Proper nutrition to lose weight begins to interest us the moment we understand that diets do not help. Diets don't help, that's a fact. Why? The answer lies in those prohibitions and restrictions that abound in modern and well-known diets, "proven over the years. "Proper nutrition for weight loss should be varied, healthy and nutritious, oddly enough. There are several fundamental principles of such nutrition. And also a lot of misconceptions, misjudgments, stories about fantastic superfoods, blacklists of "bad foods", as well as stories about his wonderful rehabilitation.
Before starting a nutrition conversation, you need to understand that in recent years, more precisely, for the last 25-30 years, the balance of basic nutrients (protein, fat and carbohydrates) has been skewed quite a bit towards the carbohydrate component. At the same time, you do not need to strain and calculate too much, just go to any store and look at the windows with sweets. They take up almost a quarter of the store's space! And the first step in switching to a proper weight loss diet will be a total rejection of sugar in the daily diet. Sounds scary right? You know why? Because sugar addiction is similar to drug addiction.
- Well, it started. . . - someone disappointed will say, - Again prohibitions and restrictions!
A couple of minutes of your attention and you will agree that giving up sugar can go a long way towards improving the health of the body and, as a consequence, losing weight.
We need carbohydrates, of course. But wich ones? We have all heard of fast and slow carbs. We need slow. Dishes based on cereals, wholemeal flours, vegetables. . . Fruits and berries are full of fast carbohydrates, but it is better to eat fruits and berries than to buy sweets in the bakery departments. Many nutritionists propose to resolutely and abruptly abandon carbohydrates, and of any type, reducing their consumption to 20-50 g per day. Such an abrupt transition from the usual to the useful can lead to dizziness, loss of energy, bad mood and the conviction that it is not so useful and that it is proper nutrition.
Proper nutrition for weight loss will bring many more benefits and joy if you change it gradually, constantly and do not go astray. But first you need to understand why our body so stubbornly resists any change, especially a decrease in the amount of sugar.
Sugar is truly the scourge of our time. Few products offered to us in supermarkets lack a teaspoon of sugar. We are not even talking about candy right now! Juices, yogurts, marinades, sauces, semi-finished meat products, cold cuts and sausages, canned fish, instant soups, instant noodles. . . The list is almost endless! The more terrible the next transition to new nutrition principles, it turns out that we have almost nothing to eat! Don't panic, there is a way out and it is quite peaceful.
Proper nutrition for weight loss begins with three steps.
Step one:eliminate sugar in its pure form. Tea, coffee, compotes without sugar. We reject preserves, jams, sweets, chocolates, cookies and other pleasures of drinking tea with friends or during a work break. Low calorie ice cream, cakes and even marshmallows are excommunicated from our table! All carbonated drinks are prohibited. Try to be sugar free for two weeks, just two weeks, you will be amazed. It turns out that the tea tastes different. Coffee too. Cocoa with milk, but without sugar, charges better than any stimulant. And what should be served with tea? At this stage, dried fruits (not salted), dried fruits, energy mixes with honey (a mixture of nuts and dried fruits, passed through a meat grinder, lemon can be added), sandwiches with butter (yes, yes ! ), Cheese and normal sausage, and better with home cooked pork, with caviar, slightly salted salmon, etc. At the same time, tea with all these goodies should be included with breakfast, lunch or dinner, and not be a regular snack. However, about the sandwiches a little later.
Second step:When the body switches from fast to slow carbs, it's time to eliminate foods that have a high glycemic index: premium wheat flour, white rice, and potatoes. That is, all buns, breads, cakes, peeled rice porridge, semolina porridge, as well as everyone's favorite manna cakes and potatoes of all kinds are automatically transformed from everyday food into a delicacy. Yes, and the soups will now also be without potatoes. At the same time, rye bread and bakery products made with whole wheat flour (no sugar, remember? ), Steamed buckwheat or just drizzled with clean water overnight, instant oatmeal, mix very well with fermented dairy products, as well as all or forgotten cereals such as spelled, quinoa. Also, you need to eliminate frankly sweet fruits from the diet: bananas, grapes, pears. Berries are not included in this list due to their high acid content.
Step three:At this stage, you need to abandon carbohydrates, leaving only the natural carbohydrates that are part of sour vegetables and berries. However, sometimes the first two steps are enough to significantly reduce weight. And if you meet a few more conditions in parallel, then you will not have to look for a new diet for yourself - you will go to a whole new level, where proper nutrition comes first and for life.
Proper nutrition must be varied to lose weight.This means that the balance must include not only the notorious BJUs (proteins, fats and carbohydrates), but also vitamins and microelements. And if carbohydrates provide us with energy in a pure and accessible form, then it is much more difficult for the body to obtain this energy from proteins, and even more so from fats. But, as is often the case, what is difficult to achieve is usually the most useful. The calories from carbohydrates are often excessive, our bodies spend almost no effort processing them, which is why "sugar calories" fit so quickly into comfortable rolls of fat.
Proteins are vital for our body.Protein is important throughout life: in childhood it is a building material, in adulthood it is an element that helps our body to function and stay in its best state for as long as possible. Judge for yourself: protein performs a protective function, helps in the production of antibodies, transport, the most famous protein, hemoglobin supplies oxygen to each cell, regulatory - normal hormone production is impossible without protein, motor - all types of movement are provided by the proteins myosin and actin, plastic: collagen protein is responsible for the state of the connective tissue, the appearance of the skin, etc. , energy: proteins supply energy to the body. But perhaps one of the most important tasks of a protein is the conservation and transmission of genetic information. It is believed that the increasingly common terrible disease "Alzheimer's disease" is directly related to insufficient protein intake (not only with it, but with the second most important component a little lower).
How Much Protein Does the Average Adult Need? Many nutritionists, doctors, and advocates of proper nutrition adhere to the norms for protein intake, deduced more than a hundred years ago by the German scientist Max Rubner, and this norm was 0. 33 g of protein per 1 kg of human weight . Much has changed since then, science has advanced and recent studies have deduced a very average rate of 1. 2 to 2. 0 g per 1 kg of weight. An impressive difference. Also, these 1. 2 - 2. 0 g is not the weight of the product, say a piece of meat or a serving of beans, but the pure protein content in the product. A sample table of high protein foods is available on our website. Our site has written about the benefits of protein products more than once, but it never hurts to repeat these common truths.
Despite the great popularity of vegan, raw food and vegetarian diets, we still need at least 50% animal protein to keep the body healthy and not in a survival state. These are eggs, dairy products, fish and shellfish, meats, and offal. It is these proteins that have a complete set of amino acids, unlike plant foods. They should be eaten though, if only because variety is the essence of proper nutrition!
It is clear that there are few products on our planet that consist of a single substance. Almost any food is a combination of protein, carbohydrates, and fat. And here with the last ingredient, fats, perhaps the greatest criminal story in the history of nutritional science happened. In a "perfect" moment, fats were declared the enemy of health. Everyone has heard horror stories about cholesterol, blood vessel plaques, and other horrors. And seeing how stores replenish their assortment with low-fat or completely low-fat products at an enviable speed, begins to doubt the sincere desire to feed ourselves with "right", "healthy", "live" foods, because there is nothing correct and useful in the absence of fats in the diet.
So what is the function of fats in our body? You will say: it helps in the assimilation of fat-soluble vitamins. That's all? From biology lessons on school days, someone will remember the heat exchange function of fats. So, the most important function of fats in the body is sufficient metabolism, that is, in simple terms, to ensure the exchange of oxygen in the alveoli of the lungs. Fat coats the walls of the alveoli in a thinner layer and allows us to breathe and. . . to live. My grandmother's methods of treating lung disease immediately spring to mind: badger fat, dog fat, goose fat, hot milk, and butter; There is grease everywhere, inside and out, and it helped! And by the way, it still helps, only drugs for the treatment of hypoxia (lack of oxygen), which are now sold for wild money, in fact, it is a fat emulsion. Another important function of fats is the synthesis of membranes. The cell membrane is made up of 70-85% fat, and the function of the membrane is to ensure the protection of cells, their thermal insulation and selective permeability (since not everything that seeks to enter the cell is useful and necessary for it). The myelin layer, this insulating sheath of our nerves, is 70-80% saturated fat. Without myelin: you get Alzheimer's disease, senile sclerosis (much younger) and dementia. Fat is one of the most important substances vital for the construction of membranes, the myelin sheath, ensuring its functioning, as well as the functioning of the central and peripheral nervous system. Remember this when choosing between 0. 5% and 3. 2% fat milk.
Another important function of fats is hormonal. Fats are the sources for the synthesis of hormones, and there are many of them in our body. These are growth hormones, protein hormones, thyroid hormones, digestive system hormones, steroid hormones, adrenal hormones, sex hormones, etc. It is clear that the slightest bias, the underproduction of any hormone threatens huge disruptions in the work of the entire organism. A sudden attack of blackheads and acne, all kinds of skin rashes are a sign of low androgen levels. Frequent "no-reason" headaches can be a sign of low estrogen levels. Constant insomnia - not enough progesterone. Fatigue, exhaustion and even exhaustion even during rest can be a sign of a violation of the production of thyroid hormones. Hair loss is also a sign of this disorder. Weight gain can be due to high levels of the hormones estrogen, cortisol, and insulin, along with low levels of testosterone. Forgetfulness and distraction are indicators of low estrogen and cortisol levels. How is everything connected!
Fats are responsible for regulating heat. That is why men who are not dieting tend to be hotter than women who are always losing weight. Constant frostbite of the hands and feet is most likely a sign of fat deficiency, if not some kind of congenital peculiarity. The most famous function of fats is to dissolve and aid in the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins: A, E, D, K. Following a low-fat diet and drinking vitamin complexes - not an option, the vitamins simply won't be absorbed.
And finally, last but not least, vitamins, minerals, macro and microelements. These substances are found in different amounts and combinations in all products, but special attention should be paid to fresh vegetables, roots, fruits, and berries. One of the most valuable vitamins, vitamin C, is not synthesized in our body and we can only obtain it from fresh plant products. Our site has filled a whole section on vitamins, read it, it is useful! Plant foods contain enzymes and flavonoids, all kinds of minerals, without which we simply cannot function normally. For example, potassium: the work of the heart will be interrupted without it. Magnesium is responsible for the health of the brain, nervous and hormonal systems and participates in metabolic processes. And also in plant products there is fiber; without it, the processes of digestion and peristalsis are almost impossible.
Proper nutrition to lose weight and improve the body includes the following principles:
Do not eat more than three times a day. Unexpected, right? But what about 5-6 meals a day, advertised in many recommendations? These fractional meals are perfect for seriously ill children, athletes, and citizens. If you don't fall into any of these categories, eat three or even two times a day.
Eat only when you are hungry, not at night. Breakfast is optional! If you don't feel like eating in the morning, reschedule breakfast a couple of hours later. Don't put food in just because someone said breakfast is the most important thing.
Learn to listen to yourself and understand the difference between hunger and the habitual habit of mixing something in between. The following recommendation will help with this.
Drinking water. Not in liters, as is sometimes advised. Not boiled. Ideally bottled or spring. The drinking regimen is easy to disgrace: 2 glasses of warm (neither cold nor boiling) water in the morning, 1-2 glasses during the day, and 1 at night. Sometimes it is enough to drink water to understand that it was only thirst, not hunger.
Get in the habit of buying all kinds of nuts and seeds more often. In addition to fats, they contain a large amount of macro and microelements.
Eat whole foods. I mean, not without fat! Cottage Cheese - 9% fat, no less, but with sour cream, creamed coffee, butter sandwiches, fatty cheeses, fatty sea fish, exotic avocado, bacon. This is not a typical "fire to fire" bias. A measure is needed on everything, of course.
Don't forget the proteins! But no less important is what to combine it with. And this recommendation will be the last.
Eat vegetables. Lots of vegetables and herbs. Fresh, pickled, pickled, steamed, boiled, and even fried in oil. But fresh salads are, of course, preferable. It is not difficult to calculate the amount of vegetables: mentally divide your plate into two parts: half will be occupied by vegetables and the second will be adjusted to protein, fat and the same minimum allowed carbohydrates.
Proper nutrition for weight loss is not strict in tables and recipes. This is a deliberate approach. All of these tips will only work if there is an almost total rejection of carbohydrates. If you combine protein with carbohydrates (mashed potatoes with cutlet) or fat with carbohydrates (bacon with bread) in a plate, that's it. More precisely, no, of course, you will not die immediately. You will go on living, sighing fatally for every new kilogram and complaining of injustice ("I'm literally sitting in the same water, where does the fat come from? "). No need to sit in the water, no need to gorge yourself on diet products or starving. Just start with three steps and walk, turning nowhere, towards health and beauty.