by Lauren Muney
"Once, if I remember correctly, my life was a feast at which all hearts opened and all wines flowed." ~ Rimbaud
Subjects covered in this article:
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We are all different, and there is no one nutritional plan which covers everyone. If you visit your local mega-bookstore and look at the diet/nutrition section, you'll see the vast amount of options of "diets" available. This selection is so large that you may begin to think that a "diet" is required for weight loss or even popularity!
Realize right now that fitness -or "fit weight"- begins with your eating. You need to fuel your body with healthy, beneficial foods and also move your muscles (exercise). That's all you have to do.
Yes, this takes dedication. As I said in my introduction, you have to WANT to improve your health and fitness. You have to want things which benefit you. I'm not here to beg you to WANT to . . . I'm here to help and encourage you AFTER you decide to.
You need to decide to do actions which will benefit your health and fitness, and to not chooseto do actions which will harm your health and fitness.
"Nutrition" is really just a matter of eating whole, unprocessed foods... and eating them frequently enough so your body doesn't lose energy.
"How do I understand what is best for my body?"
Here's my opinion, and the opinion of many educated, clinically-testing, real-world testing professionals out there (see below for explanation):
That's all you have to do. REALLY.
If you do this for 4 weeks plus add exercise, you will start seeing physique results.
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The BENEFICIAL habits:
Whole grains, raw fresh vegetables and fruits, yogurt, eggs, red meats, chicken, fish, and as much fresh water as you can stand. Supplement with extra nutrients which cannot possibly be taken in by our daily diet. Dairy in a limited way, and not if you are intolerant or allergic. And these foods should be eaten 4-6 times a day in small meals, so you never truly get hungry and you never run out of energy.
Here's the list in a shortened form:
"But wait," you say, "This sounds like the Food Pyramid. I know all this. We learned this as children. I eat similar to this and I still feel sluggish, have extra fat, and my muscles don't look like the guys on the covers on the books or magazines."
Aha. That means there's some sort of technique . . . perhaps there a particular WAY of eating these things which needs to be uncovered. . . . and yes, this is quite right.
Food is really just a pile of chemistry, mixed together so that when it enters your body: it has a job to do. Each particular food can help or harm you, depending on:
The experts have argue for years about exactly what nutritional habits you should follow. However, there is no argument that real whole food - fruits, vegetables, proteins, fats - provides the vitamins, minerals, macronutrients to nourish your body so that bodily processes take place.
This should be easy to understand: food is supposed to nourish your body. If you eat ingredients which your body cannot use, the body will do something else with these ingredients - the body may slow down, get ill, or get fat.
Your body is not supposed to get hungry (empty - out of energy) or be stuffed with food. So three large meals a day, although pushed in restaurants, does not provide the energy needed in the frequency our bodies require. It is actually easier to control any cravings if you eat small meals more frequently, than large meals less often. Your body will digest better and stay energetic longer.
If you think you are "eating healthy", read further in this article.
"I'm confused! What are the tricks about understanding what to eat?"
There's no trick: the best thing you can do for your body is to understand what BECOMES of these foods inside the body.
Let's review the next segment:
White bread, white rice, excessive pastas, refined sugars, refined cakes, preservatives, "pre-made" foods in boxes or containers, fruit juices, and most things which say 'enriched' anything, sodas, excessive caffeine, and alcohol.
The white bread, white rice, pastas, and cakes, turn into EXCESS PROCESSED SUGAR in your body. You may say, "Hey, Lauren, my spaghetti dinner isn't sugar". Well, actually, yes it is. Most regular pasta is really just white flour and water, which will wind up in your body like sugar and glue. Oops. However, now the food industry has created whole-grain pasta with high-protein sources, you have a chance for some better pasta choices.
Those white breads, refined sugars, cakes, pies, donuts, pastas, sodas, even juice boxes, etc? They are making your body go absolutely haywire! Your blood rushes to and fro from the sugar, like a child on . .. sugar cereal.
Not a pretty picture it is, controlling a child on Captain Crunch, right? That's what your body is trying to do with the Non-Beneficial Habits list. The sugars run around and cause the body to function abnormally, and then . . . get this . . . the sugars are left to be deposited in your fat cells. So, not only do you feel off-kilter, but those foods are actually helping you to BE fat, EVEN if the label says "fat free" or "low fat". The problem is that most "fat free" or "low fat" foods are high in sugar, so while the food marketers think they are getting your attention with "low fat", they are suckering your purchase by giving you a lot of sugar.
What about the preservatives and the "pre-made foods" in the list? The ingredients which help the "food" stay on your shelf longer, or create artificial flavors, can actually harm your body. Those ingredients aren't food. While the sustances haven't been banned by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), they also haven't been designated to replace 'real whole food' as your regular diet. These foods include "partially hydrogenated ___ oil" (trans fats), and other ingredients on labels. Said simply: your body can't use these ingredients, and, to repeat, your body may get ill or get fat. Read on for more information about these ingredients.
Real nutrition come from nutrients. Micronutrients can be vitamins and minerals, and macronutrients are the bigger 'blocks' of what you need for health.
Each of these "building blocks" are needed by your cells to perform a function: building cells, energizing cells, or carrying vital cell messages... not only that, but if you do NOT intake any of these building blocks (ie: cutting too many carbs or fat), your body gets confused and starts doing odd things: like running out of energy, making you feel woozy or spacey, or gaining fat -- especially when you think you are eating so little.
The MACRONUTRIENTS are:
Note that fat is not a villian, nor are carbohydrates. Your body really does need fat. It needs healthy fat - and there is a such thing. Contrary to what the food-marketers say, "fat" (really, "essential fatty acids") is truly needed by every cell in your body. However for many years, medical professionals were trying to find what was making people fat. They decided that fat made people fat. So they created synthetic versions of fat, as well as easily-stored 'food-products' which simulated real meals. The food industry created fake potatoes in a box, foods which looked like your grandmothers "from scratch" meals, and other food-like materials. In addition, they tried to find ways to reduce the price of products so consumers would buy more of these products, which actually were no longer made rom real whole foods. These marketers put these products into the grocery stores.
However, the American people have barely discovered that they have been fooled. They didn't realize that the body truly needs small amounts of real [healthy] fats to make their cells and organs work correctly. The American people also didn't realize that when real food is substituted for fake "food products", the food doesn't work well.
These marketers also decided for a while that carbohydrates were the villains. They created more fake food using preservatives, chemicals, and alcohols to simulate removing carbohydrates.
What happened while these food marketers and bad 'food medicine' played around with the food industry? American became fatter and less healthy than ever. The so-called "health foods" were barely more than chemicals and empty calories, putting money in manufacturers' pockets and adding to the waistlines of America. And studies have shown that the reduced-fat craze barely made a dent in weight reduction or heart health without other lifestyle changes.
Carbs truly are needed in the body for fuel and fiber -- but in small amounts, no bigger than your closed fist. Carbs are needed to fuel the body when extra fuel is needed -- for ACTIVE, energetic people. We were meant to be active!
If you are sedentary ("non-exercising"), then filling up with 'fuel' is like overfilling your gas tank in your car... except instead of spilling over the sides, the 'fuel' spills over your waistline -- that's what often considered obese or fat. However the solution is not to radically reduce the 'energy" (carbohydrates), but to increase exercise. You can healthfully eat small amounts of whole grains, plus vegetables and fruits as your "fuel source" while you add exercise into your day.
Everyday you need all three of these macronutrients in your diet: I recommend that you get all 3 in every meal. That sounds so much harder than it is: an example if a carb/protein/fat meal can be as easy as chicken salad with vegetables and olive oil.
It's a little complicated in this one small article to describe each macronutrient and what it does. However, there are quality books you can read - or you can be coached to learn about your nutritional needs and learn new habits to find your best energy and fitness.
"How can I read the label on the package of food to see if my food ratios are correct?"
If your food has a label, it's probably not that good for you.
How often do we read an egg label?
Or a green bean label?
Never. There are no labels on real food. However "food products" which have labels of extra ingredients (like preservatives) can actually hurt you because your body is not meant to be eating presevatives. Those preservatives are actually meant for the food industry to help sell you the food.
Do yourself a test... go into your pantry or freezer and read the ingredient labels of these products. These are the ingredients listed BELOW the "Carbohydrates", "Fats", and "Proteins". If the list of ingredients is long, your body is in the most trouble. If you cannot pronounce the ingredients, you are in further trouble. This means that these boxes or packages are filled with chemicals and non-food items. If the list is short and you know all the ingredients (tomatoes, garlic, spinach, etc), then the product is better for you than the other boxed product. However the best foods for your body are the ones without the label - the foods that you cook (or eat raw) yourself.
Your body cannot and does not fully process food which has preservatives and other non-food items in them. The non-food items include the articifical colors, flavors, smells, and materials designed to make the 'food' taste creamier, fluffier, lighter, or more delicious. These are non-food items - most of them are the items on the labels that you cannot pronounce.
What happened when a body eats "non-food" items?
....a body can nourish itself to be fit, trim, and lose fat naturally. "If it has a label, it's probably not that good for you".
"Then what AM I supposed to do about my eating? I'm still confused!"
Here is that simple list again:
That's all you have to do. REALLY.
Stop letting yourself be ruled by momentary pleasures which actually last for days, weeks, and years. Think about the following very important questions:
Of course not - none of this feels good. I was there, and I know what you are feeling. Our aim is to live, to live well, and to stay out of our graves when it's not time yet.
Don't worry about all this confusion about food. . . it really does get easier. It will feel like second nature. Second-nature really is just as easy as first-nature.
So let's discuss those again:
The BENEFICIAL habits:
Whole grains, raw fresh vegetables and fruits, yogurt, eggs, red meats, chicken, fish, and as much fresh water as you can stand. Supplement with extra nutrients which cannot possibly be taken in by our daily diet. Dairy in a limited way, and not if you are intolerant or allergic. And these foods should be eaten 4-6 times a day in small meals, so you never truly get hungry and you never run out of energy.
WATER is the only thing which will cleanse and rehydrate you as your body craves. You need to flush out toxins and fortify yourself with energy. Believe it or not, we are about 75% water . . . sometimes, that 'hunger' pang you feel is actually thirst, but you don't feel that 'parched' feeling.
Have a glass or bottle near you at all times.
Shown left is a brand-new water bottle called Hydracoach which helps you your correct water you need by creating YOUR exact water needs, reminding you what fluids you've drunk, and reminding you to drink again! Read about this product --I'm now endorsing it after using it for many months.
You can easily filter your water using a water filtration system on your own tap or even as easy as a water-filter picture like Brita, available at many grocery or household-supply stores.
Just DRINK water, and drink A LOT, please . . . and if you don't like the taste of "bland" water, you can always make it cold or squeeze a bit of lemon or lime into the glass.
Remember that you are actually harming your body by drinking sodas or other non-water products simply because you "don't like the taste of water". It's actually easier to improve the taste of water than to fix the obesity or ill-health that these sodas or other substances incur.
"But I have my own particular issues in my life to consider. How can I follow these strict rules of eating?!"
These aren't "rules", they are actually not strict, and they don't remove individual lifestyle.
Everyone has their own patterns for living and issues to consider. If you are saying you can't make changes in your habits because your life is so difficult, that's not exactly true.
It's easy to understand how these explanations about healthy eating would conflict with a current way of eating. Most of us have become accustomed to fast food, frozen foods, sugar foods, and foods which stay on the shelf indefinitely. It's hard to hear "Eat real foods that doesn't come in a box or have a label". However, following this simple sentence may help you drop unwanted fat and help you live longer.
Of course you change any habit or lifestyle to create health. There is nothing more important than your health.
You can make simple, step-by-step yet powerful and effective changes to give you more energy, get you healthier, and cut the fat on your body. If you can't effect these changes on your own, then you should consider coaching as an option: coaching helps you determine your current challenges and lifestyle, and helps you create those step-by-step changes.
Read the many articles from Lauren Muney and Physical Mind on food, behavior, making changes, and inspiration to help you think about your current life. There is also a book list which provides excellent resources to nutritional and workout information.
Lest you think that food is simply for food and nothing else, you should DEFINITELY allow yourself a treat meal every once in a while, no matter what nutritional plan you follow! It's good for the body to splurge and it keeps you from going crazy.
So on this note, I'll let you think for a while.
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Another opinion about nutrition - Read below!
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5 Diet Myths Debunked
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