Wednesday, February 24, 2010

What to eat, when to eat and how much to eat?

These are some of the questions that we ask as we try to lose weight, try to maintain weight and just try to stay healthy.  There are so many "rules" thrown at us that it really gets quite confusing!  I have been working on this for years!!!  Trying to determine what "rules" make the most sense, work the best for me and seem to help the most people!  I do have a degree in science, so I have some brains to go along with this experience, just in case you were questioning my background ;)
What to eat?  The best advice for this is to eat clean!  Fruits, Vegetables, Whole grains, unprocessed and natural!  If it comes in a bag, look for ingredients that you can pronounce!!!  If there are a bunch of preservatives it probably isn't what you need!  Avoid white---white sugar, white flour, white rice...these are very processed, quick to digest and have calories but insignificant nutrition that your body needs to excel! 
When to eat?  Every 2-3 hours to achieve 5 smaller meals a day!  Determine your caloric needs based on your height, weight and activity level, and either divide these needs by 5 if you plan for 5 meals a day, or take off two 100 calorie snacks and divide the difference by 3 larger meals.  I tend to eat a little bit more at dinner as that is our "family" meal, so I save a bit more for dinner time.  There are so many place you can go to online to look for calorie counters, recommendations, etc.  The Beachbody site is great for determining what you need, they have meal plans if you sign up as a Team member.  Livestrong.com has a great resource called the Daily Plate that has some basic information.  All of the Beachbody programs come with nutrition plans and recommendations about what to eat when and of course how much.  Always look at the nutrition information on the food you buy!  Especially at portion size, as often a packet you may think is one portion is in fact 2.5! 
Are you getting enough vegetables in your diet?  I found a perfect solution to make sure I get all of my protein, fiber, vitamins and minerals, phytochemicals and antioxidants, super-green foods, prebiotics, digestive enzymes, and just about everything else your body could ever need!  It is called Shakeology!
Nutrition is up to 75% of the equation when you are trying to lose weight!  If you exercise for 2 hours and then dive into a big mac at McDonalds you might as well have skipped the workout and eaten crackers and cheese! It is time to focus on what you want to do for your body, how you want your body to look next year, even next month, and how healthy you want your body to be!
Good exercise and nutrition can be a natural immune enhancer and can lead to a longer and healthier life...isn't that what you want for yourself.  Make the decision to help yourself!  Contact me if you would like some support!

1 comment:

  1. Net Calories! I have posted previously about determining how much you need and how much you burn. There are many websites that will help you determine how many calories you need each day based on your height, weight and activity level...just be careful on your activity level, if anything assume you are less ac...tive than you are as this is a common place of error. Most sites will also tell you how many calories you should actually eat to lose weight and at what rate you will lose. You need to be careful to not let that caloric intake fall too low, especially when you are working extra hard. The easiest way to do it is to get a nutritionist or join a program online that will calculate the details for you and give you a menu to follow! Always best if they offer alternatives too incase you don't like the choices they give. Beachbody has a great nutrition section with calculations, menus, even grocery lists for the menus you choose!!! Let me know if you would like more info! You can do it alone...but if you have tried and tried again to lose weight, maybe it is time to get some help!!! Use it well for a few months, then you should be on track!

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