Dave Matusek
Trener fitness. Owner of Daves Fitness Formula. A personal trainer certified in nutrition and a self taught dietician, who focuses on a lectin free diet. www.instagram.com/davesfitnessformula
When we lose our job, a partner, or health, our lives usually reevaluate. Perhaps we need a drastic moment in life to make important changes for the better? Dave Matusek, now a fitness trainer, tells us about his story, he used to deal with garbage collection. Dr. Steven Gundry’s book on lectins helped him make his metamorphosis.
Żaneta Geltz: How have you encountered the medical practice of Dr. Steven Gundry?
Dave Matusek: I am 52 years old. I was a garbage man for 25 years. 4 years ago I suffered a new injury, which resulted in my 13th surgery on my body and second one of my left knee. This left me with no Cartlidge in my left knee and I was no longer able to do my job. About two years ago my wife Christine was diagnosed with celiac disease, so I knew we had to change the way we ate. I did not know much about this disease I only knew that she was gluten intolerant. As I did a moderate search on the Internet about gluten-free diets, an ad for Dr. Gundry came up.
It was fascinating to me that glutens were only 1/18th of the lectin family and I wanted to learn more about it. I read his book and I was just completely fascinated by it. I actually read the entire book in one day and I totally got everything that he was saying. It made so much sense to me.
Ż.G.: What kind of changes did you make?
D.M.: I immediately made plans to start the diet. I went online to thrive market and placed a huge order and when all my items arrived I dove right in. The three day cleanse was not the most pleasant experience but it is so necessary to the process. The first two weeks was probably the most difficult two weeks of my life as I was suffering from sugar withdrawls and the bad bacteria screaming for me to feed them sugar and starches.
Ż.G.: How does it make you feel?
D.M.: Well, you feel hungry all the time and craving food, but you’re really not in this. It is so important for people to realize that it’s just the bad bacteria screaming which are starving to death, so the constant craving and hunger is a great sign you’re on the right track. I also highly recommend that people join lectin free cooking you can google as many keto/lectin free recipes as possible.
Ż.G.: What would you like to tell others?
D.M.: I would tell everyone this is not a diet! A diet as a temporary change in your eating habits to elicit a certain result, which is normally weight loss. This is a change in a lifestyle! Once you learn how poisonous are so many foods on the shopping market shelves, you’re not even going to want to eat them!
Once you start eating organic and healthy – and yes it does cost more money – but in the long run you eat less food, so it comes out to about the same. Plus how much is all your trips to the doctor and all those medications costing you?
Ż.G.: So, what is the next step in the proces?
D.M.: So, the process is simple: three day cleanse, two weeks no starches or sugars and when the bad bacteria dies, you’ll probably lose 8 to 10 pounds of unhealthy bacteria and bloat. Bloat by my definition is undigested food stuck inside your intestines. It is so unhealthy to have it there, just as if you left a pile of garbage in the middle of your kitchen for years! Think, what the effects would be?
After the two weeks you can start adding back carbohydrates like fruit, berries. The further you get into the program the more things you could start adding back to your diet. You would not believe how unhealthy tomatoes oatmeal and whole-grain bread really are for your body. It takes eight weeks to change your life. Science says it takes eight weeks for most most people with unhealthy obsessions or habits to break those habits. Also, after eight weeks most of the bad bacteria is dead and gone. Your healthy gut bacteria numbers have risen dramatically, your digestion has improved, you’ve lost a lot of weight, inflammation throughout your body has greatly decreased and your health is improved dramatically.
Ż.G.: What was your aim?
D.M.: You see, this change in lifestyle it’s not about losing weight, it’s about being healthier. Four years ago I had a cardiac calcium score test done on my heart. The score came out to be a four. Four is a very good score, but I had that same test done three weeks ago and the test came out to be zero! I have zero plaque buildup in my heart and arteries surrounding it. I am not on a single medication. It is so important for people to realize how the food they eat interacts with their body, and their gut bacteria which ultimately determines their health. After Week 8 you could start adding things like tomatoes, zucchini and squash back to your diet, but it must be cooked in a pressure cooker, which will kill the lectins that remain in the fruits and vegetables.
So now I say at this point in my life two years later 50 pounds lighter and zero medications that this was the right decision to make for me and my family. I now enjoy riding a bike, playing golf andI go to the gym 3 to 4 times a week. I have no proof of this and maybe it’s just the 50 pounds I lost but I feel my left knee the Cartlidge has been rebuilding itself. I have no pain no stiffness and I’m doing activities I haven’t done in 15 years.
Ż.G.: How your family feels about it?
D.M.: My wife Christine has also seen the benefits. She lost 12 pounds and she is more active with outdoor activities. When people see me now, especially if they haven’t seen me for a while, they are amazed. They always ask “are you still on that diet?” or “I don’t think I could do it I love my sugar – I love pasta!”. But if they just read that book and other books on good bacteria, they would understand why these foods just simply cannot be consumed by humans. Do not trust TV ads and lobbyist groups.
Ż.G.: So, you don’t buy advertised products?
D.M.: Remember, in the 70s smoking cigarettes made you mature, happy and relaxed. Eating store-bought food that’s pre-prepared turns out to be disastrous to your health. Eating at fast food restaurants is the fast track to cardiac and health issues. I think if my friends just gave the program a chance they would realize once you start eating healthy those are the foods you will start craving. I simply crave vegetables and salads more than I do cookies and ice cream! Now, I can have ice cream if I like, but when I try it it’s just so sweet now! It’s actually repulsive.
I have learned how to make my own chocolates, my own cakes and desserts and people are amazed at the taste and moisture of the items I make. I actually hear all the time “I can actually eat this, are you serious?”. And I say „you could eat it and you can have as much of it as you like”. It’s not how much food you eat, it’s the types of food you eat that make you gain weight and make you sick!
I eat 5 to 6 small meals every day, eggs and meat for breakfast alternating with millet on the other days. Nuts as a snack. Salad with chicken and goat cheese and vinaigrette dressing for lunch. Parmesan cheese or homemade chocolate as a snack. Then a healthy dinner. Maybe 4 ounces of meat, tons of vegetables cabbage being my new favorite. And then a light snack after dinner probably more nuts with my homemade chocolate or a piece of my homemade cake. This is important I rarely eat after 7:30 PM. Before I go to bed I drink 14 ounces of water and when I wake up in the morning I drink 14 ounces more of water. Most of the people don’t realize how dehydrated their body is from sleeping all night long. The last thing you want to do is start off your morning with a cup of coffee which is a diuretic. Like watering a flower you must give your body water to start the day. It aids in digestion, helps lubricate your organs and it’s good for your skin hair and nails.
Ż.G.: It sounds great! What do your friends say?
D.M.: I’m not sure what’s more difficult for my friends: changing the way they eat or battling the beliefs, which have been beaten into society’s head of what is healthy to eat. The food pyramid in the United States is completely wrong! It is the influence of big money with the governments backing. Just remember this: the government says it’s safe for us to consume in small amounts things like arsenic, mercury, the poisonous pesticides from Monsanto, that are used on all commercial produce, genetically modified foods, which were never meant for human consumption, not to mention all the food colorings and preservatives, which are banned in many other countries. Then, the meats that have been fed with genetically modified food for purpose of making them fat, which makes them worth more money.
Remember, you are what you eat and you are what you eat eats! If the cows are being fed genetically modified foods, their meat is loaded with chemicals, steroids and genetically modified corns, all of which are very unhealthy for human consumption, which leads to all of our countries horrible health issues.
Why is it that we are the richest country in the world and yet ,we are the sickest country of the civilized nations? We have the highest rate of cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, arthritis, high blood pressure, autism and the highest rate of heart disease in the world. We need to understand: all the chemicals that our government allows to be put in our foods as preservatives are so unhealthy for you, your organs and your gut bacteria.
I thank you for taking the time to listen to my story and I hope it inspires you to look very closely into the food you eat, the exercise you get and your general health.
DAVE MATUSEK – Follow Instagram account: Dave’sFitnessformula
