After years of research I have definitely come to the conclusion that there is no one perfect diet plan. Some diets are good for certain things, while others are good for other things. But what can be concluded from all my research is that there definitely are some general guidelines that constitute a healthy diet.
What The Healthy Diet will do for you
The Healthy Diet will:
- Give you more energy throughout the day.
- Make your body feel good and natural.
- Make you leaner.
- Make you stronger.
- Make your head clearer and easier to think.
- Help tone your body.
- Shed the extra pounds that always seem to stick with you.
The Essentials of The Healthy Diet
Through my research there are a few general rules that stick out which seem to be included in most successful diet programs out there. They are simple and easy to follow. I know you have read most of these before.
What to eat and not eat:
- Eat as much lean meat and seafood as you want.
- Eat all the fruits and non-startchy vegetables you want.
- Eat foods containing healthy fats and Omega 3′s (ie. Fish)
- Avoid or drastically limit your cereals and legumes.
- Avoid dairy products as much as possible.
- Eat NO processed foods.
- Eat NO refined sugars.
- Eat NO refined or overly starchy Carbohydrates (ie. Rice or white potato)
- Eat organic foods where you can.
- Avoid Saturated and Trans fats.
Notice that if you follow these principles you will be eating a fairly low-carbohydrate diet. That is fine and perfectly healthy. I explain elsewhere on the site why this is important and why it is in-fact healthy to limit your carbohydrate intake.
Other rules and principles that will help you lose weight, change your habits and make you fit and healthy for life:
- Eat 5 0r 6 small meals a day.
- Eat every 2 to 3 hours throughout the day.
- Drink as much water as possible.
- Never miss a meal!
- Avoid alcohol (as much as you can).
What’s important here is that these general rules and guidelines are what make up any healthy diet, that is why I can call it “the-healthy-diet”. What is important to remember is that we are all human, so if you do have one bad meal in a week (for example your co-worker takes you out for a fast food lunch), it is important not to be upset at yourself and kick yourself. Just remember, eating healthy is a life long commitment, it’s okay to mess up once and a while.
The Healthy Diet way to lose weight
If you follow the above guidelines you should literally lose weight without even having to try. Remember weight loss is 70 – 80% diet and only 30 – 20% exercise. To be truly healthy and fit however, I would recommend at least 1 hour of cardiovascular exercise, 2 or 3 times a week. (ex. Biking, running, jogging, swimming, stair master, elliptical, treadmill, rowing etc… something to increase the heart rate). On top of that I would do 1 hour of weights and gym training at least 2 or 3 times a week. So in total that is 4 to 6 hours a week of physical activity. In comparison to the rest of the time you spend in a week, this is a relatively short amount of time. Trust me its worth it. Nothing feels as good as being fit and proud of your body.
If you are strict with your diet, and workout moderately, expect to lose at least 2 or 3 pounds per week. In fact, tell yourself that you will lose at least 2 pounds a week. Just know that at the end of each week, when you step on that scale, that you will see weight loss. Even if it is only 1 pound. You can be fairly confident, that if your diet was solid, that pound you lost is nearly all fat. And trust me the weeks at up. How does 30 pounds of nearly all fat in 16 weeks sound? thats 30 pounds of fat, gone, in only 3 to 4 months. Trust me, 30 pounds of fat is a very noticeable change… I should know, that is how much I lost before my weight stabilized at 160 pounds. (I am a male, 5 feet 11 inches tall by the way).
I leave you with a few quotes…
“The mind is everything. What you think you become.”
- Buddha
“Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out.”
- Robert Collier
“Life just doesn’t hand you things. You have to get out there and make things happen.”
- Emeril Lagasse
Seriously, follow these basic diet principles in your everyday eating, and you will be fit, lean and happy.
Cameron.