Right Weigh

User Guide
Welcome to the Right Weigh program! Over the next 12 weeks, you will learn how to Think, Eat, and Move your way towards
decreased weight and increased health. The Right Weigh program is not a traditional dietit is a set of principles that you should
use for the rest of your life.
The format of the program is simple. Each week, you will have a new Think, Eat, and Move section to read. This material builds
upon itself, and some of it is phase specific, so its important to follow the correct order. Some sections are strictly informational,
and others are interactive. After you review the information, you will set Think, Eat, and Move goals to work on during the week,
and will track your food and activity in a food journal. At the end of each week, you should review your progress, and prepare to
move forward.

The guide below will give you an overview of the topics youll learn about during the Right Weigh program

Week 0 (Baseline)

Right Weigh Commitment

Week 1 (Phase 1)

Think: Its Your Choice

Eat: Right Weigh Phase 1
Move: Make the KAMitment

Week 2 (Phase 1)
Think: Smart Goals
Eat: Meal Planning
Move: KAM Points

Week 3 (Phase 2)

Think: Whats Holding You Back?

Eat: Right Food Right Amount
Move: Plan to Increase

Week 4 (Phase 2)
Think: Positive Self-talk
Eat: The Power of Protein
Move: Plan for Success

Week 5 (Phase 2)

Think: Change Your Environment

Eat: Vegetables: Getting More for Less
Move: Three Types of Exercise

Week 6 (Phase 2)

Think: Emotional Eating

Eat: Carbohydrates
Move: Exercise & Metabolism

Week 7 (Phase 2)

Think: Review
Eat: Fiber & Alternate Sources of Protein
Move: Activity & Stress

Week 8 (Phase 2)

Think: Reading Food Labels

Eat: Fat
Move: Change It Up

Week 9 (Phase 2)

Think: Social Life

Eat: Dining Out
Move: Exercise Personality

Week 10 (Phase 2)

Think: Change Your Thinking

Eat: Fruits & Veggies
Move: Energy for Exercise

Week 11 (Phase 2)
Think: Self-Efficacy
Eat: Beverages
Move: Making It Stick

Week 12 (Phase 3)

Think: Rate Your Fullness

Eat: Right Weigh for Life
Move: Exercise & Long-Term Success

Introduction
Dear Right Weigh Participant,
As a long-time doctor and the CEO of Kersh Health, one of my driving passions is healing people. This is why I envisioned the
Right Weigh programto help people lose weight and ultimately heal their bodies.
If you have lost and regained weight, never lost weight but wanted to, or even failed and given up, then you have come to the
right place. The Right Weigh program is designed specifically for you. I will show you how you came to be overweight, why
other diets have failed you and what you can do achieve long term success.
The Right Weigh program is not a diet in a traditional sense. It is not a low carbohydrate diet or low-fat diet or even a high
protein diet. Most diets focus specifically on what you can or cant eat for a limited period of time, and are either unrealistic
in their expectations or exaggerated in their claims. Instead, the Right Weigh program has a few simple rules focused on
changing the crucial elements that affect your weightthe way you THINK, EAT, and MOVE.
Right Weigh teaches you to think about and use food in a way that will let you lose weight effortlessly. You wont believe that
you are on a diet, but you will notice that your clothes dont fit and you feel better with more energy. Your blood work will show
changes with a lower cholesterol and blood sugar. Some have seen a weight loss of 5 to 10 pounds over the first two weeks.
The food you will eat is real foodwhole food. You can eat normal sized servings of meat, chicken, turkey, fish and shellfish.
You will have lots of vegetables along with cheese, eggs, nuts and salads with olive oil. With three balanced meals a day
and two snacks, you will not find yourself hungry or deprived like most diets. You can even have dessert after dinner. You
will drink water, coffee, or tea based on your personal preference.
Right Weigh is based on three simple principles that will cause you to lose weight and regain your health: eating the right
kind of food, eating the right amount of food and having the right thinking about how to use food in your life.

Phase 1 Getting Started

You will try many new foods, tastes and textures during the first two weeks of the Right Weigh program. The food you will
eat is real foodwhole food. You will eat lots of vegetables, lean meats, low fat dairy products, nuts and other healthy fats.
Bread, rice, potatoes, pasta, baked items, candy, ice cream, cakes, pies or sugar and fruit will be eliminated from your diet, as
will beer and alcohol. You can, however, snack on some sugar-free treats to help satisfy your sweet tooth. This is the strictest
phase of your dietary renaissance and for a very good reason.
The current foods that you are eating are the ones that got you where you are: overweight, tired with high blood lipids,
blood sugar or blood pressure. Food is a chemical made of many different compounds that are highly bioactive. Each food
has specific chemicals that can activate very specific biological events and stimulate specific gene expressions causing a
cascade of specific physiological activity. The kind of food you are eating is turning on a set of genes that is making you
overweight and causing you to crave and eat the foods that you are now eating.
By choosing to eat some foods and choosing not to eat others, you will turn off the genes that are making you overweight
and turn on the genes that will tell your body to burn fat. It takes about two weeks to re-program the genes in your bodys
cells. This is why the first two weeks are so important. You are re-engineering the genes that tell your body to store fat.
During this time, to your surprise, cravings will disappear and you will lose weight.
As I said, this is not a diet. There is no calorie counting, weighing or measuring food. You will also not be eating less food.
Instead, Right Weigh has a few simple rules. One of these rules is to eat the right kind of food. You now know that some
food will make a person overweight, turning on genes that tell the body to store fat. When this happens, blood fats and
sugar can rise causing insulin resistance. Insulin resistance is thought to be the real driver behind diabetes, heart disease
and many cancers. So as you can see, some kinds of food can make you overweight and sick.

Other kinds of food, however, can turn on a different set of genes that tell your body to burn fat. As this happens, insulin
levels as well as blood sugar and fats can return to normal. When you eat this kind of food you will lose weight and change
your body chemistry to prevent diabetes or heart disease. What is the right kind of food? The right kind of food is food that
tastes good, helps you lose and maintain your weight, and doesnt make you sick. Learning about these foods and how to
use them is priority number one. These foods will keep you lean and healthy for life.

Phase 2 Moving On
After the first two weeks when your body has turned on its fat burning genes, you will enter Phase 2. The goal of this phase
is to select the right kinds of foods those that you enjoy eating and allow you to continue to lose weight. During Phase Two,
you will gradually re-introduce healthy carbohydrate foods, like whole grain bread, whole wheat pasta, high-fiber cereal and
oatmeal. You can also add one serving of fruit per day. You will continue to avoid foods with little nutritional value, such as
white bread, baked goods, and ice cream.
The secret to adding more carbohydrates back into your diet is to do it in a manner that allows you to continue to lose
weight. If you add two slices of bread, an apple and strawberries and you continue to lose weight, thats great. But if your
weight loss stops or you begin to gain weight then you have gone too far. If you stop losing weight when you eat bread, try to
add a different carbohydrate like oatmeal or a sweet potato. You will need to discover for yourself what works for you during
this crucial phase.
As you add healthy carbohydrates in Phase 2 you may discover that your weight loss slows to one to two pounds per week.
This is to be expected.
There is considerable mystery surrounding carbohydrates: good carbohydrates, bad carbohydrates, simple carbohydrates,
complex carbohydrates, refined and processed. Most of your weight gain has come about because you are not eating
the right carbohydrates. Unhealthy carbohydrates (typically found in processed foods) can cause excessive spikes in your
bodys insulin production and can turn on your store fat genes.
However, not all carbohydrates are created equal. Healthy carbohydrates can turn on your burn fat genes and allow your body
to respond to the sugar contained in these foods in a way that does not cause the release of excessive insulin, which converts
sugar into fat and stores it in your fat cells. Healthy carbohydrates are high in fiber, and are part of what make vegetables and
fruit so healthy. They are often found in real foodfood without any labels. Once you remove the refined, processed carbohydrates from your diet you will begin to lose weight naturally, your cravings will disappear, and your blood chemistry will change.

The Right Amount of Food

The second principle is eating the right amount of food. This means eating the right foods in amounts that will
allow you to continue to lose weight or maintain your desired weight. In order to achieve this, follow a few simple
rules. First, there are some foods you can eat in unlimited amounts. There other kinds of food that you can eat in
limited amounts as long as you continue to lose weight. Finally, there are foods that you will want to avoid or eat
rarely. This last group contains foods that will activate your fat-storing and change the way your body utilizes
sugar. That is why they are cautionary foods. As long as you follow these simple guidelines you will lose weight,
without feeling hungry or deprived.

The Right Thinking

Throughout most of human history having enough food to eat was the primary problem of survival. In our modern
world we face the issue of oversupply. We have too much food. Food that is always there, always available at the
drive thru or in the refrigerator, at a meeting or gas station. It is constantly in front of us. One of the consequences
of this constant availability is that we have to say to ourselves,No, Im not hungry. Im not going to eat. Having to
say no over time is fatiguing. Eventually we find ourselves eating even though we are not hungry. We start to eat
on cues that are independent from our hunger drive. We eat socially or for taste or to medicate ourselves because
certain foods make us feel good or because we are bored. Food can become a friend and a comforter.
We also like to believe that food is harmless and safe as long as it is not spoiled and contains no bacteria. We prefer
to think of food as neutral when it comes to health, the only consideration being that we do not over indulge and eat
too much. Other than this, we like to eat what we want, when we want and dont want to be bothered with the details
or consequences. We like to eat and the satisfaction of what we eat is the primary goal of eating, not health.
I have always said if you are overweight you think differently about food than someone who is thin. How does a thin
person think about food? For one thing, thin people think about the consequences of what they eat. They enjoy
good food, tasty food. Personal satisfaction is not sacrificed, but they discriminate between different kinds of food.
They do not consider all food equal. Their first consideration is: is this good for me, will it help or do me harm. If it
passes that test, then does it taste good? Do I enjoy eating it?
Here is a question for you. When do you stop eating? Do you stop when your plate is empty and the food is gone
or can you leave food behind? What makes you say,Im finished? A thin person can leave food on their plate.
There is no compulsion to eat everything. In their mind its okay to leave something behind. They would say they
feel full. A signal exists inside of their head that says,Im done. I dont need or want anymore.
Not so with how someone who is overweight thinks about food. They are finished when the food is gone, when
there is nothing left to eat. If the ice cream cup holds two scoops, then two scoops are eaten. If it holds three
scoops, then three scoops are eaten. They do not set boundaries on how much they are going to eat nor do they
follow internal signals that tell them to stop.
You can see that having the right thinking can play a major role in losing weight and maintaining weight over time.
Right Weigh will teach you how to think about food and use food in your life.

Phase 3
Once you have reached your goal weight, you will enter Phase 3. Phase 3 is focused on maintaining your goal weight and
optimizing your health. You will learn lots of strategies that will ensure the long term success of managing your weight over
time. For example, being physically active is a long term strategy that will keep your metabolism high and maintain your
goal weight. Eating foods that are less energy dense and have more volume is another weight maintenance strategy. So,
eating a salad instead of fish is substituting a low energy, high volume food for a very dense energy food with little volume
that will guarantee your long-term goal weight. All of these and many more tips and insights will make sure that you will
keep what you have achieved without the fear of falling back to habits of your past.

The other goal of Phase 3 is to optimize your health. By optimizing your health I mean restoring any physical damage your
body has to its former normal disease free condition. It also means preventing any future disease and increasing the quality
and length of your life. It means that if you have heart disease, it is possible to restore your arteries to their former plaque
free state, or if you are a pre-diabetic you can prevent ever becoming a diabetic.
In Phase 2 the foods you ate not only caused you to lose weight but they reversed many of the metabolic abnormalities of
your blood. Your cholesterol and triglycerides were lower. Your insulin levels fell and your blood sugar levels moved into the
normal range. All of this was accomplished because of the right kind of food you were eating. If you have heart disease
or are a pre-diabetic or diabetic and you want to restore your heart vessels or insulin physiology to normal or prevent any
future events then here is the next step. Phase 3 is about restoring health, preventing disease and longevity.
The backbone of Phase 1 and Phase 2 was the liberal use of plants within your diet. In Phase 1 you ate a balance between
animal and plant food. In Phase 2 you added selected carbohydrates to this balance of plant and animal foods. All of these
foods were the right kind of foods to cause you to lose weight and reverse many abnormal metabolic findings. In order to
achieve optimal health for restoration, prevention and longevity after you have reached your goal weight you will need to tilt
the pendulum even more toward eating plant foods rather than eating animal foods.
In 2009 Dr. T. Campbell published a report called The China Study. This is a well documented and researched work
spanning a period of 25 years. Dr. Campbell conducted this study in conjunction with the government of China in order to
determine the relationship between what people ate and their health. He statistically documented over 8,000 relationships
between food, health and disease.
He found that people who ate a plant centered diet instead of an animal centered diet had lower blood cholesterol. The
average blood cholesterol in China was around 117 mg compared to most Americans who have levels over 215 mg. His
studies revealed that populations that ate animal based foods were linked to higher breast cancer rates; plant based
foods were linked to lower rates. Populations who ate high fiber diets from fruits and vegetables rich in micronutrients and
antioxidants had lower risk of cancer in their esophagus, stomach and colon. Animal centered diets were much higher. People
who had a plant based diet were thinner and maintained their weight. During the observation period of 1973-1975, not
one person under the age of 64 died of coronary heart disease among 246,000 men and 181,000 women. Dr. Campbells
research clearly established the link between what we eat and our health and the message was clear. Eat real, whole food and
mostly plants.
What is different about the way these rural Chinese people eat and the way we eat in America? They eat very little sugar. They
eat real, whole food instead of processed food in packages, or boxes. They dont eat at restaurants and do their own cooking.
Their diet is plant based, but they are not vegetarians. They do eat some animal protein but it is not the entre. It is a side dish
eaten occasionally. To maintain a healthy weight and body, the majority of your food should be unprocessed, plant-based food.
So, in Phase 3 you have a choice. If weight loss is your primary goal, then you can continue eating the foods you have
been eating in Phase 2. Phase 3 will be focused on strategies that will ensure that you maintain your weight over time. If,
however, you what to optimize your health and restore diseased tissue to its prior normal state or prevent specific diseases
or live longer then Phase 3 will be focused on not only maintaining your goal weight but optimizing your health. This means
you will need to tweak your diet so that it becomes more plant centered than the foods you ate in Phase 2. The Right Foods
for optimizing health in Phase 3 can be found in Week 12.

Getting Started
I have given you a big picture view of the Right Weigh program. As you follow the Right Weigh principles, you will start to
lose weight and will be able to keep it off. In addition, you may lower your cholesterol and blood sugar, heal your heart and
reduce your risk for cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
Each week focuses on the principles of the Right Weigh program under the headings: THINK, EAT, and MOVE. In the THINK
section you will acquire the right kind of thinking to use food successfully in your life. The EAT section of the program will
help you learn to eat the right kinds of food. Through the MOVE section you will learn why energy balance is important and
how you can achieve this by moving more and sitting less.
I know you are anxious to get started so lets begin! Over the next few pages, you will learn more about the Right Weigh
program and what is required of you. Read it carefully. All aspects of this program, including the food journal, meal plans,
recipes, and education material were designed by medical professionals to help you lose weight and improve your health.
Make the commitment to take control of your weight. As you go through the program, you may start to go off track. Thats OK.
Just turn around and start back in the right direction. Remember, there is plenty of help and you are not alone.
Yours in Health,

Terry James, M.D.

CEO of Kersh Health

Right Weigh Disclaimer

Right Weigh material is for informational and educational purposes only, and is intended as a supplement, not a substitute for medical advice,
diagnosis, cure or treatment provided by a qualified health-care provider. A routine medical evaluation is advised before starting any weight
loss program or fitness program. Any individual that is pregnant, lactating, or has an unstable medical or mental condition, including a terminal
illness should not participate in this program.
Right Weigh disclaims any liability, loss, injury, or damage incurred as a consequence, directly, from the use and application of any of the
contents of this manual or information given orally and in handouts, videos, or emails. Right Weigh participants release and hold Kersh Risk
Management and its employees harmless from and against all claims, demands, suits, and causes of action asserted by them associated with
receiving Right Weigh information including any future illness, disease, or injury.

Baseline

Week

Measurement Guide and

Three Month Worksheet

End of 1st Month

START

Chest

End of 2nd Month

End of 3rd Month

Chest:

Chest:

Chest:

Upper Arm:

Upper Arm:

Upper Arm:

Waist

Waist:

Waist:

Waist:

Hips

Hips:

Hips:

Hips:

Thighs

Thighs:

Thighs:

Thighs:

Upper Arm

START

End of 1st Month

Chest

End of 2nd Month

End of 3rd Month

Chest:

Chest:

Chest:

Upper Arm:

Upper Arm:

Upper Arm:

Waist

Waist:

Waist:

Waist:

Hips

Hips:

Hips:

Hips:

Thighs

Thighs:

Thighs:

Thighs:

Upper Arm

Weight Record
WK 1

WK 2

WK 3

WK 4

WK 5

WK 6

WK 7

WK 8

WK 9

WK 10

WK 11

WK 12

Baseline

Right Weigh

Commitment

e would like to start off by commending your

desire to make some healthy changes to your life.
There will be some work throughout this process
but this manual will be here to guide you along the way.

At first glance it may appear too hard.

Look again. Always look again.

Mary Anne Rodmacher

Committing to Right Weigh means that you are willing to

put in the effort to eliminate old behaviors that have kept
you from losing weight successfully.

A Right Weigh commitment agrees to the following:

Complete weekly workbook exercises
Log and reflect upon weekly food journals
Set and work towards weekly goals
Weigh yourself 1-2 times per week
Track body measurements once a month (see guide on left)
Establish a support system (e.g. co-worker, family, friend, spouse, etc.)
Challenge physical activity to move towards weight loss goals
Take the time to plan and prepare healthy meals and snacks
Short term goal to lose

pounds/kilograms at completion of the 12 week Right Weigh program.

Identify one long-term goal (3 months or longer) you want to accomplish as well as your motivation below.

Goal:
Motivation:
List three barriers you will have to overcome to achieve your long-term goal.

Barrier 1:
Barrier 2:
Barrier 3:
To celebrate my success, my reward will be:

Signed by:

on:
(your name)

(date)

Week

Baseline

Self Monitoring

egular self monitoring of your food intake, weight,

and goals is an essential part of Right Weigh.
Throughout the program you will be encouraged to
fill out a weekly food journal. Self monitoring and reflection
helps measure your progress and improve behaviors or
reduce undesired outcomes of behavior. Findings from
weight loss studies have consistently shown that those

who keep food journals lose more weight than those who
dont and are able to maintain the weight loss.
Each week of the Right Weigh program manual contains a
food journal for you to fill out. If the pen and paper method
does not work for you, an online calorie tracker or phone
application is equally effective.

Hunger-Fullness Scale

By reflecting back on weekly food journals, you might note the following behaviors:
Skipping meals or overeating
Snacking too often between meals when youre not hungry
Eating while you watch TV or in response to emotions
Eating when you are still full from the last meal
Waiting too long to eat then overeating
Not drinking enough water
Eating more around a certain friend than when youre
alone or vice versa
To properly fill out your food journal, record:
All food and beverages you consume throughout the course of the day
Time of meals and snacks
The serving size of each food and beverage you consume (i.e. 2 cups of
salad with 1 Tbsp of olive oil, 3 oz of baked chicken).
Hunger ranking at each meal. Aim to stay between 3 and 7
KAM points or minutes of physical activity you did for that day

Starving, Cranky

Very Hungry

Hungry

Hunger Pangs, Ready to Eat

Neutral

Almost Satisfied

Satisfied

Very Full

Stuffed

10

Uncomfortable

Think Before You Eat

If you are at a 5 and are tempted to eat, you
may consider doing something instead of
eating. Other options would be sipping on
a low-calorie beverage if youre at a social
gathering or taking a walk if you are feeling
stressed or anxious.

Sample Day from Food Journal

Day 1
Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Snacks

Hunger:

Hunger:

Hunger:

Hunger:

2 slices of turkey bacon

1 scrambled egg

4 oz vegetable juice
1 cup coffee

1 cup green salad

3 oz salmon

3 oz grilled chicken

3/4 cup green beans

2 tbsp balsamic dressing

1/3 cup brown rice

1 bottle water

4 oz crystal light water

Daily Tip: Be positive! The better you feel about yourself the easier it is to lose weight.

10

1-4 oz Greek Yogurt

Plain - AM
1/2 cup blueberries - PM
15 almonds - PM

KAM Points

Food Journal

Week

Goals

0
Weekly Weight:

Think
Eat
Move

start

end

Day 1
Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Snacks

Hunger:

Hunger:

Hunger:

Hunger:

Day 2

Daily Tip: Be positive! The better you feel about yourself the easier it is to lose weight.

KAM Points

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Snacks

Hunger:

Hunger:

Hunger:

Hunger:

Day 3

Daily Tip: Eating a handful of walnuts (4-6 pcs.) before meals can curb appetite and food intake.

KAM Points

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Snacks

Hunger:

Hunger:

Hunger:

Hunger:

Daily Tip: Avoid removing the skins of fruits and vegetables - most nutrients are concentrated just under the skin.

KAM Points

11

Day 4
Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Snacks

Hunger:

Hunger:

Hunger:

Hunger:

Daily Tip: Omelets can be made using egg whites.

KAM Points

Day 5
Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Snacks

Hunger:

Hunger:

Hunger:

Hunger:

KAM Points

Daily Tip: Walk around your building for a break during your day.

Day 6
Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Snacks

Hunger:

Hunger:

Hunger:

Hunger:

KAM Points

Daily Tip: Play your favorite music while working out to keep you motivated.

Day 7
Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Snacks

Hunger:

Hunger:

Hunger:

Hunger:

Daily Tip: Limit salt in cooking. Other forms of sodium include baking soda, baking powder, MSG and soy sauce.

12

KAM Points