A winning nutrition plan doesn’t have to be overly complicated but it does require a little pre-planning to be prepared. In my coaching programs I promote a balanced diet consisting of high quality options in each macro nutrient category while limiting (ideally eliminating) processed and fried foods. Our goal is to clean up our diet by making better choices at each meal.
Here’s a simple way to incorporate this concept into your daily routine:
PROTEIN
Protein is our muscle fuel. Protein is the main factor in the growth, repair and maintenance of our cells and tissue. Complete protein has all of the essential amino acids and can be used immediately by the body. Whereas incomplete proteins lack one or more of the essential amino acids and must combine with another source of protein to become complete, such as when rice and beans are combined.
Choose a few complete lean proteins sources to have on hand for your meals for the week. For example this week I have some chicken breast, ground turkey, salmon steaks and some red snapper on deck. Some of it is frozen but readily accessible. Plan to consume protein with every meal to fuel the body by promoting cell and tissue health and avoid muscle wasting during weight loss.
CARBOHYDRATES
Carbohydrates are the body's main source of fuel for the brain. Carbohydrates include two categories: simple carbs which are rapidly metabolized into glucose and complex carbs which include starches and fiber that have more calories and take longer to digest. Many people mistakenly think of carbohydrates as "fattening" and avoid them when trying to lose weight. This holds true if the carbohydrates consumed are concentrated as simple carbs derived from sugars from soda, candy and cookies; instead of coming from nutrient rich whole food plant and starch sources.
Aim for the high quality fruits and vegetables for your carbohydrate options. Select some green veggies to have on hand to be a quick accompaniment to your meals. This week I have some fresh baby spinach, arugula, asparagus and frozen broccoli available. I hate wasting food, so frozen veggies are a good option because we don’t consume the fresh stuff fast enough. The fresh spinach (or kale) is an easy addition to add to my morning smoothies.
You may select a healthy complex carb to add to some of your meals. High quality options include fresh beans, lentils, brown rice and sweet potatoes. I try to consume my starchy carbs early in the day or timed around workouts so the fuel it produces is readily consumed and not stored as fat.
When choosing grain products - whether it’s bread, pasta, cereal, rice or crackers - aim for the whole grain or whole wheat version with a minimum of 2 grams of fiber per serving. This provides higher nutritional value, helps stabilize our blood sugar and keeps you feel satisfied longer.
FATS
The skinny on fat is that it is our friend and is essential to proper body functioning. Eating fats helps to slow digestion, release stored fat, aid in the absorption of essential fat-soluble vitamins and essential fatty acids provide amazing benefits for overall health.
To keep things simple we can categorize fat as “good” vs. “bad”, keeping in mind that moderation is key even with the good stuff. Unsaturated fats are considered healthy helping fat (HDL). Saturated fat is considered “lousy” because it raises the amount of cholesterol (LDL) in our blood and can increase the risk of heart disease.
Some good options for fats include nuts like almonds or cashews, avocados, natural nut butters, virgin olive oil and olives.
The key with fats is to recognize the proper portion size and source for each meal. If you have a fatty fish like salmon there wouldn’t be any need to add an additional fat at that meal since it’s included with your protein source.
Adapting to a clean balanced diet will take practice, but it can also provide a lot of liberation around food selection, which allows you to make good, better and best choices at each meal!
Reference source:
Body Confidence by Mark MacDonald
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