Eating right is half the battle if you want to stay fit and healthy in the long run. The other half of that battle is putting in the exercise. You need to work on both sides of this coin if you want to get the best results. You can spend all the time you want exercising but if you fuel your body with the wrong sources of energy, you are unlikely to achieve the results you want.
Throughout my whole life I have avoided fad diets and that isn't going to change. This diagram explains the problem;
People I know tend to lose weight with the diets they follow; but I can't help thinking that the weight loss will be short lived, the diet isn't sustainable and it will result in the loss of lean muscle. So hang on ... in the end I will weigh less for a short period of time but I will have less muscle than I started off with so when I put the weight back on, I will have even more fat than before. I can't think of anything worse!
To make it easy to understand, here it is...
I wanted to find a food plan that worked for me. Something that was easy to follow, something sustainable that wouldn't cost a fortune but would help complement the results I wanted from my training. I'm not a nutritionist so I don't know everything about food but I think my results speak louder than words - I have lost 15% body fat over 14 months (from 35% to 20%).
This is a quick overview of what my diet normally consists of (for more detailed info, check out other articles I have written with the food plan label).
Breakfast:
- Weekdays;
- 30g of porridge oats
- With water (not milk)
- 1 teaspoon of organic cinnamon (or to taste)
- Weekends;
- Poached eggs on toast
- 2 pieces of brown or granary bread (toasted, with no / little butter)
- 2 poached eggs
- Ground pepper
Lunch:
- Protein - usually chicken
- Vegetables - usually spinach, tomatoes
- Salad - usually rocket (much tastier than normal lettuce)
- I don't add salad dressings or olive oil to my lunch
Dinner: (dinner varies so it is difficult to list, but I will do my best)
- Fresh vegetables - never from frozen (preferably steamed)
- Protein source - either red meat or fish (grilled or baked)
- Sweet potatoes (either baked or roasted as potato wedges)
- Read my food articles for recipe ideas
Snacks (snacking is an important part of weight loss):
- Handful of almonds (or walnuts / cashew nuts)
- Organic natural peanut butter on rivita (don't choose reduced fat peanut butter)
- Cottage cheese (occasionally as I am not a huge fan)
- Carrots (carrot batons from the supermarket are already chopped in small bites - brilliant!)
Supplements:
- Protein shake after each workout (currently using Nutrisport 90+ - chocolate flavour)
- L-carnitine tablet (following the instructions)
- Flax seed oil tablet (following the instructions)
- Oxy elite pro tablet (following the instructions)
Drinks:
- Plenty of water
- White tea ( http://www.whiteteaguide.com/whiteteahealthbenefits.htm)
Get Fit 4 Good does not have doctors on staff, and the advice found on this blog is not a substitute for medical advice. Always consult a doctor before beginning any exercise or nutrition program.
