In the 1880s, Mark Twain quipped, “Quitting smoking is easy, I’ve done it a thousand times!” Positive change, such as quitting smoking or losing excess body weight, requires the discovery of personal reasons that prevent us from already achieving the positive outcomes we desire. Then, we can come to know the sacrifices that are required to achieve our desired outcomes. 

Americans were once a trim, fit, and disease-resistant people; only 1 in 150 that were obese. At that time nearly 70 percent of the foods we ate were the original fast foods that came directly from the garden. Now, less than 7 percent of  the foods we eat are whole, pure, and natural foods, and 93 percent come from animal products and processed and refined foods, oils, and sugars. 

The U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC) warned that we are suffering an obesity epidemic that “threatens to erode hard-won gains in life expectancy and health-related quality of life” (see report here). We now have the highest rates of obesity, disability, and disease in the world. 

Yet, everywhere in the world where people still eat 70 to 90+ percent of their calories from the original fast foods from the garden, they are trim and fit, and their rates of obesity, disability, and disease are a fraction of the U.S. rates. 

For example, today’s centenarians in Okinawa eat primarily plant-based foods from the garden. Their meals of stir-fried vegetables, sweet potatoes, Goya, and tofu are high in nutrients and low in calories. And while they do eat some animal products, they do so primarily during infrequent ceremonial occasions, and in small amounts. 

They are active walkers and gardeners and expose themselves to the sunlight on a regular basis, which promotes stronger bones and healthier bodies. As gardeners, they enjoy a ready, near-by supply of fresh vegetables; and gardening tends to de-stress and nudge them into regular physical activity. 

Moreover, they eat their meals and relax while sitting on floor mats, rather than on furniture. Thus, they get up and down off the floor several dozen times per day, which builds both lower body strength and exceptional balance, compared to older Americans, who often suffer from dangerous falls, which often lead to disability.

The Food Bowl Solution

The Food Bowl Solution is a solution to help America eat more from the garden again. It is based upon creating delicious and nutritious, all-in-one meals, which feature each of the plant-based food groups, and sparing amounts of animal-based foods. The success of The Food Bowl Solution is also based upon the following principles:  

Principle 1: Prepare and eat food bowls each meal, as follows: 

• Vegetables: Add to food bowl a generous portion of cooked or raw greens and non-starchy vegetables from all colors of the rainbow; cut, sliced, grated, or spiralized the way you like them. 

• Natural Carbohydrates: Also add to food bowl your choice of rice, beans, corn; or other grains; or starchy vegetables; or fruits, and berries, or a combination of all the above, sufficient to meet your energy needs until your next meal.

• Natural Fats: Then add 2 to 3 ounces of nuts, whole seeds, or animal products to bowl. Strive to limit animal products to 2 or 3 food bowls per week.
• Dress, Toss, and Serve: Finally, drizzle dressing over food bowl ingredients and mix them all together well. Then, garnish and serve!

Principle 2: Eat until your stomach is only 80 percent full; then, stop eating for at least ten minutes to see if hunger passes! If it does, eat no more, and if not, then eat a little more. Thus, learn to satisfy your hunger and nutritional needs with the fewest calories. 

Principle 3: Drink 20+ ounces of pure water or herbal tea with each meal, and as needed between meals to keep your urine clear or slightly yellow. 

Principle 4: If you are not hungry at mealtime, skip that meal, and drink water or herbal tea alone until the next mealtime.  

I am rededicating the Original Fast Foods website to focus primarily on the simplest solution I know of in the world to help others find balance in their eating. Food Bowls are delicious all-in-one meals that never grow tiresome and that are always satisfying and delicious. Share your favorite food bowl ideas and successes with others, and Invite others to join us and share their ideas as well.