"HEALTHY" DELI MEAT

Hey everyone, I was doing my grocery shopping today and was reminded of one of my biggest obstacles in fitness. I used to have a problem getting to my goal body fat, despite working out hard and eating well. At least I thought I was eating well. The Deli counter at the ol' Piggly Wiggly was hiding secrets(GASP!)...

BAD FOOD #2

So you’ve decided to make some positive changes to your

diet, and you realize that you really need to be eating more lean

protein to support your efforts in the gym. You’ve read all the

recommendations and now firmly understand that chicken, tuna fish

and turkey are the way to go. However, what “they” might not have

told you is that not all meats are created equal. In fact, sometimes what we think is

“meat” is actually nothing more than a round compressed

concoction of chemicals, fillers, sodium and additives that looks

not only like a volleyball (when is the last time you saw a perfectly

round chicken or turkey breast anyway?), but might even bounce

once or twice if it ever dropped on the floor. I swear I saw a guy at

HEB double dribble a Christmas Ham a few weeks ago!

The same goes with the tuna fish. The tuna by itself isn’t too bad for you at all, but

when you consider the mounds of mayo that tend to go along with

the fish and you turn a legitimate lean protein option into a lost

cause in the pursuit of leanness! Stick to plain water packed tuna,

fresh fish filets, grilled chicken breast and lean cuts of red meat to

turn your body into a toned, fat burning machine!

MEAL PLANNING

Breakfast - 7:00am

Breakfast Smoothie -

Made with 2 cups of

skim/soy/almond/or rice milk,

1 tbsp of flax

oil, 1/2 banana, fresh

strawberries and 2

scoops protein powder

Snack #1 - 9:30am

Almonds and Apricots

mix about 10 dried

apricots with 20-25

almonds in a bag)

Bottle of Water

Lunch - 12:00pm

Mixed Green Salad with

Grilled Salmon, lemon,

and black pepper

Bottle of Water

Vegetarian/Vegan:

Lunch - 12:00pm

Mixed Green Salad with

Meat Substitute(Soy, Tempeh, Seitan), lemon,

and black pepper

Bottle of Water

FINAL THOUGHTS

It is recommended that you keep your daily sodium intake under 2300 mg. How much is that? Just 1 teaspoon!

THIS BLOGS TIP

If you get indigestion don't take an antacid. You can neutralize the acids with some raw vegetables (like carrots) without the side effects

NEXT BLOG

Either another story or a supplement recommendation.

P.S.

You sent me some great stories about what inspired you to start getting into fitness last week. Some funny stories and some heartfelt ones as well. Sometimes a few seconds in your life can spin your world around.