Eat Like a Champ, Not a Chump

I've been debating the topic for my next post. I have 2 things I want to write about, and a few things things made me decide that today needed to be the day to write about food! Since the competition began I've locked my diet down. The only thing that hasn't been good about my diet was 3 Doritos I ate Saturday night (not 3 bags or anything, literally 3 chips). Today I heard a little bit about one of the other teams and their diets. Apparently a few people seemed to think that eating a bratwurst, or hamburger, or whatever, was healthy so long as they didn't eat a bun with it. I was a little shocked to hear that, but I guess people just have different perceptions of "healthy". So I thought maybe this would be a good time to share what some healthy eating tips and about my specific diet. As much as I hate to divulge my secrets to the competition now that my little blog here was passed along to everyone else in the competition (Ahem, thanks Brandon :)) I figured I don't mind sharing.

The other thing that just put it over the top for me to write about food today was watching "Jaime Oliver's Food Revolution". It was a really interesting show, and I would recommend checking it out. It really helped put the American diet in perspective, especially what kind of food (mostly absolute garbage) the kids in our public schools are receiving.

A healthy diet and exercise go hand in hand. I don't think many people who are just getting started with a work out regimen realize that eating healthy is just as important (if not even more) than the working out. Eating well feeds into the work out, it ensures your body has the proper nutrition to maximize your results. And eating well really allows the results to show. You could work out all you want, and with out the proper diet you simply won't get the definition and visible results most are looking for.

Since I started actively losing weight I've been following what is called the Eat Clean Diet. And it isn't really a diet, it simply aims to teach you how to make the right food choices, and show you how to apply them everyday. It isn't a diet, it's more of a life choice. I've followed it pretty closely, and as you've read the results have been good. Eating Clean is pretty simple. I'll cover the biggest take aways I got from reading "The Eat-Clean Diet":

-When choosing a protein for a meal, choose lean proteins such as white meat chicken, turkey breast, ground turkey, very lean ground beef, and pork tenderloin

-Eat the lean protein in combination with complex carbs. Carbs get a lot of bad press, but they are totally essential, and if you really start reading labels and nutrition facts you will realize that it would be nigh on impossible to totally avoid them. You just have to pick the right ones! Complex carbs are essentially and non-processed carbs. Fruits, vegetables, and whole grains are all sources of complex carbs. Things like white bread, white rice, any bread that isn't whole grain, and all kinds of highly processed foods are all simple carbs (bad ones) Eating lean protein in combination with complex carbs helps facilitate lean muscle growth, and lean muscle burns fat.

-Eat as organic as possible. Now I'm no hippie, and I never had any problem not eating organic, but there are a few reasons to change. Processed foods are generally filled with all of the bad kinds of things you don't want to eat. Plus, I feel better about my food knowing I know where all (or at least most) parts of my food have come from. Like I said earlier, this is more about making the right daily food choices, so if you can't always eat organic and natural (Who can?) it's ok. You can really follow all these guidelines to many different degrees. One thing I read in the book that has always stuck with me, and helped me want to stay on track with the diet is this: In the last 50-100 ( I forget the specific amount of time quoted) years, since the introduction of highly processed, and high sugar foods in America, civilized diseases (Things like autism and diabetes) have become considerably more wide-spread.

-Sugars are bad. This kind of goes along with the organic thing. Most people know that sugar is bad for you, but few take steps to limit them in their life. One thing that can be used as a sugar alternative that is all natural is agave nectar. It's a little bit like a combination of honey and maple syrup. It's great in greek yogurt, oatmeal, basically anywhere you might be tempted to put a little sugar in. One of my favorite uses of agave nectar is combining cut up green apples, agave nectar, and some cinnamon in a pan and cooking for 10 minutes or so. Its a delicious all natural snack/side that tastes just like apple pie filling. Now you do want to make sure and not over due sugar, natural or not, but in any case, unprocessed is always best.

-Nuts are good. The book covers about a million reason why nuts are a good thing to integrate into your diet. They are packed with protein and all kinds of nutrients, and are a great natural snack. Almonds have become a staple of my diet. Also, I've substituted almond milk for regular milk. It tastes about the same, and using as a substitute in recipes you'd never know the difference. It also is about equivalent calorie wise, but it's packed with more vitamins and minerals.

-Eat 4-5 smaller meals a day instead of the usual 3 square. This helps you lose weight because by eating smaller meals in greater interval helps keep your metabolism running and burning calories and fat all day. This is difficult to do, at least it is for me. Sometimes it's hard to find the time to be eating 4-5 times a day. I've been eating 4-5 small meals a day during the competition, but before this I had a hard time getting the meals in. I just ate 3 meals a day, and it still worked for me, but to optimize weight loss plenty of small meals a day is the way to go.

Now I've only covered vague details of eating clean, there is a plethora of information I'm sure I forgot, or didn't have the time/room to mention. I just wrote what stuck out in my head, and things I think about everyday. I would reccomend going out and getting a copy of any of the Eat Clean books. Or check out their website which has some information and lots of good recipes: http://www.eatcleandiet.com/

I'll finish here by giving you a sample of what my daily diet these days includes. I start every morning (About 8am) with a bowl of oatmeal (complex carbs) with protein powder, a little bit of agave nectar, and sometimes fruit. The protein powder is chocolate flavored so it's pretty delicious. Then at about 11am I have either a small chicken breast or a couple egg whites with onions and peppers. (I happen to be lucky enough to work at a Subway where I have easy access to all these items everyday). At 1:30 or so I have a chicken breast salad, and lately, instead of dressing, I've been using some salsa I made which is fantastic, and goes good on pretty much anything! I have a protein shake after my workout, which has usually been at 415. Then this week Ive been having grilled chicken breast with some beans, onions, peppers, and jalepenos, and a small salad for dinner. (I know I eat a lot of chicken, but it is cheap, easy to make, and you can prepare it so many different ways).

One last note about eating. I like Eating Clean because you don't have to worry about counting calories, carbs, points or anything. You simply have to equip yourself with the knowledge of how to eat properly. I know things like weight watchers, and other fad diets are appealing because they tell you exactly what to eat and when. I like the freedom to make my own choices, and make the smart choices. Eating healthy has been difficult for me, because I love to eat, and I love food. But since I've been exercising I have simply tried to take it out of the equation. I cook up a lot of one or 2 things for my self for the whole week. When you come home and don't have to worry about making anything you're less likely to go out and eat un-healthy. Eating Clean can be difficult because to truly go for it, it requires a lot of fresh foods, and cooking, so that's why I like cooking up multiple meals at once.

Well if you have stuck through all this I hope you picked up a couple of things that you can apply to you're own diet, and help you eat a little healthier.

Peace for now Friends