Food for Thought January/February 2008
The “What”: Food Changes
The “How & When”: Lifestyle
Changes
Get In and GUT Out, Lose the Flab in Just Thirty Days
Okay men, lately you noticed that your belly doesn’t quite fit in with the
muscular chest and arms. As a matter of fact, you haven’t had a decent view of
your feet or any other parts below the waist for quite some time! Ladies, we
know one of our most celebrated assets is in having the ‘junk’ ONLY in the
trunk, and not around our midsections. For real, excess fat, especially in your
waist area, puts you at higher risk for heart disease and stroke. Extra weight
also is a major cause of gallstones, and it can create more pressure on your
knee and hip joints. All that excess weight puts a severe strain on your heart.
It raises your blood pressure and blood cholesterol levels, and it makes you
more likely to develop diabetes. (American Heart Association, 2007). It used to
be somewhat of a norm that people would get heavier as they got older, now our
children, teenagers, and young adults are getting heavier and heavier, and
diabetes is being diagnosed more often.
How does the body increase in size when it comes to eating and activity? A
simple answer: by eating too much food and not enough physical activity to burn
off what has been an eaten cause overeaten food to be stored in your body as
fat. In order to burn body fat, you must burn more calories than you are eating.
The type of foods eaten and your level of activity all play a part in the
process. I say a part because there are other factors in your physical make up
that you may or may not have much control over. This is where I advise you to
talk to your doctor before beginning any type of major dietary changes or
exercise routine.
So making some adjustments in your activity and in “what, how,
and when” you eat over a thirty-day period can help you change the situation in
your favor. So let’s get started, “get in and GUT out”, let’s lose the flab!!
The “What”: Food Changes
• Alcohol: Ya’ll know what I’m talkin’ about: ‘gin and juice’, whiskey, vodka,
wine and beer! All of those fat calories slow down your ability to burn fat
(your metabolism), and is one major reason
(if you like to drink) for the
waistline increase. Alcohol easily reverses all the hard work you put into your
training sessions. Alcohol also contains NONE of the nutrients your body needs
and prevents your body from absorbing vitamins and glycogen needed for workouts.
For thirty days you can do this! (Complete Fitness, 2006)
• Protein: Eat adequate amounts of protein, LEAN protein: chicken or turkey
without the skin, also lean beef or bison (yeah, you read right, buffalo meat!),
egg whites, and fish. How you cook your protein makes a big difference. Baking,
broiling, and grilling are all great ways to cook. Bison, or buffalo, is an
extremely low fat meat (lower than chicken!) and cannot be cooked the same as
regular beef. Care must be taken so you don’t end up with an expensive, hard,
dry hockey puck!! Use of cooking spray for light pan-frying is fine.
How much protein do you need? Ask four people and you’ll get four different
answers. Your protein needs will depend on your activity level. For example, if
you are a couch potato you will likely need only 0.4 grams of protein per kg of
body weight; if you exercise occasionally, you will need about 0.5 – 0.8 grams
of protein per kg of body weight. If you are very active and work out at a
moderate to intense level for 30-60 minutes more than 4 days per week, you may
need up to 1.0 gram of protein per kg of body weight. Research on body builders
has shown that they may require up to 1.2 to 1.5 grams of protein per kg of body
weight. Please understand that body builders have very unique nutritional needs
based on the intense stress placed their bodies and muscle tissue. The amount of
muscle gained is NOT related to the amount of protein eaten (Healthy U, 2006).
• Choose carbohydrates very carefully. Fibrous carbs such as dark leafy green
vegetables, cucumber, zucchini, broccoli, and cabbage
are fly choices, and you
can just about eat them freely because the calorie count is very low. Raw or
steamed is the best way to cook
them and still keep their nutrients.
Starchy carbohydrates bear watching as a little goes along way.
Yams, brown
rice, oatmeal, grits, beans, and foods with whole grains and fiber are also good
choices as well as fruits. Limit the amount of fruit juices you drink, as they
are very high in calories and do not contain the fiber needed to prevent
constipation. Refined carbohydrates such as those in white breads and enriched
pastas should be avoided. Whole wheat is a better choice, but if you are unable
to control your portions of pasta, do not eat it at all. Traditionally, most
pasta servings are way too much, and a well-intentioned diet can be ruined
before it gets started.
The amount of carbohydrate you need depends on your activity level. Overall,
55-50% of your calories should come from carbohydrates. For example, if you are
on a 2,000-calorie per day
diet, multiply that by 0.6 to get 1200 calories you
will need of carbohydrates for a day.
Not meaning to sound bossy, but when it comes to the subject of regular soda,
I’ve got to say somethin’!!! Regular ‘pop’, ‘sodapop’, ‘soft’ drink, ‘fountain’
drink, ‘sodee’; whatever you call it, has to be one of THE most useless
inventions of mankind. This concoction of chemicals is dangerous to the dieter
and non-dieter alike. Man, its not even real food! Many of the newly diagnosed
diabetics I’ve encountered were very heavy regular soda drinkers. Once they quit
drinking this stuff, there was an immediate positive change in their blood
sugars. This stuff can make your pancreas work several times harder than it
needs to; and if there is a history of diabetes in your family, drinking this
will surely bring it out in your lifetime much earlier. If you must have some
bubbly sweetness in your life, diet soda is an alternative choice.
 • Water. Drink six to eight 8 ounce glasses per day. Why? Water helps to
flush
out toxins released from your body; you lose water through your kidneys,
sweating, bowel movements and your workouts. . Your muscles are mostly water and
you need to stay hydrated while hitting the weights or doing cardio. Water also
keeps your blood volume up and can help prevent blood clots
from forming.
• Switch to “low fat” products such as skim or ½ percent low fat milk as
well
as
low fat cheeses, whether shredded, “light” cream or one percent fat cottage
cheeses, to decrease the amount of fat eaten. Choices that are labeled as “fat
free” are usually high in useless sugar calories.
• Keep condiments (ketchup, jellies, sugary creams, sauces, margarine, butter)
out of your
mouth for the next thirty days. You don’t believe me? Keep on eating
it and see, your tongue will be happy, and your existing gut will still be
smiling, too! Better choices include herbal seasonings or occasional hot sauce;
vinaigrette dressings are good choices for salads. Artificial sweeteners like Splenda or the pink packets should satisfy those who like a bit of sweetness in
their food or beverage.
• “Man cannot live by bread alone…..” I can testify to that, but he can get
along for thirty days without
it at every single meal!! A wise choice is whole
wheat or whole grain breads or crackers, but in moderate amounts. Your waistline
will thank you later.
• “Fast food” is a “no-no” for the next thirty days. This stuff is packed with
too much sugar, salt, and heart-stopping fat, and is possibly another reason why
your gut is in the shape that it’s in.
The “How & When”:
Lifestyle Changes
• Breakfast. Eat breakfast shortly after waking up, even if you’re not hungry.
Not eating breakfast keeps your body from burning fat. Remember “starvation”
mode and your metabolism?? Eating breakfast also keeps you from overeating
calories (containing little or no nutrients) later in the
day related to excess
hunger.
• When to eat your carbohydrates. Eat most of your carbohydrates earlier in the
day and preferably none after dinner. Usually by evening, your amount of
physical activity has decreased, so eating carbohydrates late at night won’t
help you (unless you’re a third shift worker with a highly physical job) and be
harmful to your fat loss goals; in other words, you will probably store those
calories as fat. That’s not good!
• Exercise. Include weight training and cardio workouts for at least 30 minutes
three to five times per week. This will help you increase your body’s ability to
burn calories (your metabolism), while you are sleeping or at rest. Start your
routine with a 5-10 minute warm up, such as a brisk walk on the treadmill or
track, or light jogging in place.
If you train in the park or on the playground, make use of the equipment,
performing exercises that will work your chest, back and arms; include pushups
and crunches. In my early days of weight training, I didn’t have a gym
membership; I made good use of the local park in my neighborhood. A highly
visible road circled the park, and was where I would take walks and occasionally
run. Workout stations in the park were also great tools and free to use. If you
have a great public park in your area, use it and enjoy the air! If you happen
to have a gym membership, wear it out! Free weights are great for developing
muscle stability, balance and coordination. If you are new to weight or
resistance training, or recovering from an injury, perhaps using machines
or
cables would be less stressful to get you started. Some gyms offer free classes
to their members that involve the use of weights in their routines; I encourage
participation in those areas as well as cycling and aerobic classes. Of course,
talk to your doctor or therapist if you are recovering from an injury to prevent
any further problems.
• Meal frequency. Eat small meals more often, perhaps five to six per day, or
every three to four hours. This will increase your metabolism or the ability to
burn fat. Not eating puts your body into a “starvation” mode, making it hold
onto fat for fear it won’t be fed. Skipping meals or not eating often enough
will work against your fitness goals.
• Sleep. Anywhere from 7-9 hours of quality sleep each night will give your
muscles and your mind time to restore itself. Without adequate sleep, the immune
system weakens, and the body becomes vulnerable to infection and disease. Growth
hormones are released during sleep, allowing quality muscle growth to occur.
(Help guide, 2006)
• Stress. Decrease the amount of it you have to deal with or find healthy
activities that will help you manage. Exercise is a good way to deal with
stress; shoot some hoops, jog, or take up boxing. Exercise releases increased
amounts of feel-good chemicals to your brain called endorphins. Going to a
concert, watching a movie, or dancing at the club may work well to reduce
stress.
• No smoking. If you do, please work on quitting. It reduces the amount of good
air and healthy blood flow into your lungs. It will eventually kill you. Enough
said.
“Think on these things…..” Philippians 4:8. (The Bible)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
