THE INTRODUCTION
Last Wednesday we covered nutrition and
why it is more important than training. Now, I want to go over some
steps you can take to have a cleaner diet overall. Follow this guide and you should be on your way. It's not easy, but it will be worth it guys. Consider this a
guide to a healthy nutrition. Any questions, don't hesitate to email me.
No fast food
This should be an obvious, but still
needs to be stated. I don't need to explain how and why fast food is
bad for you, its something anyone with common sense knows. 99% of the
stuff is bad for you, even the salads. I worked at McDonald's for a
summer and was surprised at how many salads we sold, none of it's
fresh, all comes out of a bag from who knows where. Avoid at all
costs. I rarely eat fast food, few times a year. You should be
striving for the same, avoid the drive thru, go home and make a nice
salad that will take less than five minutes. It is impossible to eat healthy at a fast food joint.
Understanding
carb/fat/protein high foods
This is huge, especially so you don't
overload on fats or carbs. Understanding this principle is key to
having your nutrition balanced. Be able to identify foods by what
macro-nutrient they represent. What I mean by this, is if your having
dinner and you have a pasta/rice based side, you don't want to go and
throw bread on your plate too. Pasta, rice, and bread are all full of
carbohydrates, so you would definitely be putting way more carbs in
your body than necessary in that meal. Always make sure to read the
nutrition labels on EVERYTHING, your mind will be BLOWN when you find
out how many carbs are in that mac & cheese.
Some high protein foods are chicken,
lean beef/turkey, fish, milk, beans, avocados. High fat foods are
mainly nuts, well that’s what I use for my GOOD fat source
primarily. When you see these foods, they should scream carbs,
protein, fats, not their actual name, so you can easier represent
them and balance meals easier. A well balanced meal would be
something like I had for dinner tonight. I had chicken, pasta, and a
whey protein/flax seed/milk shake, and some nuts after. Hit all of my
areas without going overboard in any category! Protein is a category
where it is okay to overdo, because you are supposed to get around a
gram of protein for every 1 lb you weigh (185 lbs = 185g of protein
goal per day).
Base diet off of 3
basics
This is just to make things easier on
you. If you have a diet that consists of roughly the same things that
can cover your major macro-nutrients, then meal planning will be a
lot easier. Like, my diet is based off of chicken, spinach leaves
(salads), and nuts. This basically covers the three major
macro-nutrient categories. Of course I eat things other than these
three, but the basis of my nutrition is revolved around them. I know
what I'm getting out of them and don't struggle to get any nutrition
in that I'm missing. Usually pick a meat and two other foods that
will cover fats/carbs (good ones) that you enjoy. Make sure you pick
foods that have GOOD fats (nuts, nuts, more nuts) and GOOD carbs
(spinach leaves are filled with fiber).
Cut down fried foods
The oils that foods are fried in are
typically saturated with bad fats, although the taste is awesome.
Severely limit these in your diet. Fried anything is NO GOOD for your
body! Plus, I think fried foods just taste like a whole lot of
grease, and who wants that? I think a sizzling piece of juicy grilled
chicken tastes better than a piece of fat filled fried chicken! Don't
you?
Understanding
different fats, carbohydrates, etc.
In order to understand nutrition, you
have to understand the different macro-nutrients and the different
subsections of those macro-nutrients, the good and the bad. The key
here is to be able to differ the good from the bad, so we know whats
crap and whats not.
- Saturated and Trans fats are the devil, avoid these as much as possible!
- Polyunsaturated and Monounsaturated fats are “good” fats, these lead to healthy hearts.
- Fats (good & bad) should always be in moderation, never have a ton of fat in your diet.
- With carbohydrates, see what the base of the carbs in the food is from. Carbs are mainly made up of Dietary Fibers and Sugars.
- Avoid foods with high sugar counts and lean more toward foods with high fiber counts in the carbohydrate department.
- Protein is PROTEIN! You should be striving for 1 lb of protein per lb of body weight (185 lbs = 185 g of protein a day).
- Anything high in sodium is typically processed junk and should also be avoided.
- Check cholesterol levels and avoid foods with high counts
- Like I said before, ALWAYS READ THE NUTRITIONAL LABEL.
- If it sounds like it came out of a medical dictionary, PUT IT DOWN!
Don't watch numbers
Number watching (calorie wise) is
something I don't advocate. It just makes you into a person that over
analyzes everything you eat, which is not our goal. We want to have
freedom with our food, while still eating very healthy. Don't worry
about counting calories, you know how much is too much or not enough
for you. I've never counted calories and I’ve been able to
gain/lose weight because I know how much I eat and how to adjust to
lose weight or gain. Listen to your body and react to it.
The difference between 50 calories is
so minimal that it's stupid to waste time and energy counting all of
those calories. Worry about the nutritional value of your food, not
how many calories it has. Just because Iceberg lettuce doesn't have a
lot of calories doesn't mean it's the healthiest lettuce out there,
its tricking you because you are looking at just calorie numbers.
Spinach leaves show a higher fiber count, which is healthier for you.
When we understand nutrition and how it works, we can figure problems
like these out and make healthier decisions for our body.
Water, water, water
Water is so important for being
healthy. While it is well known how good and important water is for
you, there is another reason I think it's so important. Water does
not add any calories to your diet and will keep you from drinking
those other drinks like soda and fruit juices loaded with sugar.
Besides water, the only thing I drink is coffee and a Naked juice
every once in a while. A bottle of soda can hold over 60g of carbs
just in ONE BOTTLE! Do you see how much crap you are putting in your
body just in one bottle? Those carbs are almost always 100% sugar
too, so its 100% crap! Replacing a bottle of soda with a bottle of
water will save you 60g worth of carbs every time you make this
decision, so why are you still drinking soda again? I haven't had one
in years and it's a great feeling!
Watch
toppings/cheese/dressings/etc
There are so many hidden calories in
dressing toppings, cheese, things of that nature. They may be tasty
delights but they definitely aren't helping you at all in the
nutrition department. The calories and bad carbs/fats can pile up
just in a few slices or tablespoons of dressings, so be careful! One
slice of American cheese has almost 100 calories, with 7g of fat (4g
saturated). You think that sandwich looks healthy right? Well how
healthy is it really after you add all that cheese on it? I love
cheese just like everyone else, but it should be used in moderation.
I wouldn't use more than two pieces on a sandwich, that's my advice.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Using these steps should help you clean up your diet.
You know what foods are good for you and what ones are not. You know
you should avoid the donuts and eat some fruit, this is stuff you
guys know. Now hopefully you have a better understanding of what is
actually going into your body. Nutrition is a topic that there is
always more to learn about, so I challenge you to find out more about
nutrition! I'm always learning and you guys should be too! Hope you
enjoyed this guide and if anyone needs any help or has any questions,
don't hesitate to email me.
I've decided to start posting 1 article a week on
Wednesday's. I feel as if my first article is getting over shadowed
by the second one. One article a week really allows me to take my
time with a piece, instead of feeling like I need to rush it out. You
guys will get quality stuff like this. Also, especially with school
starting up in two weeks, this is a good opportunity to let me
balance everything.
@dcorrigan50
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