Guide to Healthy Eating and Weight loss

[TheSheepdog]

My guide to getting a better body and better health

Weight loss isn't as complicated as what folks would imagine. If you follow this guide to weight loss I guarantee that you will see results in as little as 3-10 days.

Sodium-

Sodium, is essential to the body, but a high amount of sodium is a killer. It causes hypertension (high blood pressure) and a significant increase in weight. If you are eating a low fat, low carb diet and excersing you might be wondering why that flab is still there or why youre not losing any weight?its water.

So how do you lose it?

First thing first, no more canned foods. This means no canned vegetables, fruits, meats or any other food that?s canned. Canned food use sodium to preserve it, which in turns raises the amount of sodium in your body, which in turns increases the water retention and storage of water in the cells. Also no microwave meals or meals or dressings/sauces that claim to be non-fat (unless they are low in sodium). Non-fat meals are truly non-fat, but fat is what gives food its taste, so if you take the fat out, you have to replace it with something to give it flavor?.sodium/salt.

Next no more adding salt to your foods, no season salt, no garlic salt, anything that say's salt on the label, nor should you be eating sauces that are high in sodium.

The FDA (Food and Drug Administration), recommends 1000mg (1gram) to 3000mg (3grams) a day, preferably 2400 mgs a day, but the average American takes in 4-6 grams daily, too much for most Americans.
To make a long story short keep your total daily intake to around 1500-3000mgs per day. Oh yea, 1 teaspoon of salt contains 2400 mgs of sodium.

Water-

8 glasses of water a day is now known to be a myth and it is now recommended that we drink at least 1/2 our bodyweight in ounces; for example, a woman weighing 200lbs would drink at least 100 ounces a day. This along with a low sodium diet (1.5gms to 3 gms a day) will help to flush out the excess water that is already stored in the cells which in turn will cause a drastic loss in weight.

Some of the known benefits of water:
helps prevent and cure heartburn
helps prevent and cures arthritis
prevents and cures back pain
prevents and cures angina
prevents and cures colitis (constipation)
water prevents and cures high blood pressure
helps to improve and maintain muscle tone, weight loss, and clear and healthy skin.
Regulate body temperature, remove toxins and waste, cushion and lubricate joints, decrease risk of kidney stones and many more important benefits?do you need anymore reasons to drink water.

This is one of the main keys to your weight loss.


Sugars, carbs, fats-

I recommend that the majority of your sugars come from fruits.
Fruits are great as appetite suppresants, which will curve your appetite from wanting to grossly eat foods that are higher in calories and fats. Eating a banana a half hour prior to eating your lunch or dinner will curve your appetite, therefore you won?t eat as much as you normally would. Fruits are great for those who are deficient in vitamins and minerals, they also provide a healthy and cheaper alternative to some of the other snack foods you would buy especially those in vending machines, so instead of buying a candy bar, bring a couple of apples and bananas to work with you.

Not so healthy sugars:
Granulated white sugars- it is chemically treated to become white and is processed using bone char
Sugar- is a simple carbohydrate and can be absorb quickly into the body which can add unwanted weight without any nutritional value.
High Fructose corn sweetener- is the worse of all sugars and has been around since the 70?s, this sweetener has led to the obesity dilemma of America.

Healty alternatives:
Organic honey is great for desserts and teas, it can add a healthy alternative to processed sugars.
Brown sugar uses molasses to sweetened it, it has only 3 grams of sugar per teaspoon and can be used in oatmeal, along with walnuts and cinnamon for a healthy, tasty breakfast.

If you absolutely, positively need some white sugar, I would do straight Splenda or a mixture of splenda and white sugar.

Try to avoid eating sugars 1 hour prior to going to bed, the main purpose for sugars is to provide us with energy for the day and for our workouts.

Fats-

Avoid bad fats eg. Trans fats and saturated fats. These fats increase heart disease, impotence, high blood cholesterol, weight gain, diabetes, stroke, and a host of other problems.

Your goal is to rid your diet of trans-fats and saturated fats and maintain a healthy intake of omega-3, flax-seeds, omega-6 (balanced with omega-3), these come from fish, nuts, and oils.

Carbs-

Carbs are not dangerous, carbs are not dangerous, carbs are not dangerous!!! You must have carbs for energy, but try to eat a moderate amount of carbs and get the bulk from fruits, vegetables, dairy's, whole wheat, oatmeal, grains and nuts. Don?t confuse yourself on what is a good carb and what is a bad carb, if you stick with these foods for the bulk of your diet you'll be o.k.

You must have sugars, fats and carbs in you diet for energy and to help you make it through your day and through your workouts, but try to avoid eating these 1 hour prior to going to bed because you can?t burn them in your sleep, therefore it will just be converted into fat.


List of healthy foods for a healthy weight loss

Meats/nuts/protiens/seeds-

Pretty much all meats but keep it low in sodium
Lean ground turkey
Lean ground chicken
Salmon, halibut, tuna (low-sodium), talapia, and any deep water or wild fish
Chicken tenderloins
Turkey bacon to substitute for regular bacon, also rinse it first the cook it.
Fresh pork as oppose to ham
Lean turkey as oppose to turkey ham
unsalted lamb
deer meat
and any other meat that is low in sodium.
Walnuts are great and are needed for a healthy diet of fats
Pecans, almonds, pistachios, sunflower-seeds, pumpkin seeds, and hazelnuts are also great, be careful with cashews, brazil nuts, macademians and peanuts. Try to eat these unsalted and unglazed.


Carbs/vegetables/fruits-

Brown rice
Oatmeal
Grits
Farrina
Oats
Granola
bagels
Whole-wheat pasta
Whole-wheat bread
Wheat flour
All fruits are great but I emphasize lemons, limes and all citric fruits, these are known to be great for weight loss, hey put a little in your water
Best for weight loss and with no salt:
Broccoli
Asparugus
Spinach
Green beans
cabbage
All vegetables; fresh or frozen are fine, but don't eat them canned, I personally prefer frozen cause they retain more nutrients longer, you can prepare them by placing them in a microwave safe bowl and microwaving it for 2-3 minutes.



Snacks/condiments/seasonings/drinks

Snacks-

Jell-O
Cool-whip
Raw vegetables,
carrots
celery
grapes are great
apples
strawberries and nearly all fruits
low-fat, low-sugar, bran-muffins
non-sugared cereals are excellent
raisins
low fat yogurt with natural fruit?read the labels and be careful, some yogurts are filled with sugar
low sodium/low-fat popcorn
low sodium crackers
look for skippy's new low fat/low-sodium peanut butter, it taste great
low-fat cheese
Look in the stores for snacks that you would enjoy, that is a combination of low in sugar, fats, sodium and carbs and enjoy

Drinks-

Water!!!
Sugar-free tang, its high in vitamins with no sodium, calories or sugar
Crsytal light, not very high in anything including vitamins but is a change of pace from sodium
Careful with milk products, try to go to skim milk or low-fat milk, but by all means avoid whole milk
Don?t do too much soft-drinks or fruit juices?their loaded with sugar.
Diet sodas on occasion or if you definitely need your coke or pepsi, don?t drink the whole can in one sitting, drink it over the whole day.

Condiments-

Try to stick with low-sodium condiments or use a portion of the serving size,if it says one tablespoon, try using half a tablespoon, this will cut your fats, sodiums, carbs and sugars in half and in the long run this adds up.

Seasonings-
Mortons salt substitute- taste just like salt but has no sodium!!!
Any and all peppers
Any and all powders, including:
Garlic powder
Onion powders
Mrs.Dash- comes in numerous flavors
Lemon
Don?t do ANYTHING that has the word salt, even if it say?s lite-salt, you will no longer add salt to your food

Too sum it all up;

The most important things to do is to lower your amount of sodium and still stay full throughout the day, this can be done by eating a lot of vegetables, fruits, snacking on grapes or cereal, and eating five small meals a day. Be creative with the foods you prepare, you can mix and match anything on this list or add your own foods as long as they meet the criteria of being
1.low in sodium
2.moderate amount of fat
3.moderate amount of sugar
4.moderate amount of carbs

Drink a lot of water. Your urine should be damn near clear everytime you go to the bathroom. At the same time you must take a multi-vitamin because if you don?t all you?re going to do is flush out all of the vitamins and minerals from you body. Remember sodium holds water under your skin, but if you increase the amount of water and lower the amount of sodium you will flush some of that water out and begin to see a more tone body.

Exercise!!!! Even if its just walking a half hour or 1 mile, three days a week, its still 3 miles more then what you are use to and this will cause your body to burn more calories.
You can even go out and buy Tae-bo tapes or any of the exercise at home dvd's. Go buy some light dumbbells from Wal-mart, get on the internet and learn more about weight training. If you are doing cardio, YOU MUST WEIGHT TRAIN, this will keep you from getting flabby, even if you loose weight with cardio, you will still be flabby but weight training will help get you more toned faster then with just cardio alone, don?t be afriad to go to the gym and ask questions about weight training.

You must eat, the more meals you eat, the better you body will burn. Try to do 5 small meals a day, this will keep you energized throughout the day and keep your metabolism going also eat foods that are high in fiber.

Don't be scared of carbs, sugars, and fats, they are your friend but you must learn moderation. This is not a diet, this is a healthy way of getting toned, staying toned, and looking and feeling great for life?diets are only quick fix methods that don't last long because you cant do them forever (Atkins J). Don?t be afraid to have the foods you enjoy every now and then, because there is no reason why that you should have to abstain from the foods that give you comfort and make you happy, whether its fried foods, a burger loaded with everything on it or your favorite desserts, but don?t forget moderation and your ultimate goal.

My name is Donald and I am the author of this
To contact me call

[missella5]

Thanks for this very informative thread. I didn't know sodium was such a killer. I mean, besides the hypertension facet of it. I always thought it was all about calories and ratios. Also, sugars before bed-makes sense but never thought about it. I usually try not to eat 3 hours before bed as a rule though. Thanks again!

[TheSheepdog]

Thanks for this very informative thread. I didn't know sodium was such a killer. I mean, besides the hypertension facet of it. I always thought it was all about calories and ratios. Also, sugars before bed-makes sense but never thought about it. I usually try not to eat 3 hours before bed as a rule though. Thanks again!

no problem

[bambifox]

Wow! Why thank you my Nubian Warrior King!!! (smile). This information is truly appreciated. It seems so obvious (salt = water retention), but I always thought, if you did alot of cardio (30 min HIIT 5-6 days/week), you wouldn't have the water retention problem. Can you have more salt with more cardio without the bloating?

Also, you mentioned staying away from "canned foods", but what about tuna? It only has 160mg sodium. Is that okay?

And last...I'm doing my own version of Atkins. Meaning I eat high fat, high protein, complex carbs only (no rice, potato, bread, etc.), fruit (mostly citrus & berries). I know alot of people say..."it's a diet" and "you can't live like that forever"...but honesty...it's the way I love to eat (guess I'm a carnivore). It seems most natural to me. My body feels good without the bread, potatoes, etc. My appetite is totally under control and this feels good too. Also, I can eat my full fat foods (love fat), and still lose weight and feel good (never full...only satisfied). I don't know, but nomatter how much food I eat on Atkins...I never get the bloated feeling I used to have let's say after eating a cheeseburger (w/bun).

In saying all that (sorry for the ramble), does the max salt requirement apply to someone (like me) who's doing low carb? Thanks for any help you could offer.

BTW - hope you are feeling better from your injury!!

no problem

[TheSheepdog]

Wow! Why thank you my Nubian Warrior King!!! (smile). This information is truly appreciated. It seems so obvious (salt = water retention), but I always thought, if you did alot of cardio (30 min HIIT 5-6 days/week), you wouldn't have the water retention problem. Can you have more salt with more cardio without the bloating?

Also, you mentioned staying away from "canned foods", but what about tuna? It only has 160mg sodium. Is that okay?

And last...I'm doing my own version of Atkins. Meaning I eat high fat, high protein, complex carbs only (no rice, potato, bread, etc.), fruit (mostly citrus & berries). I know alot of people say..."it's a diet" and "you can't live like that forever"...but honesty...it's the way I love to eat (guess I'm a carnivore). It seems most natural to me. My body feels good without the bread, potatoes, etc. My appetite is totally under control and this feels good too. Also, I can eat my full fat foods (love fat), and still lose weight and feel good (never full...only satisfied). I don't know, but nomatter how much food I eat on Atkins...I never get the bloated feeling I used to have let's say after eating a cheeseburger (w/bun).

In saying all that (sorry for the ramble), does the max salt requirement apply to someone (like me) who's doing low carb? Thanks for any help you could offer.

BTW - hope you are feeling better from your injury!!

ok, first off, your welcome

1.canned tuna has 160 mgs per serving, there's 2.5 serving per can, so if we do the math then thats 400 mgs in one sitting, just from the tuna alone, not counting, the bread, , etc, so be careful with the tuna. They also make a low sodium tuna.

2.when it comes to cardio and nutrition you have to make sure that your daily output is more then your input of fat and carbs, for example, you eat a burger with fries but you only go and do 5 minutes of cardio, well your input was more then your output..no good.
3. i dont like fad diets at all, i like a way of eating that is healthy, a diet full of fruits and vegetables and meat and bread and nuts and dairy, but in moderation. I would do low carbs, medium healthy fats and medium protein (but this is also dependent on your level of activity)
4.the salt requirement applies to every american no matter what they are doing (unless a doctor finds a reason otherwise), you cant burn water, you can only excrete it by flushing it through your system, by either sweating or urinating, the best way is through urination

spot reduction sweating (using trash bags around your waste, sauna, etc), is not a good idea to lose water weight, some of us hold water in certain spots, for example most women hold water in the thighs, suprilium, tricep, and lower abs...when you sweat, the body is going to have to pull water from somewhee else and replace where you hold water at the most, because its our physiology
remember if it says low carb or low fat, look at the sodium content, because fat adds taste, if you take out fat, then you must add something...sodium/salt

[bambifox]

Thanks again....I don't wanna even count the mg's of sodium I probably take in per day...it might be scary sense I really didn't realize this! I will definately take your advice and at least be more aware of my salt intake. This was really nice of you to post and I'm sure it will help alot of people! Joyce

ok, first off, your welcome

1.canned tuna has 160 mgs per serving, there's 2.5 serving per can, so if we do the math then thats 400 mgs in one sitting, just from the tuna alone, not counting, the bread, , etc, so be careful with the tuna. They also make a low sodium tuna.

2.when it comes to cardio and nutrition you have to make sure that your daily output is more then your input of fat and carbs, for example, you eat a burger with fries but you only go and do 5 minutes of cardio, well your input was more then your output..no good.
3. i dont like fad diets at all, i like a way of eating that is healthy, a diet full of fruits and vegetables and meat and bread and nuts and dairy, but in moderation. I would do low carbs, medium healthy fats and medium protein (but this is also dependent on your level of activity)
4.the salt requirement applies to every american no matter what they are doing (unless a doctor finds a reason otherwise), you cant burn water, you can only excrete it by flushing it through your system, by either sweating or urinating, the best way is through urination

spot reduction sweating (using trash bags around your waste, sauna, etc), is not a good idea to lose water weight, some of us hold water in certain spots, for example most women hold water in the thighs, suprilium, tricep, and lower abs...when you sweat, the body is going to have to pull water from somewhee else and replace where you hold water at the most, because its our physiology
remember if it says low carb or low fat, look at the sodium content, because fat adds taste, if you take out fat, then you must add something...sodium/salt

[Ever84]

WOWZA!! Dude that was one long post! Very informative thanks!

[TheSheepdog]

no problem