Some real brain busters in there

Meal Timing.

Carb loading and timing.

Carbs in the morning?  How late can I eat?

How much sugar is too much sugar?  How much protein should I eat?

Regular eggs or egg whites?

The questions go on and on when it comes to choosing food for fat loss.  There is so much conflicting information and those celebrity diets don’t make things any easier.

Once and for all what and how exactly should I eat if I want to achieve rapid, sustainable body fat loss?

It doesn’t have to be so complicated.

Start by asking yourself these 5 questions before every meal.

Question 1: Are you eating too much?

A real brain-buster right? If you are eating (or drinking) too much you will not lose body fat.

Weigh your food.

Split the entrée with someone else.

Use smaller plates or containers.

Don’t go back for seconds.

Quite simply, pick a strategy that helps to make sure you are not over indulging and stick to it.

Question 2: Are you eating enough protein?

Protein helps build muscle.

Muscle accelerates your metabolism.  You burn the majority of your fat based off your metabolism.  Eat to support that.

Males should have 2 palm sized servings of a lean protein with every meal.  Females should have 1 palm sized serving at each meal.

You will want a “complete” protein.  The best place to get a complete protein is from either a food that used to have a face…. or to supplement it with a protein powder.

Question 3: Are you eating too many sugars or starches?

Too many sugars or starches really mess with our hormones.

I think we can all agree that hormones are important when it comes to body composition.  Just ask Jose Canseco.

When you eat too many sugars or simple carbs your body quits producing a hormone called glucagon.

This is the hormone that tells your body what to do with the food that you intake.  Burn it or store it.

Now you don’t have to completely eliminate these.  You just need to be smart about when and how much of them you should eat.

We will talk about the amount and timing of sugars and starches in the next post.

Question 4: Do you have any veggies?

Replace your grains with greens.  This will leave you more satisfied at the end of your meal as well as provide a higher amount of fiber.  They will also help regulate your blood sugar so you can produce more glucagon.

If you just absolutely can’t stand veggies there are still options out there.  You can “hide” them in items like chilli or blend them into smoothies.

Also a GREENS supplement can help you fill the gap.

Males should eat 1 cup with each meal.  The ladies should eat ½ cup with each meal.

Question 5: Are you eating enough healthy fats?

Bad fat in food can ruin your health and lead to body fat gain.

Healthy fat in food can make you feel full, feel awesome, and lose body fat.

Healthy fats act as a protein sparing mechanism.

This means that they perform many of the functions that are involved in keeping us alive such as the heart pumping, lungs working, or your hair growing.

This allows for the protein to do its job and build muscle because it was “spared” from performing those activities.

Healthy fats also help control our glycemic load.  Leaving our blood sugar more stable; producing more glucagon and having a tendency to burn more fat.

Olive oil, Avocados, and nuts are a few sources of healthy fats.

Whichever you choose just make sure you are adding some to each of your meals.

At the end of the day nutrition isn’t rocket science.

In fact here is a quote from 34-62AD Rome talking about the same thing!

There ya go, the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Till next time,

Move Better. Look Better. Feel Better
Nathan “Nate” Stowe BS, NASM-CPT, NCSF-CPT, CES, PES, FNS
Owner/Lead Trainer/Wears all the hats
Stowe Training Systems