The Best and Healthiest Vegetarian on the Block

Vegetarians have always held a special place in my heart, the part of my heart that cries out WHY? I don’t understand the appeal, especially the more extreme vegan types. It doesn’t seem natural. I love red meat and all that it represents: power, lust and supremacy over the earth.

I know what you are going to say, I am being too harsh, but that’s what you love about me. I will now get serious and offer my amends by offering some tips to make you the best and healthiest vegetarian on the block.

There are some benefits to a vegetarian diet, an emphasis on grains and plant proteins and Bessie gets to run free. There are however some downsides. Some veggie heads just avoid red meat but will have fish or eggs and others will be stricter such as vegans with no animal products whatsoever. With vegans I have the biggest health concerns, but all should take care to ingest adequate nutrients.

The most common deficiencies that than occur in most vegetarians are:

Vitamin D- found in egg yolks, fortified milk. Veggers must try fortified foods, sunshine or supplements. Take special care for breastfeeding vegan moms.

Vitamin B12, and riboflavin B2-found red meat, poultry seafood and milk products. Veggers should try dark leafy greens, enriched whole grain breads, legumes and nuts.

Calcium- found in milk products. Veggers who avoid milk should drink fortified soy beverages, dark leafy greens and fortified foods.

Iron- found in red meat, poultry, and seafood. Again stick with fortified foods, leafy greens like spinach in particular. Also try raisins, prune juice and tofu. Note that non- heme iron in plants is less well absorbed than heme iron in meat. Also it takes a larger amount of plant product to reach an equivalent in a smaller meat portion.

Protein- found in larger amounts in animal proteins, can also be found in many milk product. Plant products like soy and legumes for have protein but ounce per ounce not as much as animal protein of the same amount.

Zinc-found in shellfish, red meat, dark meat poultry and egg yolks. Veggers can use nuts, legumes or whole grain cereal.

Most vitamins can be successfully acquired from a vegetarian diet; the two big concerns still remain iron and protein. Vegetarians who are pregnant or breastfeeding are at higher risk to create protein or iron a deficiency for their fetus. Some vegetarians do change their eating habits during their pregnancy.

In terms of weight loss, be aware that many packaged or frozen veggie foods are filled with sugars. In addition the vegetarian diet is high in carbohydrates and not always low in fat, which is a bad combo for weight loss. Protein builds muscle and muscle burns fat, so a lack of complete proteins may affect your muscle tone and fat burning.

My best advice is eating some meat, after all it is what allowed us to evolve and the truth is that if Bessie had the chance she would eat us too! Hee hee!

Fiorella

Cut It Out With the Carbs!

At this point everyone knows to go easy on the carbs but many of you don’t know why. The most important aspect of implementing a game plan for your diet is to understand why you do what you do, but can be an obstacle to your weight loss effort. To understand how they metabolize in your body and shed light on the carb mystery, read on..

There are three major kinds of carbohydrate:

Monosaccharides are simple sugars (glucose)

Disaccharides are starches

Polysaccharides can include more complex carbs

It is important to know that whether you are eating fructose, maltose, sucrose or lactose. These are all converted to sugar in your digestive system and then enter your blood stream as glucose. What is important is what volume and rate this occurs. This is where eating less carbs or having more complex carbs becomes very important.

The amounts of carbs are important when making food choices. When the body needs fuel, it uses the glucose that is broken down from all the carbs you eat, then once the carb stores are depleted it moves on to the fats. This is why if you have excess glucose in your body, your body is constantly using it as it fuel, never quite getting to the fat stores. In order for your body to begin burning fat you must limit your intake of carbs. Focus on lean meats, eat complex carbs in moderation and severely limit sugar.

The rate by which carbohydrates are absorbed into the blood is also important in terms of insulin release. If there is too much glucose in your blood or spikes of glucose which comes from easily digestible carbs like table sugar, insulin is released to control this elevation. Insulin spikes cause an increase in fat synthesis, causes your hunger to come back quicker and causes your muscles to resist insulin. When you read about the Glycemic Index, it indicates which food cause the least spike in insulin. Most berries are low sugar, resulting in steadier insulin release. Complex carbs and high fiberous veggies also top the list.

There are psychological effects of certain carbohydrates like sugary foods or all the “white” goods are responsible for many of the sugar highs, brief blasts of energy and temporary comfort . These feelings of pleasure can become somewhat addictive and can be continually sought out during stressful times. In addition once you have a taste you want more and this leads to overeating.

My all time favorite carb is cellulose, better known as fiber. It is really a miracle when it comes to its activity in the body. Fiber is not digestible and exits your body intact, but while its in there it works wonders. It cleans your system of toxins and excess waste. It slows the release of glucose when combined with other carbs, makes you feel full longer and keeps you regular. Can you ask for more?

Fiorella

Top Ten Food Combos

There are so many differing views on food combining; it is hard to navigate through all the information. Many books have been written on the topic- remember the Susanne Sommers book? It has essentially been discarded as a weight loss tool. There are some ways, however to enhance food's positive effects by eating some of them together. Various enzymes, vitamins in the foods and chemical reactions in your digestive system can enhance or reduce the nutritional content of the food.

I have compiled the top ten food combos to get the most out of each food choice:

1) MILK AND COOKIES- any time you do have a sugary snack or dessert, start off the treat with 1% milk, the protein and fat in the milk will slow down the digestion of the sugar and it’s really yummy.

2) YOGURT AND BRAN- combining these two superfoods will give you an extra strength bowel sweep. Try it twice a week or at least when you are having a dire pooping problem.

3) LEMON AND GREEN TEA- a squeeze of lemon in your green tea will enhance the antioxidant power of the tea. Drink up!

4) PROTEIN AND SPICE- combine any animal protein with hot peppers or hot sauce and give your metabolism a fiery boost.

5) ORANGES AND STEAK? - Yes, that’s right; actually any iron filled protein can be enhanced with citrus fruits and vitamin c from the fruit. It allows the iron to absorb more readily in your body.

6) FAT and FIBER- with anything fatty I eat, I add a fiber component. Studies show that fiber can also eliminate small fat from your digestive system before it is absorbed.

7) CINNAMON AND COFFEE- coffee is something most people drink every day, adding cinnamon will enhance the antioxidant power of the brew. Cinnamon also has calming qualities and antimicrobial agents.

8) BALSAMIC VINEGAR- the acidity of this delicious dressing neutralizes the effects of carbohydrates and how they are digested. Have a salad before or after a carb- filled meal.

9) GRAPEFRUIT- studies show that eating a grapefruit with every meal produced an average of 3 lbs of weight loss. They fruit is also acidic and can neutralize carbs and keep insulin levels in check.

10) BANANAS AND CHIPS- the potassium in bananas will counteract salty foods. Drinking water and having a banana will eliminate water retention and bloating.

The list goes on- give these a try and I will keep you updated. It is important that in every meal to make the most of the calories that you consume, since there are ways to enhance the nutritional value in foods, it is worth taking the time to try some of these tips.

Fiorella

Ready, Aim Fiber!

If you want to , speed up your metabolism, feel full and cleanse your system, you must add fiber to your diet. You already know that fiber helps with cholesterol, risk of colon cancer or coronary disease but the studies on the benefits of fiber on weight loss is juice –get that out of your mind. It is time to make bring it into your diet if you really want to amplify your weight loss efforts.

There are two types of fiber soluble and insoluble. Soluble fiber dissolves in the digestive system while insoluble fiber passing through the system largely unchanged. Most plant fibers contain both types of fiber and act as a sweep for your system. To see results you must take in 25-35 grams per day, which I am sure is nowhere near what you are taking in now. Here are some foods that contain plenty of fiber:

SOLUBLE FIBER
Legumes
Oatmeal
Apples
Strawberries
Citrus fruits

INSOLUBLE
Wheat bran
Whole wheat products
Broccoli
Skins of fruit

Benefits of fiber in weight loss are:

Keeping your system regular
As it passes through the digestive tract it acts as a sponge to absorb it weight in liquid, and the results are that your bowel movements are expelled more easily and rapidly. As high protein eater, I must include food and veggies that are high in fiber every day, almost at every meal just to counteract the symptoms of constipation that can come from a high protein intake. I also recommend eating tons of fiber food the day after a cheat day, to eliminate some of the effects of sugar, fats and alcohol.

Eating fiber keeps you full
Since fiber takes longer to digest than many other foods, it keeps you feeling full and not feeling so hungry. Add fiber to every meal in the form of grain or berries and veggies. This will keep you satiated up until your next meal, hunger pains will be a thing of the past. The idea of VOLUMETRICS in food works well with high fiber foods because most of them contain low calories in large amounts. So it seems like you are eating a high volume of food but really they don’t have many calories.

Fiber boosts your metabolism
Remember that part of metabolism is how much energy is expended in digesting the food. Since fiber is harder to digest, it in turn expends more energy to get through your system. So in that case when you add fiber to each meal, it takes even more energy to expend. Pick foods with highest grams of fiber per servings. My favorites are ALL bran extra fiber cereal, buckwheat, blueberries, and spinach.

As far as fiber supplements, there are okay but why not just eat real food. The good part of fiber rich foods is that they are also high in vitamins and antioxidants, something you will never get from a fiber supplement. You can try food or juices or yogurts that have added fiber to them but not if they have extra sugar.

Finally, a word of warning, when you start incorporating fiber into your diet, start slow. If you are a fiber virgin, it will hurt at first, but eventually it will get easier and eventually you might even like it. There will be discomfort and there will always be a little bloating but it will be gone by morning along with any toxins and extra weight. Eat up!

Fiorella