How to lose weight

Weight loss, in the most basic sense, comes down to simple arithmetic.  You must eat less calories than you burn.  Period.  And the best way to go about creating this caloric deficit is a combination of diet and exercise.  But you already knew that.  Let’s get to the meal plan. . .

I can sum the meal plan up in six simple words: Eat small well balanced frequent meals.  But you want more specifics than that right?  Ok, here we go.

Eat 3 meals and 2 snacks each day.  And if you must, you can add a third snack.  Space each meal or snack about 3 hours from the previous meal or snack.

Weight loss meal plan

Eat and drink the following with reckless abandon:

• Spinach
• Broccoli
• Green, Red, or Yellow Pepper
• Cucumber
• Apples
• Asparagus
• Cauliflower
• Green Beans
• Kale
• Celery
• Pretty much any green leafy vegetable with the exception of iceberg lettuce
• Water

Eat 2 – 4 servings of the following throughout the day:

• Carrots
• Bananas
• Berries
• Peaches
• Plums
• Oranges
• Pretty much any fresh fruit you like

Eat one 4 – 6 ounce lean serving of the following with each meal.  Preparation should be grilled, steamed, baked, or stir fried – no breaded and fried foods!:

• Turkey breast
• Chicken breast
• Steak
• Pork
• Fish
• Also consider eggs (2 or 3)

Eat one serving of the following with each snack.  Truth be told, I recommend you avoid dairy during your weight loss quest, but if you feel you need it, eat it with you snacks:

• Almonds
• Walnuts
• Cashews
• Natural peanut butter (no sugar, no salt added)
• Yogurt
• Low-fat cottage cheese
• Low-fat milk

Eat these only with your meal that follows your fitness training and only in limited portion:

• Oatmeal
• Brown rice
• Legumes
• Potatoes
• Whole wheat bread
• Whole wheat pasta
• Other whole grain food items

Use the following in extremely limited portions or not at all:

• Salad dressing
• Butter
• Cheese
• Other condiments

Foods and Drinks you MUST stay away from to lose weight

• Soda (tons of sugar and lots of empty calories)
• Alcohol (empty calories and usually leads to bad food choices when drinking)
• Sugar
• Fast Food
• Creamy salad dressings (Ranch, 1000 Island, etc.)

Example of weight loss meals

Ok, so what does a day’s worth of meals and snacks look like?  Check out the sample below:

6:00am  Fitness Training

7:30am  2 eggs scrambled in non-stick pan with chopped green pepper and onion, 1 piece of wheat toast dry, small fruit cup of berries, melon, and pineapple, 1 cup of coffee black.

10:30am  10 almonds, 1 apple.

1:00pm  Large spinach salad with cucumber, celery, grilled chicken breast, and 1/2 table spoon of Italian dressing.

4:00pm  Handful of walnuts, 1 orange.

6:30pm  Grilled flank steak, large portion of steamed asparagus, small side salad with Romaine lettuce, tomato, and small amount of vinegrette dressing.

9:00pm  4 celery sticks with small amount of natural peanut butter.

Some other final tips:

• Drink a large glass of water with each meal and snack.

• Pre-cook and prepackage your meals and snacks on one day for the rest of the week.  I usually do this on Sunday.  This is MUCH easier if you eat the same meals each day.

• Keep a food journal and track your weight loss progress.  You should be losing about 2 pounds per week.  If you’re losing less than that, you probably need to tighten it up.  If you’re losing more than that, it might be time to add that third snack.

• If it comes in a wrapper or other packaging, don’t eat it