Are you struggling with what you should be eating ? Jumping on the latest craze or feeling like a plan should work for you because it worked for Sandie next door ?
The fact is your nutritional plan really is individual : Whether you carnivore, vegan , veggie, pescatarian or which ever label you put on it - makes no difference as long as you are :
Eating enough protein to stave off muscle loss and keep you satiated and
Being CONSISTENT
It takes a good few weeks to see results and I am not talking about the scales - scales weigh water which if you are trying to lose fat then you should be focusing on drinking MORE water - this will be reflected in your scale weight so measure your waist - or if you have private insurance get a DEXA scan and ask for a muscle mass reading .
If you hardly spend any money during the week but blow a 1000€ every weekend on shopping trips then this is going to screw up your saving plan int the long run- like wise if you eat brilliantly during the week but then binge and eat take-aways and tubs of ice cream at the weekend then this is not going to be optimum for your fat loss plan
The best nutrition plan is the one you will stick to - if eating a ketogenic diet works brilliantly for Nancy next door then great - but if you do not do well on high fats or simply cannot skip the carbs then this is not going to work in the long term for you
If Bob does really well on a Time Restricted Eating ( TRE ) plan where he skips dinner every night but you have a family who want you sit down and eat with them every evening then this is not going to work for you either
Get my drift ? Find a plan that you CAN and WILL stick to - why do people lose weight and keep it off ? Because they 1. Found something that works for them 2. They have been able to stick with it for the long haul.
This is exactly why ´diets ´which subscribe to long term heavy restrictions do not work for you - because you are the same as 95% of other people - we do not do well generally on long term heavy restrictions … all that happens is you deny, deny, deny is you loose weight but then get naffed off - go on an all out binge - feel miserable and a failure and decide that the plan does not work - back to square one - or worse - heavier.
Do not miss the big picture - the key is TOTAL NUMBER OF CALORIES per day - this can fluctuate on a daily basis but if fat loss is your goal then the number needs to go down on average - and everything counts , the glass of wine , the handful of nuts , the chips you stole off baby Janes plate ….
Personally - and this may not work for you - I never have processed foods In the house - if I want a pie , a slice of cake or ice cream then I have to go out and buy it and have it there … keeping these foods in the house for me never works - it is fine for a while but one day when I am highly stressed or just tired of using willpower… I go for it - and I don’t mean have 1 chunk of chocolate - I mean eat the whole bloody bar !
My treats are crunchy peanut butter - which is not particularly healthy but I love it - I hide it behind everything in the cupboard so that I do not see it - because if I constantly see it then I am constantly reminded it is there even if I don’t fancy it . So if you must have things in the house then hide them from sight .
Don’t use kids as an excuse for keeping rubbish in the house - you know what happens when kids have chocolate, crisps and cake ? They run around hyperactively and refuse to go to bed or eat fruit - not healthy for them either. Conditioning your children that these foods are treats and not everyday foods - in fact not really foods at all - is not a bad thing ?
What also works for me is not eating bread, pasta, rice , pizza and so forth - again if I am out in a restaurant and I really fancy it as I treat then fine - but I never have this in the house .
I fill my fridge with healthy carbs like squash , sweet potato , Quinoa , brown rice ( on occasion) , tons of fruit and loads of mixed veg like carrots ( love these raw - with peanut butter ) . You get just as many carbs with carrots and fruits as you do with pasta - and far more nutrients, polyphenols, vitamins and minerals along with fiber and water . And as long as you eat the fruit with a meal then you do not get that massive spike in blood glucose - don’t snack - another nagging trait I reverberate to my clients - you do not need to snack - especially if you goal is FAT loss !!!
Finally not eating late . When I eat late I struggle to sleep , wake up tired and funnily enough …I am absolutely starving !!!! I prefer to leave at least 3 hours after eating and going to bed and so does my tummy.
Finally finally finally do appreciate that if you are trying to lose body fat - if it was easy then we would all be skinny . You will be hungry - you have to eat less !!! BUT practicing the art of focusing on the food you do eat , eating less by buying better quality tastier natural whole foods and slowing down the rate at which you eat them - put your knife and fork down between mouthfuls which forces you to slow down … and you will find that over time you eat less …another top tip - put less food on your plate - I always clean my plate because that is how I was brought up … so I make sure not to put on too much in the first place.
You see it really is fairly simple - is it easy? No .. but by keeping things simple its much easier to be consistent and consistency along with patience is the key to fat loss.
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