Now. We get to the food part.
There are a few steps to this.
One, you already know what you weigh, because you’re weighing yourself every morning.
Two, figure out what you should weigh .. like for real. Spoiler alert … you’re not going to like it. Go here.
If you’re now swearing, in disbelief, “Oh thats bullshit!” and the like after checking that link … fine. I did the same thing. Go through that for a minute or two and come back.
Over it? Lets move on.
Three, now you figure out calories.
I used to think counting calories was complete crap. I didn’t understand it. I had no interest in learning it. Too hard. Too much time. Like most everything else in this area I was wrong.
It turned out to be unbelievably easy and incredibly effective. Find out how many calories you need. Go here.
Keep in mind thats to maintain your current weight. Knock 250 calories off that number a day you’d expect to lose about 1/2 pound per week. 500 off? About 1 pound a week.
NOTE: You’ve got to do this for a 3-4 weeks before anything starts to change on the scale. You’re going to start feeling better almost immediately but that number won’t move at first. Do this for a week, not see results and quit? Sure, you can do that. You’ll just guarantee nothing ever changes. Your call.
How do you figure out how many calories you’re eating? Its easy and free. Go here. Get it. Put in on your phone, tablet or desktop … or all three. Use it. That’s it.
So what does it mean to stay within the rules? It’s not a diet .. it’s just what you eat now. It’s a combo of quality + calorie awareness.
For me? No fast food, no sugar, no junk, no fast food, no processed food. It’s basically meat, poultry, fish, eggs, nuts, fruits and vegetables. Not bread, pasta, pizza, cookies or cake. Real food. Eat good stuff and don’t eat more than you need. See? Nothing here is ground breaking. There are no “hacks” unless you want to take weight loss drugs. I’m not going to do that.
This is just what I do. If you’re vegan or eat some other way, come up with a good list of things you’ll eat that cuts out the junk and processed food, and commit to it.
My lunch, typically, is a protein shake with a multivitamin, fiber, creatine, omega-3s and electrolytes, plus some combo of eggs, chicken, salad, fruits and vegetables. That’s lunch. And I look forward to it everyday.
My dinner is typically a pound of beef, chicken, pork, fish, etc. and veggies. That’s it. And I look forward to it everyday.
Over time you learn roughly how many calories an apple is, what a carrot is, an egg, a pound of steak, a pound of hamburger. You start repeating the same handful of meals, and you really get to know them. It’s not brain surgery. You simply just need to do it.
This isn’t a diet. It’s choosing what you eat, and it’s the first step towards feeling really, really good all the time.
How to do this long term? Meal prep. That’s it. Make it easy. I set up a week’s worth of lunches every Sunday afternoon. I ordered 7 shaker bottles from Amazon. It take’s like 10 minutes. If you don’t have a good meal at hand when you need it you will turn to McDonalds “just this one time.”