Carbohydrates in small quantities
Choose quality carbohydrates (fruit, vegetables, wholegrain rice, wholegrain bread and wholegrain pasta) and, where possible, avoid so-called “empty” carbohydrates. Empty carbohydrates are often hidden in foodstuffs, such as sweetened fruit juices and desserts. Avoid muesli in certain foods, such as sweetened fruit juices, desserts, cereal bars and other snack bars, tinned fruit, energy drinks, tinned vegetables and marmalade. Adequate, healthy alternatives are readily available. Banish the empty carbohydrates from your eating plan. This benefits your health, and improves your sleep patterns. Remember, sleep is a crucial factor in maintaining a healthy weight. Good carbohydrates can be found in fruit: vegetables, wholegrain rice, wholemeal bread and wholegrain pasta.
• vegetables,
• wholegrain rice,
• wholemeal bread
• wholegrain pasta.
More nutritional tips
- In Phase 1 of the FOOD & FIT programme, you were advised to consume 100 ml of water with three dessertspoons of lemon juice in the morning, or one litre of water with four dessertspoons of lemon juice within 30 minutes of waking up, because this accelerates body fat reduction. In order to keep your weight down, you can continue doing this. Gradually, it will become part of your normal, daily routine. Simple yet effective.
- All things considered, there is no need to consume “light” (fat-free) products. Indeed, many are even harmful. Commercially produced foods with a low fat content generally contain lots of carbohydrates and little protein. In addition, they often contain flavour enhancers (mainly E621) and chemical sweeteners (such as Aspartame), which can be detrimental to health.
- Where possible, eat game or meat derived from animals that have been fed on grass instead of maize and grain. Fat from animals raised on grain is not natural fat. These animals have had insufficient exercise and are overweight. Unnatural substances, such as pesticides, toxins, antibiotics and hormones have accumulated in their bodies. Game and meat derived from cattle fed on grass have a much better ratio of Omega-3 to Omega-6 fatty acid than is found in the meat of animals that have been fed a grain-based diet. Organic meat is available from health food stores. This is meat from cattle that has been largely fed on grass, with hardly any additional feed in the form of grain.
- If you have a sweet tooth, choose natural food, for example brown sugar, fruit, raisins and honey.
- Fancy a night out in a restaurant? There are plenty of healthy and low-calorie dishes that do not contain trans-fatty acids or refined, empty carbohydrates. Choose the thinnest slices of red meat, and opt for grilled fish or grilled chicken instead of the deep-fried versions; avoid salad dressing or order salad without dressing – do not order French fries and drink water with your food.
Body movement and exercise
Correct body movement and exercise can help you achieve the optimum balance between burning fat and building muscle tissue. Exercise offers a number of health benefits, including:
- Improved metabolism
- Burn calories
- Reduced sensitivity to insulin
- Control blood sugar levels
- Formation of antioxidants in the body
- Reduced risk of inflammation
- Improved reaction to stress
- Achieve and maintain your ideal weight
We refer in this context to the “correct type of body movement”. Some forms of movement, such as aerobics and cardio-fitness are not as effective long term as you may think. A recent study revealed that the muscle mass of marathon runners is lost over the course of time. During training, it is important to burn off energy over shorter sessions. Exercising for one hour on a fitness machine is not necessary; nor is it effective if you wish to maintain your ideal weight.
Your body can tap into various sources of energy. It can burn fat, it can burn carbohydrates and it can gain energy, in that it breaks down protein. When you engage in sporting activities, your body does not start to burn fat until twenty minutes into the regime. Today’s experts recommend average-intensity exercise, to accelerate fat loss (more so than high-intensity exercise, which tends to burn carbohydrates). Although this sounds logical, this is not a good recommendation in terms of weight loss. When you burn fat during exercise, your body receives the signal that it needs fat. Consequently, the body will store more fat as fuel for the next physical exertion, at the expense of muscle mass.
The most important changes take place after training, not during training. These changes occur after you have ceased your sporting activity, and last several days. Short, intensive sessions (e.g. on a home or Elliptical Trainer) send signals to your body, telling it not to store fat reserves. If during a short session your movement is so intense, that you are gasping for breath (e.g. shopping), you know that you have exercised enough. For example: pedal for 15 seconds, as fast as you can. When you stop, you are a little bit out of breath. This type of exercise cannot be sustained for very long. And that is precisely why short, repetitive sessions are so important. This type of exercise differs from e.g. one hour of aerobics. With this type of body movement, fat is not burned off until after the exercise has taken place.
After a few weeks of these types of exercise, you can:
- Lose fat around your waist
- Build new muscle mass
- Reduce the likelihood of heart disease
- Strengthen your immune system
- Counter the signs of aging
Phase 3: Lifestyle Phase
General
You have successfully reduced your weight to the ideal level (Phase 1), and have stabilized your target weight (Phase 2). You are now ready to embark on your new life as an energetic, happy and healthy person. Your life is no longer dictated by hunger, the search for something to eat and food. Your hypothalamus has been reprogrammed, your quest for food has been abandoned. Your body no longer stores fat in your problem zones, and your weight is stable. You have been liberated from the most important causes of obesity. You have reached the third phase of the FOOD & FIT programme: The Lifestyle Phase. In principle, at least. You are the proud recipient of a dietary pattern and lifestyle template for the rest of your life. Consumption of the right kind of food and regular exercise constitute the two pillars of this phase. Once you have reached the third phase towards your new lifestyle, you are in the fortunate position of being able to maintain your ideal weight – and retain good health.
Diet
The diet in Phase 3 of the FOOD & FIT programme acts as a food intake template for the rest of your life. It is premised on the consumption of high-protein foods, Omega-3-rich fatty acids, oily fish (twice a week), minimal quantities of carbohydrates and Omega-6 fatty acids. Grain and therefore carbohydrates are at the base of the so-called food pyramid proteins and fat feature less prominently in the pyramid. The problem with the food pyramid is that people gain weight not because of the consumption of fat, but because of an excess of carbohydrates. The best way to control your weight is by eating only small quantities of carbohydrates and by supplementing your food with healthy Omega-3 fatty acids. Chromium, magnesium and fish oil can help you maintain your ideal weight. We would also recommend the multivitamin capsules (1 to 2 capsules per day).
Vegetables Fruit Olive oil
(fat) Fish Meat Yoghurt/ Buttermilk
Eggs Nuts & kernels/seeds Avocado
Full grain rice Wholegrain bread Wholegrain pasta
Protein in abundance
If you want to control your weight in a simple and healthy way, a good approach is to consume as much protein as possible. If you take in more protein than you require, your body receives the signal that its fat reserves are full. The body no longer requires the stored fat and breaks it down. Full value protein contains all the essential amino acids in the correct ratio. This is the case with eggs, for example. An egg contains only 75 calories, 5 grams of fat and no trans-fatty acids. It provides at least 13 essential vitamins and mineral substances. A vitamin is classed as essential when the body needs it, but cannot produce it. These vitamins must be obtained from food sources. Good sources of protein include eggs, fish, beef, milk, nuts and soybeans.
Eat oily fish twice a week
You should preferably eat wild fish instead of farmed fish. Farmed fish receives no natural nourishment. You can buy them in shops or on the market – for example wild salmon. But what if you don’t like fish? Simply take a food supplement containing fish oil (3 to 6 grams of fish oil a day). We recommend that you eat oily fish twice a week, such as salmon, herring, mackerel, tuna, trout or eel.
Any quantity of Omega-3 fatty acid
Fat is not forbidden if you want to maintain a healthy body weight. Indeed, your body needs fat to absorb the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K as well as the co-enzyme Q10. It is important therefore to consume the right types of fat. Omega-3 fatty acids are healthy fats. Furthermore, they facilitate optimal fat burning. Omega-3 fatty acids reduce the risk of heart and circulatory diseases. Good sources of Omega-3 fatty acids are: Salmon and other kinds of fatty fish, game, venison or meat from cattle fed with grass, avocados, eggs, walnuts and other nuts (natural products, one handful per day), olives, olive oil (cold pressed: “Extra Virgin“), green-leaved vegetables (best when briefly steamed, to retain as many nutrients as possible), Sacha-Inchi oil (from a plant, which grows in the mountains of Peru, oil with a ‘nutty’ taste, delicious on salad and cooked vegetables, available from health-food stores and wholefood shops).
Omega-6 fatty acids in minimal quantities
Although we also need Omega-6 fatty acids, they can be harmful to our health (when consumed in large quantities). Trans-fatty acids should certainly be avoided. These occur during the conversion process of fluid oil into a solid substance, like margarine. Omega-6 fatty acids can be found in animal and plant-based food. Although these fatty acids are part of a balanced diet, we only need them in small quantities. Excess consumption of Omega-6 fatty acids increases e.g. the risk of heart disease, diabetes, obesity, loss of concentration and memory loss. Trans-fatty acids can increase the risk of heart disease and even cancer. Trans-fatty acids are not critical to our nourishment. These harmful fatty acids are found, for example, in:
• margarine (alternatives: butter, cold-pressed olive oil and cold-pressed coconut oil)
• salad dressing (alternative: one-part balsamic vinegar to thee-parts cold-pressed olive oil)
• mayonnaise (alternative: various herbs/vegetables and mustard; preferably no ketchup due to the high carbohydrate content)
• deep-fried food (alternative: grilled food), chips (alternative: crispy, dried apple rings)
• snacks based on maize
• biscuits (also light versions) and cakes
• rolls
• crackers and
• muesli/cereals