Who would imagine that something we need everyday could be so confusing. Come January we will all be bombarded with the' New Best Ever Diet' the new latest 'Superfood', you 'should' eat this, you 'shouldn't' eat that.
The reason these diets are so popular is that people are looking for a quick way to take off excess weight, they want to lose fat as quickly as they put it on or quicker. The bottom line is that the most FAT you can quickly lose is 1% of your bodymass each week, this is on average 2lbs a week. Anymore than this and you are not burning FAT, you are losing water weight ( dehydration) and forcing your body to burn muscle for energy to function instead. So yes you will still be losing weight but not FAT weight!!
It becomes such a battle to understand what we should and shouldn't eat for optimal health and weightloss. The key is as much as we hate to admit it, Slow and Steady wins the race. It becomes not a 'FAD Diet' but a ' New Way of Eating', habits changing and new ones forming.
Lets Get Back To Basics
View your body like it's a machine, give it the right fuel and it will run smoothly ( would you put unleaded fuel in a deisel engine? do this and it will shut down) your body is the same, it can only function for so long with poor foods before you will begin to experience problems/ailments/ deficiencies.
Give it the right fuel and you will feel happier, be more alert, have energy to exercise, proteins to repair muscles, vitamins to fight off colds, antioxidents to help your body for the future and much much more.
Calories in V's Calories out
It's simple - Eat more calories than you burn off during the day and you will store this as fat - Energy reserve.
Eat less than you burn off during the day and you will burn off your energy reserve - Bodyfat.
If you are bigger or smaller than you would like to be, then your energy balance is off line. Look at this first before you begin to blame your metabolism or thyroid.
You also need to take into consideration just exactly how active you are. Common sense tells you that if you have quite a sendentary lifestyle you cannot eat the same quantity of food as a person who is walking around all day long and expect the same results.
Three Simple Rules
1- Go as natural as possible
2 - Get plenty of Variety (5-9 portions Fruit and Veg, 2-3 of Protein, 6-10 Carbohydrate = a good Balanced Diet)
3 - Drink enough water ( 6-8 glasses Everyday)
Some foods we should all eat for optimal nutrition and balance:-
Almonds - Rich source of Vit E, powerful antioxident to prevent cancer, high in 'Good Fat' and Protein
Apple - Fibre, 85% water and packed with Vit C
Avocado - High in calorie but higher in potassium than bananas and have at least 20 essential nutrients
Blueberries - Gram for gram they have more antioxidents than any other fruit
Celery - Dieters dream as it burns more calories to digest than is in the food itself
Cottage Cheese - Low fat Protein and Vit B2, vital for muscle growth and repair
Eggs - Great Protein, rich in Iron and contain all the essential amino acids for muscle repair
Grapefruit - Vit C and thought to slow down digestion thus feeling fuller for longer
Kidney Beans - Virtually fat free, high protein and low GI to help prevent snacking
Liver - love it or hate it, it is full of Iron, Zinc, Protein, Vitamins and Minerals
Milk - Most accessible source of Calcium and Protein for healthy strong bones
Oats - Low GI carbohydrate providing slow release fuel for energy
Papaya - Rich sourse of Vit C and E and Betacarotene. Help support the immune system and fluid balance
Pineapple - Bursting with Vit B's which help to release energy from foods
Quinoa - Complex Carbohydrate and a complete protein with 9 essential amino acids for tissue repair
Salmon - Great source of Omega 3 and Vit A
Seeds - great for snacks, Pumpkin in particular are full of Zinc and omega 3
Spinach - Iron, Calcium and Folic Acid to help cells grow and divide and maintain healthy Blood Pressure
Tofu - Great for vegetarians for a good quality protein and calcium made from Soya beans
Tuna - An easy accessible fish protein giving aboutb 30grm protein per tin.
Watercress - Contains more calcium than milk and more Vit C than oranges. also rich in Vit K to build bones and is practically 'Calorie free'
This list is not exhaustive, but something to get your teeth into and on your way to a healthier you!
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