Welcome To The Fast!
What you embody...is the divine present bestowed upon you by God. The way you shape yourself is your offering back to God. Periodically, we must heed God's call to "pause" the chaos of the world and prioritize our physical well-being. God has provided a means for Jesus to spread His love, goodness, and blessings for a life of abundance. Our focus will be on the Daniels Fast, which emphasizes the importance of consuming healthy whole foods in large quantities and staying hydrated.
The Daniel Fast diet has been modernized in the book Mastering Diabetes, which caters to individuals who are already in good health and wish to maintain it, as well as those who are facing health challenges or have pre-diabetes and diabetes. The book offers guidelines that provide additional structure to the Daniel Fast by highlighting low-fat, plant-based foods that have anti-inflammatory properties, while also identifying foods that can cause inflammation. Inflammation and insulin resistance are the root causes of many ailments, diseases, and conditions.
This eating plan involves consuming a variety of unprocessed plant foods, such as vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts, seeds, and whole grains, while avoiding saturated and added fats. Animal products like meat, poultry, fish, dairy, and eggs are not included.
Objectives
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Never leave the table hungry. Eat until you are reasonably full. Try to eat three meals daily without skipping breakfast. Snack if needed on healthy food items.
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Do the best you can with what you have.
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Eliminate added oils and cheeses, but include oils that exist in all plants. This encourages consistent weight loss and supports better use and absorption of insulin.
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No added sugars or sweeteners. Use only natural plant sugars included in all plants. This encourages fewer sugar or glucose spikes in the blood.
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Include one (1) tablespoon of flaxseeds or chia seeds daily for omega-3s.
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Balance meals with foods containing carbohydrates and vegetables.
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Obtain protein sources from plants and limited seeds daily; limit nuts because some have a high-fat content. When possible, try to use raw nuts soaked for 6-8 hours and dried. Dry roasted nuts have some diminished nutrients.
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Fruits and vegetables should be included in various forms daily—emphasis on pairing a whole food carbohydrate of fruit and vegetables.
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Use creative skills to evaluate your current recipes, and prepare recipes with no added fat and no added sugar.
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Stock your food supplies to include some basic staples of rice, beans, canned fruits, oatmeal, canned vegetables including frozen items if needed, spices and others desired.
Suggested Food Chart
Eat all you want from the Green Light Food List, a modest amount from the Yellow Light List, and almost none from the Red Light Foods List.
Red Light Foods
1. Fruits (e.g., bananas, mangoes, oranges
others of your choice)
2. Starchy vegetables (e.g., potatoes of all
kinds, butternut squash, corn fresh, frozen,
or canned, all other root vegetables.)
3. Legumes (e.g., beans, lentils, peas of
all kinds.)
4. Intact whole grains (e.g., brown rice,
quinoa, farro, oatmeal excluding instant
oatmeal, millet, bulgur, barley, buckwheat.)
5. Non-starchy vegetables (e.g., tomatoes,
cucumbers, broccoli.)
6. Leafy green (e.g., lettuce of all kinds,
arugula, spinach, greens)
7. Herbs and spices - all types (fresh or
dried)
8. Mushrooms (e.g., shitake, cremini,
portobello and all kinds)
Red Light Foods
1. Avocados
2. Nuts and seeds
3. Nut and seed butter
4. Plant-based milk
5. Coconut meat
6. Soy products (e.g.,
Edamame, tofu, tempeh)
7. Olives
8. Pasta alternatives (e.g.,
lentil, bean, brown rice.)
9. Sprouted bread
10. Dried fruits (e.g.,
dates, raisins, dried
apricots).
11. Fermented foods (e.g.,
sauerkraut, kimchi,
coconut kefir).
Red Light Foods
1. Red Meat
2. White meat
3. Eggs
4. Dairy products of all kinds
5. Oils of all kinds – help reduces omega 6s to omega 3s.
6. Fish and shellfish
7. Baked Goods (Processed goods of all kinds e.g., croissants, muffins, donuts, cookies, cakes, rolls, corn bread.)
8. Sweeteners (e.g., High fructose corn syrup, sorbitol. Maltodextrin)
9. Refined “white” foods (e.g., white pasta, white bread, white sugar, white flour, refined grits, and refined corn.)
10. Coconut products (processed, high-caloric products e.g., yogurt and ice cream; excluding coconut kefir and aminos.)
11. Processed vegan foods (e.g.
Processed veggie burgers, vegan cheeses, nut milk ice creams.)
Minimally processed or whole plant foods
containing a higher fat content
Animal products and highly processed
foods
Unprocessed whole plant foods naturally low in fat,
can be fresh, frozen, or canned without added
sugar
Green Light Foods
Yellow Light Foods
RECIPES
Suggested Beverage Chart
Drink all you want from the Green Light List, a modest amount from the Yellow Light List, and almost none from the Red Light List.
1. Water
2. Vinegars -naturally brewed, exclude distilled vinegars.
3. Tomato Juice
4. Lemon or lime juice
5. Homemade vegetable broth (no added salt)
6. Green Teas
7. Herbal Teas – true herbal teas are generally caffeine -free.
8. Carbonated Water – includes seltzer water, club soda, sparkling mineral
water, tonic water, as much as you like. Exclude waters with natural flavors
or sweeteners.
9. Green Juices from leafy green combinations such as cucumber, celery
lettuce, and tomato.
10. Ginger Water made from powdered or fresh
ginger.
1. Coconut water
2. Plant Based Milks such as almond, cashew, coconut, hemp, oat, rice, soy, and quinoa milk.
3. Starch-Based vegetable juices such as carrots,
4. Kombucha – known for its health benefits but include in yellow group
because of residual sugars from fermentation.
5. Fresh Fruit Juices – fresh-squeezed orange juice or other fruit juices.
1. Alcohol – all types
2. Sodas – all types because of high sugar or sweetener content.
3. Sweetened Tea, Energy Drinks, and
Sports Drinks – high in added sugars
and additives.
4. Cocoa Drinks – high in added sugar
and dairy content.