Nutrition & Fat Loss for Dummies
By Tryfan Williams
Posted in Outdoor ArticlesSpecial Guest Posts, cooking, fatloss, goals, healthy, nutrition, sleep, water
Nutrition & Fat Loss for Dummies
@GethinEvans takes time out of his training regime to give us his philosophy on Nutrition & Fat Loss. Enjoy . . .
From the outset I want to make clear I am not an expert, and I make these points based on the research I have done, and the opinion I have come to based on that research. If your already a gym goer, have some interest in your diet, already seen good results and can sustain these results then this blog post might not be for you. BUT, if you have struggled with diets all your life,your weight has gone up and down and you do not have much idea about nutrition this post is for you.
Nutrition in my eyes is simple, but is made extremely complicated by all the fad diets you see out there.The majority of these diets do not work in the long term, as they cannot be sustained. They might work in the short term, but relapse is more than likely, and you will end up in worse shape than when you started!
I also think the point or goal to these diets is wrong, they promote weight loss and aesthetics as the main goals, were I believe the priority should always be health; everything else will follow.
These diets usually give a set protocol for the masses, but we are all different. What works for me might not work for you. So “diet plans” need to be tailored to individuals.
Not eating is NOT the answer, you will do more damage than good. http://bencoomber.com/blog/rant-46/
There is no short term fix, you need to change behaviours / habits to succeed in the long term, and this takes time. Have a read of this article. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/james-clear/forming-new-habits_b_5104807.html?utm_hp_ref=healthy-living
So, what should you do (or NOT do) ?
Here are a few pointers that will help you to get healthier:
WATER – Drink enough water, if you’re thirsty drink water, stay away from sports drinks, flavoured and fizzy drinks.
SLEEP – Get enough SLEEP and decrease stress. Go to bed between 10 and 10:30 in a dark room, with no stimulus such as televisions / phones ect. You should sleep through until the morning, if you wake up during the night its more than likely stress related. Therefore you need to directly deal with any stressors is your life.
DON’T worry about how much you eat, worry about what you eat, QUALITY is key.
DON’T count calories.
DON’T weigh yourself.On week one you might weigh 70kg, and by week 8 you might weigh 75kg but look and feel ten times better than when you started, and that’s what’s important.
NO PROCESSED FOODS – As I said nutrition is simple, you should concentrate your diet on single ingredient foods such as garden vegetables – especially greens, lean meats, healthy good quality fats, nuts and seeds. If it didn’t walk, swim or grow then don’t eat it.
http://bencoomber.com/blog/5-reasons-you-should-eat-carbs/
http://bencoomber.com/blog/5-reasons-you-should-eat-protein/
http://bencoomber.com/blog/5-reasons-you-should-eat-fat/
FOOD DIARY – If you eat something and it does not agree with you, CUT IT OUT. To keep on top of this I suggest you keep a food diary, and keep note of what effects different foods have on you. For example if you get a negative affect such as being bloated from eating gluten, dairy or wheat products, cut them out.
BE CREATIVE with your cooking – There is a wealth of different healthy recipes online, your food does not have to be boring. Try also to have as much a variety as possible with your meats, vegetables and fruits.
GOALS – This bit is very important, write your GOALS down. Whether it’s in your phone on a piece of paper, email it to yourself, staple it on your forehead, anything just write it down. For example if your goals for the week is to drink 3 cups of water a day instead of 2, write it down. You’re more likely to achieve the goals if you write them down. (You can also do this for long term goals, for the week, for the month, for the year, or by the time you reach a certain age).
DON’T try to implement everything in one go. Add different habits as you go on, remember you’re in this for the long run. So on week one, you might only decide to drink more water. As soon as you get into the habit of doing that, on week two you might swap chips for vegetables every other day. Keep building your habits up until you have a balanced and healthy diet. Once again concentrated on single ingredient foods such as garden vegetables, especially greens, lean meats, healthy good quality fats nuts and seeds.
DON’T be afraid to fail – Have a go, if it doesn’t work dust yourself off any try again. You need to understand everybody has ups and downs, what’s important is that you work through the bad and enjoy the good.
LIKE MINDED PEOPLE – Surround yourself with LIKE MINDED PEOPLE. This will help you create and environment that will help you to succeed. If you have a friend who is driven to better him / herself, never misses a gym session and has a good diet then you are more than likely to do the same,. If you have a friend who loves going to the pub every night, you will more than likely do the same. Make friends and family aware of your goals!
DON’T get too strict – If you starve yourself from the things you love you will want them more and increase the chance of relapse. If you decide to have a pizza on a Saturday night don’t worry too much. If you have three meals a day for seven days one meal will be 4% of your diet, therefore will not make much of a difference. The important thing is that you don’t make it a habit and that it’s a rare treat. This way you have more of a chance sustaining a long term healthy diet. Also there are plenty of healthy alternatives to the foods you love online, you can make a pizza base using cauliflower, again its about being creative with your cooking.
JUST GET IT DONE – When it comes to exercise, again set yourself goals for the week, for example go for a walk 2 times this week. I wouldn’t worry about how far you go, or how fast you walk as long as you go. If you set yourself a schedule for the week stick to it and don’t worry about the performance, JUST GET IT DONE.
And that’s it, easy! 😉
Next Level
Once you get this done, which should be 8 to 12 months down the line. You feel better, lost a bit of fat and your diet is sustainable, but you want to take it up to the next level. It is at this point that you might hire a professional or do some research yourself into your macro and micro nutrient split, your calorie intake, the timing of your calorie and macro / micro nutrient intake, and of course your fitness programmes.
Conclusion
As I said we are all different, and any fitness / nutrition programme needs to be tailored specifically for yourself. It will need to take into account your metabolism, gut health, body type, intolerances, your goals, time constraints, stress levels, sleep pattern, whether you respond better to a high carb or high fat diet, budget. There are factors upon factors to consider. But for now don’t worry about this, just follow the points outlined and it will benefit you greatly.
Tryfan Williams
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