This is what I choose to do. I just describe what has worked with me best, despite the fact that at the moment writing this I have not yet succeeded in implementing it in my life that much, that it feels natural. I have to make choices and say “no” to myself quite often because I still crave things that are not so good for my body (those things we all know, too much sugar, coffee, wheat-based products, processed food in general).
I took what I learned from past experiences, programs & so-called diets I tried to come up with something which suits my needs best. This is my personal approach to change my habits long-term! The goal is to get healthier, get to my dream weight, and finally change my behavior to keep it up.
I. Move my Body
As I am overweight and not very fit I start with walking every morning for at least 15 minutes. From past experiences, I know that it will improve my overall fitness relatively fast and I will take long walks and even run for a few minutes. Works wonders for me if I am consistent.
In addition, I do a simple, small 10-minute-workout 2-times/week with very simple exercises to build up some muscles and feel stronger. The ones I use are learned from pilates & yoga.
From past experiences, I know for sure that these simple things make an impact on my body and things start to change and get better.
II. Nutrition
My nutrition is based on my experiences, what worked for me, what feels good for me. This might be different for you. As I wrote and I can’t stress it enough, this is just a description of what I do.
Avoid:
As I found out that I am sensitive to dairy & wheat I cut out milk completely (I am fine with eating cheese & yogurt though) and try to avoid wheat as much as possible. It is astonishing how many products contain wheat, dairy, sugar, or a mix of those. Sugar is also a thing I try to avoid as much as possible. I avoid the white sugar completely but do eat fruits, and use replacements very rarely if I really want something sweet (like stevia, agave syrup, birch sugar). This is not so hard for me as I am not crave sweets that much.
Also, I avoid eating pork meat. I am still eating meat but less and less. Most of the time I eat chicken if having meat. With fish, I try to go for the “fat” fish.
Obviously, it could be even better, just eating organic food, but at the moment it is not possible to go that route 100 %. The best food is also the most expensive food. I use as much as we can afford and try to avoid the worst as much as I can.
In moderation:
What I consume in moderation is meat (chicken), fish & sweet food (like deserts, sweet snacks, cake, etc.), and fruits. I also still have my coffee, but reduced it to three cups/day. I need to avoid carbohydrates a little bit more than I’d like to, too. Because they slow down my metabolism so much (my experience). But I will have my beloved noodles, potatoes, or rice twice a week!
As much as possible:
Vegetables, most of it eaten raw, combined with proteins from meat or dairy products.
I combine all of this with looking after my hydration and having some supplements – I use supplements for Vitamin D + C, omega fatty acids, algae capsules, base powder, protein shakes – all of them on a daily basis.
III. Having a schedule
I don’t make any meal plans because I find my best choices in the grocery store and decide on that what to eat & cook. But I have made up a schedule which is: eating 5 times a day. Mornings: Protein Shake with fruits and/or vegetables, coffee, supplements (I am a breakfast skipping type, so that works best for me to have it). Snacktime: protein-based snacks like yogurt with some fruit, eggs, or something similar. Lunch: any kind of salad with good olive oil and a spoon of linseed oil, if I am hungry I add cheese to it,Ā Dinner: meat/fish/legumes with vegetables. These are the must-haves, but it is even better when adding more raw vegetables to the meal plan, so I eat some raw vegetables with every meal. My goal is to eat about 1 kg of vegetables/day. This helps my metabolism.
Example of a typical day:
07:00 – Protein Shake with good protein powder (check source of protein, sugar, other ingredients), half a lemon, handful of blueberries; 5 small tomatoes, half a cucumber
10:00 – Yoghurt with a teaspoon of chia seeds, second coffee
13:00 – Fresh salad with a self-made dressing, fresh herbs, adding some mozzarella cheese
15:00 – 5 small tomatoes, half a cucumber (fresh, raw vegetables of choice), third coffee
18:00 – Chicken breast with Vegetables (I use a lot of different spices & herbs so that it doesn’t get boring)
07:00 till bedtime – remember to hydrate, drinking water & tea!
That’s all I do. It has worked for me. I didn’t have cravings. I didn’t suffer. I was full and satisfied with those meals. Only when I start to add in processed food a lot, do I start to eat more and more of it and fall back into eating more things making me tired, fat, and bloated. But maybe this time I get over it š
I could add much information I found over the years, like what kind of vegetables are best for what, what kinds of herbs meat special needs, etc. but this is too overwhelming here, I just wanted to make it short and simple. Maybe I do some tips or hints on those later.
What do you eat on a daily basis? Are you feeling good about it? Tell me your best tips or what you do to get better and better every day!
1 Comment
Good article.