Fatty Fin to Skinny Minnie: Fat to Fit - What does a healthy low fat diet look like?

Thursday 2 September 2010

Fat to Fit - What does a healthy low fat diet look like?

So exactly what does a healthy diet look like?

Once upon a time we followed the pyramid diet:

The Australian Government says that under The Dietary Guidelines for Australian Adults (2003) are supposed to:

Enjoy a wide variety of nutritious foods
Eat plenty of vegetables, legumes and fruits
Eat plenty of cereals (including breads, rice, pasta and noodles), preferably wholegrain
Include lean meat, fish, poultry and/or alternatives
Include milks, yoghurt, cheeses and/or alternatives
reduced-fat varieties should be chosen, where possible
Drink plenty of water

and take care to:

Limit saturated fat and moderate total fat intake
Choose foods low in salt
Limit your alcohol intake if you choose to drink
Consume only moderate amounts of sugars and foods containing added sugars
Prevent weight gain by being physically active and eat according to your energy needs
Care for your food by preparing and store it safely

{ Australian Government Healthy Active - Eating }

For a healthy diet that consists of weightloss.

Lean Proteins: 1-2 serves a day.

A serve of protein equals -
65-100g cooked lean meat or skinless polultry, 2 small chops, 2 slices roast meat.
80-120g fish fillet
2 samll eggs
100g tofu
1/2 cup nuts
1/4 cup seeds
1/2 cup legumes

Grains: Grains should be included in every meal
A serve equals:-

2 slices (60g) wholemeal or multigrain bread
1 medium (50g) wholemeal or multigrain bread roll
1 cup 180g cooked rice, pasta or noodles
1 cup(230g) porridge
1 1/3 cup wheat or oat flake cereal
1/2 cup un-toasted muesli
1/3 cup flour

Dairy: 2 - 4 serves of dairy a day
A serve equals-
1 cup skim, no fat, low-fat milk
1/2 cup low fat evaporated milk
200g tub diet or low-fat natural yoghurt
300g reduced fat cheese or feta
100g low-fat cottage cheese or ricotta

Fruit and vegetables: 2 serves of fruit and 5 serves of vegetables a day-
A serve equals -
2 small pieces of fruit (plums)
1 medium sized fruit (apple, banana, orange or pear)
small bunch of grapes
1/2 punnet of strawberries
1/2 cup cooked vegetables
1 small potato
1 cup salad vegetables
1/2 cup cooked legumes chickpeas, lentils or kidney beans

Fats and oils: two teaspoons of healthy oils (olive, safflower, canola, linseed/faxseed and sunflower)

Ways to use oils-
-use in cooking
-salad dressing
-drissling over vegies, soup or pasta.

Water: At least 2 litres or 8 glasses should be consumed daily.

- water helps quicken your metabolism

- helps with digestion

- you can include your tea and cordial into the serves. Coffee and soft drinks are not included as they are diuretics and can dehydrate you.

{Adapted from Weight Watchers Good Health Guidelines & Programme Cookbook}

Here are some ideas that I tried last week:

~~Eat more fruit and vegetables~~ In pasta, risotto, salad, wraps, sandwiches, for breakfast on Sat /Sun
~~Cut down on sugar (includes sweeteners and honey) 1/2 amount of sweetener / honey~~
~~Eat more unprocessed foods~~ > Burgen Bread for breakfast instead of Rolled Oats
~~Eat a variety of foods for lunch~~Turkish bread rolls with salad Monday,
~~Drink less alcohol~~ (4 drinks all week)
Recover from DOMS from pushing barrows and barrows of bricks
Plan meals for the week (saves time and money) DONE ALL WEEK

Pedometer readings for the week of 27th August - 2nd September

Friday	4563 steps	2.87km
Saturday	8250 steps	5.19km
Sunday	8081 steps	5.09km
Monday	9083 steps	5.72km
Tuesday	9460 steps	5.95km
Wednesday	16961 steps	10.68km
Thursday	10140 steps	6.38km