These are my Basic Recommendations for a Balanced Diet as discussed in the interviews with Dr. Pei Kang:
There are three macronutrients we all need every day to be healthy? They are protein, carbohydrates and fats. Yes, each one is critical to overall health. You can’t just eat protein or cut out all fat and carbs to lose weight AND still be truly healthy.
So, rather than eliminate any one food group, what I suggest is eating a healthy, nutrient-dense, whole food, balanced diet. According toDr. Doug McGuff, a fitness expert, your diet actually accounts for about 80% of the health benefits derived from a healthy lifestyle, with the remaining 20% coming from exercise.
Balance is the key – not only to fitness and fat loss, but to wholeness and life!
So, from last week – here are some healthy fats you can include in your meal plans:
Extra virgin olive oil, flax seed oil, pumpkin seed oils – used as condiments – for salad dressing, drizzled over veggies – not to be heated;
Regular olive oil – can be heated to 400 degrees so suitable for light sautéing or stir fries
Extra Virgin Coconut oil and macadamia nut oil – have a high smoke point and are best for cooking – coconut oil is high in medium chain triglycerides and helps boost metabolism as well;
Other good fats are found in organic butter, wild caught fish like salmon, sardines and tuna, grass fed beef and omega 3 or organic, cage free eggs; unsalted, organic, raw nuts (preferably soaked) and seeds like almonds, walnuts, pine nuts, pistachios, sesame, chia, flax, hemp, pumpkin, sunflower seeds as well as nut butters.
Healthy carbs
I think carbs are a misunderstood subject. So, making the best choices available to you is the key. (Isn’t it always?) If you focus meals around nutrient-dense, fresh, whole foods, in the form closest to how God created them, the type of carbs you should choose, in my opinion are, in this order:
Fresh or frozen vegetables, particularly green vegetables;
Fresh or frozen fruit in moderation and
Whole grains in moderation.
I also suggest, from research I’ve read and personal experience, my own and my client’s, limiting the amount of grains you eat in general and wheat in particular. So, if you are trying to lose weight I would suggest you restrict your consumption of starchy carbs to either breakfast or lunch (not both) and not at the evening meal.
Here is a partial list to get you started taken directly from Today’s the Day:
Vegetables: Frozen chopped spinach (this is a great, fast addition to omelets, smoothies and burgers)
Romaine, red and green leaf and whatever lettuces you love
Non-starchy vegetables: artichokes, beets, kale, tomato, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower,
cucumbers, Brussels sprouts, eggplant, peppers, Swiss chard, mushrooms, squash, celery,
sprouts (alfalfa, broccoli), arugula, radicchio, broccoli rabe, broccolini, collard greens,
escarole, endive, onions, green beans, radishes, garlic, asparagus.
Fresh or frozen fruits – apples, bananas, mangoes, oranges, cherries, strawberries,
blueberries, pears, peaches, raspberries, kiwi, grapefruit
Beans and legumes: lentils, peas, black, red kidney, pink, garbanzo beans, cannellini, lima beans
Protein:
Proteins are made up of long chains of amino acids. There are 22 amino acids and your body needs all of them to function properly. Of those 22 amino acids, 14 are non-essential - simply because they can be produced in your body. The remaining 8 ae essential because your body can't produce them and you must get them from food.
There are complete proteins - they have all 22 amino acids - and incomplete, which are missing one or more. Complete proteins come from animal sources, meat, fish, poultry, eggs and dairy. Incomplete proteins are found in fruits, vegetables, grains and nuts. One exception is Spirulina a nutritious green algae.
Spirulina is one of my favorite foods and one I use every single day. It is one of the highest, most digestible sources of "complete" protein. It’s also a great source of other important phytonutrients like carotenoids, EFAs, vitamin B12 and magnesium, iron, calcium, selenium and zinc – all in the easiest to absorb form!
By combining two or more incomplete proteins you create a complete source - for example rice and beans or nut butter in oatmeal or on sprouted grain bread.
My suggestion for choosing "clean" proteins is to just buy the highest quality, purest whole foods you can find and afford. The bottom line is always making the best choices available to you. Red meat, when it's a good source is one of the best choices for health and weight loss. Green-fed, green-finished beef is the best quality I've found and I like it so much, I've become a Mission Marketer for Beyond Organic products. You can learn more about the beef by clicking this link.
I am so impressed with all their products - which include raw cheese and some unique fermented dairy - here is the link to the website - click on the product you are interested in to learn more or contact me!
I recommend people shoot for 4-6 oz. of protein with each meal but if you work out heavily or just want to know how much protein you should be eating, I will share a formula you can use taken from Today's the Day:
Here is a way to determine your daily protein requirements by doing some simple math:
1. Convert your weight from pounds to kilograms by dividing by 2.2. We'll use the
example of a 140-pound person; 140 pounds ÷ 2.2 = 63.6 kilograms
2. Estimate your activity level:
Use a factor of .8 grams protein if you are lightly active or sedentary
Use a factor of 1.2 grams protein if you are moderately or very active (0-12 hours
of physical activity per week)
Use a factor of 1.6 gram protein if you are extremely active (15+ hours of highly
physical activity per week)
3. Multiply your weight in kilograms by your activity level to find out how much
protein you need. From our example above, we'll say that the person weighing 63.6
kilograms is moderately active; 63.6 × 1.2 grams protein = 76.3 grams. And that's it.
You can use this simple calculation to ensure that you're getting enough high-quality
protein every day or you can simply shoot for .8 per kilogram of your body weight in
grams of protein. (Example: weight 120 lbs = 54.5 kg x .8 = 43.6 grams of protein.)
Just for your information here are protein counts for some common foods you may
include in your meal plans: (Portions are all 4 oz. unless otherwise noted.)
Skinless chicken breast 29.0 grams, Sockeye canned salmon 23.2 grams, 96% lean ground beef 28.5 grams, Chicken, dark meat 31.0 grams, 6 egg whites 21 grams, Ground chicken 20 grams, Whole egg (1) 6.3 grams, Buffalo (Bison) ground 32 grams,
Tuna canned in water (5 oz) 28 grams, Whey Protein (2 scoops) 36 grams, Sardines in olive oil 3.75 oz. 20 grams, Spirulina (2 tsps.) 10 grams, Ground turkey 21 grams, Hemp Seeds (1 oz.) 11 grams, Turkey, dark meat 31.2 grams, Turkey breast 32.4 grams, Wild Alaskan canned salmon 13 grams
Proteins to avoid:
Conventionally raised meats (grain fed); processed protein like pepperoni, deli meat, hot dogs, sausages, bacon, ham.
Finally - I recommend you try to include a clean source of protein at each meal - it's an excellent metabolism booster!
If you have ANY questions or comments – don’t hesitate to contact me either by email at ann@threedimensionalvitality.com or on either of my Facebook pages
http://www.facebook.com/ThreeDimensionalVitality or
http://www.facebook.com/TodaystheDayPlan
Take a minute and “Like” the pages when you visit!
There’s more information in Today’s the Day Seven Week Fitness Plan and also in my e-book, Nutrition Boosting Strategies.
