Jorge Cruise personally struggled with weight as a child and young man. Today he is recognized as America’s leading weight loss expert for busy people. He is author of two New York Times best-sellers franchises: 8 Minutes in the Morning®, published in 14 languages, and The 3-Hour Diet™. Jorge coaches clients daily at 3HourDiet.com and is the exclusive weight loss coach for The Tyra Banks Show.

Jorge shares these must have secrets:

IS POMEGRANATE JUICE GOOD OR BAD FOR YOU?
We don’t get enough antioxidants in our diet (they keep our skin young) and pomegranate juice is a delicious, easy way to bring the antioxidants back. The problem is that traditional pomegranate juice is very high in calories. It has up to 300 calories and 40 grams of sugar per serving.

Jorge’s Pick: Red Lightning Power Drink because all you have to do is add 8oz of water and you have the same power-packed antioxidants that are in pomegranate juice but with only 22 calories and 1 gram of sugar!

HOW CAN YOUR POOP INDICATE IF YOU’RE HEALTHY OR NOT?
First off, most people’s bowel movements (BM’s) are not frequent enough and they’re also in the shape of small gumball-sized pellets. That may indicate a heavy toxic build up that destroys energy and leads to belly bulge.

Jorge’s Pick: Three S-Shapes BM’s each day because that’s the ideal frequency of BM’s that you should be having (the S comes from shape of your rectum as it nears your anus). If you are eating enough healthy fiber, this is what you should see.

WHAT IS A GOOD ICED DRINK OPTION?
If you drink a coffee drink and you don’t know better, you can consume hundreds of calories in seconds. For example the average latté with all its flavors and syrups can have over 600 calories.

Jorge’s Pick: Ice cold green teen because of all the antioxidants and it has enough caffeine to give you that morning lift and rev up your metabolism. Also, if it’s served with ice, you further push your body to burn more calories so that by the time you are done drinking it, you have lost up to 50 calories. It’s a negative calorie drink.

ARE ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS GOOD OR BAD FOR YOU?
All artificial sweeteners have negative side effects. Saccharine has been shown to cause cancer. NutraSweet has been show to cause memory loss along with slurred speech and vision. Plus, all these kinds of sweeteners also cause your body to lose its judgment on when you have too much, so you can overeat without knowing.

Jorge’s Pick: Stevia because not only does it make any drink sweeter, it doesn’t have negative side effects. It’s made from a natural herb from South America and it has antioxidant properties that keep you young.

IS MEAT AT THE GROCERY STORE GOOD OR BAD FOR YOU?
Meat is a great source of protein but the problem is that it‘s too high in bad cholesterol. Most meat, unless it’s organic, has hormones in it. If it’s commercial meat, the hormones are given to cows and when we eat the meat, the hormones go into our systems and make us big. If you eat non-organic meat you’ll get bigger.

Jorge’s Pick: 3oz of organic chicken because a chicken’s diet is controlled and 3oz is the ideal portion.

ARE ENERGY DRINKS GOOD OR BAD FOR YOU?
All energy drinks are high in calories, which is fine if you’re super active, but if you are watching your weight you should try and avoid them.

Jorge’s Pick: Fruit Water. It has only a few calories, with no saccharine or NutraSweet.

WHICH CHOCOLATE DO YOU EAT? DARK OR LIGHT?
The problem with milk chocolate is that it has dairy in it and it comes from a cow.

Jorge’s Pick: Dark chocolate without milk because it’s full of antioxidants and it tastes great. The trick is to keep it small. All you need is two squares and you’re set!

WHAT ARE THE FOODS THAT YOU WANT TO AVOID ON A FIRST DATE?
You want to avoid spaghetti, soup, corn, ribs, beans and cruciferous veggies that are full of sulfur and can cause gas. I’m talking about cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower and brussell sprouts.

Jorge’s Pick: Supplemental Enzymes because they are little helpers that break down these gas forming foods. Brands such as Beano would work, if it’s free of hydrogenated oils, but Enzymedica is the best.

GUM HAS SORBITOL IN IT. IS THAT GOOD OR BAD FOR YOU?
Sorbitol is bad. It can cause cell damage, diuretic problems, IBS and so much more.

Jorge’s Pick: SPRY gum because it’s made with Xylitol. Xylitol is a natural sugar alcohol found in fruits, berries, vegetables and mushrooms. It doesn’t have the hazardous side effects that Sorbitol does.)

DRIED FRUIT OR FRESH FRUIT?
Most people think dried fruit is a good alternative but that’s not the case.

Jorge’s Pick: Fresh fruit because it’s rich in water and enzymes (which are little batteries) so you can digest foods easily.

IS YOGURT GOOD OR BAD FOR YOU?
Yogurt has healthy bacteria but the challenge is that most commercial yogurt is full of sugar (up to two tablespoons of sugar), bad fat and growth hormones.

Jorge’s Pick: Organic plain non-fat yogurt because if it’s not organic, you’re taking in growth hormones which will make you “grow” and get too big. Add a touch of organic jam to the yogurt and it will keep the calories low and it will make it yummy. You can also add in flax oil, which brings a good fat into the mix.