How to design your own effective fat loss meals

How to design your own effective fat loss meals

 An introduction to meal planning and menu creation – make your own fat loss meals.

The purpose of this article is to provide you with all the nutrition theory I feel that you need to enable you to create your own healthy fat loss meals.

In this article, you’ll learn exactly which foods are the best to be part of healthy fat loss meals and which ones are the worst. You’ll discover a simple formula for combining individual foods into fat-burning meals and you’ll learn how to turn those individual meals into a daily menu plan.

Most important of all, you’ll learn that you must plan your diet in advance and never “wing it.”

No food is neutral — everything you eat either helps or hurts

If you’ve been blessed with an efficient metabolism and you think you can “get away” with frequent dietary indiscretions, you’d better think again!

Everything counts. No food has a neutral effect. Everything you eat moves you forward or sends you backwards.

Once you understand and accept the maxim that you are literally what you eat, and that every food you eat either helps or hurts, you’ll start to get extremely careful about what you put in your body every day.

How to Make the Eight Food Choices

The results you get following my advice will be equal to the sum total of all your food choices. Every little thing you eat counts and adds up over time to produce a cumulative result.

This end result — a fat free body — is achieved one tiny step at a time, one meal at a time, one workout at a time. As Motivational speaker Jim Rohn puts it, ‘Success is a matter of a few simple disciplines, practiced every day. Failure is a few errors in judgment, repeated every day.”

This is so true when it comes to nutrition. Every choice you make must be thought out and carefully planned into a written daily schedule.

When it comes to food, acting without thinking can be disastrous. You’re more likely to eat the wrong things when you don’t have a written plan and schedule. Without planning and preparation, you’re leaving yourself at the mercy of whims, cravings and circumstances.

Choose foods with a high thermic effect (metabolism-boosting foods)

There are two food groups that have a higher thermic effect than any other foods and these will increase your metabolic rate the most.

These food groups are:

1) lean proteins; and

2) natural, fibre-containing complex carbohydrates.

Protein foods stimulate the metabolism the most. Studies have shown an increase in metabolic rate of up to 25-30% after eating lean protein.

This is one of the many reasons you will be eating a sewing of lean protein with each meal.

Natural, fibre-containing complex carbohydrates also have a high thermic effect and boost the metabolism.

Complex carbohydrates include fibrous vegetables, whole grains and natural starches such as sweet potatoes, beans, brown rice, and oatmeal (porridge).

Of all the foods, fats have the lowest thermic effect. Refined simple sugars also have a low thermic effect.

Avoid fat producing foods

As you already may be aware, that too much of anything will get stored as fat and that calories are the most important factor in fat loss. However, certain foods are more likely to be converted to fat than others — even at the same calorie level.

The three types of food that promote fat storage the most include:

1. High fat foods (high calorie density; 9 calories per gram, low thermic effect)
2. High sugar or refined carbohydrates (high calorie density, absorbed too quickly)
3. Alcohol (high calorie density; 7 calories per gram. Suppresses fat-burning)

Avoid fat-producing food combinations

In addition to certain individual foods being more “fattening,” certain food combinations are doubly disastrous when you’re trying to lose body fat.

The worst of all possible food combinations is fat combined with sugar because it elevates your blood levels of fat, sugar and insulin simultaneously.

When fat is eaten at the same time as simple carbohydrates, both the fat and the carbohydrates are pushed into fat storage. The bad coupling of fats with carbohydrates slows down your metabolism and causes you to gain weight.

The one food combination that you should never, ever eat if you want to get lean

Even though it’s a wise idea to allow yourself a cheat meal once a week, some foods or food combinations should be avoided as much as possible.

The fat and sugar combination is undoubtedly the worst of all. It’s a sure-fire way to gain body fat so fast you won’t even know what hit you.

Low quality fats and refined sugars, eaten together, are also contributing factors in the development of nearly every major disease.

A few obvious examples of the fat + processed carbohydrate combination include ice cream, doughnuts, cakes, etc.

The second worst combination is sugar and alcohol.

Alcohol that is mixed in high sugar drinks can contribute to literally thousands of calories over the course of an evening. Alcohol inhibits fat burning. One night with a high-fat, high-carbohydrate dinner followed by un-moderated drinking could set you back an entire week!

Choose nutrient dense foods

Your goal isn’t just to eat a specific number of calories. Your goal is to get the maximum nutritional value, or “nutrient density,” from every calorie you eat.

Any food that has been refined, enriched, preserved, processed, canned, boxed or frozen will usually have less nutritional density than fresh foods in their natural state.

Choose natural foods

The best choice you can make is to eat foods the way they appear in nature. You should choose fresh foods over canned or frozen foods, and natural unrefined foods over more processed foods.

For example, vegetables, potatoes, fruit, rice, and oatmeal are less processed and more nutrient dense than crackers, white bread, or bagels.

Remember the “acid-test” question for whether a food is natural or not: “Did this food come out of the ground or off the tree/plant this way?”

Don’t choose empty calories & “junk foods”

All calories are not created equal. If a calorie were just a calorie, then any two diets at the same calorie level would have the same effects on your body composition regardless of their macronutrient profile.

If a calorie was just a calorie, then a 2400 calorie diet of 100% sugar would have the same effect as a 2400 calorie diet of 100% lean protein – but it doesn’t!

“Junk foods” have little or no nutritional value and they don’t boost your metabolism. That’s why they’re also called “empty calories.”

You simply cannot eat “junk foods” on a regular daily basis and expect to get good results.

The top twelve worst junk foods that you should NEVER eat: “The Dirty Dozen”

Probably the best way to start learning how to pick the right foods and make fat burning meals is to tell you what NOT to eat.

If you know what not to eat, then through a process of elimination, you’ll be much more likely to choose the right things. Make sense?

The 12 worst fat-storing foods you should never eat

1. Ice cream
2. Fried foods
3. Doughnuts and pastries
4. Chocolate & sweets
5. Fizzy drinks
6. Fruit “drinks” and other sugar-sweetened beverages
7. Crisps
8. Bacon, sausage
9. White Bread
10. Hot dogs, fast food burgers
11. Cakes and biscuits
12. Sugary breakfast cereals

How to improve your food choices: Some healthy alternatives to “junk” foods

If you’re in tears right now because I just took away all of your favourite foods, and you’re wondering, “What the heck does that leave me?” don’t worry. I’m going to tell you exactly what new foods to put in place of your old, “low grade” food choices.

Although all the foods listed as alternatives are not “A-grade” foods, they are all improvements over the old “low grade” foods.

The top twelve best foods you should eat regularly: “The Top Twelve”

OK, now that you know what you shouldn‘t eat, let’s talk about what you should eat.

This recommended food list, called “the terrific twelve,” might be the most valuable resource in this entire article.

Although the possible variety in your food choices is nearly infinite, these are the staple foods that will make up the foundation of your program.

Variety is important, but these are the foods you can’t go wrong with and the ones you’ll keep coming back to time after time.

The 12 best foods you should eat all the time

1. Oatmeal (or other whole grain cooked cereals such as barley, wheat, rye, etc)
2. Sweet potatoes
3. Potatoes
4. Brown Rice
5. Wholemeal bread and 100% whole grain products
6. Vegetables
7. Fresh Fruit
8. Low fat & nonfat dairy products (yogurt, cheese, milk, etc)
9. Chicken or turkey breast
10. Egg whites
11. Lean red meat
12. Fish and shellfish

The Six Exchange Groups & Basic Food List

Most mainstream nutritionists still divide foods into the four basic categories;

1. breads and grains,
2. dairy,
3. meats and
4. fruits and vegetables.

For our purposes of helping you lose body fat, it’s necessary to be much more precise with your food groups.

Because each type of carbohydrate can have vastly different properties and effects on body composition, it’s necessary to subdivide the carbohydrates into three separate groups;

1. fibrous
2. simple
3. starchy

Proteins will be narrowed down into “lean proteins,” eliminating all the high-fat proteins from the list, dairy products will be narrowed down to nonfat or low-fat dairy, eliminating all whole milk products, and good fats will have a category by themselves.

A simple formula for creating effective, fat-burning meals and menus

Ok, now that you know exactly which foods to choose, you’re ready to hand-pick the foods you enjoy and put them all together into your own personalized meals and menu plans.

Creating effective, result-producing menus is incredibly easy once you know the simple formula.

HEALTHY GLOW’S Simple Steps to create your own eating plan

(the breakdown of this eating plan is 50-55% carbs, 30% protein, 15-20% fat)

Step 1: Choose a lean protein from the list for every meal.

Step 2: Choose a starchy carbohydrate from the list for every meal

Step 3: Choose your simple carbohydrates for your breakfasts

Step 4: Choose your fibrous carbs for your lunches and dinners

Step 5: Add essential fats if insufficient quantities are present in your foods

Step 6: Count your meal subtotals and grand totals.

Step 7: Compare your totals to your calorie target and adjust the serving sizes

Step 8: Assign a time for each meal

Breakfasts (meals one and two)

Because you’ll be eating between three to six times during the day (usually 3 main meals and 2-3 snacks) and the first two meals will probably be in the morning, we’ll call meals one and two “breakfasts” for simplicity.

The first step in creating a breakfast is to select a lean protein such as egg whites. The second step is to choose a starchy carbohydrate such as oatmeal.

The third step, which is optional, is to pick a natural simple carbohydrate such as an orange.

Now all you have to do is adjust your portion sizes to fit your personal calorie needs. There you have it — as easy as one—two—three — instant meal!

Here are several examples.

Of course, there’s no reason whatsoever why you can’t have green vegetables and chicken breast for breakfast if that’s what you want (many bodybuilders do!)

However, this isn’t what most people would consider an appetizing or “traditional” breakfast. Traditional breakfasts usually consist of either hot or cold cereal for complex carbohydrates, a piece of fruit for simple carbohydrates and egg whites, protein powder or a dairy product for protein.

Lunches and dinners (meals three through six)

Meals three through six will usually fall in the afternoon and evening, so we’ll group these meals together and call them “lunches and dinners” collectively.

As with all meals, you begin by selecting a lean protein such as fish or chicken breast. Second, you choose a starchy carbohydrate such as a baked potato. Third, you choose a fibrous carbohydrate such as broccoli.

Here are four examples:

The fat loss meals menu template for your new nutrition plan

This template allows you to create a virtually unlimited variety of fat loss meals menus. All you have to do is choose the foods you want and plug them into the appropriate slots. Then adjust the portion sizes for your calorie and macronutrient needs.

Fat Loss Meals Idea 1

Lean Protein, Starchy Carb, Simple carb (dairy or fruit)

Fat Loss Meals Idea 2

Lean Protein, Starchy Carb, Simple carb (dairy or fruit)

Fat Loss Meals Idea 3

Lean Protein, Starchy Carb, Fibrous carb (vegetable/salad)

Fat Loss Meals Idea 4

Lean Protein, Starchy Carb, Fibrous carb (vegetable/salad)

Fat Loss Meals Idea 5

Lean Protein, Starchy Carb, Fibrous carb (vegetable/salad)

Fat Loss Meals Idea 6

Lean Protein, Starchy Carb (small serving), Fibrous carb (vegetable/salad), essential fat

Notes on the HEALTHY GLOW MENU template

1. This baseline diet template is very balanced and health-oriented. It is suitable for weight loss (with calories below maintenance level), for year-round maintenance (with calories at maintenance level), or even for weight gain (with calories at 10-20% above maintenance level). This nutrition plan should include a wide variety of natural, low fat & low sugar foods including whole grain complex carbohydrates, fruits, low or non-fat dairy products, and lean proteins.
2. Eat small, frequent meals – five for women and six for men. Eat approximately every three hours. Allow a minimum of two hours between meals and a maximum of four hours. Early day meals, especially your first one, may be larger than evening meals. The last meal of the day should be light and if possible, eaten two to three hours before going to sleep.
3. This template suggests eating your simple carbohydrates (fruit & dairy products) early in the day. However, there’s no reason you can’t have fruit or dairy products later in the day as long as your macronutrient ratios stay in balance.

For example, you could have non-fat cottage cheese as your protein source for dinner, even though it’s not listed that way on the template. You could also have fruit instead of a starchy or fibrous carbohydrate in your late day meals, as long as complex carbohydrates make up the bulk of your carbohydrate calories.

1. This is a low-fat diet, but not a zero-fat diet. Include at least one serving per day of essential fats (Udo’s choice oil blend, fatty fish, flaxseed oil, salad dressings, nuts, seeds, olives or natural peanut butter). Avoid eating fats with large amounts of carbohydrates. Essential fats go well with your protein and green vegetable meals.
2. Macronutrient ratios on this plan should be 50-55% carbohydrate, 30% protein, and 15-20% fat. Always combine a lean protein and a natural carbohydrate with every meal.
3. Keep “cheat meals” down to only one or two meals per week.
4. A meal replacement product may be substituted for one or two meals for convenience purposes.

How to make food exchanges for infinite variety

Some diet programs outline exactly what you have to eat every day for every meal. For example, you might be given 30 days worth of menus and be expected to eat a specific food at meal 3 of day 27 of your diet and so on.

For long-term success in sticking with your program, it’s much smarter to customize your menus to suit your own personal tastes and food preferences, as long as you follow the overall template.

You are by no means limited to this list of fat loss meals ideas, but it will give you some good ideas.

Let us know what your go to fat loss meals are in the comments box below.

For further information on fat loss meals, improving health and functional fitness, speak to Steve or one of his team or complete the form below