 hours, takes your body through a detox of sorts, causing it to get over its dependence on sugar. By cutting out most carbohydrates for 2 weeks, you regulate your insulin levels, and can then begin to heal. Let me just say, it’s been a hard 24 hours. I am THE carb girl. I love my oatmeal, fruit, granola, and cereals – not to mention pancakes and pasta. I am also the Tart Queen herself, with the biggest sweet tooth of anyone I know; except perhaps my father. That said, it’s been an adjustment, but I am excited to see the results.

The Forbidden Fruits for This Next Month

I’ll be going through the 40 day process here at Taste of Wonderland, and will be joined on the journey by my husband, my brother, and his lovely wife. My new sister and I both suffer from digestive issues, making this diet all the more appealing for us. Like me, she has also done everything from gluten-free eating to a vegan-based diet. I will be tracking our meals, our thoughts, and our hunger level as we make our way towards an organic, sustainable lifestyle that will benefit us not only physically in the here and now, but in all levels later in life! Here’s to you, Julia. Bring on the Real Food!