Each year over the month of January I cut out all junk food. Because of Christmas parties and catching up with friends over the holidays, I get a little slack with my food and enjoy some of the things I usually avoid.
I never feel too good for it so I end up looking forward to eating clean come January 1. According to my girlfriend this makes me no fun to go to dinner with, but my body is thankful for it at least.
This year was no different and now with only a few days til February I find myself plotting my first cheat meal for the year. However, as my goal is to improve my health and get rid of this stupidly debilitating
illness as fast as possible, I won’t be cheating much in February either.
On top of that I’m eating as much organic food as possible. It is more expensive, yes, but it is definitely a far superior product in terms of taste and nutrient content.
Anything that can help improve my health faster will be of benefit to my transformation to improved health. Same goes with your transformation to improved physicality. Get healthier and your body will look healthier, leaner, you’ll have more energy and feel better too.
If a physical Transformation is your goal for 2013 then you should eat clean more often and cheat less.
So what should you be eating if you ‘re not eating junk food and how can you avoid the sugar cravings that scream out at you at inappropriate times?
Well I’m gonna lay it out for you.
Every day your meals should look like this:
Breakfast:
Meat, fish or eggs and vegetables with a little good fat.
Lunch:
Meat, fish or eggs and vegetables with a little good fat.
Dinner:
Meat, fish or eggs and vegetables with a little good fat.
Morning and Afternoon Snack:
Protein and/or fat with a little carbs from vegetables or fruit (if you can handle fruit when aiming to lose fat – not everyone will be able to tolerate the extra sugar from fruit)
You will notice that there are no starchy carbs listed above. Starchy carbs such as rice, potato or sweet potato or quinoa should be consumed after your 3 most intense exercise sessions each week and at no other times if fat loss is your number 1 goal. Ideally this is M W F or Tu Th Sat, but it doesnt matter too much as long as there is some difference between high carb days (consuming starchy carbs) and low carb days (no starchy carbs).
If you keep eating the starchy carbs you will likely fill up on them and not enough protein and fat to keep your body fueled properly, metabolism high and muscles recovering to their full extent.
Some people will need starchy carbs every day, men more so than women, but it depends on the physicality of your work. I recommend having a small serve at night time of rice or sweet potato.
You will also notice that there are no cheat meals listed in any of my meal plans, because I know you will cheat anyway. And for your information, eating starchy carbs outside of the parameters outlined above will constitute a cheat meal.
I also havent listed protein powder above and the reason is not because I wont endorse it. The reason is you will get better benefit from eating real food than you will from using protein powder.
Protein powder is a convenient way to fit meals in if you aren’t able to eat a proper meal, so keep that in mind. They should not be a regular replacement of fresh meats, fish or eggs.
And a protein shake consisting of protein powder and water or milk does not constitute a complete meal either. There should be some good fat added such as coconut oil and some carbs from spinach, kale, berries or other fruit.
If you are craving sugar it doesnt mean your body needs it! And if you give it sugar it will want more sugar and so a viscious cycle of sugar cravings will continue. This can lead to a myriad of bad gastrointestinal conditions.
If you eat enough protein and fat with meals or snacks, you wont have the insane sugar cravings.
So what do these main meals look like?
Well it’s simple. Put something together containing meat, fish or eggs and vegetables with a little good fat.
Examples for breakfast include eggs with spinach and capsicum, bacon with sliced tomato, chicken or beef chevups (skinless, gluten free sausages) with grilled capsicum or zucchini, leftover dinner, a scoop or two of protein powder with unpasturised milk, spinach and berries, etc.
Examples for lunch or dinner include soups, stews, casseroles, stir frys, or simply cooking up meat and a big salad with avocado and olive oil dressing. If you cooked a roast on the weekend then slices of meat with vegetables will be a great lunch, or any leftover meals are an easy way to get a good quality meal in.
If you struggle with eating good lunches at work then I suggest cooking and freezing or refrigerating meals. Spend an hour cooking on the weekend or one week night and store them for the rest of the week.
Examples for snacks include raw walnuts with a cup of berries, 2 hard boiled eggs with a small to medium carrot, celery sticks with peanut or almond butter, pumpkin seeds with a small green apple, etc.
These meals and snacks should be simple to prepare and made from whole foods, preferably organic if you can afford them.
Organic food is free from the pesticides and chemicals which are present in most commercially farmed foods.
When these toxins are consumed in our food, they build up in the body and disrupt the status quo or homeostasis. This causes disease and illness so avoiding it is a good idea.
If you’re a member with us then you will have access to our members area which includes our Naked Nutrition meal plan which lays out a weeks worth of meals and snacks for you.
You can check it out here: www.fitfaster.com.au/members.
If you don’t yet have the password email me.
