Is proper nutrition a diet? Not at all, a short-term course of severe restriction in food in order to lose a certain amount of kilograms is called a diet. Associations with her are not the most pleasant: a constant feeling of hunger, dizziness, poor skin and hair. In addition, when the course ends (or breaks off due to a breakdown), all hard-lost kilograms return to their place. It is difficult to call such a way to deal with excess weight rational. No, proper nutrition is a new way of life that is not uncomfortable and short-lived. Changing eating habits leads to normalization of metabolism, which means that gradually the weight will return to normal.
How to teach yourself to eat right
Let's give an approximate definition of the concept in question in order to better navigate the topic of the article. So, proper nutrition is a complete and balanced diet consisting of natural and high-quality products that gives the body a complete set of proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals, that is, satisfy all its needs and are beneficial to it.
To analyze your menu and switch to a healthy diet, you need to understand a few rules:
- Food is a kind of fuel for the body from which energy is generated. Good fuel provides not only trouble-free operation, but also prevents many “breakdowns”.
- A healthy diet can really protect against many diseases - these are primarily ailments of the gastrointestinal tract and cardiovascular system, cancer, diabetes, hypertension.
- If you are for a healthy diet, then without any compromises, remove soda, chips, mayonnaise and other harmful products from the diet. Many primarily sin on sweets, but they can sometimes be eaten sometimes; another thing is that it is better not to choose the most "killer" ones. Natural chocolate and marmalade, condensed milk, of course, high-calorie, but healthy goodies. A cake prepared using margarine and characterized by an abundance of fat cream can hardly be called healthy food.
- You need to move away from the habit of eating everything with a crisp. Baked, stewed or boiled foods are much healthier. Proper nutrition is a system that implies compliance with all these rules. But minor violations of the regime in exceptional cases (New Year, anniversary) will not do much harm.
We are what we eat
Indeed, it is very difficult to perceive such an abstract concept as proper nutrition. Menu for the day sounds a lot easier. We will certainly get to a detailed review of your diet, but for now, let's analyze the features of building a food pyramid. It is based on the principle of dividing all products into groups that will allow you to create an optimal diet throughout the day.
You need to look at the pyramid from the bottom up. Base - these are products that need to be eaten daily in sufficient quantities. These are whole grain breads, oatmeal, rice, and durum wheat pasta. This is the foundation without which proper nutrition is impossible . The menu for the day must necessarily include products that provide the body with complex carbohydrates, that is, an important source of energy. Whole grain food provides the body with the necessary fiber and vitamins of group B. Many people believe that eating bread leads to overweight, but in fact this is not true if you do not add butter, salt, fatty sauces or cheese to it in large quantities.
The next block of the pyramid includes vegetables. It is a source of fiber and vitamins, many of them provide the body with protein. The complete lack of fat allows you to consume these products with almost no restrictions. By the way, potatoes are also very useful for the body, as it contains the maximum amount of nutrients. It is very important to eat vegetable juices. On the same line with vegetables are fruits. It is difficult to imagine proper nutrition for girls without these tasty and healthy products. Fruits are a source of vitamins and minerals, without which it is difficult to have beautiful skin, healthy hair and nails. Useful fruits in any form. You can eat fresh or fresh frozen, dried or canned.
The next block is protein products. The most important component of the diet, as protein is responsible for a large number of metabolic processes in the body. Proper nutrition for girls must include meat and fish, nuts and eggs, beans and beans. They are also indispensable sources of iron, zinc, and B vitamins. This block includes another large group - milk and dairy products - an indispensable source of calcium, protein and vitamin B12. It should be borne in mind that low-fat varieties should be chosen, since they contain a minimum of calories and a maximum of nutrients. Do not forget that we are discussing proper nutrition. Dinner in particular should contain a minimum of high-calorie foods.
Finally, the top of our pyramid is fats, oils and sweets. High calorie and very nutritious foods. They should be the least in the diet, although you should not refuse at all.
Daily ration
To make the conversation about proper nutrition more substantive, let's give an example that can be followed at least every day, of course, with adjustments. The first rule of a healthy diet is to have a hearty breakfast. A great option to start the day is a small piece of meat, a portion of rice and a cup (200 g) of vegetable salad. You can finish the meal with a cup of tea with lemon and some other fruit. You can offer another option: chicken breast with cheese, boiled potatoes and tea with fruits.
An orange or grapefruit, a handful of nuts can be a snack between breakfast and lunch. But lunch is a full meal, which should not be skipped. As an option, you can offer a couple of bread toasts with baked fish and green salad. A second option would be a serving of brown rice with stewed vegetables. You can choose mint tea or still water. Talking about proper nutrition necessarily affects the regularity of food intake. Indeed, the more carefully the regimen is respected, the faster the metabolism is restored, which means that there will be no problems with excess weight. Therefore, skipping an afternoon snack is also impossible. At the same time, this snack should not be heavy. Perfect for afternoon tea kefir or yogurt.
Now we move on to the meal, around which there is a lot of controversy, however, dinner does not cancel the proper nutrition. Another thing is that the calorie content of foods consumed in the evening should not be too high. A great option would be stewed vegetables with toast or 150-200 g fat-free cottage cheese.
Please note that this is a diet for the average person. It can be supplemented with vegetables and fruits, nuts and berries. But if your goal is weight loss, then the diet should be adjusted depending on the tasks. Because healthy eating and losing weight are not synonyms, as many are used to thinking.
Proper weight loss and weight loss
How is proper nutrition and weight loss related? In fact, a healthy diet involves the full functioning of the body and the prevention of overweight, but there are separate systems for weight loss. However, proper nutrition (reviews of many people confirm that it is easy and pleasant to stick to it) suggests eliminating fatty and harmful foods, such as fast food, soda, and many others that contribute to the development of obesity. The exclusion of these products and their replacement with fruits and vegetables will entail a gradual weight loss.
That is, proper nutrition is not a system for losing weight, but do not give up on it and look on the Internet for new-fangled diets that promise a rapid decrease in body weight. For they all violate the main rule. In order for the result to be sustainable, you need not a short-term diet, but a new lifestyle. Therefore, the principles of healthy eating, which we have cited above, must be present in the system of weight loss. The difference should be only one: to lose weight, you need to reduce the calorie intake of the daily diet.
It is more or less clear what nutrition is right. The reviews of people who completely rebuilt their diet in accordance with its principles say that they feel much better, and you don’t have to suffer from a lack of interesting dishes, as you can come up with a lot of amazing snacks, desserts and other goodies from healthy products that your body needs.
What you need to know if you are going to lose weight
It is very important to immediately set goals and priorities. It is better to sign a contract with yourself, for how long and for how many kilograms you want to lose weight. Based on this, we form a diet, not forgetting about proper nutrition. A photo taken before the start of the course will help you stay on track. Calculate the maximum calorie intake by the following formula:
For men: 66 + (13.7 x body weight) + (5 x height in cm) - (6.8 x age in years).
For a woman, the formula is slightly different: 655 + (9.6 x body weight) + (1.8 x height in cm) - (4.7 x age in years).
You get a figure that reflects your real metabolism. Now you need to multiply the result by a factor equal to the level of physical activity. With a sedentary lifestyle, it is 1.2, but if you perform light exercises 1-3 times a week, then multiply by 1.375. Intensive exercises taking place 3-5 times a week are equal to a coefficient of 1.55, and daily heavy physical activity is 1. 725. The resulting figure is the number of calories that your body spends per day. If you need to lose weight, then this amount must be reduced along with an increase in the level of physical activity.
When choosing a diet, be sure to consult a dietitian, and, of course, do not forget about proper nutrition. Before and after photos will be an excellent incentive to continue to adhere to it. But, despite the strong desire to lose weight, you should track the slightest change in well-being. If you began to sleep badly, there was irritability or a headache, your health and condition of the skin worsened sharply - these are all true signs that the diet is not balanced. So, you infringe on yourself in the necessary elements. Only a doctor can make an optimal diet of the day. It is easy to adhere to proper nutrition, such a diet does not cause a deterioration in the state of health and does not leave the feeling that you are limiting yourself in something.
An approximate diet for a woman
To lose weight, you have to limit calorie intake, and therefore, tighten your belts a little. But what is proper nutrition without a varied and balanced diet? It is best to start the day with porridge, while oat or millet, cooked on water, is great. Apple and coffee with milk will complement the morning meal. Do not skip lunch, it is necessary so as not to overeat at lunch. In addition, the body gets used to the fact that food comes often, and ceases to put fats in bins, as is the case with severe restrictions and long breaks between meals. A glass of yogurt and a couple of apricots or other fruits are suitable as a lunch.
Lunch is equally important. Be sure to cook a piece of fish or meat for a couple. A cup of cabbage salad, one baked potato can serve as an addition. For a mid-morning snack, it is best to give preference to a vegetable salad, for example, grated carrots with olives. Finally, dinner: do not give up protein foods. Braised chicken breast with vegetables will come in handy.
We fix the result. The main thing is the system
Indeed, organizing proper nutrition is a simple task, the main thing is to continue to adhere to it constantly. The most important thing here is to observe the regime every day, despite work, study and other matters. You can not force the body to starve or accustom it to a feeling of hunger, since in such conditions it will be put aside any extra piece. Remember the feeling of fatigue with diets. This is the result of the fact that the terrified organism tries to preserve all the beneficial substances by slowing down the metabolism. Eating 4-6 times a day, you let your instincts know that everything is in order, with this regimen, metabolism and weight are normalized. You yourself can make an approximate proper nutrition and correct it in the process.
You must drink water
The key to proper nutrition is your desire to be healthy and beautiful. But many forget about the need to consume a sufficient amount of liquid. Try to minimize tea and coffee, and instead drink at least 2 liters of clean water per day. In this case, you do not need to try to drink the entire norm at a time. It is better to carry a bottle with you constantly and drink as thirst appears.
Listen to yourself
Even if a dietitian has developed a detailed correct nutrition for you for a month, this does not eliminate the need to listen to body signals. We are used to eating because the food is fragrant, attractive, that is, the meal itself is a pleasure. But in fact, the body knows what it needs now. If you insufferably want sweets, perhaps at this very moment there is a great need for energy. But at the same time, it’s better to allow yourself a piece of chocolate instead of a fat cake in the morning.
The simpler the better
Remember what our grandparents ate. These were mainly soups and cereals, vegetables, fish or meat. Today we are used to complex, multi-component dishes, salads, sauces. In such a leap of flavors it is difficult to determine the calorie content of a dish. If you decompose a dinner consisting of olivier salad, fish in a cheese sauce with potatoes and chocolate cake with tea into components, then there will be more than 20 of them, but each of them needs its own enzymes to break down. This is what the doctor pays special attention to when compiling proper nutrition for girls. The menu should be as simple as possible, and the dishes as light as possible. For example, you don’t need to additionally water the chicken breast with mayonnaise and fill it with cheese - this way you reduce the beneficial properties of both protein products. It is much better to divide them into two different meals. This also applies to the calorie content of products: if possible, it is always better to avoid adding oil to the dish, and try to choose milk with a low percentage of fat content. Of course, fats are also required by the body, but in a very small amount. A small piece of butter at breakfast will completely block the daily requirement.
Pay attention not only to quantity, but also to quality
Indeed, one of the rules of a healthy diet states that the body must receive a complete set of essential substances, proteins, fats, carbohydrates and trace elements. To make this possible, the food must be fresh and natural. Pay attention to the presence of preservatives in the products, and soon you will return to the usual diet for our ancestors. Everything that is sold in supermarkets, packed in beautiful boxes, contains more or less additives, stabilizers and other unnecessary and even harmful components. Therefore, give preference to products in which their minimum quantity or not at all. Following this rule, you will save your budget, because fresh vegetables and fruits are much cheaper than canned, the same applies to meat and sausages. Healthy foods will quickly saturate the body with the necessary substances, which means that you will not be bored with hunger just because some important element was missing in the diet.
Minor concessions
Proper nutrition is not a diet, which means it is not limited in time. Therefore, the strict requirements of diets (not eating bread or sweets at all) do not work here. The only limitation is the use of fast food, very fatty, overly sweet and salty foods. At the same time, in reasonable quantities, the body needs bread, sugar, and even lard, which also has useful properties. Therefore, we brought to your attention at the beginning of the article a food pyramid. The basis of nutrition should be the most useful ingredients, and all others can serve as a small addition. Following this principle, you will save yourself from torment and unnecessary restrictions, and playing sports will completely neutralize these excesses.
At first, sticking to the principles of a healthy diet seems difficult. Not enough ketchup and mayonnaise, soda and sausage, the food seems fresh. But then you begin to feel light, you feel good and completely indifferent to the harmful excesses that you initially lacked. Be healthy and beautiful!