A Bit About Food

While I am certainly no expert on nutrition or would ever claim to be perfect with my diet, there are some basic tenets I try to follow. Similar to how I look at exercise, these principles tend to be simple, consistent, and functional.

So while I focus on basic, functional movement patterns when I train, I try to keep it simple and follow a diet consisting of as much whole food as possible. The advice I give to those just getting started is simply to replace as much of the processed food they currently eat with whole, real food. I’m not going to wade into the somewhat contentious debate about which macro-nutrient ratios (proteins, fats, and carbohydrates) are best, for now just focus on real food. 

Real Food

This means vegetables (yeah I know, but they get better with regular consumption), fruits, whole grains, organic free-range meats and poultry, and water. While I could go on and on about the organic vs. non-organic debate it really needs to be a topic unto itself so I’ll save it for another time, this is about behavior change plain and simple.

Making changes to your diet is never easy so take it one small step at a time. I find fruit smoothies an easy way to get fruits and vegetables into my body, especially considering that a handful of spinach thrown in is virtually undetectable. This means one smoothie can have a serving of vegetables and probably a couple servings of fruit right there, simple.

Whole grain rice and quinoa are relatively easy to make and accompany a piece of grilled chicken well. Ground turkey or chicken can be browned in a matter of minutes and provide a base for countless meals. Crock-pot dinners are very manageable too. This type of cooking is really pretty easy and eliminates the common excuse of “I don’t have time to eat healthy”.

For most people I recommend focusing on one nutritional change at a time. I’m approaching this from a lifestyle change standpoint and not a drop a few pounds quick one. So if you eat fast food on a regular basis I would start there. Limiting your exposure to this type of food will make you feel better especially if you start cooking at home and eating more whole foods. A close second to fast food would be soda intake. Begin weaning yourself off of sugar-sweetened drinks, which may include energy drinks and many juices as well. The typical American diet is atrocious, loaded with processed food products, too much sugar, salt, and fat so beginning an exercise program and implementing these simple nutritional steps can be a colossal improvement for many.

The Frighteningly Rapid Expansion of Obesity in America

Obviously these solutions are a huge simplification of a very complex topic, but people need to start somewhere. As these changes become the norm, begin looking for other ways to improve your diet. Additionally, get your kids eating healthy as early as possible. My children snack on things like carrots, red pepper and fruit by the pound because it’s what they know and have a taste for.

One final note, cheat days/meals are fine. It can help to have a day/meal here and there where you allow yourself to have something you really enjoy, just be reasonable. Most of us have become so accustomed to eating foods loaded with fat, salt, and sugar that treating yourself is a way to stem your cravings and even potentially wean yourself off. The goal should be to eat clean about 90% of the time.

Good luck and don’t forget to include exercise in your plan as well.