Thursday, March 04, 2010

BECOME MORE EFFECTIVE THROUGH DIET & EXERCISE




We read books about leadership, network, and attend expensive seminars to improve ourselves professionally.  One of the hidden secrets about success and becoming more effective is to simply have a good diet and exercise program.  The benefits are immense.  If you feel better as a result of good diet and exercise, you'll get more done, have more confidence and have a whole lot more energy.


Although, I'm not a doctor or dietician of any kind, I feel like an expert after a lifetime of focusing on this topic.  I've read a lot of books and tried just about every diet it seems.  After all that, I've come up with some rules that work for me and may work for you as well.


Here are some basic suggestions:


THE DIET

  • Eat 2-3 protein shakes per day (low carb)
  • Eat 100-200 calories every 3 hours
  • Eat a small baked potato or 1/2 cup cooked oatmeal in the morning (helps with sugar addiction withdrawal the next day)
  • Avoid all refined starches including white bread and pasta
  • Do not consume any fruit juice or dried fruits and eat fruit sparingly (sugar!)
  • Avoid all sweets and added sugar except for fresh fruits, which should be consumed sparingly (grapefuit, oranges, strawberries, mellons and green apples (have the least sugar)
  • Be moderate with oil but don't be afraid of it
  • Olive oil is best
  • Consume raw nuts up to 1 ounce per day
  • Consume generous portions of green vegetables
  • Focus more on proteins and other low carb foods (meat, eggs, vegetables)
  • If you splurge, lean toward proteins and fats and stay away from simple carbohydrates
  • Indulgence in simple carbohydrates can send some individuals into a sugar addicted pattern
  • Do not add salt or sugar to anything
  • Eat food with less than 200 mg of sodium per 100 calories
  • Eat less than a total of 1000 mg per day of sodium
  • Read a book called "Eat To Live" and "The Sugar Addicts Total 
  • Recovery Program"
  • Get audio versions so you can listen repeatedly until you get it all in
  • Hold back on carbs after 3 PM (front-load the day starting with oatmeal)
  • Carbohydrates in the diet store as fat
  • Dietary fat is not as prone to storage so don't be so afraid of it
  • No processed food -- EVER!
  • If it comes in a box, don't buy it
  • Eat whole, natural foods
  • Be accountable by keeping a food journal and emailing to a friend
THE EXERCISE 
  • Exercise 5-6 days per week, moderate to high intensity, 60 min or more 
  • Employ both cardiovascular and strength workouts 
  • Do things you enjoy (cycling, weight lifting, walking, etc.) 
  • Change it up often so you don't get bored 
  • Try DVD exercise programs such as P90X, Insanity and RevAbs 
  • Make a home gym or get a personal trainer
Notice how the list for "diet" is 80% longer than that of "exercise". In my opinion, the formula for better health follows the 80-20 rule. That is, good health requires 80% diet and 20% exercise. THE MENU   The truth is, I eat all day long with most days being about the same. Here is a typical menu for me:    5 AM Protein shake (on the way to exercise)   7 AM Plain oatmeal (1/3 cup before adding water), several egg whites and a couple yolks   9 AM Protein shake  12 PM Chicken, fresh broccoli with eggs and ranch dressing    3 PM Protein shake    6 PM Chicken, fish (or steak once a week), vegetables or green salad    9 PM Green drink (I will post the recipe later)   THE SPLURGE LIST Yes, there are occasions where I want a little more. This is splurging to me but it still does not break any of the above diet rules. Here is a list of "splurge foods" that enable me to maintain stable blood sugar levels and will not cause me weight gain (believe it or not):Steak   
  • Hamburger, no catchup and no bun 
  • Chicken with skin, not fried or breaded  
  • Broccoli or other vegetables prepared with butter  
  • Eggs fried in olive oil  
  • Mayonnaise (I mix mayo and mustard for a dipping sauce)  
  • Almonds 
For more on this concept, try the information found in a book I read called "The Schwartzbein Principle".