Shopping List Suggestions

One of the questions I commonly get is what to have as food staples in the pantry because there are so many different food items in the supermarket. If you keep it simple, it takes a lot of the guesswork out when you create a solid list to choose from. I have created a list of ideal foods as you change your eating patterns to have more nutrient dense foods that are healthier options.

Your body would function optimally if fed whole grains, vegetables, wild caught fish, legumes and beans, raw nuts and minimal animal flesh. Chicken and turkey should be the skinless breast from steroid and hormone free chicken or turkey. If you eat the cow, look for grass fed beef. In addition, when you reduce or eliminate processed foods and snacks with high fructose corn syrup or any form of sugar listed in the first four ingredients, you will improve your overall health and energy.

Here is an example shopping list:
Whole Grains: Long grain brown or wild rice, oatmeal, quinoa, whole wheat or rye breads, buckwheat.
Beans & Legumes: Lentils, black beans, kidney beans, lima beans, navy beans, etc. (any other from the bean family), black-eyed peas, and edamames (soybeans).
Vegetables: Spinach, broccoli, asparagus, red and yellow peppers, onions, carrots, tomatoes, cabbage, green beans, collards, squash, zucchini, garlic, Brussels sprouts, beets, cauliflower, sweet potatoes or yams. There are so many to choose, but you get the idea because the more the better.
Fruits: Berries, avocados, bananas, apples, melons, mangoes, kiwis, oranges, grapes, pears and plums.
Fish: Salmon, tuna, cod, flounder. (wild caught instead of farm raised)
Nuts & Seeds: Raw almonds and walnuts, natural peanut or almond butter. Pumpkin, sunflower and flaxseeds (all in moderation)
Dairy: Low-fat yogurt, fat-free organic milk, and cage free/steroid free eggs.
Other: Extra virgin olive oil, low sodium vegetable broth, low sodium soups, fresh herbs and no-salt spices. These are your items to cook with. The vegetable broth can be used in place of water to give flavor to your rices or quinoa. The soup is a staple to have as a quick meal for lunch or dinner.

I chose many of these foods for the nutrient dense properties. This means these foods provide the energy-yielding nutrients (protein, carbohydrates, and fat) along with many of the vitamins and minerals your body needs in a healthful and natural way. The foods are low in fat and although your body needs fat, it should be from sources such as salmon, nuts and olive oil that are not saturated or trans fatty.

Recently, I watched a documentary on the evolution of the food industry called, Food, Inc. It was very insightful on how the industry has changed over the years and why. I suggest you rent or buy it as it really changed my perspective on food and I thought I was eating healthy. Many of my choices stem from healthy and clean eating over the years, and this documentary help shape some of my suggestions above. Before I became a fitness professional years ago, I often wondered why the bodies and health of our children has dramatically changed since I was in eighth grade. When I was that age, there were a handful of kids that were overweight and a handful of girls that were more developed in their bodies. Today’s children are not as active and have all sorts of electronic media taking them from being regularly active. That is one problem, but the other problem is the hormones and additives that have been added to the food, which has helped to develop them beyond their years. So now the percentage of children being overweight and obese has skyrocketed. As adults, we have been eating these foods as well. This has led an astounding 2 in 3 adults to be overweight and obese, and consequently has led (and continues to lead) to all sorts of health problems.

If we eat more whole and fresh foods instead of processed, hormone injected foods, we will be better off. The list above is not exhaustive, however, it is many of the foods in the categories we need and something to consider the next time you go food shopping. Organic foods may not be in your budget, but when you can, try to include a few organic fruits and vegetables. The farm markets are a great place to get your fresh fruits and vegetables. Every once in a while, they have a few organic items that are less expensive than your larger food market chains. Shop and eat for better health!

Food: The Most Important Piece of the Puzzle

Food consumption is the hardest piece of the puzzle when trying to change one’s body. Whether your goal is to lose weight or define your muscles, changing what and how you eat is the most important component.

I experienced this myself when I competed in figure competitions several years ago. I had been working out hard with my exercise plan, but as soon as I cleaned up my diet, boy, did it really show positively in my physique. To this day, I still eat very clean and try to eat every three hours because just I have trained my body; I have trained my eating patterns.

When working with my clients, nutrition is one of the first things I talk about in our initial meeting. How one eats takes time to alter because it is something that you have to do everyday. You may not exercise everyday, but you eat everyday. Prior to someone needing assistance, they have habits that are ingrained in their daily life and brain. This is why it is the hardest part of the puzzle.

This part of the puzzle will not be successful until the individual is ready to change. I wrote about the Stages of Change in the January 4, 2009 entry. It discusses how you go through stages of precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action and maintenance whenever you make a major change in your life. You first have to feel that you need to make a change and ready yourself to commit. Without it, you will not succeed. However, when you do commit, results happen.

In the past month, I have had several clients notice how when they finally committed to staying on course with a consistent food plan, their bodies responded. They have either started to track their food and activity (see January 31, 2010 entry on Track Your Progress) or started eating the right amount of calories their bodies need or started eating the right combination of fats, carbohydrates and proteins. Clients with both weight loss and body sculpting goals are succeeding.

I also want to discuss how if one wants to see change, they have to stick with the program. I am sometimes made aware of how the body is either not changing or the weight is going in the wrong direction. The truth is that when one is exercising to their maximum potential, you may think you can eat anything. There is a misunderstanding that when you are burning calories in a hard workout, you can have that extra glass of wine or that piece of cake won’t hurt . . but it does. Once you make a commitment, you have to stick with it. When you get to a point of maintenance (in the Stages of Change) where you have reached your goal and you are happy with what you see in the mirror, how you feel in your clothes or what the scale says, then you can stray from time to time. At that point, you deserve it.