Commandment 1
 
FUEL

Why What You Eat Matters More Than How Much You Eat

 

You’ve heard it a thousand times: “Just eat less.”

 

But here’s the truth—what you eat matters far more than how much you eat.

 

You can cut calories all day, but if those calories are coming from processed, chemical-laden foods, you’re not fueling your body—you’re feeding the problem.

 

The fastest, most sustainable path to losing fat, building muscle, and feeling alive again after 40 is this:

Eat real food.

 

That means meat, vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, and other foods that come from the earth—not a factory.

 

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The Profit Motive That’s Making Us Fat

 

Here’s the hard truth: the modern grocery store is designed for profit, not for your health.

Walk through the middle aisles and you’ll find an endless supply of brightly packaged boxes, bags, and bottles—loaded with sugar, seed oils, and chemical additives. These foods are cheap to make, addictive by design, and have a shelf life measured in years, not days.

 

It’s not an accident.

It’s capitalism’s perfect formula:

Low cost to produce + high addiction factor = massive profit.

 

The result?

America is overfed and undernourished.

Our bodies are breaking down while corporations cash in.

 

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The Perimeter Rule

 

Here’s one simple shift that changes everything: Shop the perimeter.

 

That’s where the real food lives—meat, seafood, eggs, dairy, vegetables, fruits. The middle aisles? That’s where food goes to die… and where your health slowly dies with it.

 

Avoid labels with ingredient lists longer than a sentence. If it’s filled with words you can’t pronounce, there’s a good chance it’s not food at all.

 

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The Alcohol Factor

 

Alcohol is a double-edged sword when it comes to body recomposition:

• Empty calories that add up fast

• Slower recovery from workouts

• Hormone disruption, especially testosterone and growth hormone

• Poor sleep quality, even if you “pass out"

 

If you want real results, alcohol needs to be limited—and if you’re stuck, removing it completely (even for 30 days) can be a game-changer.

 

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The Sugar & Fake Sugar Trap

 

Added sugar is one of the fastest ways to spike insulin, pack on fat, and wreck energy. It’s in more than 70% of packaged foods—often hidden under names like maltodextrin, high fructose corn syrup, or dextrose.

 

But here’s the twist—artificial sweeteners like those in diet soda may be even worse for your metabolism and cravings. Research suggests they can disrupt gut health, trigger insulin responses, and keep your sweet tooth alive and well.

 

Bottom line: Sugar is addictive. Fake sugar keeps the addiction alive. Cut them both, and your body will thank you.