Speaker 1: 0:00

Hey there, sunshine. Welcome to the Power On Plants podcast. We're your host, jared and Anita Roussell, and we're absolutely head over heels for whole plant foods and helping you navigate this incredible plant based journey. That's because our lives have been completely changed by plant based goodness. We used to struggle every day with excess pounds and low energy, vascular disease, joint pain and lack of sleep, just to name a few, and even though we're medical professionals, we still weren't getting practical answers that actually worked. So we dug into the research, we started living what we learned, and now we both have our lives back, and that's what we want for you, too. The truth is, you can do this, and it's not hard. You just need a way that will bring real and lasting change, and that path. It has to be simple and enjoyable, and it's got to be delicious too. So are you ready to live your life to the fullest? Then you're in the right place, because living without limits that's what Power On Plants is all about. So pull up your chair, grab a matchelite and let's get started. Well, hello there, sunshine.

Speaker 1: 1:08

Today we are talking about something that is so interesting because here's the thing I know a lot of you are struggling with weight and the frustrating thing about that is I mean, jared and I know how frustrating this can be One of the biggest things is when you're eating what you feel like is healthy. I mean, we did this for years and when we started eating the right way, we lost over 70 pounds together without even really trying to lose weight, just because we started eating the right way. And one of the most frustrating things is you're out at a restaurant, you're eating out often and you're sitting by a family member or a friend who's eating something that you're just drooling over. I mean, you're looking at it. They've got this big ol' lasagna on their plate. They've got a big fat juicy steak on their plate with french fries.

Speaker 2: 1:53

A big ol' greasy burger with cheese and lord knows what else.

Speaker 1: 1:57

And you're just good. All you do is order the salad, but you still can't drop the weight. You know it makes you feel almost angry because you're sitting there. I'm eating salads every time. Why am I not losing weight? And so we're going to touch on salads today. When you eat out at a restaurant, what you may not understand is many times that salad has as much or more fat and calories than your neighbor's food that you felt was drool worthy, but you refuse to eat it because you want to be healthier. We not only want to open your eyes to this, we want you to understand. How do you build a healthier salad? How do you make it something that you can actually eat and make it delicious when you're going out to eat or when you're in your own home?

Speaker 2: 2:39

Because right now you're probably sitting there thinking but it's salad, I mean salad. The word instantly takes a thousand calories off of it right, I mean. I could take a hamburger salad and that's healthy, right, so you're taking this, but you may not realize where the landmines are, where the sabotage is, and we want to open your eyes to that.

Speaker 1: 2:59

Or maybe you're eating your steak, or you're eating your burger and you're getting a side salad and you're thinking well, you know what I eat really well, I mean, I eat my vegetables every day, but that salad is not going to undo all the damage of the burger. We talk about this all the time and I call it the double whammy effect, like it's a two fold problem that requires a two fold answer. So you can't just get rid of the things that are sabotaging your health. Yes, that's super important. That's step number one, but the immediate step that needs to follow right after that, with each thing you set aside, that you choose to set aside for your health, you've got to replace it with the thing that you're going to love just as much or even more. But that's going to love you back, sister. It's got to love you back.

Speaker 2: 3:41

But the flip of that, though, is that you may put something in there that's a little bit healthy, but if you're not removing the unhealthy stuff, it's really not necessarily going to undo the damage from that.

Speaker 1: 3:53

No.

Speaker 2: 3:54

So you can add a little bit of a little cherry tomato. And then now the saturated fats, the cholesterol from that big old steak. You don't undo the process there.

Speaker 1: 4:03

And I've just got to say this for our kingdom women who are listening out there this is a biblical principle. I mean, think about it. Okay, anytime the father steps in and he saves his children from something, think about all the Bible stories, you know. Let's just use Exodus for an example. Okay, so when he brings us out of something, when we come out of the destructive places or the destructive things, he always brings us out to bring us to what's better, to what's best for us. Okay. So it's never just bringing us out to get us out, it's bringing us out to bring us into our future, our calling, whatever that may be. So he's saving us from something to bring us to his ways, his paths, his design for us and, in this case, the foods that he originally created us to eat, which are whole-plate foods.

Speaker 2: 4:54

Now to expand on that example there. So when they left Egypt, the intent was to go to Israel, which was to be a land of blessing Right, but they didn't follow the process of what happened Circled in the desert. For 40 years they circled in the desert, the wilderness, which it should have taken them no more than a couple of weeks, but they spent 40 years there because they didn't run from the thing to the better thing.

Speaker 1: 5:20

Right, they kept circling, circling and circling and not stepping into what he had for them right, and so it's really important that we start taking the steps to get away from those things. But you can't if you just try to escape the things. What I know happens time and time again is all you can think about is the things you tried to escape.

Speaker 2: 5:40

Right, Well, and some of the Israelites? They wanted to go back to Egypt.

Speaker 1: 5:43

Right, and then it reminds me of the Veggie Tales movie that we saw based on that, oh, for years ago, was it? Paul Grape, he goes. I think it was Paul Grape, but we were in slavery.

Speaker 2: 5:55

I mean, they're bringing up all these great things about it. Paul Grape wanted to go back and someone said but we were in slavery. And he said nothing's perfect.

Speaker 1: 6:04

Oh yeah, it was him. You're right. You remember that all too well.

Speaker 2: 6:08

Yeah, we didn't have kids when we had that video, so I do remember it all too well.

Speaker 1: 6:13

But it's the truth, right? I mean, we fantasize and we think about all the great things that that thing that I have to give up gave me, like, oh well, I loved meat. You know well, meat's filled with parasites and dairy has pus in it. Okay, I know you don't want to hear these things, but this is the reality. But fish is healthy. For me, fish is the most parasite-latent thing you could eat. People get worms from it all the time. You can have a three-foot tapeworm living in you because of the fish you're eating. I don't want to freak you out, but I want you to understand how common this is. This is a common problem. Almost all fish that is sold, even the wild, caught the ones that you think are the most healthy for you. We can do an episode on this. I know you aren't going to love us afterwards, but you will if you stop getting parasites, because it will make a huge difference in your health.

Speaker 2: 7:00

We say this because we care about you. Is it easy to bring this message to you? No, but we care enough that we want you to know the truth so that you can make good decisions. Why is decisions and?

Speaker 1: 7:12

this is fact. It's just fact, but you're not hearing it. And you should be hearing it, because these are the things that are going to make all the difference in your health. So you can't just order a side salad with your steak or with your burger and expect to be healthy. You've got to remove the things that are causing the problem. But, more importantly, you don't want to just do that, because if you just remove those things, that's all you're going to be thinking about.

Speaker 1: 7:36

Okay, you've got to get something and put it in the place of that thing that you like just as much or even more. That has to do with the actual meal. So, if you love chili, you've got to learn how to make chili. Okay. So that's an example of an actual meal. But if you loved an ingredient, a certain ingredient, you've got to learn how to replace the ingredients too, Okay. So if I liked mayo, I got to learn how to have mayo. Now, If I like these sauces that were on my salad, we're going to get into that in just a minute. But you've got to have those new favorite things. What do I replace it with? I don't even know how to do this. I don't know where to start.

Speaker 1: 8:08

This is what we do time and again in the membership. We take you by the hand and walk you step by step. But it all starts here on the podcast, because these are the simple steps that you can take right now to start getting results. And so why aren't you losing weight when you go out to eat multiple times a week and you're just ordering salad and you're sitting there kind of hangry because everybody else is eating the good stuff but yet feeling good about what you're doing and yet stepping on the scale and not getting any results. It's this vicious cycle and it makes you want to kind of pull your hair out because it doesn't make sense. Because you're eating salad, you're eating healthy, and yet you're still struggling with the same old things low energy, brain fog, not feeling good. That's worse than the pounds. That's worse than the pounds, it's the fact that you just don't feel good. And that's why, Jaron, I say this is about your quality of life.

Speaker 2: 8:57

You can live a long life, but how are you living? Are you living well, are you just alive, or are you alive and living Like you said? What is the quality of the life in those? Years, so we want you to have both. We want you to live many, many years, but to have very vibrant years, very productive years, spending time with your family going on missions trip, growing that business and running it to a ripe old age of whatever Right Living your calling Right, exactly Living your calling.

Speaker 1: 9:29

Absolutely. Let's talk about the typical restaurant salad.

Speaker 2: 9:34

Yes.

Speaker 1: 9:34

Okay, so many times they have chicken on there or they have bacon on there. Now you're not just getting chicken and bacon. Many times you're getting viruses and bacteria. Can I go into that just a minute?

Speaker 2: 9:50

Go ahead. You have the microphone, the stage is all yours.

Speaker 1: 9:53

Many times you're getting unwanted viruses, bacteria and parasites, and that's all I'm going to say about that right now. Okay, but it is a known fact and this happens more often than you want to imagine. But here we're talking about weight, Okay, so I just want to talk about with the weight aspect of it. You're getting high fat, saturated fat, which damages your vessels, okay, and then you're getting high calorie with the chicken, high calorie and something that is hard for your body to process. So the more animal products you eat, the harder it is going to be to lose weight. Now you could replace that. Well, what are you going to replace it with? Well, look on the menu for all of these different things we're going to talk about today and think what can I replace it with? Because if they've got a plant based ingredient, let's say beans, for example, on another dish, then you know they have those in their kitchen.

Speaker 2: 10:49

They have that in the kitchen.

Speaker 1: 10:50

Yes, All right.

Speaker 2: 10:51

They could adapt it. You just got to use a little imagination, right?

Speaker 1: 10:54

So just say hey, instead of the chicken, can you just hold the chicken and add some of those garbanzo beans to this that are in this dish? Just add them to my salad. They'll gladly do that. Okay, so have them add beans instead of chicken. They're all different kinds that you can have added. Have them add some tofu. Let's say they have one vegan dish and it has tofu in it. They could add some of that tofu onto your salad. Okay, these are ways that you can do this, or you could just leave it out and have them add more vegetables, anything that you like. Look at the menu, think outside the box. What can I add instead of chicken? That I would enjoy? Croutons All right, this is crunchy Now. Croutons most of them are devoid of nutrients and filled with calories because they're made with white processed highly refined flour.

Speaker 1: 11:43

Right, and then you've got oil added to them yes, all the time and about nine other ingredients minimum. Pick up croutons in your grocery store and start reading the ingredients label. I'm not just talking about the sodium or the nutrients that are or aren't in there. I'm talking about the actual ingredients. You will not believe what's in there. Sugar, I mean. They are high calorie, no fiber, pretty much low.

Speaker 2: 12:08

No, because it's probably processed out of it.

Speaker 1: 12:10

Oh, absolutely. What could you eat instead of croutons? That would give you that crunch. You could eat some nuts, you could eat some seeds. Those are great options for providing the crunch. I just asked them, maybe, if there's oil on them or you just don't worry about that too much in this point, because we're going to be taking off so much oil when we change up the dressing. Okay, but do know that if you're making a salad at home, nuts and seeds often have oil added yeah, I know it's a shocker and then nut butter. Same thing. Also, dried fruits. You could have dried fruits added, but realize they add sugar. Can you believe that? Because when you dry fruit, you concentrate the sugar, so it's really, really sweet. And now you're going to add sugar and oil to the dried fruit and now it's extremely high calorie.

Speaker 2: 12:57

Okay, I think one reason why they may add the sugar one is just because we're so conditioned to it. But it also could be that they may use a lower quality fruit or berry and maybe it's real tart, and so they have to add the sugar to compensate for that, so that's a possibility too.

Speaker 1: 13:12

I would add they feel like they have to add the sugar to compensate. I think a lot of times the sugar's not just added to compensate because people won't like it If it doesn't have it. It's added to keep you addicted because it's a part of the traffic. You get the dopamine. It's a part of an addiction.

Speaker 2: 13:26

With the refined sugars. You absorb them quickly, you get that dopamine hit and you're going to keep coming back for their product to get in again. And you mentioned the oils. A lot of times they have oils added to them. I assume it's either to keep them from sticking or to keep them from drying out Totally not needed.

Speaker 1: 13:41

Not needed at all, Because we get dried fruit all the time with no oil added, and they're just fine and perfectly delicious. But read your ingredients. If we're talking about at home now and you're making a salad, look at the back of your dried fruits. Look at the ingredients list. Start buying dried fruit that has absolutely no oil and has absolutely no added sugar, because you are voting with your dollars. Not only are you affecting your health, you're voting on what products are they going to come out with next, or what will they not come out with? If you keep buying the ones that have the added things, you're going to end up in worse shape with your health and they're also going to keep making those same old products, because they'll think we're unaware and they'll just do it.

Speaker 2: 14:20

Well, and they want to make a profit, right? So they're going to make more of what sells.

Speaker 1: 14:25

Right.

Speaker 2: 14:26

So if you're voting with your dollars, you're buying the healthier products and more and more people do that. Immediately you're going to improve your health, but long term they're going to start making what sells. They'll make more of the organic foods, the no added junk food. So vote with your dollars.

Speaker 1: 14:44

So I want you to think about not just when you're dining out, but when you're also at home, when we're talking about these salad changes that you can make. So we've got chicken can be turned into maybe tofu or beans. There are many other things that you can do. I will say it's best not to go with the plant-based meat alternatives. If you can help it, it's okay as a transition food, but it's not going to be good for long-term health.

Speaker 2: 15:09

And a lot of times fats will get added to that, like coconut oils, because they're trying to replicate the animal product and in doing that it makes it less healthy. Good for transition, but not something that you want to have for long term.

Speaker 1: 15:21

But I'll tell you it's also not necessary, because you can get those flavors those textures without adding all that stuff.

Speaker 1: 15:27

So I hate it that they do it and many people don't realize it. But you are a smart consumer because you listen to the podcast and you know to look for it and that's what we want here. So the croutons replacing with nuts and seeds think about crunchy things that you'll enjoy, but just make sure that those nuts and seeds do not have added oil, sugar, anything else. They should be one ingredient, just the nut or the seed, and that is the same with the dried fruit Just one ingredient the dried fruit. That's it. If it has anything else, you do not need that brand. Look for a new and improved brand Now. Dressings and sauces this is where they get you big time.

Speaker 2: 16:02

This is the clincher.

Speaker 1: 16:04

Yeah, because not only are they sometimes drizzling gurgling oil all over the top of your salad, because, oh yeah, it's healthy, it's healthy.

Speaker 2: 16:12

Stuff.

Speaker 1: 16:13

a little is good, so much more must be better 120 calories per tablespoon and I promise you there's not just one tablespoon on that salad. And so they're bringing you all these sauces and things that are laden with chemicals that you can't pronounce, which are going to make it harder for you to lose weight and get healthy, and it's got a lot of oil in it and you just don't want that on your salad. So what?

Speaker 2: 16:38

are you going to do? Mulsifiers, preservatives, stabilizers?

Speaker 1: 16:42

coloring, coloring flavorings artificial flavorings. And a lot of those things have been linked with cancer and other diseases, diabetes. You do not want these things on your salad, ok, so you just say hold the dressing. And then you can say would you please bring me a side of balsamic vinegar and brown mustard, because most every restaurant has these two ingredients, and mixed together they make a very tangy and wonderfully delicious dressing.

Speaker 2: 17:08

Now, and it'll stick to the leaves. So you don't have to worry about it just falling to the bottom of the bowl.

Speaker 1: 17:13

It'll actually stick and coat the leaves you can stir them together right there at the table in one of the containers before you add it to your dressing, and it's going to coat your leaves beautifully and all those yummy veggies that are in there. It's wonderful.

Speaker 2: 17:26

And I would say don't worry about looking like the odd person out, It'll get people's attention. Don't be embarrassed, Just say, hey, watch what I'm about to do. And as you stir it in there and all that flavors in there, they'll be intrigued. You'll be the head at the table.

Speaker 1: 17:41

I'd even say don't even call attention to it, just have confidence, have your plan ahead of time, know what you're going to do and just order with confidence and just say put it on the side, you mix it up, you do it. Sometimes people won't notice and a lot of times they'll notice and they'll start asking you questions. This happens to our members all the time. I took this dish to sew and sew or I went out to eat with sew and sew and they couldn't believe how I ordered this and that, and what I got looked better than what they got and they were wanting to know how to order it next time. But this happens all the time.

Speaker 1: 18:12

So if you're at home and you have the power on Plants Cookbook, make one of our five minute dressings or sauces. Ok, thousand Island blue cheese with a Z Ranch dressing is wonderful. The Asian nut sauce is incredible. There's all kinds of amazing things. And you know what, sister? I've even been known to make it ahead of time because it literally I call them five minute dressings, but they're really one to two minute dressings. You throw a couple of ingredients into your blender blend done and then you pour it into some kind of container that is easy to fit into your purse or your bag, that will not leak out, so that you don't have a mess in your purse because nobody wants to mess in the purse, ok. But you put it in something like that they might not even notice or think about, and I don't pull it out until my salad comes. The salad comes and then I set it on the table. Maybe it's a drink cup or container that I have that doesn't look suspicious.

Speaker 2: 19:05

Right, We've done that a number of times. Yeah, it's just laid on the table. It's very inconspicuous. Nobody can see inside of it. It looks like oh, this is my favorite drink cup.

Speaker 1: 19:11

Yeah, like you brought a little drink in and it's fine because you've ordered something, so you've got plenty of food on the table, it's no big deal, and we just pour it onto our salads. I had a waitress ask me the other day hey, what's in that dressing you brought? It looks so good. Because I had to leave the dressing off and she looked at me like she was wondering what in the world I was going to pin on it. And I had to bring me a lime and I squeezed lime on my salad and then I added my dressing, which was a ranch. So I had kind of a limey ranch and it was so good. What if you had the cheese left off? What can you add that's creamy that would be delicious.

Speaker 2: 19:41

That would be huge. When I sparse that content, I don't think people really think about it Because they think of milk and protein. So cheese must be concentrated protein, right? No, it's mostly fat. I think it's 70% or greater fat. And we're not gonna talk about the pest allowance that the government allows that and the hormones that are in it, just know.

Speaker 1: 20:00

So just leave it off. Okay, what are you gonna replace it with? Well, I want something fatty and creamy, so have them. Bring me some diced avocado. Now, it is going to add extra calories, but what we know is your body deals with plant calories differently. You don't wanna add two whole avocado to your salad, but add some. It's okay to eat some. You're gonna be so much better off, sister, if you eat this way, and so that is one great thing that you can replace the cheese with.

Speaker 1: 20:29

So we've talked about how do you replace the chicken or the bacon or the meat, how do you replace the croutons, how do you replace the dressings or the sauces that make it so delicious, and how do you replace the cheese. We're just scratching the surface here. There are so many things that you can do, but remember, if you're dining out, check that menu. What else can you take off their menu to throw on your salad to make it so much better than it would have been before, so that you end up with a dish that's not only going to literally fuel your body well, but is also going to be something that you look forward to eating and wanna eat when you come back there again and again, but don't be afraid to switch it up. And this is the thing. You don't just have to go to vegan and vegetarian restaurants.

Speaker 1: 21:18

So I hope that you've seen throughout this episode why it is still hard for you to lose weight when you're the one that constantly chooses the salad. Just because it says salad does not mean it's healthy, just like because something says vegan doesn't mean it's healthy either. Okay, it might be highly processed, it might have added sugars, added oils, all these other things that you need to think about. But when you start getting whole plant foods okay, whole plant foods hold the oil. I say that all the time at the table. I want this, but if there's any extra oil drizzled across it, please just don't put that extra oil on mine. I don't want it. I mean, that saves so many calories right there.

Speaker 2: 21:55

Yeah, there was one ingredient that we missed eggs oh my goodness right Eggs in dressings. So like Thousand Island Dressing classically has egg in it or just boiled eggs that are sliced. Think about that in the mayo and the extra oil.

Speaker 1: 22:08

Yeah, that has mayo in it too, so it's not just a straight up oil, it's a mayo, it's the eggs. That's a great point. So now you've got the cholesterol, the saturated fat right and the calories on top of that, so you could do. Tofu is a great replacement for egg as well. If you want a little tofu, you're not gonna get any of the cholesterol. Plant foods have no cholesterol and you're gonna get all the added benefits that soy brings.

Speaker 1: 22:30

If you haven't heard our episode about soy which is episode number 206, is soy healthier? Should you avoid it? The research is in. You have to listen to that episode. It is another game changer.

Speaker 1: 22:41

Sister, we know that if you are going plant based and you feel stuck, there are so many things you can do. Okay, there's a lot of people who do plant based and they just don't know how to do it the right way. It's gotta be quick, simple and delicious, but it's got to be the plant based foods that are really great for weight loss. Now, thankfully, naturally, most all of them are. But when you start getting into the processed foods and the things that are on the traditional salads in your restaurant that you're going to, or sometimes even in your home, because these are the things in your pantry, cause you just didn't know to look at the ingredient.

Speaker 1: 23:14

So hopefully you've been able to see, and your eyes have been opened to, how you can have a salad at a restaurant, actually come out ahead and feel great about what you're eating, all at the same time, because you're not just eating a nasty old plain salad without the good ingredients and with all the goop added onto it that is going to weigh down your blood, that is going to weigh down your scale and it's not going to help you reach the goal that you're after, and that's living a full life, a vibrant life, an active life where you can get out there and do all the things that you've been called to do and that you want to do.

Speaker 1: 23:52

But you're so frustrated cause you just have to keep forcing yourself to be the fun, active mom when you don't feel like it. Well, you're not going to have to do that anymore when you get the most natural nutrients, dense foods on the planet that are naturally low calorie too. Sister, I hope you have a fantastic week. Go enjoy an amazing salad in celebration of this episode, take a picture of it and tag us on Facebook and let us know all about it. We look forward to seeing your delicious creations and we'll see you next time on Power On Plants viewed.