To reach and maintain your goals you’ll need to develop realistic eating habits that you can follow every day for the rest of your life. I know that sounds daunting, but it is the solution to getting off of the on again, off again, Yo-Yo dieting carousel that many of you’ve been on for your entire life. If you’ve ever experienced any frustration with your weight or you’ve lost weight in the past only to put it back on, then what I’m offering here at Fitness Know How Headquarters will change your life.
The Truth About The Diet Industry
Here is the primary reason why you have to avoid dieting, proof that it doesn’t work. I was online checking some stats on the diet industry. There are some conflicting numbers so I’ll keep it really general. In 2003-2004 Americans were spending in the mid 30 billion dollar range on diet programs per year. By 2008-2009 we increased that spending to over 55 billion dollars each year. With all that money being spent you’d think we’d be a very fit and lean country. Quite the opposite is true, during that same period of time obesity rates have continued to escalate. So we know that the diet industry doesn’t have the answers that you want. You want to lose weight and keep it off. They need you to stay fat so that you can come back and buy their products and services over and over again.
A diet is a temporary change in eating that results in temporary changes in your weight. You can lose weight on any diet, but if you go back to eating the way that you do now, you’ll go straight back to being; obese, overweight, fat, heavy just needing to lose that last 10 pounds, whatever you want to call it. And by doing so you are going to drive yourself crazy, over and over again for the rest of your life. And that just isn’t any fun. Achieving the weight loss goals that you want and maintaining that weight: now that is FUN!!!
Change The Way You Think, Right Now
I want you to completely let go of the idea of dieting. Seriously, let it go! Say to yourself right now, “I will never go on another diet for the rest of my life.” Now don’t you feel better? The pressure is off, you can do this you can succeed!
OK here is the bottom line. You are going to eat food every single day for the rest of your life (that sounds pretty obvious and easy). If you are obese, overweight, fat, heavy, just need to lose that last 10 pounds, whatever; you just need to change the way you eat every single day for the rest of your life. Now that might sound scary to you, but you’re already eating every day. You just need to eat differently. Either way you are going to eat food every single day, choose now to eat food that will help you to feel strong, lean, confident and healthy.
What I’ll share with you will help you to change the way you approach food and eating and you’ll discover that reaching your goals and feeling great have never been so easy! It will simply be the way you live your life each and every day. And I have a lot to share with you, but for now I like to introduce “The Big Three Basic Principles” of the Fitness Know How Headquarters Nutrition Plan.
The Big Three Basic Principles
1. Eat Whole, Natural Foods
2. Eat Proper Portions
3. Eat Every 2.5 to 3 Hours
Eat Whole, Natural Foods
Eat food that is as close to the form you’d find it in nature as possible. Food that has been minimally processed is more nutrient dense. Nutrient dense foods supply and nourish the body with the vitamins, minerals, fiber, antioxidants etc. that it needs. The primary purpose of eating is to supply your body with the fuel that it needs. If food is in a box, bag, wrapper, or full of artificial ingredients and/or preservatives avoid including it in your nutrition program. Here are examples of some foods that are whole and natural:
Fruit
Vegetables
Whole Grains
Nuts and Seeds
Lean Meat, Poultry and Fish
Eat Proper Portions
Now that you are eating natural and whole foods it is also important to eat the proper portions. Eating the proper portions helps to regulate blood sugar, insulin, cortisol and many other hormones. Eating proper portions also allows your body to utilize the nutrients and calories of each meal. If you eat too little you’ll often experience hunger before it’s time to eat your next meal. When this happens it is common to snack on junk food simply to quickly increase blood sugar levels. When portions sizes are too large some of the extra calories (energy) will be stored as body fat. Here are some general guideline for proper portions.
Protein – 4oz. (size of a deck of cards)
Carbohydrates – 1/2 Cup (size of your palm)
Vegetable – 2 cups (size of two fist)
Fats – 2oz. (size of your thumb)
Eat Every 2.5 to 3 Hours
Meal frequency, or what I call Meal Cadence should be between every 2 – 3 hours. When you are eating whole natural food and eating the proper portions, you will find that you are hungry every 2 – 3hours. When you eat this way you will boost your metabolism, which is essential for losing body fat. Two things happen to increase your metabolism. One your body uses energy to digest food. It’s called the thermic effect of food. So when you eat 5 – 7 times each day (which you should depending on how long your day is) your digestive system spends more time working.. And two, the body learns that nutrients will be coming in regular intervals so it adapts and starts to use that energy immediately instead of storing it as fat. All sorts so good things go on hormonally that will help you to lose body fat.