Thursday, January 10, 2013

What about food?

So far I’ve mentioned a few ways to stay fit at inexpensive costs. Now, what about the foods we eat and all the calorie intakes? I personally hate diets. I rather sweat my butt off running miles than prohibiting myself from eating what I want. But what are some good ways to control your food intakes without dieting? I got some personal tips that have been helpful to others.


Tip #1

I have heard this saying many times in Spanish, not sure if there’s a similar one in English. It translates into something like this: Eat breakfast like a King, have lunch like a prince, and eat dinner like a homeless person. Basically, eat all you want when you have breakfast, eat a moderate lunch and have a very small meal at night.

Tip #2

This one goes along with tip #1. Have about 6 “dinners” during the day. Breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, (optional) snack. Your body just needs to maintain enough energy in it in order to function. Thus by feeding on small portioned meals during the day, you’ll never be hungry, and you should have enough energy to last throughout the day. Make your snacks healthy, fruits and vegetables preferably.  
 
Tip #3
Do not eat anything past dinner time. I know I mentioned an optional snack in tip #2, but for me this depends on what time you eat dinner. If you eat early at 5pm, then it would be wise to snack on something “healthy” a couple of hours later. However, if you’re like me eating dinner at 7pm or 8pm, that should be the last thing for the night.
Tip #4

Have you even been so hungry you could eat a cow?!  Sometimes when we get our hands on food we tend to eat quickly, and we might not feel so good afterwards. We tend to eat faster than our body has time to process the food and this could make us feel sick. When your stomach is full of food it inflates, and since it’s under your diaphragm (the muscle that contracts and releases your lungs in order to breathe) it could cause shortness of breath. In short- don’t over eat.
Tip #5
 Replace everything you drink with water. No sodas, no juices, no energy drinks. Anything other than water has calories, carbs or sugars. There’s no better way to keep your body hydrated and healthy.  

12 comments:

  1. I really enjoy tips #1 and #4, yet probably should pay more attention to #5.

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    1. It's really hard to do, and I personally don't even drink that much water. Sodas and energy drinks are very addicting but they're so good!

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  2. Lots of great info here, Yisell. Thank you for sharing. I am a victim of Tip #4 many times over. And, oddly enough, while typing this blog response, HLN is showing a segment on a 'SmartFork." Apparently and by vibrating, it tells you when you are eating too much and/or too fast! Sounds like a great tool; however, they also just mentioned that the SmartFork is not for sale yet, but when it does hit the market, it will cost $99! Yikes! I think I'll just listen to the messages my body sends to me.

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    1. I think we are all victims of it at one point. You don't really think about it when you're really hungry! SmartFork huh...sounds interesting! haha

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  3. Another tip: consider replacing one of those six small meals with fresh juice. I particularly like carrot/apple/celery juice and am having a great time with the juicer I bought last fall.

    Lots of useful info on your blog-thanks!

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    1. That's a good idea, either a juice or a smoothie...Making them at home is probably even healthier and cheaper than buying them at the store.

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  4. Lots of great tips, Yisell! I've recently started replacing one meal per day with a big salad w/lots of veggies and grilled chicken, and I'm loving it! The water thing is hard for me, too, but I found the best way to make sure I drink more water...I only buy food when I go grocery shopping! So the only thing we have at home to drink is water (and occasionally milk).

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  5. Got any tips on the best pedometer to buy? I'd like to get Jim one to encourage him to exercise more.

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    1. I don't think I've actually used a pedometer before. I know how much I run because I mapquest the distance around the block, usually around 2 miles. If I want to run less I take short cuts, or if more I go up to the next light. I should buy one myself!

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  6. I have found that always keeping water on my desk or in my purse really helps. If it's there, you'll probably drink it. And the opposite for junk food. Don't keep it around. Remember, if it's there, you'll probably consume it. Don't buy it!!

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  7. I think I figured out an interesting way to implement tip #5 (more water) at least at home. I have put a large bottle of water in every room and it seems to work so far. As a matter of fact it got me so psyched that I decided to put some bit of exercise equipment in every room as well. The guest bedroom now has a chip-up bar, the living room has those perfect push-up grips, the kitchen has both an exercise bike and a running machine (double bonus due to the fact of that is where the food is), the dinning room has a mini-stair stepper, and the master bedroom has a jump rope.

    Well there WAS a jump rope there till a buddy of mine asked to borrow it. I though I had an extra one, but could not even find a normal rope much less the jumping kind. The next day I was going through some boxes and found a bullwhip. On a whim I decided to try jump roping with it and it worked great. Later that night I had a friend come by but that friend kind of got weird at a certain point and had to leave obnoxiously quick. I was waving the car goodbye and had a eureka moment... I remembered the bullwhip in the master bedroom, and that is how rumors get started.

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  8. Yisell - just updated by blog and thought I would Ping everyone! Here's yours - Ping! See you tomorrow. :)

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