From the Mind of Babalu #8- Eating

Guys I know my site hasn't had much updates besides the training blogs.  I plan on changing that from here on out.  I could give you all the excuses in the world as to why I've been slacking but that will just take up more time than its worth.  So I am kicking things off here with another great installment of "From the Mind of Babalu"  Today's topic is my opinion of food, what we eat and what some people eat when trying to lose weight.  These are MY OPINIONS I'm not saying that they are the be all end all, its how I feel about food and what will help people maybe understand some things that they are doing wrong.  This all stems from a conversation that I was having with a few of the parents yesterday at the Academy.  So here it goes, if you had something to add please do so.
To lose weight, you have to eat food!  The end.... ok well really its not that easy, I am firm believer in calories in and calories burned.  I'm not a body builder or trying to look one so I'm really not concerned with macro nutrients such as Proteins and Carbs so much, yes they are important but for someone who is beginning to try to lose a little extra weight it just adds alot of confusion in my opinion.  So the most important thing is getting food in your system.  I've discussed before that maintaining and losing weight have a lot of determining factors such as the calories that you consume and the calories that you burn each day in your day to day activities which boil down to the calories that you need to maintain your weight and lose weight.  I have done the math for you in a previous post so I don't want to do that again ( I think) So if we take out the science of dieting and focus on eating and the kinds of foods you should eat this will help all beginning dieters take a step in the right direction.
First and foremost it is MY OPINION that everyone should have something for breakfast.  That something shouldn't include doughnuts (my love), kolaches (my second love), etc... Eggs is a great staple for breakfast!!!!  Not just egg whites but even the ENTIRE EGG!!!  I am not discounting people who just eat egg whites, because that used to be me, but I feel like the entire egg has some great nutrients and good fats for your body.... regardless what you may think GOOD FATS are GOOD for YOU!  Now of course you just don't want eat just eggs in the morning, I mean really how boring is that.  Everyone knows regular bacon is not great for you, even come to find out turkey bacon is just as bad.  So what kind of meat can you add to this so breakfast isn't boring???  What about Canadian Bacon, in the past year I have discovered that I really like this stuff, its very lean with some good proteins for you or even your everyday slice of ham is another way to satisfy your meat cravings in the morning.  Throw in a couple slices of WHOLE WHEAT Toast and you have a very complete breakfast.  Not a toast person, what about a whole wheat english muffin.  Whole wheat is the key here and if your eating bread and want to lose weight this is the route you take... I didn't make the rules I just follow them! If you don't like the bread part throw in some fruit instead, most fruits are good source of carbs for you so it would complete the breakfast just as toast would.  Other breakfast options may include:

• Whole Grain Oatmeal- the old fashioned kind that come in the big container from Quaker Oats.
• Cereal like Special K, Wheaties, whole grain Cheerios etc... not Coco Puffs or Trix
• If you are on the go, Subway has some great options for breakfast take a look at their menu

Another important item in your diet should be snacks.  You should eat something in between each meals that leave you satisfied and helps defeat those nasty cravings that we all give into.  Here are some snacks that I eat on daily basis, maybe you have different taste but these are just my options.

• Fruit- Bananas, apples, oranges, watermelon, strawberries, blueberries, I don't discriminate I eat all kinds of fruit.  Yes some have more sugar than others but who cares, its better than eating that snickers or my favorites Hostess cupcakes and chocolate frosted doughnuts!
• Tuna Fish, if you can get over the smell of this its a good snack just leave out the Mayo.  I will take a can of Albacore all white tuna add mustard, alittle dill relish and eat it on a whole wheat sandwich thin or regular whole wheat bread.  If you haven't seen the whole wheat sandwich thins check them out, they are good for snacking or even regular sandwiches for lunch.
• Peanut Butter, if you have a sweet tooth this will hit that craving.  You can add it to an apple or just eat a Peanut butter sandwich or on just toast.  Depending on the Peanut butter don't go crazy, I use an all natural PB called Smart Balance check it out.
• Lastly I eat alot of mixed nuts.  Just a handful here and there and you are satisfied.  Very easy and simple.

For Lunches and Dinners just eat in moderation.  Everyone knows what is good for them and what is not good for them.  Chicken Breast, Turkey Breast, Lean Beefs are all a staple of my diet.  Even ground turkey is a wonderful item to have in your freezer.  I eat in my spaghetti and can't tell a difference, but if you are having spaghetti use whole wheat pasta.  They have all kinds of whole wheat pasta from spaghetti noodle to elbow macaroni.  Veggies are good for you so eat them... it took me about 29 years to begin to enjoy veggies, but I eat them now with every meal not smothered in cheese either.  If you are a meat and potato kind of person, get a sweet potato instead of a regular potato.  You can do all kinds of things with Turkey and Lean beef you should be good to go, as well as a grilled chicken breast is simple and quick.  If you want to cheat, then cheat but do it in moderation and not every single day.  Then you just defeat the purpose, but there is no sense in craving something and not eating it.  That craving will be there with you forever until you breakdown and eat whatever it is you are craving and by that time you may eat WAY too much of it.  Just remember portion control, cheating in moderation, and you will be golden.

Those of you that know me, know that I am no Nutritionist, Dietician, or doctor.  You also know that I love food and if I want it I will usually eat it, but I follow my own rules as well.  Keep in mind that this isn't the only way to lose weight and be healthy.  There are many other ways to do this, but this is MY WAY of doing it and it has worked for me.  I have followed low carbs diets, paleo diets, diets that I had a menu to follow,  and they all worked, but always left me with terrible cravings.  So I usually eat what I want, to an extent and just work extra hard on the mat and in the gym to keep my weight under control.  I have breakdowns like yesterday and eat everything chocolate in sight but those days are few and far between.  Hope this helps you guys!