Your diet is killing you

What you eat and drink matters. Even if you enjoy above-average metabolism, diet matters.

In my post, Why I changed My Diet and How I Lost 30 Pounds, I detail what ultimately got my attention. And it had little to do with losing weight or boosting energy. Take a few moments to read the post here – see what made the difference for me.

Here are a few relatively simple, practical tips that put me on a path to a healthier lifestyle…

Define your purpose

A clear, compelling purpose for developing a lifestyle of health is essential. When you intentionally define your behavior-altering, passion-energizing, legacy-enhancing purpose, you’re ready to live the healthy life.

So first, get clear on your purpose – what is it? What will empower you to change your habits and behaviors?

If you’re not clear about your purpose and if it’s not compelling – don’t waste your time. It won’t last. However, if you’re ready, you can experience dramatic improvements in your health.

Most of the information included in this post came from the book, Train Your Brain to Get Happy. (I know – you wouldn’t expect a book with that title to have much to say about a healthy diet!)

Intake – the basics

To get started…

• Calculate your recommended daily calorie intake. You can Google a calculator or use this one. Some online programs and apps will help you do this also – more about that in a moment.
• The daily calorie intake for most people should average 20% protein, 30% fat, 50% carbohydrates. This is the key to a healthy diet – the right mix of calorie intake. Not low carbs. Not high protein. And not low fat. Our bodies are designed to use all three categories to support holistic food processing. There is some great info about this in the book. If you eat the right mix over time, you will be healthier and lost weight (if that’s a goal).
• Limit saturated, hydrogenated, and trans fats.
• Limit salt to under 1500 mg/day (1 teaspoon salt = 2000 mg sodium). For me, this was the most difficult of all guidelines. It basically required me to eat out much less and, when I do eat out, to choose natural foods rather than processed or prepared foods.
• Limit simple carbs like sugar, honey, jam, candy, syrup, soda. Don’t drink your calories.
• Consider complex carbs – whole grain pasta, rice, vegetables, breads, nuts, seeds.
• For my body type, I need to aim for 55-65 g of protein each day. A 3-4 oz serving of lean meat and poultry is 25-35 g of protein.
• Aim for high fiber. This may save you a world of problems later – you know what I mean. I eat the highest fiber cereal available with the least amount of “junk” – Kashi GoLean. When I crave something sweet I eat Fiber One Oat and Chocalate bars.
• To help you stay on track, you need to track everything you eat. You’ll be shocked at first – your diet really is killing you! I use LoseIt! for its easy-to-use online portal and smart phone app.

Shopping – the fun part

Since we were in the habit of buying unhealthy food types, we needed help changing our thinking. So I made a shopping template to refer to each week as we prepared our shopping list. Fortunately, Sarah was on board with the purpose for the healthy diet and was more than supportive when it came to shopping.

We were intially prepared for our food spending to increase, but it didn’t. Because we are eating out less and eating less, we are now saving $50-100 a month.

The items below are the types of foods on our shopping template. Don’t misunderstand me – we splurge occasionally. In the past we would eat healthy occasionally.

Dos

• Green apples
• Spinach and romaine
• For sweets, consider organic or fair-trade dark chocolate
• Flax – sprinkle a tablespoon on cereal and salads. Helps with focus.
• Wild salmon (not farm raised) for omega 3 fatty acids. We try to eat fish twice a week.
• Lean beef and poultry. We generally choose turkey products since they are naturally lean.
• Herbal teas (cinnamon, ginseng, sage)
• Unsalted walnuts, almonds, or pecans. They provide unsaturated fats that keep arteries clear.
• Kashi cereal
• Fiber-One bars
• Dried fruit or raisins
• Blueberries for antioxidants
• Eggs
• 1% milk. I prefer 1% to skim milk.

Don’ts

We use these items sparingly because of their tendency to raise bad cholesterol, heart risk, and/or decrease oxygen in the blood.

• Butter and margarine
• Cheese
• Ice cream
• Crackers, chips, pretzels, etc.
• Candy
• Mayonnaise and salad dressing

This is not a perfect plan – nor is it intended to be. We sought to develop a reasonable healthy diet that would allow me to fulfill my purpose. Along the way, we’ve tweaked areas that were unreasonable for us, and we’ve grown into healthier habits.

Our healthier lifestyle is not boring and does not feel rigid. We have fun with it and “reward” ourselves occasionally. (Sometimes I reward myself a little too much!) I decided long ago, if it’s not fun, I’m not doing it! 

To be clear, our “rewards” do not involve day-long or weekend-long splurges. I’ll occasionally eat a roll, split a milkshake with my wife and daughter, etc. HOWEVER, I track everything I eat, and I do not exceed my recommended daily calorie intake.

To be able to do this, I usually have to plan for it. For example, eat a very healthy breakfast and lunch to be able to go out to a nice dinner. Or I have to plan to exercise longer to burn the additional calories.

So make it fun – and, for heaven’s sake, quit killing yourself!

Question: What surprises you most about our lists? What would you do differently? Share your ideas in the comments. We’d love to learn from you.

Some of the links included in this post are affiliate links.