Fit for Her Life

by Phillip Hauenstein, Webmaster

     Why do most diets fail over and over again and again?  Why does it seem that you can't enjoy a meal when you're dieting?  Why should you either starve yourself, or eat things that taste like cardboard all the time?

     You don't have to suffer in order to be successful with a diet.  Everything you eat, is ultimately what makes up your diet.  In my own life, eating out, poor quality, or fast food dictated my diet for many years.  A lot of times there never seems to be enough time in the day to cook high quality, healthy meals at home.  This gets extremely difficult when you are cooking for one.  But, there is hope, there are easy ways to enhance your new lifestyle of getting into shape, toning down fat, and creating a healthier, more confident self.

     So what simple changes have worked for me and can work for you?  You will read it over and over again, splitting 3 large meals into 5-6 smaller meals is necessary to help your body, even when at rest, to work with your diet and exercise.  Well, since you've heard it before, why aren't you doing it?  The smaller meals are important because of the way your body works.  Your metabolism is very particular in how it works, how hard it works, and when it doesn't work.  Your metabolism will basically shut down and go into a store mode if your body is not taking in some sort of calories or energy.  People say breakfast is the most important meal of the day and I am starting to agree with them.  After an 8 hour period without food, your body is deep into storage mode, holding on to every fiber of energy it can, storing as much fat as it can in case there is no more input.  By spreading your meals out and making sure you get a good start with an early breakfast, your metabolism is likely to continuously burn off calories.  Plus, as you get stronger and build more muscle, your muscles will need more calories and energy just to stay in a constant relaxed state.  

     It's not that hard, the simplest way to spread out the morning hours is to find some tasty breakfast bars.  Have something light at home to start the day, anything from a single serving of a healthy, tasty cereal, to some fresh fruit.  Then between the morning hours and lunch, have a breakfast bar or two.  Make sure you take in a few glasses of water too, to help keep yourself feeling full and satisfied.  

     By the time you get to lunch, you will be surprised at the lack of hunger you will feel as time goes by.  So, now that you've been eating all morning, what do you do for lunch?  In my honest opinion, for the person that is always on the run and needs something quick, the Weight Watchers Smart Ones are very tasty, normally a fair portion size if you are drinking enough water, and will give you the calories necessary to get you through the day.  If you're at home and have the time to get some groceries regularly, try something like a tuna salad sandwich or turkey sandwich, just keep away from a significant amount of Mayo.  For a smaller meal, Campbells and other soup companies have a lot of low calorie and low sodium selections.  Even if you eat the whole can of soup like myself, 2-3 servings, a lot of times it's still only 200-300 calories and they normally have a lot of other healthy vitamins and minerals.  If you are on the road and need to find something fast and easy, take a few minutes to check out Dottie's Weight Loss Zone at www.dwzl.com.  She has a fairly current listing of restaurant meals and calorie contents and/or Weight Watchers points.  Another great place to check is Nutrition Data at www.nutritiondata.com.  They have a number of fast food nutritional data.  Personally, I have used Diet.com for suggestions for meals, although I think they require you to be a premium member now to get their suggested meal plans, which can include fast food restaurants for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.  Between lunch and dinner is always a tough period for me.  Personally, I normally try to keep things light with 100 calorie pack snacks if I am planning a light workout, or no workout at all.  If I am planning a high intensity workout later in the afternoon, I highly suggest a cheat lunch, something with more calories.  Timing your calorie intake with your workouts will help you to have enough energy, not only to get through the workout, but to complete the day.  I have recently found that a cheat lunch before a highly intensive cardio workout provides me with extra energy for the workout, while helping my body to complete the end of the day feeling "even."  To specify, this planning ultimately helps my body to relax at the end of the day.  It's not a "crash" but it's just enough exhaustion, or burning of the calories you have taken in, to help you get a good night's rest.  

     Finally, what to do for dinner.  Depending on whether or not you have worked out that particular day, may dictate what you should cook.  Regardless, high protein meals are always good.  Items such as turkey or fish are great places to get some solid, lean protein without all the fat and carbohydrates.  An important factor that plays a roll with dinner is portion size.  If you have been eating lighter throughout the day and are feeling unsatisfied, there is a desire to overeat for your last meal.  Be careful when doing this late at night.  Although you will likely burn about the same amount of calories through your sleep as you do when you are awake and active, your body may not process the fat, proteins, and carbohydrates in the same way.  You ultimately want to build a diet and workout plan that maximizes your energy uses during workouts and non-active periods, so that the fat and carbs are burned clean and the proteins are there to build lean muscle.  Be sure to spice up your meals with some variety, eating fish and turkey or chicken over and over again gets boring.  But, remember to try and make good portion sizes for your lifestyle and include fresh vegetables and easy to burn carbohydrates.  I highly suggest rice or wheat pasta as a side dish with a fresh vegetable and lean meat.

     What about late night snacks or late night cravings?  I think that fresh fruit is always a good way to curb your appetite late at night.  Some other great ideas are popcorn or sherbet.  Both will have a limited impact on your calorie intake and can satisfy your late night cravings or need for dessert.

     The all important diet question: Can I cheat?  And how much?  It's always going to be hard to stick to any diet every day.  In my honest opinion and throughout my recent dieting techniques, I think it's important to enjoy a few cheat meals a week.  I think a dinner once or twice a week and a lunch once or twice a week is not ultimately going to break your diet success.  Remember to schedule your cheat days if you want to make them work with you and not against you.  A cheat lunch prior to a good hard workout could benefit you, but a cheat lunch or dinner on a rest day may set you back a few days.  

     Considering what my diet was like prior to 4 months ago, I have found the most encouraging thought for myself is to realize and start to desire, not necessarily to be "on a diet," but to be eating better than I used to be, because that will ultimately lead to a successful diet and workout combination.  Don't get discouraged when you have a bad day, or when your cheat day gets long, or when you just don't have the time to make the diet work for a week, but focus on learning what works for you and learn to desire the better foods.  As you see the physical results of all your hard work, you will realize the importance that a healthier diet will have for you to be successful.  Workouts are great, but a diet will maximize your results.

“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

Matthew 6:33