12 Steps to Whole Foods

Preface
choosing to adopt a whole-food lifestyle—I could write a whole chapter just on that topic. I have felt very
grateful for the results of that choice and ensuing choices, and I have come to feel certain in the past few years
that my purpose in life is greater than just to help my children out of their chronic health problems. I feel a
drive and an obligation to help others—especially parents who will feed and teach the next generation—learn
and apply knowledge about whole foods that is altogether too rare in a world of convenience food.
I have written this course imagining you and thinking of what your hopes and dreams are. I picture you to be
someone who doesn’t always make good nutritional choices, but who wants to improve your health. As long as
it isn’t too hard and as long as you still get to have fun, right? You might be a mother or father who desperately
loves your children and doesn’t want to cause health problems for them with nutritional deficiencies or weight
problems. How am I doing so far?
This course is my effort to flatten the learning curve for everyone else, now that I’ve done it the hard way. I
always wished that just one book contained all the things I wanted to learn about—mostly because people
always ask me, “Tell me the one book I should read.” I have an arsenal of books that have added new facets to
my knowledge of nutrition, but I have never found one definitive book or resource. Thus, 12 Steps to Whole
Foods is the culmination of all the nutritional principles I find worthwhile and valuable.
The thing I hear most often teaching nutrition classes or counseling people is “I’m overwhelmed—where do I
start? Tell me what to eat!”
You can’t eat a whole elephant in one sitting…and because I want you to have a successful experience, I
suggest you don’t try to do everything at once. The premise of this book is that you can tackle one new
nutrition habit a month in your quest to replace refined foods with whole-food, plant-based meals that are at
least 60% raw. Find your favorite recipes within that chapter and habit and get in the zone of mastering that one
simple thing. If one chapter a month is too many, slow down and take it at your own pace. If you do just the
first month of this program and keep that habit for life, you’re far, far ahead of 98% of Americans!
I’ll be your guide for each new habit, condensing for you the best practices from my huge library of nutrition
research. I’ll give you tips to save time and money as you improve your family’s diet and, ultimately, their
health and well-being.
At the end of a year, you will be astonished at how you have become a whole-foods family, miles ahead of
where you were a year ago, with knowledge and recipes and tools. That may be your only goal right now, but I
assure you that you can also be an example, resource, and blessing to many people in your life who are
struggling.
Rather than reading this course through, skim it if you want. But just read one chapter before each month
begins—then at the first of each month, you should have on hand anything needed for that month’s goal. After
reading the chapter, you’ll know why its nutrition principle is important and how you can implement it, with
recipes and ideas to get started. At the end of each month, document any changes in your health, attitude, and
energy that result from the new habit in the Journal Entry section at the end of each step/chapter’s introduction.
The idea is not to tackle the project of “getting healthy” all at once in January! Too many people have tried and
failed, fallen off the wagon, gotten discouraged, and quit. My goal with this book is to help you take baby
steps. But although they're slowly paced steps, they’re actually very significant steps that will add years to your
life—and life to your years.
6 12 Steps to Whole Foods
© Copyright Robyn Openshaw