|
A
well rounded fitness plan includes both activity and proper eating habits.
Let’s start off the year with checking our eating habits and making sure
we are all on the same page. You can throw in all the physical work outs
you want, but without proper diet, you won’t be successful in the long
run.
First you need to know how many calories you should be consuming. For most
people, you need an average of 10 calories per pound of body weight per
day just for the body to maintain it’s basic physiological functioning.
Next you need to add an additional 300 to 800 calories (rough estimate)
depending upon your activity level throughout the day. Remember that you
need to burn off more calories than you consume to lose weight and vice
versa if you’re trying to gain. There are many gadgets and reference sites
out there to assist you in your calorie counting and maintenance of a food
journal.
Your next step is in making the right food choices. Think nutritionally
dense foods…those loaded with nutritional value and low on the calorie and
saturated fats and sugar levels. It’s also important to structure your
caloric intake properly by balancing the right amount of protein, good
fats, and carbohydrates making up those calories. Since the body’s
favorite energy source is carbohydrates, 60 to 65 percent of your total
daily caloric intake should come from carbohydrates. The rest of your
caloric intake should be made up of approximately 20 to 30 percent of good
fats and about 15 percent protein. It’s important to know there are
exceptions to this rule for people who have certain physiological or
health issues that require or allow less amounts of protein or fats or who
are on carefully restricted diet plans due to medications they are taking.
Your doctor or a registered dietician or licensed nutritionist should be
consulted for this advice.
Finally, food choices should be made with a goal of little or no saturated
fats and little or no refined sugars (goodies). You should try to eat five
or six smaller meals per day rather than two to three large ones.
Metabolism plays an important role in how well your body handles calories.
Metabolic rates rise with each meal since the act of actually eating and
breaking down those calories into energy for the body requires energy in
and of itself. AND foods high in protein (or protein rich foods) actually
require more energy to burn thereby helping the body burn off calories
quicker. For people with weight loss as their goal, this is a plus.
These are just a few starter points in developing a better eating plan for
the new year and beyond. There is too much important dietary information
available that just one article can’t cover Hopefully, you will use some
of this information toward your goals of reaching and maintaining a
healthier lifestyle and take the time to continue researching the subject
further.
|
