Healthy Eating Archives - Page 3 of 4

Food Logging: What I Eat in a Day (Travel Version)

These past couple of weeks, I was traveling around Europe, visiting Amsterdam (where I used to live), Cinque Terre, Italy, Cannes, and Nice, France.

While I’ve posted a food log of a typical day’s food intake before, I thought it might be interesting for some of you that travel often to see an example of what I might eat when away from home.

Keep in mind that though I do try and eat healthy as often as possible, I thoroughly believe in following the 80/20 rule in order to stay sane, especially while doing something extra special like visiting another country.

Because while it’s great to choose healthy choices whenever possible (lots of salads, veggies, protein-filled breakfasts, etc.), it really just isn’t always possible to eat 100% healthy when you’re away from your usual routine. But you know what? That’s perfectly OK. Life is meant to be enjoyed, and there’s zero point on missing out on delicious food when you’re someplace new or extra special.

In the long run, you’ll regret not eating the croissant, the fresh pesto pasta, the macaroon (or whatever the local specialty is) more than you’ll ever regret eating it.

Because as long as you’re still active, make it a priority to work out consistently, and try and walk as much as possible, you probably won’t even put on much extra body fat (unless, of course, it’s over a long period of time). Life is meant to be enjoyed, after all.

How to Eat Healthy When Eating Out

I live in San Francisco, one of the coolest (in my opinion) cities in the U.S., and it’s absolutely packed with amazing restaurants.

Yes, I know that when I eat at home, it’s usually healthier since I can control exactly what goes into my meals. But really, what’s the point of living somewhere like San Francisco if you can’t experience all the great food it has to offer?

And that’s the conundrum that so many people experience when they’re trying to get in shape or meet their health and fitness goals. They know they should be eating healthy… but they also really love eating out.

And so do I.

In fact, that’s one of my biggest problems with bodybuilding-style fitness and nutrition approaches: they’re incredibly restrictive, and more often than not completely limit your ability to eat outside of your home.

Why You Should Eat Before Bed (+ 10 Healthy Bedtime Snack Ideas)

A lot of people think that the best way to lose weight or get leaner is to stop eating altogether after dinner.

But think about what that really means…you probably eat dinner around 7:00 p.m., and maybe go to bed around 10:30 or 11:00. If you don’t eat breakfast until 7:30 or 8:00 a.m. the next day, that can be a long time without eating for an active person.

Trying not to eat after dinner probably means you:

Get “snacky” and go for something sweet (ice cream) or salty (chips, popcorn, etc.), which isn’t always bad, but can often lead to binge eating of unhealthy foods if you’re actually hungry.
Get so hungry you’re grumpy and feel bitter about not getting to eat more so no one else wants to be around you.
Wake up completely depleted and starving with no energy to exercise or start your day (or worse, wake up in the middle of the night feeling famished and nauseous—speaking from experience!).

Personally, I’ve experienced every one of these things, and they’re not fun. While everyone’s bodies are different, if you’re currently waking up in the middle of the night feeling famished or feeling extra depleted the next day, you may want to start incorporating a healthy bedtime snack.

Food Logging: What I Eat On a Typical Day

Although I mostly talk about fitness here because that’s my real passion, there’s no denying the importance of nutrition when trying to meet your goals, whether you want to lose weight, gain muscle, or improve your athletic performance.

I really, truly believe that if you follow the 80/20 rule and focus on including protein and veggies in nearly every meal, you’ll be able to naturally regulate your weight and start focusing on other more interesting things, such as doing your very first pull up. But, I realize that some people want more detail than that.

So that’s why I decided it might be helpful for those of you struggling with determining portion sizes and how much protein, carbohydrates and fat you should really try to include in your diet to record my own eating habits for a typical day.

I will warn you ahead of time: I am a vegetarian. I don’t talk about it a lot on the site because I’m not an evangelist, and believe everyone can make their own choices when it comes to what they want to eat, and that not every diet works for every type of person. I became a vegetarian when I was six years old because I was a big animal lover, and have stayed that way ever since.

So, carnivores and pescitarians, feel free to just think about substituting a meat version of any of the weird hippie veggie proteins you see here if you’re trying to figure out your own portion sizes.

Here is my food log for Tuesday, March 24th:

5 Ways to Stay Feeling Full Longer

I am one of the hungriest people you’ll ever meet.

Not even exaggerating, I probably eat at least once every two hours. I’m always carrying snacks with me and munching on something or other. I used to be pretty embarrassed about it—but now I tell people it’s just as much for their sake as mine since I get pretty… well… grumpy when I don’t eat.

But while eating every two hours may seem like a lot now, it’s a huge improvement from the days when I was hungry immediately after my last meal.

It’s taken me a long time to figure out how to stay full for more than two seconds—but since I’ve finally figured out ways to keep feeling full longer (which in turn keeps me happier, less grumpy, and in better shape), I figured I should share what I’ve learned with you guys.

Here are five ways to stay feeling full longer:

Eating Healthy While Traveling: It’s Not As Hard As You Think

Over the holidays this year, I traveled for pretty much three and a half weeks straight with only a day or two in between each trip.

And although I love to travel, every time I take a trip I quickly become aware of how much harder it is to maintain my healthy eating habits and keep up my regular workouts than it is when I’m in my normal routine at home.

In fact, traveling is one of the main reasons people give for not sticking to their normal healthy eating or fitness habits.

And while I’ll certainly admit it’s harder to eat healthy while you’re on the road, it’s not impossible. Here’s how to keep eating healthy even when you’re traveling, working a lot, or just don’t have access to your normal healthy foods:

Pack food to take with you

Whenever I travel, no matter where I’m going, I bring an embarrassing amount of food with me.

That picture at the beginning of this article? Those were just some of the food items I brought on my recent trip to Las Vegas for a blogging conference. In no particular order of importance, the items are:

Cheat Sheet For Staying in Shape Over the Holidays

I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty sure this year has gone by faster than any year ever before. I could have sworn that January was only a couple of weeks ago, and that I was only just looking forward to summer and all the fun that summertime has to offer…

But I guess that’s what happens when you’re busy trying to change the world and have adventures along the way, right?

Anyway, no matter how it happened, there’s no denying it any longer: the holiday season has officially arrived. And you know what that means… holiday food, and lots of it. Sugary, fatty, melt-in-your-mouth, delicious holiday food. Awesome, right?

But just because the holidays are here doesn’t mean you have to let all your hard work this past year go to the wayside.

Because if you follow this cheat sheet for staying in shape over the holidays, you can avoid packing on the pounds and still get to enjoy some of your favorite holiday foods.

First off, it’s ok to indulge

That’s right: it’s perfectly acceptable to indulge a little over the holidays. After all, what else are the holidays really about aside from loved ones, gratitude, and good food?

Can You Gain Weight Eating Healthy Foods?

“I eat only healthy foods. So why can’t I lose weight?” Believe it or not, this is one of the questions I get emailed about the most. Because for the most part, most people these days know they should be eating plenty of veggies, lean protein, unprocessed carbohydrates, fruit, and healthy fats. They know …

You’re Doing it Wrong: Pre-Workout Eating

“What do I eat before working out?”

I get asked this question all the time.

Because while most people know what to eat after a workout, they’re clueless as to what they should be putting in their bodies beforehand. And the truth is, it’s not an easy question.

Because like so many things in life, it depends on your own personal goals.

And from my experience, there are basically three goals most people have when choosing what to eat before working out:

Balanced Eating: The 80/20 Rule Explained

I often mention that you should try and eat healthy (whole foods, lots of veggies, protein, avoiding too many processed carbs) 80% of the time.

In fact, it’s stated right in the 12 Minute Athlete food philosophy. And it falls right in line with the 80/20 principle of eating.

But what exactly does the 80/20 rule mean? Let’s break it down:

It means that you don’t have to cook every meal at home.

You know as well as I do that it’s way easier to follow a 100% healthy diet when cooking your own meals.

Cooking at homes means you know exactly what goes in your food—how much oil, butter, how many carbs, etc. And it’s about a thousand times easier to figure out your portion sizes as well.

Yet I don’t know about you, but I like eating out. I happen to be lucky enough to live in San Francisco, a mecca of awesome restaurants and new places to check out. I like having other people cook for me. And I get joy out of finding new places to eat and exploring the city.

And while I do try and cook my own meals the majority of the time, I typically eat out anywhere around two to five times a week. Some of my meals out are similar to what I’d make at home—salads, veggie-heavy meals, burrito bowls (I’m a huge fan of these). And some of them are a little more indulgent—trying out a great new pizza place, sharing really yummy Indian food with friends, having delicious, carb-heavy pasta on a special occasion or just to end a tough week.

And as long as I don’t eat out too often, I’ve stopped feeling guilty about these meals. And you should too.

Because what do we work so hard for in our workouts, if not to enjoy ourselves in life?