The Second Rule of Healthy Weight!
Sorry, that 22 ounce porter house steak is really not your friend. Neither is the hormone-enhanced 9 oz chicken breast. Or the raw veggie salad bowl coated with dressing.
This week’s Self Care message is about treating your stomach and your guts kindly, no matter what you choose.
We are a nation that has taken “Super-Size Me” to heart. And belly. Low quality, nutrient-poor food at on every corner: cheap, fast and plentiful.
Do a little people watching at any public place and you can see the damage done on the outside. You can’t see the damage done on the inside, but trust me, it’s there!
So what’s a person to do?
I ask my Slender Strong and Fit clients to eat every 2.5 to 3 hours, but to eat smaller amounts. Your stomach should be the size of your fist and that’s about how much you should be eating.
I know, the stomach can stretch to hold a lot more, but would you really fill your gas tank and then put the nozzle into your back seat?
What a waste!
The main thing to look for is 10-15 or more grams of protein, because protein slows the absorption of sugars and takes longer to digest. That means food stays in your tummy longer and you don’t get so hungry, so fast!
Actually, when you are talking about weight, it’s not hunger, but emotions and troubling events that is driving the over eating. That or just wanting to be distracted from your life…but that’s another story for another day.
My 10:30 client on Wednesday was getting a little shaky. Literally. We weren’t working on weight, but on some troubling events. It wasn’t her upset that was making her shake. It was low blood.
She admitted to eating only some fruit for breakfast, a donut at an early meeting, and 3 crackers just before she walked in to see me. Protein? Nowhere in sight. Fiber? A smidgen in the fruit. And to call what she had eaten small “meals” would be stretching it.
So when I say Eat Small is Rule 2, remember that Rule 1 is Eat Real.
Real means quality nutrition, and real food, not the highly processed stuff in the freezer case.
I do bend this rule with protein bars, because they are so handy when eating on the run. Get the best bars you can. Choose bars without aspartame or sucralose. Avoid soy protein. And if it has chocolate in it – well it’s really more a candy bar than a protein bar!
If you choose fruit, try to eat some protein with it, some cheese or hummus or a bit of meat. If you go for a fruit smoothie, be sure to add protein powder and some flax seed or chia seed for fiber.
Now it’s your turn: please share how you eat healthy and eat real, especially how you eat healthy on the run! I’m always looking for good ideas!
Until next time!
Say it ain’t so No more twenty-two ounce T-Bone, now that’s radical. However, the best part of the TBone is usually the “tail” of sirloin on a “PorterHouse”, and that’s no where near 22 ounces.
I love this story, but TBones, don’t get no respect. It’s not the size the steak that does the damage, it’s the thickness of the cut.
Great Post I will look for more.
SO true, John. So the message is eat the best part, enjoy every morsel and be satisfied sooner!
I was thinking of a steakhouse on the road between Gardinar and Bozeman Montana I visited years and years ago. They served some ridiculously massive steak and it was free if yo could eat the whole thing. My friend took the challenge and won. Sort of. There wasn’t much spring in his step the rest of the day!
I keep it simple – never eat “on the run”. Sleep a bit early and wake up early enough to ensure there’s enough time for a heart breakfast. Eggs / Cheese are a must.
I like your thinking. You know what your body needs and wants and make sure you get it!