A couple of months ago in my "Intense Stretch" yoga class‭, ‬a student stopped by to drop off an immensely rich German chocolate cake that she prepared for the teacher's birthday surprise gift‭. ‬

Suddenly‭, ‬after an hour and a half of extreme poses‭, ‬the faint smell of dark chocolate fudge seduced me to check it out‭. ‬I found‭ ‬out that this student‭, ‬who seemed to have pretty good flexibility‭, ‬was a gourmet chef‭. ‬She works with top celebrities,‭ CEOs, and leading-edge medical doctors‭. ‬Having studied at eCornell‭, ‬this former stand-up comedienne who appeared on all the late-night talk‭ ‬shows‭, ‬including a 10-minute stint/stunt on Johnny Carson‭, ‬peaked my interest‭. ‬Who is this lady who claims she bakes without any of the standard ingredients and prepares unprocessed‭, ‬mostly raw food‭ (‬vegan‭)? ‬In fact‭, ‬the initial cake was prepared for our‭ ‬yoga instructor without wheat‭, ‬dairy‭, ‬salt‭, ‬oil, sugar, ‬and most of all, without animal products‭. ‬

This talented Chef AJ‭ ‬is the reason why I decided to finally‭, ‬once and for all‭, ‬change my addictive eating habits‭. ‬After decades of dieting‭ ‬ad nauseum‭, ‬and the upcoming fear of flying into my next decade an old‭, ‬worn out, and post-middle-aged fatty‭, ‬I was‭ ‬determined to finally do something about it‭, ‬with ease‭, ‬joy‭, ‬fun, and freedom from yo-yo diets‭. ‬I was tired of watching my other fellow-post-menopausal boomer babes try everything from the Master Cleanse, to the HCG super diets and the old-standby Atkins‭, ‬or the new‭ 'miracle'‭ ‬shakes‭, ‬tonics, and elixirs guaranteed to make you slim and void of sensual pleasures‭. ‬

I decided that if sixty is the new sexy‭, ‬then I was going to have to find a way to enjoy food and the sybaritic pleasures of life‭, ‬once and for all‭. ‬

Chef AJ invited me to her raw food beginner's class and after one bite of her ice-blended chocolate shake filled with kale and other greens‭ (‬which were undetected by my refined palate‭), ‬I was in‭! ‬She suggested that I take her 30‭-‬Day Challenge and become a part of‭ ‬a "live"‭ ‬community of fellow health-seeking foodies who were all discovering a pathway to beating their addictions to the poor excuses of food‭. ‬Of course‭, ‬Chef AJ seduced me with a sampling of that German chocolate cake and I was hooked‭. ‬Each week we would co-mingle at her intimate abode and learn about the keys to wellness through eating whole‭, ‬unprocessed‭, ‬raw food‭. ‬After all‭, ‬she is a‭ ‬maven who works with the top MD's from True North Health Center‭ (‬a detox clinic in Santa Rosa‭, ‬CA‭), ‬with notable names such as Dr‭. ‬T‭. ‬Colin Campbell‭, ‬Dr‭. ‬Caldwell Esselstyne‭, ‬Dr‭. ‬Doug Lisle‭ (‬Forks over Knives‭, ‬the movie‭) ‬Dr‭. ‬John McDougal‭, ‬Dr‭. ‬Goldhammer, and Dr‭. ‬Fuhrman‭ (‬check out PBS for his special on vibrant health‭). ‬Much of this information was based on The China Study‭.‬

Chef AJ is the fulcrum to her programs where she leads the way to eating well‭ ‬by demonstrating ingenious ways to health via her magical recipes‭. ‬Just like the mesmerizing lady in the movie‭ Chocolat‭, ‬who spins a web of magic and brings people together to enjoy the sweetness of life and discover the realm of the senses‭, ‬Chef‭ ‬AJ is the Pied Piper to feeling great and losing weight‭.‬

In our thirty-day Challenge‭, ‬we have the support of daily e-mails and the bonding of strangers who are now friends‭, ‬where we share our deepest secrets and celebrate the victories of overcoming addictions to processed foods‭, ‬sweets, and fats‭. ‬We are taught that the food‭ ‬industry‭ ‬spends millions of dollars to make sure we become addicted to their products‭, ‬compounded by the pharmaceutical drugs that keep us addicted to their quick fixes‭ (‬with which the side effects are sometimes worse than the curative effects‭). ‬Many in the group are on‭ ‬their second round‭, ‬and have beaten the clock by eliminating life-threatening diseases through detoxing from the poisons they‭ ‬were consuming‭. ‬Chef AJ was one of us‭, ‬and cured herself of a precursor to cancer‭, ‬so she is living proof that this works, and she is committed to helping anyone and anyone who is willing to take on this challenge‭. ‬From diabetes to high blood pressure‭, to ‬depression‭ ‬to severe addictions, to sugar‭ (‬alcohol‭) ‬and fats‭, ‬many of her students go on to further their education and become the leaders of their own groups‭. ‬ <

Chef‭ ‬AJ is the Pied Piper to feeling great and losing weight‭.‬

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As America becomes one of the fattest countries on the planet‭, ‬we are also the most malnourished‭. ‬If each person wakes up to the‭ ‬toxic world we live in and eliminates just one addiction‭, ‬they will marvel at the baby steps and awaken to the miracle of health‭. ‬

I am on my own journey, and although I want to stand on the rooftop of my townhouse in Hollywood and scream out to my‭ ‬'hood ‬the benefits of eating this way‭, ‬I know how it feels to have someone proselytizing‭ ‬their way‭ ‬to salvation‭. ‬At the risk of being obnoxious‭, ‬suffice it to say that I will BE the example‭ the day I finally can fit into my‭ ‬skinny jeans‭ (‬the old non-stretchy kind‭, ‬circa 1991‭) ‬without lying down on the floor and sucking my stomach in and eliminating my breathing for a couple of hours‭. ‬This time I am doing something to eliminate my aches and pains‭, ‬from so-called hereditary‭ ‬bouts of arthritis‭, ‬fibromyalgia, and years of starvation which left me lacking in nutrients‭. ‬Now I am eating my way to wellness‭,‬‭ ‬and although this is a thirty-day challenge to detox‭, ‬I am convinced I will adopt this way of life as the norm‭, ‬because I am free of cravings and satiated beyond desire‭.‬

For many of my friends‭, ‬eating meat and dairy is still a‭ ‬"necessity," ‬so I will not preach this way‭. ‬Every BODY is different and one must follow his or her own inner guidance on the road to wellness‭. ‬After all‭, ‬this is the 21st century‭! ‬I keep hearing the line from Jim Morrison‭, ‬"She's a twentieth-century fox"‭ ‬and I've changed the words to "twenty-first‭." ‬

Here are a few links for you to explore‭:‬

1‭. ‬Chef AJ‭:

2‭.‬ Check out Bill Clinton's new diet‭, ‬which saved his life‭.‬

3‭. ‬READ‭ ‬the book‭ ‬Forks Over Knives‭ ‬by T‭. ‬Colin Campbell and Dr‭. ‬Caldwell Esselstyn Jr‭., ‬watch the groundbreaking movie‭,‬‭ ‬

4‭. ‬True North Health Center

‬5‭. ‬The China Study

6‭. ‬Optimum Health Institute‭, ‬in San Diego, CA

Optimum Health was the first step for Chef AJ to help her cure herself: ‬"...where I was able to detox without having the pressure of being at work at the same time‭. ‬So while I did go through some withdrawal‭, ‬I was in an environment where I was actively learning about what foods caused disease and being nourished with the foods that could reverse the disease‭.‬"

Explore the vast network of wellness sites and you can change your life right now‭!‬