Some people like to use the word “diet” so loosely, but all that word means, really, is just a way to eat. Some folks go on 2wk & 4wk diets ONLY to end up sliding back to their initial regimen and wonder why nothing is working. Your real diet is actually your lifestyle of eating, everyday. There's no deadline, no end date.
To be frank, I think people use the word healthy a little too often also. What’s considered “healthy” is actually what should be considered normal. Healthy is only “healthy” in relation to the JUNK we tend to eat today, but let’s just use healthy for now. By following my fat, lazy-ass guidelines, you WILL lose the bulk of your unwanted weight without one gym membership. As part 4 of my story on how I’m doing it, I’m going to share with you how I eat and how I can still grab slices of pizza and be cool about it.
It’s a little crazy how most folks expect me to share exercise information with them after seeing my
changes, but honestly, my home-style workout only accounts for ¼ of the entire process.
It was the last component to be worked in because my lazy self looked for all the non-physical alternatives first (horrible).
Most of what I share is the UNDOING of all the bad habits I’ve picked up.
My previous post and these next few tips & info play a major role in, not only losing the weight but,keeping it off, naturally, which is even more important.
If you give your body the basics (after a
detox), then trust me, you will be able to eat that Red Velvet and not regret it.
I’m one to love trying different foods and recommending places to check out, and you can’t really do that –calorie counting like some sort of psycho.
The whole reason for sharing what I did and do to lose weight is because I believe I’ve found ways to eat what you want and still be healthy and fit.
The catch?
Allowing your body to decide what’s right by starting with the basics.
A couple posts ago, I added an image of the
University of Michigan’s Food Pyramid. I truly believe it represents what I’ve learned “hands-on” based on priority.
None of it tells you to completely drop everything you like.
Instead, it shows where to place more emphasis, more of the time.
So this brings me to more tips to share.
Honestly, you don’t have to suddenly become some sort of healthy fruit FREAK just to get in shape.
One to two fruits daily are sufficient enough, especially when the rest of your diet consists of other great options.
I told you guys to eat a big breakfast, and that’s because I did. Some say no big breakfast, but I didn’t have the time or money to fit in 6-7 meals a day. Just think; you eat dinner, stay up for a few hours, then go to sleep for 6-8 hours more, and you think it wise to skip the next meal? I can’t believe I did it for so many years and I’ll never do it again. Nothing’s so important that you have to skip breakfast, because ultimately, whatever’s SO important is bound to become adversely affected by missing that very breakfast anyway. So before we get to the exercise, we’ll eat. The usual question; what the hell is there to eat?
In the past couple decades, what to eat has been transformed into what’s most available to eat. Well, by NO coincidence whatsoever, isn’t it nice that we can find a 69cent burger 5x quicker than we can find a fruit stand or salad? Or even an actual burger for that matter. This is especially true with the confusing produce section, which can be a nice little visit to a foreign country before you get to the meat section. With a bunch of fruits and vegetables that you never heard of and are not sure how to eat, one can understand how sane it would seem to stick to what you know.
So, I’ve listed the greens and veggies that I’ve picked up so far, and in future posts (fruits in previous posts), I will share how to prepare & eat these items, so that you will be more likely to follow my steps. I mean, we’ll try an insane looking drink before we try a new food, and that’s just plain ass-backwards. After New Year’s? Understandable, but ass-backwards nonetheless.
Get Green (Fresh and/or frozen)
String Beans
Carrots
Cucumbers
Celery
Lettuce (Romaine)
Tomatoes
Red Leaf
Watercress (with some adjustments)
Spinach (a late favorite)
Broccoli
There’s more to this list but let’s just start with this since it’s mostly my typical salad mix. You can eat these as they are or with just a light sauce/dressing (vinaigrette) to give it flavor but not too much or the calories in the dressing could help to defeat the purpose. You can even work more veggies into an existing meal. This is why, when I get a fresh burger from a local spot, I get it with everything on it. Most of the time, the items added are pretty much a salad anyway. (I’ll have burger-centric posts soon just to clarify).
How I adjusted my diet to lose 70lbs
I started eating smaller portions, more often. I suggest at least three times a day to keep a consistent schedule and keep from the overeating that we tend to do when skipping meals (2xday). But IDEALLY, you want to eat smaller portions 4-5 times daily. You may hear some say 5-7 times a day but real people hardily have the time or funds to keep up such a schedule, not to mention it not being much different at all from 4-5 times.
Truthfully, eating more times a day doesn’t really mean much if the calories you take in each meal are exceedingly high; especially if you have no sort of significant physical activity to follow that. Really, losing and keeping weight off is about burning as many calories as you take in. I just made sure I to use the standard daily 2,000 calories and a benchmark and decided what I ate based on my chances in exceeding that amount or not and being active enough to offset when I did go higher. My eating schedule is no real schedule at all; it’s just eating when you’re hungry yet controlling that very hunger.
Meal Tips
If you know you’re overweight and tend to eat LARGE amounts in one sitting, get that plate of food that you normally set for yourself, go ahead and set it. Now, look at it, take a picture, and cut it straight down the middle. Eat one half then and save the other half for the next day. You think it won’t be enough just reading this but trust me, it is. Drink a cup of water before you eat and don’t rush. Having some conversation, pausing during your meals, you’ll notice that you’re NOT as hungry as you thought you were. Your body will adjust when you take your time eating and you’ll reach this weird point where you find you can’t finish what you would normally breathe down. This is FINE. This is the point that matters most; controlling your hunger by not overstating it.
Instead of grabbing four pieces of chicken, grab two. Instead of two scoops, grab one. Instead of 16ounces, grab 8oz. Always sip beverages towards the sides of your tongue; this is how your thirst is quenched. Most people drink way more than they need to just to get that satisfaction of the quench when they really could have gotten it 12oz. earlier, thus taking in fewer calories per meal. Instead of coke, drink water first, before you eat and that smaller portion will suddenly feel just right. (Soda can increase your appetite, which is what pushes us to eat that extra slice after washing down the previous one with… soda). These tips work BEST after a Detox.
This step is the LARGEST of the steps as it is where you establish a new, better way of eating, thereby creating a new lifestyle, NOT a 2 week diet.
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Contributors to my overall fitness plan
¼ = Water and Breakfast
½ = Natural Detox
¾ = Eat fresh, less heavy, 4-5x daily
1 = …….
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