What's a Healthy Diet Anyway? Part III

Last week, I wrapped up my part II article with, That said, there is a right way to eat controlled-carb and a wrong way. If you do not follow a controlled-carb plan correctly, you're still leaving yourself without your required nutrients. So, tomorrow I'll provide insights into doing a controlled-carb diet correctly and what pitfalls to avoid.

Today, this article is going to be short and sweet - it's not difficult to eat a nutrient-dense diet that is healthy, so no need to be wordy about it.

A "healthy diet" is one that meets or exceeds your nutrient requirements daily. Foods to eat are those that are nutrient-dense and whole. In my experience, for weight loss this means eating:

• 5-9 servings or more of non-starchy vegetables & salad greens each day
• Whatever meat, fish, poultry and game you would like with few (if any) processed meats
• Eggs as you would like
• Whole dairy products - cheese, cream, yogurt - up to 4-ounces per day
• Nuts & Seeds - up to 2-ounces per day (peanuts are not nuts)
• Fruits - up to 1-cup of berries, canteloupe, honeydew, tomatoes, pumpkin, squash, or avocado each day
• Any natural fat or oil you want for cooking or salad dressing

When maintaining weight, as long as these foods do not cause weight gain, you can also include:

• Up to 1-cup of whole grain foods each day (steel cut oatmeal, brown/wild rice, whole grain pasta, corn, etc.)
• Up to 1-cup legumes each day (beans, peas, etc.)
• A broader range of fruits
• Up to 1-cup of starchy vegetables
• Occassional "treats" that are sweet now and then (occassional here is defined as once a month)

The things to absolutely avoid or strictly limit:

• Added sugars
• Man-made Trans-fats (partially hydrogenated oils, shortening, margarine)
• Deep fried foods from restaurants or fast food establishments (damaged fats, trans-fats)
• Processed meats and items with nitrites
• Foods with monosodium gluatmate (MSG)
• Packaged, processed foods with long shelf life
• Homogenized dairy products
• Packaged foods that are deep fried or using oils that may be damaged
• Artifical sweeteners (some trigger hunger and/or stimulate insulin)

If you stick with real, whole foods and limit certain foods while losing weight, you'll be on your way to a normal weight and better health in the long-term.