10 FOODS FOR FAT LOSS

1. CHICKEN BREAST - 1 serving = 3oz.  It's high in protein with 26.7g per serving, contains 0 carbs, only 3 grams of fat, and 142 calories.  (baked or grilled, never fried) For lunch or dinner.

2. EGG WHITES - 1 serving = 1 large. 91% protein, 6% carbs, 3% fat.  Only 17 calories (boiled) Breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Can be eaten by themselves or incorporated into other foods.

3. OATMEAL - 1 serving = 1 Cup. Breakfast. Rich in fiber. 5g of protein, 19g carbs, 2g fat, and 111 calories. Slow burning carb, filling and gives long lasting energy.

4. BROWN RICE - 1 serving = 1/2 Cup. Packed with fiber, slow burning carb. Best for lunch or early dinner. 2g protein, 23g carbs, 0g fat, and 109 calories.

5. ASPARAGUS - 1 serving = 4 cooked spears. Breaks down fat and helps remove waste from the body. For lunch or dinner. 0g protein, 2g carbs, 0g fat, and only 13 calories.

6. ANGELFOOD CAKE - 1 serving = 1 piece (1/12 12oz cake). Great low fat treat to satisfy a sweet tooth. Breakfast, lunch, or early dinner. 1.65g protein, 16g carbs, 0.22g fat, and only 72 calories.

7.  TUNA - 1 serving = 2oz. Excellent low fat/no carb source of protein. Lunch or dinner. 13g protein, 0g carbs, 0.5g fat, only 50 calories.

8. APPLES - 1 serving = 1 apple. Very high in fiber. Best for Breakfast/mid-morning snack/lunch. 0g protein, 24g carbs, 0g fat. 90 calories.

9. TOMATO - 1 serving = 1 slice (1/2 inch). Breakfast/lunch/dinner. 0.25g protein, 1.06g carbs, .05g fat, 5 calories.

10. PEARS - 1 serving = 1 large pear. Breakfast/mid-morning snack/lunch. Very high in fiber. 0.8g protein, 32.3g carbs, 0.25g fat, 61 calories.

Try to incorporate these foods into your diet. Most of us have busy daily schedules with work, family, and responsibilites at home. Planning and preparation is key to eating a consistent healthy diet. When you are not prepared, it's very easy to give in to unhealthy options such as fast food or vending machines. Plan your grocery shopping list and stick to it for yourself. In my next post I will discuss meal planning and shopping for you and your family. Next week I will also publish another list of 10 more great foods that you can include into your daily diet. Remember to keep all portions small and drink plenty of water...

Our next ADVENTURE Boot Camp 4 week session begins on November 26th...for Registration or information go to www.westchesterabc.com or call (513) 910-8444.

Carbs, fats, and PROTEIN

Let's continue our talk today about carbohydrates, fats, and protein...

Previously I mentioned that in order to lose weight and build lean muscle, you must limit carbs and fats, focusing on getting as much protein in your diet as possible.

CARBOHYDRATES

These are our body's main source of fuel or energy. There are 4 calories per gram of carbohydrates, and there are two types, simple (fast burning) and complex (slow burning). Simple carbs are things like candy, sugar laden juices or sodas, sugary snacks and desserts. Complex carbs are foods such as fruits, veggies, pastas and breads. Although for the purpose of losing weight and fat we ideally want to limit our carb intake, the carbs that we do eat should be complex carbs to give us longer lasting energy. This will aide in keeping your metabolism up and steady whereas simple carbs are burned quickly and will leave you feeling tired afterwards. Carbs should be eaten strategically earlier in the day when you need fuel the most. As the day progresses into afternoon and evening, they should be avoided as much as possible. Why? Because your body doesnt need the extra fuel as you wind down getting ready for bedtime. All unused carb calories will be converted to fat and stored in the body somewhere. This is what you want to avoid. A good rule to follow is to try to cut off the carbs around 3pm each day.

PROTEIN

Protein, like carbs, contain 4 calories per gram. However, unlike carbohydrates, you should be trying to pack as much protein into each meal as you can. This is whats necessary to build muscle, which is what burns calories from carbs and fats. Having more muscle in our bodies will burn calories more rapidly and efficiently. Without adding muscle you may still lose weight, but it will not be a sustainable loss. The process of replacing fat with muscle takes time, but it's the right way to lose weight and get trim. The bulk of your protein should come from lean meats like fish, turkey, chicken, and lean beef. Nothing fried. To get additional protein in your diet each day, a good protein shake supplement can be added once or twice a day, mixed with either water or skim milk. Not all protein powders are the same, you must read the labels and compare what is lowest in calories, fat, carbs, sugars, and sodium content. Taste is big too, if you don't like it...you won't drink it. If you buy one and do not like the taste or texture, try another one until you find one you're happy with. I recommend "MAX PROTEIN". It comes in chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry flavors and has a very smooth texture and great taste. It's what I drink every single day. 1 small scoop is 1 serving and contains 22 grams of protein.

FATS

Fat in the body is what we want to get rid of, so it only makes good sense that we need to avoid eating fatty foods and adding to problem of being overweight. There are 9 calories in each gram of fat, more than twice the calories as a gram of carbohydrates or protein. Your diet should be as low in fats as possible, which means being very selective when you do your grocery shopping. It is hard at times finding quality foods for a lean diet, things that seem like they would be healthy choices arent always that. It takes carefully reading food labels and comparing different items to each other. Always go with the lower fat option. While it is true that some fats are considered healthy fats and others unhealthy, eliminating all fats as much as you can is the way to success. Getting rid of certain foods in your daily diet that are high in fat is what has to be done. You must be disciplined and make smarter choices. Eliminating foods high in fat such as cheese, nuts, and fatty breakfast meats is vitally important. Fried foods like french fries and fried chicken are bad choices, so is pizza, Yes...I said pizza! You don't have to give it all up forever, but instead enjoy those foods only every great once in a while as a treat to yourself and keep the portions small. I personally do not eat cheese anymore, it's too high in fat. I eat pizza maybe once or twice a year, and when I do I only have 1 or 2 slices. Egg yolks is another...I dont eat them, only the egg whites where there is no fat or carbs, only protein. Pay attention to the fat content of a food product when you shop by reading the label, if it's too high in fat put it back and look for a better alternative.


RYAN VAUGHT is the Owner/Instructor/Nutrition Coach for ADVENTURE Boot Camp in West Chester, OH.
Our next 4 week Boot Camp begins Monday, October 22nd. For registration or imformation please visit www.westchesterabc.com or call (513) 910-8444

What You Should Be Eating

Ok...so we talked about controlling our portions and calories at mealtime. Now we need to identify what we should be eating and why.

Before we do this, let's first discuss what your primary goal should be. Losing weight is probably the first thing most people focus on, and what number reflects on a scale when they step on it. That should be a SECONDARY goal. Your PRIMARY goal should always be reducing bodyfat and replacing it with lean muscle. Being overweight means that the bodyfat percentage is too high. We want our bodies to contain as much muscle as possible because muscle is what burns calories, so the obvious conclusion here is that you should be focused on losing fat while building muscle, not just losing weight. That should be your goal.

How do we accomplish this? Well, it's not something that will happen overnight. It's going to take a consistent, and disciplined approach to making a change to a clean diet and regular exercise. Another seemingly obvious conclusion here is that if the bodyfat percentage is too high, you need to dramatically cut your fat intake in your daily diet. (this means reading food labels and learning to tell yourself NO). While doing so we need to increase the amount of protein each day that we put in our bodies. Why? Because Protein is what builds muscle. We also need to ensure that we stay well hydrated at the same time by drinking plenty of water. Muscle is made mostly of protein and water. So...in order to lose fat and build muscle, we need to cut the fats, while adding the protein and water.

Another thing we need to consider here and equally important is carbohydrates. These are the body's main source of fuel. However, if not kept in check can lead to not only increase weight, but increased bodyfat. Carbs if not used, are converted and stored as fat by the body for energy at a later time. We don't want this to happen. What we DO want to happen, is to cut our carb intake enough so that the body begins to draw on the existing fat stores in the body for energy, burning off that fat. If you constantly overload your body with carbs, you'll never get into those fat calories that you've saved up over the years. You cannot eliminate carbohydrates from your diet altogether, its almost impossible, and wouldnt be a healthy decision anyway. You will have to cut them way down though in order to get rid of the fat.

To summarize, here's what you need to start doing. Increase your protein and water intake, and cut back dramatically on the fats and carbohydrates each day. You must be involved in some type of physical exercise regimen 3-5 times a week at the same time. Remember also that all of this is meant to be a PERMANANT lifestlye change, not simply something you do for a little while.

In my next post I will talk more about protein, fats, and carbs to give you a better idea of the types of foods you should be eating AND avoiding. STAY TUNED...


Our next 4 week Adventure Boot Camp for Women Only begins on October 22nd in West Chester, OH. For more information or to register for camp please visit www.westchesterabc.com

Reducing Portion Sizes and Calories

Greetings...My name is Ryan Vaught, a certified Adventure Boot Camp Owner/Instructor in West Chester, OH.

In my profession, I encounter countless numbers of women who come to my camp in search of help to lose weight and tone up their bodies. Most of them are professional working mothers who have very busy schedules that affords them little time for daily exercise and proper nutrition. My camp, which is Monday thru Friday for four weeks at a time, meets at 5:30am, a time when these women can come and enjoy an hour of fun and energizing workouts while their husbands and children are still sleeping comfortably in their beds. This takes away the challenge of trying to find time for themselves after their workday is done and they must go home to prepare meals and tend to their families.

When these women register for camp and commit to a healthier lifestyle, as their trainer/instructor/coach I have a lot of control and influence over what they do and how hard they work while they are at camp each morning. MY biggest challenge is when the workout is over and they get into their cars to drive away and start their day...that's when they're on their own again, and success or failure depends on choices they make between workouts.

For most of them, FOOD is the biggest obstacle. Helping them to understand the changes that must be made in their daily eating patterns in order to achieve permanent weight loss and muscle building/toning is difficult to say the least. Most do not understand that a "diet" should not be looked at as a temporary change in eating habits, but rather a lifestyle. They also do not understand, or sometimes just simply lack the self control necessay to aviod making bad food choices. They can't resist the urge to eat more than what their body requires. They offer excuses to justify their bad choices and over-eating, instead of being accountable to themselves and their goals. I try my best to explain to them what they must do to overcome their struggles, I try to motivate them, encourage, and support them. Some get it and eventually succeed, many do not. Those who never seem to accept change are the ones who frustrate me, because I know that all of them are capable of success.

So...maybe you are reading this and can relate to those who have not been able to conquer dietary obstacles that prevent permanent weight loss. We can't fix everything right away...it takes time to change old and bad habits. I want to help. Let's talk a little about portion sizes and over-eating to start out.

I think its an obvious statement to say that in order to lose weight, that we must create a calorie deficit in the body in order for weight loss to occur. You must burn more than you are taking in. Duh...lol. Let's take a woman who weighs 200 pounds for example. She wants to lose 20 pounds. The current amount of calories she takes in each day MAINTAINS  that 200 pounds. In order to start losing weight she must cut back on her normal intake to a daily calorie count that would maintain only a weight of 180 pounds. Sounds real simple to say...much harder to do. It takes disciplining yourself and learning how to tell yourself NO.

Many people make the mistake of skipping meals throughout the day and wind up getting so hungry by the end of the day that they stuff their bellies full of food, energy, fuel, that cannot be burned off. Your body only needs a certain amount of "fuel" at a time to keep it going efficiently, to keep the metabolism burning calories at an even rate. Skip meals, and your metabolism tanks and the body starts storing energy by converting excess calories to fat. We don't want that...you're already overweight and have too much fat that you want to get rid of. So you need to eat at least several times per day in much smaller portions. Just enough to make the feeling of hunger go away. You should never feel full or stuffed.

If you are reading this and deciding you want to and can change your dietary lifestyle...start with these two pieces of advice. First, cut back on how much you eat at each meal. Secondly, be sure you are eating 3 to 4 times a day at the least, not once or twice.

In my next blog I will discuss the importance of WHAT to eat, and WHEN. STAY TUNED for my next post....

Ryan Vaught

West Chester Adventure Boot Camp

www.westchesterabc.com

email: tristateabc@gmail.com

OUR NEXT 4 WEEK BOOT CAMP BEGINS IN WEST CHESTER OCTOBER 22, 2012.