Back in the 1970’s, Jim Fixx was a well-known celebrity. In 1977, he wrote the best-seller, The Complete Book of Running. He also helped start America’s fitness revolution by making running a popular sport, especially the health benefits of regular jogging.

One day, he was interviewed by radio talk show host Betty Sanders. She began by saying, “Jim, I understand you run 10 miles a day. What kind of crazy person would take the time to run 10 miles every day? Why do you do that?”

Without missing a beat, Fixx replied, “When I run 10 miles a day, I can eat anything I want.” It was an awesome comeback. But was it true? Can we eat anything we want if we get enough exercise? Jim Fixx soon found out. About two years after this interview, when Fixx was only 52 years old, he died of a massive heart attack. Halfway through his usual 10-mile run, he collapsed and died. The fitness world was stunned! How could someone as fit and lean as Jim Fixx die from a heart attack?

It’s true Fixx didn’t have to worry about what he ate when it came to losing weight. He could run off those extra calories. But when it comes to cardiovascular risk, it doesn’t work that way. You can burn off a little of the cardio risk, but not most of it. This is why we often hear, “You can’t outrun a bad diet.” Because health depends on more than how much you weigh or what size swimsuit you can fit into. It matters what’s happening on the inside, especially to your heart and brain.

What can we do to do all three–stay slim and trim and also lower our risk for heart disease and strokes?

Master the Secret of Calorie Density

If a food is calorie-dense, that means it is high in calories and lower in healthy nutrients. Here is a list of calories per pound for many common foods in our diets:

HIGH CALORIE-DENSE FOODS

• 4000 calories = All oils 
• 2800 calories = Nuts, seeds, and butters 
• 2700 calories = Cakes and donuts
• 2500 calories = Chocolate
• 1800 calories = Table sugar and agave
• 1700 calories = Breads and pastries
• 1400 calories = Cheese and ice-cream
•   800 calories = Meat and dairy
•   750 calories = Avocado

LOW CALORIE-DENSE FOODS

•   600 calories = Beans, peas, and lentils
•   500 calories = Whole grains (whole wheat, brown rice, quinoa)
•   450 calories = Potatoes, corn, and squash
•   400 calories = Oats
•   250 calories = Fruit
•   150 calories = Non-starchy vegetables 

In a nutshell, the most calorie-dense foods include oils, nuts, rich desserts, avocados, dairy products, and meats. However, most plant foods are low-calorie foods (nuts and avocado are the exceptions). They are nutrient-dense, providing more healthy components to help you live longer and feel better. People who are the most successful at losing weight and keeping it off, eat nutrient-dense foods like fruits, vegetables, beans, and whole grains. They also whole fats from nuts, seeds, olives, and some avocado for maintaining a healthy diet.

But will this kind of plant-based eating actually help you live longer and feel better? It happens in Okinawa, Japan. On this beautiful island, you will find the highest life expectancy of any country in the world. Okinawa has the lowest rates for heart disease, stroke, and cancer, three of the top killers across the United States and Canada. What could be the secret to their vibrant health? A 25-year study of Okinawans revealed that one of their top health secrets stems from eating at least 7 servings of fruits and vegetables daily, all nutrient-rich foods. They have mastered the secret of calorie density and you can too.

Master the Secret of Fiber

When it comes to weight loss, fiber is your friend. A high-fiber diet keeps you feeling fuller longer, which can help prevent overeating or snacking between meals. Fiber is only founds in plant foods, such as whole grain breads and cereals, beans and starchy vegetables (i.e. corn and winter squashes), fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds. Fiber can also lower your cholesterol, better regulate your blood sugars, help prevent intestinal cancer, and prevent or relieve constipation.

Here are some easy ways you can add more fiber to your meals:

1. Choose products that have a whole grain listed as the first ingredient, not enriched flour. Whole wheat flour is a whole grain, wheat flour is not.
2. Choose whole grain breads with 2-4 grams of fiber per slice.
3. Choose breakfast cereals with at least 5 grams of fiber per serving. Some healthy options include Bran Flakes, Cheerios, Oatmeal, Shredded Wheat, and All-Bran. 
4. Choose raw fruits and vegetables in place of juice and don’t forget to eat the skins.
5. Try some new fiber choices such as whole buckwheat, whole-wheat couscous, quinoa, bulgar, wheat germ, chia seeds, hemp seeds, lentil pasta, and edame pasta.
6. Popcorn is a whole grain. Serve it low-fat without butter or margarine or oil. Try using a hot air popper for a light supper choice. It is delicious with some salt and nutritional yeast flakes.
7. Use dried beans, peas, and lentils in main dishes, salads, veggie burgers, casseroles, or side dishes. Brown rice or whole grain pastas are a super partner with all kinds of beans.
8. Add some dried fruit to your cereal, rice, and baked goods.
9. Try brown rice and whole-grain pastas.

The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics recommends that you get 25-35 grams of fiber daily. However, for people over 70 years old, this can be reduced to 21 grams for women and 30 grams for men. If you are trying to lose weight, aim for 30-35 grams of fiber each day.

Ask yourself this week: How can I add more beans to my meal or more leafy vegetables to this dish? What can I do to eat more plant foods? That’s the way to master the secret of fiber. 

Master the Secret of the Glass

If you want to be successful in losing weight and keeping it off or if you just want to improve your health in general, it matters what you drink. Dr Michelle McMacken from NYC Lifestyle Medicine Program tells us, “Don’t drink your calories, especially with sports drinks, sodas, alcohol, or other sweetened beverages. The calories in these drinks add up fast and don’t fill you up. And for weight loss, in my experience, eating whole fruit trumps drinking fruit juice. And water is the only beverage we actually need.”

How do they affect our longevity? A new study followed more than 450,000 people from 10 countries for up to 19 years and found that people who drank 2 or more glasses of soda had a higher risk of dying from any cause of disease than those who didn’t drink soda.

They also had a higher risk of dying from digestive disorders. Why digestive disorders? Well, it turns out that high blood sugar and high sugar intake can impair our gut barrier.This leads to a damaged immune system in the gut which can cause intestinal inflammation, alter your gut microbiota (which we looked at last month) and increase your body’s ability to get more infections. Eventually, it can lead to digestive diseases.

The best beverage is simple water. It will not only help you lose weight, improve your digestion, but it can also reduce your risk of colon cancer by 45% and bladder cancer by 50%.

Master the Secret of the Plate

It turns out your mother was right when she told you, “Eat your vegetables.” All veggies are powerhouses for nutrition, but dark green leafy vegetables are at the top of the list. Veggies like spinach, kale, cabbage, swiss chard, collards, and lettuces are especially beneficial.

All green leafy vegetables contain an interesting compound known as thylakoid. It’s one of those super-powers in the food world because it has the ability to turn off your hunger switch and help you fight cravings for unhealthy foods. You can tap into this super-power by filling half your dinner plate with dark green leafy vegetables. Fill up with some broccoli, a tasty salad with spinach and Romaine, a side dish of roasted brussel sprouts. These are some of the most nutrient-dense foods on the planet, designed to boost your heart health and lower your risk for many cancers (including cancers of the breast, lung, and prostate). Fill up with greens to master this vital secret for losing weight and living a longer and healthier life.

Master the Secret of Motion

Last, but not least, make exercise a regular part of your day. Go for activities you enjoy so you’ll be more likely to stick with it. The ideal plan is to find ways to increase muscle strength, endurance, balance, and flexibility–not merely focusing on cardio exercise like walking and jogging.

A tip I like to use is called K.I.S.S. In other words, “Keep It Super Simple.” Simply make a start wherever you are. If your time is limited and you’re not used to working out, start out small. Even 5 minutes can give you some health benefits. Walking is the easiest way to get started–it’s low-impact, so it will be friendly to your muscles and joints that aren’t used to moving as much. And you don’t need a lot of expensive equipment.

My husband and I have found that going out soon after we eat (usually breakfast and lunch) has paid huge dividends. It’s improved our digestion, lowered our weight, removed joint pain, and much more. Daily exercise is the perfect partner for eating healthy meals with lots of plant foods.

Will going for a walk help you live longer and feel better? A study from the American Cancer Society followed 140,000 adults and reported that those who walked 6 hours a week had lower risks for heart disease, respiratory disease, and cancer than those who weren’t active. Even walking as little as 2 hours per week could start you reducing the risk of disease, helping you to live longer and feel better.

As you get started in mastering these 5 secrets to natural health, you’ll reap huge rewards that will provide more energy, more success in managing your weight, and help you reduce your risk for the serious diseases like heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and many forms of cancer.

Think of every day as a new start. Don’t allow what happened yesterday to shape you. Begin today to master one or more of these secrets to live well naturally–for greater health and strength.