I'm baaaa-aaack

I have been horribly, terribly, and reprehensibly remiss in updating this blog.  Not sure if anyone follows it anyway, so perhaps no one cares.  I am challenging myself and my family to do better about family meals and meal planning, so perhaps this will help keep me honest.  Or perhaps I have so little time as it is that I will be doing good just to get a meal on the table.  Either way, it's on.  Follow me on Google+.

My Favorite Things...

Eat breakfast. Every day.
Why? Because when you don't, you set your whole day up poorly. Firstly, you haven't put anything in your body in nearly 12 hours-- your metabolism has slowed and you need to stoke that furnace if you are going to be a lean, mean, calorie-burning machine today. Without carbohydrate, you won't have energy and your mental capacity is lower (mine's bad enough before my second cup of coffee), plus your body will turn to burning lean tissue (a.k.a. muscle) for fuel... without protein, your body can't rebuild and repair itself... plus carbohydrate alone won't last you very long. Your body can plow through some straight carbohydrate (a.k.a. Cheerios or many other popular cereals) in less than 2 hours, leaving you feeling sluggish and reaching for your next carb fix. The solution? Start your day with a balance of nutrients, mainly carbohydrate, protein and some fiber to slow down digestion and make those carbs a little more complex (so they last longer).

So, there are a few products out there that I recommend to just about everyone. Let's start with breakfast-- this cereal is top-notch. 9 grams of protein (before you even add milk!), 8 grams of fiber plus essential fatty acids. The plain ol' GoLean (minus the crunch) has only 140 calories per serving and a whopping 10 grams of fiber plus 13 grams of protein.

Put the Cheerios away, people.

Dinner... in 30 minutes... because I had a plan.

Rule #2: Have A Plan

What governs the majority of our food choices?  Often, what's around.  Controlling your food environment helps with this, but so does knowing what you are going to eat BEFORE you are so hungry that you no longer care.  Take an hour of your weekend to plan your meals for the upcoming week. Post 'em on your fridge so you remember.  Then, make a shopping list for those meals and stick to it.

Rule #1: Control Your Food Environment

This starts at home, folks.  Stock you fridge and cupboards with fresh vegetables and fruit, lean meats and whole grains.  If you don't want to eat junk, DON'T BUY IT!

Feed Yourself.

See my plate? That's dinner. It's 1/2 full of vegetables, a vegetable-based starch topped with heart healthy fat and a 3 oz. portion of lean meat. It took me about 20 minutes to prepare. It was delicious. It was filling.
This is not rocket science... I would go so far as to say it's common sense (if there is any such thing). People pay me for this advice-- it's nuts.

What to Eat

I tell people what to eat. Every day. All day. Some people listen, some don't. While it's true, there is no "one perfect way to eat for every person," there are some basics that work for damn near everybody. I can tell you this... calories in vs. calories out is a myth. At best, it is an oversimplification. Energy balance is a complicated equation that involves common sense (I mean, seriously-- we all know what to eat... often, we just choose to disregard this knowledge), individual biometrics (height, weight, age, activity level) and a healthy dose of planning and mindfulness. Do you want to best your best self? Fantastic-- are you willing to put in some work to make it happen? No? Well, then I hope you like the person you are now because it isn't going to change... and it might get worse. Chew on that.