Seven Keys to Weight Loss (Part 2) THE FOUNDATION

THE FOUNDATION

After motivation the next most important aspect of weight loss is what you eat!! This is the foundation foundation of your weight loss. Without getting this right, you will have a very difficult, if not impossible, task ahead of you.

Sadly, this is also one of the most confusing aspects of weight loss. There are hundreds, if not thousands of guru's writing books telling you what to eat and not eat. Science is constantly changing. New studies are done that support just about every "diet" out there. It seems like what they said was good for you 20 years ago, became bad for you and is now once again good for you! High carb or low carb? Low fat or no fat? How much protein? Cooked or raw? Vegan or meat eater? ...So many questions and trains of thought !! The fact is that there is truth in each one of those eating plans. There are aspects of each one that work. So how do you know which one to follow. How do you know what is based on real science? How do you know what is safe?

I could write pages and pages on the subject. It is not my intention here to get into details or discuss the merits (or lack thereof) of any particular plan. I am not a dietician, so what I will offer here is basic knowledge that I have gathered from research and experience. I do believe that what I offer is a good foundation to get you on a path to better health. 

For this discussion let's not worry too much about calories. Just know that if you eat more food than your body needs you will gain weight. But, also know that if you do not eat enough food, you may also gain weight because your body thinks you are starving it and will store what food you do give it as fat so that it has an energy source when it is not getting fed. Being healthy means eating properly....the keyword being "eating". Starving yourself is not good and ultimately will result in poor health.

With that said, it is important that you develop a proper eating pattern. Make sure you eat breakfast. It really is the most important meal. It sets the tone for your day. It signals you body that you will provide it with nutrition. It flips the switch on your metabolism. It generates energy. After breakfast you really should plan on eating about every 3 hours. The goal is to eat about 5 times a day. You want a good breakfast, a light snack, a good lunch, another light snack and a healthy dinner. Eating on this schedule keeps your body fueled and maintains a higher metabolism rate. Your body knows it is getting fed and is slower to store fats in reserve (unless you are overfeeding). The key....healthy meals and light nutritious snacks.

So what should you eat? This subject is very controversial and there are many opinions as there are people. This is my opinion and as I stated earlier is based on my research and experience. I think it is important to point out that every person is different and what works for one may not work for someone else. That should be obvious. Just look around at the difference in people. We all know the walking stick-man that eats three times what we do. He never gains an ounce and our weight continues to climb. What I offer here are merely guidelines to get you started. You may agree or disagree with my statements.

First let's talk about what not to eat. My recommendation is to cut out the following foods. Most are unhealthy in general and should always be avoided, but when trying to lose weight it is critical that you eliminate them. It is important to mention here that for weight loss to be permanent, these changes must be permanent.

Sugars, Starches and simple carbohydrates. By sugar, I am referring to any product to which sugar is added. Eliminate candy, sweetened baked goods, soft drinks and other sweetened drinks (even sweet tea). If you really want to lose weight (and get healthier) don't try to rationalize this one, just eliminate it. Also included in this is anything made with white flour. That would be about 95% of breads, cakes, cookies, pasta, etc. A good rule of thumb is "White isn't right". About the only exception to this the white rule is cauliflower.

Fried foods. Very simple eliminate them completely. Most fried food is breaded making it a double bad whammy. Here in the south it is hard to give up our frying, but you have to realize that the south has some of the worst obesity rates in the country and it is largely due to our sweet and fried foods.

Fruit juices. Most commercially available juices are not really that healthy. You get a lot of calories from the sugars and very little fiber. Whereas eating fresh fruit you get  the fiber to slow the absorbtion of the sugars, which helps prevent those sugars from turning to fat.

Alcohol. If you are serious about losing weight, you need to eliminate or at least cut back on alcohol. Alcohol has no nutritional value at all. It is calories with no real benefit. The only possible exception is red wine. A glass of red wine on occasion has been show to have some benefit. My recommendation however is to eliminate all alcohol until you reach your goal and even then it should be an infrequent indulgence.

Okay...I have probably eliminated over half of what you are now eating...so what is left? What can you eat?

Fruits and veggies, nuts and berries!! Let's just keep it simple, Almost all fruit and veggies are okay to eat. At this point don't worry too much about anything else. Keep portions reasonable. Don't overcook. Limit salt and butter(margarine). Almost all fruit is beneficial. Again, don't overeat! This includes beans and other legumes. Almonds make a great between meal snack. Just watch your portion sizes. (Once I complete this series on the 7 Keys, I will do a series on specific items from this category)

Whole Grains. Oats, barley, quinoa, BROWN rice and other grains are good. What you don't want are flours. Rice should be brown rice (the white rule). Quinoa is an excellent replacement for rice (it comes in several colors. White is the most common and is a "good white"). It is one of the few non-meat food sources that contain all the essential amino acids.

Dairy. Just to be clear...dairy comes from a cow! This is one of those controversial areas. Current conventional wisdom says to limit your dairy to low-fat and non-fat products. Greek yogurt (non-fat) is a good choice. I have found that for my milk needs that almond milk is an excellent replacement. I recommend that you keep your dairy to a minimum. Limit cheeses and have small portions when you do eat cheese. Limit butter (However, my choice is butter over margarine as my use is very infrequent)

Eggs. Another area of much disagreement. More recent studies have shown eggs to be healthy and an excellent source of protein.  A couple eggs a day is not a problem. New studies also show that the cholesterol of eggs has little or no impact on the cholesterol levels in our blood. But, if that concerns you, stick to egg whites.

Meats and fish. Your body needs protein. It is the building block of you body. Meat is the best source of protein. I know there will some who disagree with this, but for mainstream America, I believe this is true. The key here is to keep portions under control. About 6 to 8 ounces is what you should have. You don't need a 22 oz Porterhouse. Just try to keep your portion sizes reasonable and in general stick to leaner cuts. As a general rule beef and pork are okay, chicken and poultry is better, fish is best.

So how do you put all this together? Start by concentrating on the elimination of the "bad" foods mentioned above and focus on eating the good foods. Once you get adjusted to that change then begin working on cutting portion sizes. A good way to cut portions is to use a smaller plate and don't get seconds. Eat until you are satisfied..not until you feel full. If you are not sure if you are satisfied wait a few minutes before eating more.

If you can follow these basic guidelines. Eliminate the bad, eat only the good and then control your portion sizes, you will be well on your way to weight loss. REMEMBER this is a lifestyle change, not something you do to lose weight and then go back to old habits. Your goal is to get healthy. A side benefit of eating healthy and getting healthy is that you will lose weight if you are overweight.