Supercharge Fat Burn With This Easy Strategy
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Please note I am not a physician, so this blog post should not replace medical care! I am just someone who discovered a liver virus the hard way and want to share the word about a widespread issue that many of us face. Hopefully you learn a bit here to not feel overwhelmed to talk to your doctor!
I’ll bet you think this is a post about your thyroid. While that is undeniably an important part of your metabolic system, there is an unsung hero you do not usually associate with losing weight or boosting immunity.
It’s your liver.
In this blog post, I will discuss:
What your liver actually does.
What to eat and avoid to support your liver health (and corresponding weight loss!)
Extra tools that I used to heal my liver from a disease that almost killed me!
Yes, most of us only think about it when we have a hangover. While it does metabolize alcohol, that is just the tip of the iceberg.
Courtesy of our diet of processed food and increased alcohol consumption, millions of Americans are suffering from fatty liver without even knowing it. This junk leaves behind fatty deposits in the liver, which build up over time.
Why does this matter? Well, if left unchecked, your body will not be as efficient as it could be. This means you are likely tired, not sleeping well, lacking energy, having a difficulty losing weight, and seeing changes to your skin and hair. When you eat sugar or excess salt - basically too many processed foods - or regularly consume alcohol, they leave fatty deposits in the liver.
When your liver is processing junk like alcohol, added sugar, and salt, you will not be burning fat to your maximum potential.
What’s worse, fatty liver disease (whether from diet or alcohol) if not addressed can worsen over time into more advanced liver disease, including cirrhosis.
The reason I focus on liver health is a personal health crisis I faced in late 2020.
Three days before Christmas, I was admitted to the hospital in a level 5 ER event because I had a virus (and an autoimmune condition that just reared its ugly head) that was attacking my liver. I had no idea I was sick until my eyes went yellow, which meant the virus had hit a critical level. I will not go into detail, but I was told (yelled at, really) but a very unpleasant physician that I was going to die. I wasn’t resigned to accepting that though, as sick as I was, so I knew I had to summon the strength to fight it.
I did summon that strength, and I used every available chance to learn more about liver health and how to improve it. With minimal medical advice, I had to do it on my own. I began with some basic biology.
Let’s start with what the liver does.
The liver is the second largest organ in the body (second only to skin, so technically the largest in your body), and serves three major functions:
1. Filtration:
Separates, processes, and removes toxins, metabolic byproducts, and medication from your blood (which is why you see warnings on many medications for those with liver problems).
This function is critical to your body’s detoxification process.
2. Production:
Bile, cholesterol, and blood proteins.
This function is critical to your body’s ability to process fats.
3. Storage:
Vitamins and minerals, plus glycogen for energy (second only to your muscles as the main storage unit).
This function is critical to retaining nutrients to keep you healthy and thriving and provide stores of energy.
In other words, your liver accepts blood with a variety of elements in it, separates out the toxins that should be removed, produces enzymes to break down fats for digestion, and retains the nutrients to keep your body and metabolism humming.
Are you concerned about your liver health? It all starts with a standard blood test with your doctor! Read more about liver test results Q&A from the Mayo Clinic.
Now, how can I use this to increase my overall health and weight loss?
Since the liver is on the frontline of detoxification and fat breakdown, it does its job best when it is healthy and strong. It is constantly at work, so our goal is to make that work more efficient and not overload it.
I built my own program to heal my liver, and I started this website to share what worked for me with you.
Unsurprisingly, whole foods are the easiest to process and do not leave fat deposits behind. Since processed foods are harder to filter, limiting these are key to keeping your liver and metabolism humming:
Alcohol.
Added Sugar.
Excess Salt.
So then what should you eat? How do you translate this information into ways to eat to help your liver?
The best thing you can do to help repair your liver, from my experience is eating tons of fruits and vegetables. I ate over 12 servings per day to recover and rebuild my body.
Read more about these 11 foods that are particularly good for liver!
There are plenty of ways to get produce that doesn’t involve a salad! Want more ideas? Read how I do it (including pizza!) in my post here.
If you are having trouble getting enough produce, the easiest way to fix that is with Balance of Nature. It’s a good option as you are getting used to eating more fruits and vegetables.
What is Balance of Nature? It’s freeze-dried and powdered fruits and vegetables turned into 6 pills you take every day to ensure you get at least 10 servings of produce.
Remember that the best way to repair your body and prevent future damange is by getting tons of nutrients from fruits and vegetables.
That is why I like this - it serves as my insurance policy to cover my produce intake, and any I eat is an added bonus! Because there is no such thing as eating too many fruits and vegetables!
I wrote a review of the product in this blog post, but long story short, I liked the free month the company sent me so much that I have been a recurring customer for months now!
If you are interested in trying out Balance of Nature, you can get 35% off your first order with discount code SARA!
I also like to supplement all my fruits and veggies with a few drops of chlorophyll in my water through the day!
First of all, I adore chlorophyll. (I wrote about its benefits here if you want to know more about it and how it works.) It turns out that the compound that gives plants its pretty green color is a natural detoxifier, making it the perfect natural support for your biggest detoxing organ. My preferred way to get it is by adding it to my morning water.
Click here to try my favorite chlorophyll drops - for around $5 per month, it does not cost much to give your liver some extra help!
To summarize, repairing and preventing damage involves foods to avoid and foods to eat:
Would you like to take a first step to improve your liver health and increase your weight loss? Sign up for my FREE Liver-Friendly Sides Menu, complete with shopping list and recipes. It’s perfect for the holidays or any family meal:
