Weight Loss Program
Just Eat This - A Diet for Weight
Loss
By Steve Edwards
From the Million Dollar Body Club - Join Today and Workout to
Win!
 The
initial stages of a weight loss program are the most difficult. Since I eat
fairly healthy most of the time, my first step is to enact a few rules that
still allow me to eat but that point my eating in the direction I want it to be
going. As long as you're exercising, you don't need to vastly reduce your
calories unless you're on some type of time-induced crash program. Slow and
steady is generally more doable, more fun, and healthier.
For all of my diet programs I follow
the same general guidelines, so make sure to read
Just
Eat This to learn about them.
Steve's diet for weight loss in the
initial stages
 In my world, it's always easier to add exercise than to take food
away, so when I need to shed some weight I begin each day with a 30-minute to
three-hour cardio workout. It's usually biking or running but can be something
like yoga. The point is to enhance fat mobilization - your body's ability to
burn stored fat. I always do this workout on an empty stomach, but for anything
over an hour and a half, I'll begin consuming a sports drink that is mainly
carbs along with some protein (4:1 ratio) after 30 minutes of exercise. I make
sure to drink water all day long. I drink a glass when I wake up and keep
going. Most people are chronically dehydrated.
My supplement regimen varies depending
on the type of training I'm doing. The harder I train, the more supplements I
take. The only constants are vitamins and an omega supplement, usually fish
oil. Beyond that, it varies from nothing when I'm in a maintenance cycle to
packs of stuff every few hours when I'm doing ultra stuff.
I also don't eat the same things every
day. This is just an example of the types of foods and the timing.
 Morning: Post-workout snack -
this is approximately 4 parts carbs to 1 part protein with a little fat. I tend
to try making this more natural, like a hemp-based shake, but
P90X®
Peak Recovery Formula would also work fine. However, if I'm not working out
too hard and don't need maximum glycogen replenishment, I'll opt for a more
traditional breakfast that follows an approximate 4:1 ratio. This is generally
a bowl of whole grain cereal with a piece of fruit. It will absorb slower than
the recovery drink, but if my glycogen stores aren't completely drained, that's
okay.
A little while later:
Coffee, black.
Morning snack:
Nothing, but I usually advise eating a snack in this slot, like a piece of
fruit or a protein shake. More on this later.
Lunch: Whole-bean and
rice burrito with loads of salsa made from all-natural ingredients. I use a lot
of salsa, probably 4 ounces for a 12 to 16-ounce burrito.
Note: Lunch might be
late. I go for long periods in the morning without eating. As a writer, I work
on momentum and don't like to be interrupted when I'm in the zone. My body
works well for long periods without food, a tactic that certainly doesn't work
for many people.
 Afternoon snack: I do my hard
training in the afternoon when I can. If it's long training, then I'll eat
during it (a
P90X Peak Performance Protein Bar). If it's short, I'll just eat afterward.
That meal is another post-exercise drink. I tend to use Recovery Formula after
the harder workout because it has sugar and works faster.
An hour or two later,
dinner: Some type of lean meat, fish, or high-protein veggie thing
(like a burrito), with some veggies and a salad. When I'm trying to lose weight
and training, I give myself what I call "all-you-can-eat veggies." No dressing,
just veggies. But I can use balsamic vinaigrette on my salad and dip the
veggies in whole-grain mustard.
 Dessert: A beer or glass of red wine. I'm not
much of a dessert person but I will eat it on occasion. While trying to lose
weight, I'd rather have a drink, which helps me relax, which isn't always easy
when you are undereating and training hard.
Late night snack:
Herbal tea.
Questions you might be asking
yourself
Is this enough
calories? I didn't give amounts of food, but that varies based on
feeling. Especially when training, my body tells me when it's hungry. I'll feed
it, but when losing weight I try never feeling full. I try following a "leave
the table when you're 80 percent full" rule.
 Is it too many calories? The only time I get
very tight with regards to calories is when I have a fair amount of weight to
lose. Usually, I'm within 10 pounds of my goal. If it's more, I'll start on
feeling and then restrict calories for up to three or four weeks. I don't like
to restrict calories longer than this because it can hinder my metabolism. And
I always zigzag my calories so that I don't go into "starvation mode."
Is it too many carbs?
It's actually low on carbs for the amount of exercise I'm doing. When I'm
really cranking along, I'll eat triple the carbs and triple the calories. This
is my version of a low-carb diet.
 Do you drink with your meals? I try not to.
Maybe a few sips of water or wine. But drinking with food interferes with the
digestive process and should be minimized. I'll often drink a glass of water a
bit before a meal. This helps fill my stomach so that I'm less hungry and I
rarely feel the need to "wash down" my meal.
How long do you do
it? Like I said, I'm usually within that last hurrah or my target
weight. This means that I usually don't have to stay strict for more than a few
weeks at a time. More than a month on a diet like this and my body fat
percentage begins to get dangerously low.
Next time, we'll look at what I eat
when I want to maintain my weight. |
