Archive for October, 2011

Your guide to a healthy eating plan is not about staying unrealistically thin, or depriving yourself of the foods you love. Rather, it’s about you feeling great, having more energy, and keeping yourself as healthy as possible. Healthy eating is also not about strict nutritional philosophies, it’s more about healthy eating and a sensible balanced diet. Learning some strict nutritional philosophies will help you achieve this and by using the information gained, it will help you to lose weight. Foods low in saturated fat, with plenty of fruit, vegetables and grains will create a strong foundation for healthy eating and a good active lifestyle, as well as reducing the risk of cancer, heart disease and diabetes.

Here are a few tips to help you get started:

Firstly, affirmations.

Place this phrase on your refrigerator:- “I AM WHAT I EAT!” You have made the decision to adopt a healthier lifestyle because you want to feel good and look fantastic so whenever you feel the urge to “snack”, remember that phrase “I AM WHAT I EAT”.

Now that’s the kind of motivation that will surely get you results.

Another affirmation to repeat both morning and night is:- “EVERY DAY IN EVERY WAY I AM GETTING HEALTHIER AND HAPPIER”. Having a positive mind set will do wonders in your quest to eat healthier and lead a good active lifestyle.

It is important to keep a journal in which to write down your daily progress, the foods you are consuming each day and the exercise you are engaging in. Your health and exercise journal will serve as a diary towards your goal – as a written record in which you make good progress (weight loss) and those times when you over indulge (too many calories and not enough calorie-burning).  

Your own health and exercise journal should include:-

* Type of aerobic exercise

* Type of weight-bearing exercise

* Number of minutes or reps

* Distance walked or ridden on bike

* Comments about the weather or feelings.

Your own food and weight journal should also include:-

* Write down each meal, and each snack, being as specific as possible

* Keep track of daily calories, using a calorie counter

* Keep track of fat grams, for each food eaten

* Keep track of your weight

 This daily diary is your most valued friend because it tells a story regarding your progressive steps towards your goals. 

Definition of a calorie?

A calorie is a unit of heat, equal to 4.1868 joules (International Table Calorie) formerly defined as the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water by 1 degree centigrade.

Obesity is one of the major obstacles to good health. So by cutting down on your calories you will reduce your weight and that will help you reduce the risk of high blood pressure, cardio disease and cancer. Here is a list of low calorie foods.

Vegetables low in calories (in alphabetical order):-

- Boiled potatoes.

- Broccoli

- Brussels sprouts.

- Celery

- Mushroom

- Tomatoes.

- Watercress.

- Swede. -

- Red peppers.

 Fruits low in calories (in alphabetical order). These fruits are low in calories only if you eat them fresh.

- Apricot

- Melon

- Chayote

- Currants

- Grapefruit (white, red, pink)

Meat and animal products low in calories (in alphabetical order).

- Beef

- *Canadian bacon

- Lean ham

- Low fat cheese

- Lower fat hot-dogs

- Ground turkey

- Whites of eggs

When it comes to drinks, water is the only fluid your body requires. You should drink water equivalent to your body weight in ounces, ie if you weigh 120 lb you should drink 120 ounces per day which equates to 7.8 16-oz glasses per day. Therefore the rule of thumb is 8 glasses of water per day (medical recommendation). Water is completely calorie free.

There are many functions and importance of water. Water forms the main base of our saliva, the fluid that surrounds joints are made of water plus it serves as a lubricant. Water helps the movement of joints, and also protects organs and tissues of the body. It also regulates the metabolism of the body and keeps the body well hydrated. Water helps to regulate the temperature of the body, as the heating and cooling are processed through precipitation. It helps to move the food through the intestine to eliminate waste and thus alleviates constipation. It is the best detox diet available. Drinking water helps to maintain muscle tone and metabolizes stored fats. It has an enormous effect on weight loss as well. One or two cups of coffee a day is ok providing you don’t add any sugar.

The scientific definition of unsaturated fats is a fat that has only saturated fatty acid radicals in its triglycerides. Foods that have high amounts of unsaturated fats include:

• Dairy products (cream, cheese, and butter especially)

• Coconut oil

• Chocolate (dark)

• Lard

• Fatty meat Limit saturated fats.

Your healthy eating plan should consist mainly of unsaturated fats.

Foods high in saturated fats run the risk of increasing cholesterol levels, a strong risk factor for heart disease. So try and restrict the use of vanaspati ghee* and animal products. In fact, there is no lower “safe” limit yet identified for saturated fats. This means that any amount of saturated fats greatly increases your health risk.

Increase the intake of foods rich in complex carbohydrates and limit sugar. According to the latest research, about 60 per cent of all calories should come from carbohydrates.

Carbohydrate A compound of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, the latter two usually in the proportions of water Cm(H2O)n. Carbohydrates in food are an important and immediate source of energy for the body; 1 gram of carbohydrate yields 3.75 calories (16 kilojoules). They are present, at least in small quantities, in most foods, but the chief sources are the sugars and starches of plants. Carbohydrates may be stored in the body as glycogen for future use. If they are eaten in excessive amounts they are converted to and stored as fat, therefore follow a low carbohydrate diet.

Moderate the use of proteins. In general, proteins are considered to be healthy, but it is a myth that protein rich food is non-fattening. Large quantities of animal protein are unhealthy as they tend to have both a high fat and cholesterol content and anything consumed in excess is converted to fat and stored in the body. An analysis of protein rich foods includes:-

- 100g of meat (red meat or poultry) will supply 20-25g of protein

- 100g of seafood will supply 15-20g of protein

- one cup of milk or yogurt will supply 8g of protein

- one egg will supply 6g of protein

- 120g of tofu will supply 9g of protein

- 30g of nuts will supply 5g of protein

A healthy diet plan includes eating five serves of protein every day, (assuming you focus on animal proteins). ‘One serve’ equals:- 

- 28g (one ounce) of meat/fish, or

- 1 egg, or

- 1/2 cup cooked legume, or

- two tablespoons of peanut butter.

REMEMBER the important fact regarding eating enough protein is that your digestive system has to be producing enough digestive enzymes to break down that valuable protein into amino acids. You need to have a healthy stomach, pancreas and intestines, but as you age your ability to produce these digestive enzymes in sufficient amounts diminishes. Use less salt and sodium. Excessive intake of salt leads to hypertension. While cooking raw food, salt should be added in the last stages because by then the salt in the food has been released, requiring a small quantity for seasoning. Try to avoid processed foods as far as possible. Increase your intake of fresh food and Fresh fruit. For your nutritional cooking, raw vegetables and whole grains are ideal ingredients for healthy recipes. It’s also important to remember that proper handling and storage will help to retain the nutritional value of food. Refined and processed foods should only be used sparingly or as a stand by alternative.

Fitness And Health Ideas believes if you eat healthily you have a head start in staying fit and maintaining a long, active and healthy lifestyle. We can only guide you, in the end the decision is entirely yours.

*Also Known as Hydrogenated fat. Ghee is an essential and nutritional element in much of Indian cuisine. It has a rich, buttery taste and aroma. Vanaspati Ghee is made from hydrogenated vegetable oils. Is white and grainy (danedaar) in texture and is favored for deep-frying and making sweets and snacks. Vanaspati ghee is manufactured from partially hydrogenated permitted vegetable oils. It is a mixture of vegetable oils that have been converted to solid form by the addition of hydrogen. Hydrogenated fat is used as a ghee substitute in cooking as well in the production of bakery products, sweets and snack items. When vanaspati is made, trans fatty acids are also produced; these increase the risk of heart disease when consumed in excess and are best avoided.

*In flavour, appearance, and texture, Canadian bacon is closer to ham than it is to bacon. The meat is lean, slightly sweet, and juicy. Unlike regular bacon, Canadian bacon does not crisp up in its own fat while it is being cooked. The meat is meant to be served in a soft, juicy stage of cooking, and it will be dry and tasteless if it is allowed to crisp up. It is also usually served in thicker wedges than those used for conventional bacon.