How often should I eat?
How much should I eat and what are the most nutritious foods?
How much exercise do I need?
Do you feel overwhelmed with so much information in the media, the books you read, what your friends tell you about diets? Well, I have great news for you………..NEVER WORRY ABOUT A DIET AGAIN! Guess what, they don’t work and you end up feeling frustrated and most of the time you end up gaining weight! When you diet by restricting calories your metabolism slows down, you end up feeling hungry all the time and the process can be very complicated and many times you just give up and go back to your old ways of eating.
Let’s keep this simple! I have found with the clients I train that you can be more successful in loosing weight or maintaining your weight by simplifying things. There are 3 main ingredients for success in loosing or keeping your weight at your desired level, and the 1 thing to remember that will contribute to frustration and failure ………a diet again, as this is a lifestyle!
The 3 main ingredients to a successful, healthy lifestyle:
- How often should I eat? Most of the time I find with my clients that most do not eat enough throughout the day. Instead of eating 3 big meals a day, you should be eating 5 to 6 smaller meals each day, spaced out every 2 -3 hours. This will give you more energy throughout the day while keeping your metabolism regulated. You can adjust the eating schedule to accommodate your day. Here is a sample schedule for eating:
- 7am Meal#1 breakfast
- 10am Meal#2 mid-morning snack
- 12pm Meal#3 lunch
- 3pm Meal#4 mid-afternoon snack
- 6pm Meal#5 dinner
- 9pm Meal#6 evening snack
- How much and what should I eat? If you are wanting to loose weight, a pound of body fat contains 3,500 calories, so to loose weight you would need a deficit of 500 calories per day, in order to loose 1 pound a week. (Depending on how much you exercise per week will also determine how many calories.) Now, I do not recommend, nor do I count calories, instead I find that fueling your body with healthy nutritious food always brings greater success and happiness! I have found that if you break down the nutrients into 3 categories when eating, it is a much easier way to determine what to eat. My motto, never worry about a diet again………instead fill your plate with 3 types of nutrients. Here is a breakdown of the nutrients I recommend for each meal. To keep it simple, think of it this way, fill your plate with approximately 1/2 complex carbs, 1/4+ lean proteins, 1/4 – healthy fats
- 55% complex carbohydrates: brown rice, oatmeal, wheat germ, whole wheat pasta, apples, berries, citrus fruits, grapes, kiwi, mango, melons, pears, plums, artichokes, asparagus, beets, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, celery, cucumbers, eggplant, lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, zucchini, bananas, carrots, chick peas, beans, sweet potatoes, lentils, yams, split peas (this is not an exhaustive list)
- 27% lean proteins: beans of all kinds, beef tenderloin, bison, canned tuna (water), chicken breast, chickpeas, eggs, low fat greek yogurt, fresh fish, lean ground turkey, lentils, low fat cottage cheese, natural nut butters, non-dairy/dairy milks, pork tenderloin, tofu, nuts (this is not an exhaustive list)
- 18% healthy fats: almonds, avocados, cashews, cold water fish, flaxseed, nut butters, olive oil, pecans, sunflower seeds, walnuts (this is not an exhaustive list)
- How much exercise do I need? You exercise at least 3 times per week to maintain your weight and 5 times per week to loose weight. I recommend to my clients to get a cardio workout 2-3 times a week and strength training 2-3 times per week. There are workouts for upper body, lower body and cardio (H.I.I.T.) in my blog that you can do at home, outside at the beach or park or even your hotel room when traveling.
So, remember, never worry about a diet again, as that is ONLY a temporary solution, you want to change your thinking by living a healthy lifestyle that is sustainable for a lifetime!