Ideal Grocery List for Weight Loss and Good Health

The latest research, published in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behaviour, showed that people who shopped to a list weighed less than those in the same community who didn’t.

“When individuals worked with detailed meal plans and a grocery list to make the meals it could have a meaningful impact on weight loss and long-term health among overweight and obese individuals.” Lead researcher, Dr Nicole Au from the Monash Centre for Health Economics said.

For those who want to lose weight, a list represents a pre-commitment – how you would like to eat next week. Remember, healthy grocery shopping doesn’t have to break the bank, as many sometimes suggest. Shop in season, and shop around, in order to find your healthy favorites at a reasonable price.

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Low Carb Diet Meal Plan and Menu

Photo by Adam Fields.

Low Cab & Weight Loss

The low carb, real food based diet involves eating natural, unprocessed foods with a low carbohydrate content.

There is a lot of scientific evidence that this type of diet is the best option for people who want to lose weight, optimize health and lower the risk of disease.

A Low Carb Diet Meal Plan

What foods you should eat depends on a few things, including how healthy you are, how much you exercise and how much weight you have to lose.

Consider all of this as a general guideline, not something written in stone.

The Basics

Eat: Meat, fish, eggs, vegetables, fruit, nuts, seeds, high-fat dairy, fats, healthy oils and maybe even some tubers and non-gluten grains.

Don’t Eat: Sugar, HFCS, wheat, seed oils, trans fats, “diet” and low-fat products and highly processed foods.

Low Carb Food List – Foods to Eat

You should base your diet on these real, unprocessed, low-carb foods.

 

 

Meat: Beef, lamb, pork, chicken and others. Grass-fed is best.

Fish: Salmon, trout, haddock and many others. Wild-caught fish is best.

Eggs: Omega-3 enriched or pastured eggs are best.

Vegetables: Spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and many others.

Fruits: Apples, oranges, pears, blueberries, strawberries.

Nuts and Seeds: Almonds, walnuts, sunflower seeds, etc.

High-Fat Dairy: Cheese, butter, heavy cream, yogurt.

Fats and Oils: Coconut oil, butter, lard, olive oil and cod fish liver oil.

If you need to lose weight, be careful with the cheese and nuts because they’re easy to overeat on. Don’t eat more than one piece of fruit per day.

Maybe Eat

 

If you’re healthy, active and don’t need to lose weight then you can afford to eat a bit more carbs.

Tubers: Potatoes, sweet potatoes and some others.

Non-gluten grains: Rice, oats, quinoa and many others.

Legumes: Lentils, black beans, pinto beans, etc. (If you can tolerate them).

You can have these in moderation if you want:

Dark Chocolate: Choose organic brands with 70% cocoa or higher.

Wine: Choose dry wines with no added sugar or carbs.

Dark chocolate is high in antioxidants and may provide health benefits if you eat it in moderation. However, be aware that both dark chocolate and alcohol will hinder your progress if you eat/drink too much.

 

Drink

Coffee

Tea

Water

Alkaline Water

Carbonated soda without artificial sweeteners.

 

A Sample Low-Carb Menu For One Week

This is a sample menu for one week on a low carb diet plan.

It provides less than 50 grams of total carbs per day, but as I mentioned above if you are healthy and active you can go beyond that.

 

Monday

  • Breakfast: Omelet with various vegetables, fried in butter or coconut oil.
  • Lunch: Grass-fed yogurt with blueberries and a handful of almonds.
  • Dinner: Cheeseburger (no bun), served with vegetables and salsa sauce.

Tuesday

  • Breakfast: Bacon and eggs.
  • Lunch: Leftover burgers and veggies from the night before.
  • Dinner: Salmon with butter and vegetables.

Wednesday

  • Breakfast: Eggs and vegetables, fried in butter or coconut oil.
  • Lunch: Shrimp salad with some olive oil.
  • Dinner: Grilled chicken with vegetables.

Thursday

  • Breakfast: Omelet with various vegetables, fried in butter or coconut oil.
  • Lunch: Smoothie with coconut milk, berries, almonds and protein powder.
  • Dinner: Steak and veggies.

Friday

  • Breakfast: Bacon and Eggs.
  • Lunch: Chicken salad with some olive oil.
  • Dinner: Pork chops with vegetables.

Saturday

  • Breakfast: Omelet with various veggies.
  • Lunch: Grass-fed yogurt with berries, coconut flakes and a handful of walnuts.
  • Dinner: Meatballs with vegetables.

Sunday

  • Breakfast: Bacon and Eggs.
  • Lunch: Smoothie with coconut milk, a bit of heavy cream, chocolate-flavoured protein powder and berries.
  • Dinner: Grilled chicken wings with some raw spinach on the side.

Include a variety of vegetables in your diet. If your goal is to remain under 50 grams of carbs per day, then there is room for plenty of veggies and one fruit per day.

If you’re healthy, lean and active, you can add some tubers like potatoes and sweet potatoes, as well as some healthier grains like rice and oats.

 

Some Healthy, Low-Carb Snacks

There is no health reason to eat more than 3 meals per day, but if you get hungry between meals then here are some healthy, easy to prepare low-carb snacks that can fill you up:

  • A Piece of Fruit
  • Full-fat Yogurt
  • A Hard-Boiled Egg or Two
  • Baby Carrots
  • Leftovers From The Night Before
  • A Handful of Nuts
  • Some Cheese and Meat

Eating at Restaurants

 

At most restaurants, it is fairly easy to make your meals LCRF-friendly.

  1. Order a meat- or fish-based main dish.
  2. Ask them to fry your food in real butter.
  3. Get extra vegetables instead of bread, potatoes or rice.

A Simple Low-Carb Shopping List

A good rule is to shop at the perimeter of the store, where the whole foods are likelier to be found.

Organic and grass-fed foods are best, but only if you can easily afford them. Even if you don’t buy organic, your diet will still be a thousand times better than the standard western diet.

Try to choose the least processed option that still fits into your price range.

 

  • Meat (Beef, lamb, pork, chicken, bacon)
  • Fish (Fatty fish like salmon is best)
  • Eggs (Choose Omega-3 enriched or pastured eggs if you can)
  • Butter
  • Coconut Oil (Choose Extra Virgin)
  • Lard
  • Olive Oil
  • Cheese
  • Heavy Cream
  • Sour Cream
  • Yogurt (full-fat, unsweetened)
  • Blueberries (can be bought frozen)
  • Nuts
  • Olives
  • Fresh vegetables: greens, peppers, onions, etc.
  • Frozen vegetables: broccoli, carrots, various mixes.
  • Salsa Sauce
  • Condiments: sea salt, pepper, garlic, mustard, etc.

We recommend clearing your pantry of all unhealthy temptations if you can: chips, candy, ice cream, sodas, juices, breads, cereals and baking ingredients like wheat flour and sugar.

 

Source: Authority Nutrition

Weight loss: Gain control of emotional eating

 

Gain Control of Emotional Eating

 by Mayo Clinic

WHEN DO WE BECOME AN EMOTIONAL EATER?

Sometimes the strongest cravings for food happen when you’re at your weakest point emotionally.

You may turn to food for comfort consciously or unconsciously — when you’re facing a difficult problem, stress or just looking to keep yourself occupied.

But emotional eating can sabotage your weight-loss efforts. Emotional eating often leads to eating too much, especially too much of high-calorie, sweet, fatty foods. But the good news is that if you’re prone to emotional eating, you can take steps to regain control of your eating habits and get back on track with your weight-loss goals.

The Connection Between Mood, Food And Weight Loss

Emotional eating is eating as a way to suppress or soothe negative emotions, such as stress, anger, fear, boredom, sadness and loneliness. Both major life events and the hassles of daily life can trigger negative emotions that lead to emotional eating and disrupt your weight-loss efforts.

TRIGGERS

 Unemployment

 Financial pressure

 Health problems

 Relationship conflicts

 Work stress

Fatigue

MOOD, FOOD AND WEIGHT LOSS

Although some people actually eat less in the face of strong emotions, if you’re in emotional distress you may turn to impulsive or binge eating — you may rapidly eat whatever’s convenient, without even enjoying it.

In fact, your emotions may become so tied to your eating habits that you automatically reach for a treat whenever you’re angry or stressed without stopping to think about what you’re doing.

Food also serves as a distraction. If you’re worried about an upcoming event or stewing over a conflict, for instance, you may focus on eating comfort food instead of dealing with the painful situation.

Whatever emotions drive you to overeat, the end result is often the same. The emotions return, and you may also now bear the additional burden of guilt about setting back your weight-loss goal. This can also lead to an unhealthy cycle — your emotions trigger you to overeat, you beat yourself up for getting off your weight-loss track, you feel bad, and you overeat again.

Tips to get your weight-loss efforts back on track

1.Tame your stress. If stress contributes to your emotional eating, try a stress management technique, such as yoga, meditation or relaxation

2.Have a hunger reality check. Is your hunger physical or emotional? If you ate just a few hours ago and don’t have a rumbling stomach, you’re probably not really hungry. Give the craving a little time to pass.

3.Keep a food diary. Write down what you eat, how much you eat, when you eat, how you’re feeling when you eat and how hungry you are. Over time, you may see patterns emerge that reveal the connection between mood and food.

4.Get support. You’re more likely to give in to emotional eating if you lack a good support network. Lean on family and friends or consider joining a support group.

5.Fight boredom. Instead of snacking when you’re not truly hungry, distract yourself. Take a walk, watch a movie, play with your cat, listen to music, read, surf the Internet or call a friend.

6.Take away temptation. Don’t keep supplies of comfort foods in your home if they’re hard for you to resist. And if you feel angry or blue, postpone your trip to the grocery store until you’re sure that you have your emotions in check.

7.Don’t deprive yourself. When you’re trying to achieve a weight-loss goal, you may limit your calories too much, eat the same foods frequently and banish the treats you enjoy. This may just serve to increase your food cravings, especially in response to emotions. Let yourself enjoy an occasional treat and get plenty of variety to help curb cravings.

When To Seek Professional Help

If you’ve tried self-help options but you still can’t get control of your emotional eating, consider behavioral modification therapy with a medically supervised weight loss programs.

Behavioral modification therapy can help you understand the motivations behind your emotional eating and help you learn new coping skills.

Therapy can also help you discover whether you may have an eating disorder, which is sometimes connected to emotional eating.

Source: Mayo Clinic

How Does Fiber Help With Weight Loss?

 

Fiber has no magical fat-burning properties. It simply helps you feel full without adding a lot of extra calories to your diet. When you have a baked potato (with skin) instead of a bag of potato chips, for example, you’re not only eating fewer calories — you’re less likely to feel hungry again an hour later.

“It’s choosing the most intelligent calories,” says Rebecca Blake, director of clinical nutrition at Mount Sinai Beth Israel in New York City.

How exactly does fiber guard against hunger pangs? Simple: It fills your stomach, stimulating receptors that tell your brain that it’s time to stop eating.

You’ll also need to drink plenty of H20, about eight glasses a day, to move fiber through your digestive system, and that helps against hunger too. “All that water contributes to feelings of fullness and controls thirst, which can often be confused with hunger,” says Stephanie Polizzi, a registered dietitian nutritionist.

The “soluble” type of fiber, which absorbs water, forms a kind of gel inside your gut, slowing the absorption of sugars into your bloodstream. Lower blood sugar levels mean lower insulin levels — and that means your body is less likely to store fat.

It’s best to get your fill of fiber from food rather than from supplements. But supplements might help if you can’t get enough fiber from your diet, and especially if you’re feeling constipated. Talk to your doctor about what’s right for you.

 

Source: www.webmd.com

 

8 Foods That Help You Shed Pounds

Water works

 

Water can help you lose a few extra pounds…It can—if you eat foods that contain a lot of water, like fruits and veggies. In a University of Tokyo study, women who ate high-water-content foods had lower body mass indexes and smaller waistlines. Researchers speculate that the water in these foods may fill you up so you eat less. Make the strategy work for you by adding more of these in-season fruits and veggies—each is at least 90% water—to your meals. Also, try drinking Alkaline Water at least 1-3 glasses daily.

Broccoli

 

Did you know broccoli is a great source of fiber and calcium? Try this delicious recipe for Broccoli Salad With Sesame Dressing and Cashews.

Cabbage

 

Rich in antioxidants like vitamin C, cabbage is a great immune-booster. Enjoy it lightly sautéed in a stir-fry or paired with sweet-tart apples.

Cauliflower

 

Like other cruciferous veggies, cauliflower is full of cancer-fighting phytonutrients and is a great source of vitamin C and folate. Nibble on raw or lightly steamed florets to maximize cauliflower’s antioxidant power.

Grapefruit

 

A powerhouse for heart health, grapefruit contains vitamin C, folic acid, and potassium, along with pectin, a soluble fiber that may be a strong ally against atherosclerosis. Pink and red varieties also have vitamin A and lycopene, a phytochemical that protects arterial walls from oxidative damage. To get the juiciest specimens, select fruits heavy for their size and make sure to try them in this refreshing salad.

Lettuce

 

With a mere 60–70 calories per pound, lettuce is high on the list of diet-friendly foods. Romaine lettuce alone is a great source of B vitamins, folic acid, and manganese, which helps regulate blood sugar and is essential for proper immune system function. Choose other dark green or purple varieties such as green or red leaf for the most nutrients, and toss with a zesty homemade vinaigrette.

Radishes

 

These brightly colored vegetables are packed with potassium, folic acid, antioxidants, and sulfur compounds that aid in digestion. Don’t forget the leafy green tops, which contain six times the vitamin C and more calcium than the roots. Thinly slice and toss in a fresh green salad or julienne for coleslaw.

Spinach

 

Tender and flavorful, this leafy green is rich in iron, folic acid, and vitamin K. It also contains disease-fighting antioxidants beta-carotene and vitamin C, as well as the phytochemical lutein, which protects eyes against age-related macular degeneration. Use as a substitute for lettuce in salad, lightly sauté with shredded carrot, sliced mushrooms, and garlic for a savory omelet filling, or try this simple Seasoned Spinach recipe for a quick and nutritious side dish.

 

Taking Charge Of Your Portions

Take 10: Ten Tips to Help With Portions  

Below are some practical tips to help you mind your portions:

  1. Pre-portion or buy single-serving healthy snacks and beverages. For example, it might be helpful to cut up vegetables and fruits so they are ready to go for the week or buy a smaller package size of your favorite beverage.
  2. Use a smaller plate. Consider swapping your entrée-sized plate for a salad plate when dishing up. Nutritionists say this is an easy trick to control how much you eat. That’s because we tend to fill the space on whatever plate we use. Again, the key is to fill your plate with a variety of heart-healthy foods. For more information, go to choosemyplate.gov/.
  3. Resist going for seconds—or thirds. Consider leaving platters of food in the kitchen instead of placing them on the table where it’s easy to take additional helpings.
  4. Skip all-you-can-eat buffets and bottomless drinks. These are bound to get you into trouble. Remember mom’s old saying “Your eyes are bigger than your stomach.”
  5. Don’t eat from the bag. Put popcorn, chips and other foods in a bowl, especially if you are watching TV or will be distracted while snacking; otherwise you might end up at the bottom of the bag.
  6. Consider splitting an entrée when dining out. Or, take the other half in a to-go bag to enjoy at another meal. Alternatively, just stick to an appetizer and salad.
  7. Order a small when you are eating a meal out. Even if it seems that a bigger size is the better deal, stick with a small.
  8. Be a grazer. You might actually want to spoil your meal by snacking on healthy foods throughout the day. Doing so may help you to avoid becoming overly hungry and overeating at meal-time.
  9. Find your balance. Ask your health care provider about low energy, nutrient dense foods. These satisfying foods can provide protein and fiber without many calories. You may also consider meeting with a dietitian/nutritionist as part of your overall health plan.
  10. Savor your meals. Be purposeful about what you eat, and only eat when you are hungry. Try to pace yourself and really taste and enjoy your food.

 

Source: www.cardiosmart.org