Free Healthy Eating Plan For You

This is the free healthy eating plan you've been looking for. So you've come to the right place. My family has been successfully following a simple healthy eating plan for years and we all enjoy remarkable health. Our focus is to keep it simple. It's this simplicity that makes it not only healthy but delicious too. Let's start with what we don't eat.

We don't eat sweets, processed foods, white flour, white rice, fried foods, processed oils, snacks, fast food or any kind of junk food. And we don't drink soft drinks, fruit juice, coffee or alcohol. For those of you wondering what's left, my free healthy eating plan will teach you everything you need and want to know. Your focus should be on natural whole foods.

For example, we eat lots of vegetables and fruit, especially the colorful ones. The trick is to get at least nine optimal servings every day. To do this you must have some at every meal. Fresh, especially organic, is best when you can get it, but if fresh isn't available then frozen is the next best thing. Because of the processing, we don't drink milk, but do include dairy in our diet.

We eat low-fat organic plain yogurt, kefir and cheese, plus some no-salt organic butter. Olive oil is our main choice for cooking and salads. Cheese (in moderation) is generally cheddar, Swiss, mozzarella, or feta and we never go overboard with it. Fresh fruit and raw nuts work great for sweetening plain yogurt and kefir.

We use only whole grains. This includes our bread (mostly sprouted), cereals, rice and pastas. Once you get used to it, whole grains have a much better flavor and offer way more nutrition. Sprouting the whole grains before they're used increases the protein and digestibility. Be sure you use products with no added sugars. Eggs are a staple in our home. We eat them in all sorts of ways; scrambled, poached, hard-boiled, egg toast, omelets and egg sandwiches.

With our large family we go through about as many dozens of eggs in one week as we do loaves of bread. Although we don't eat meat every day, our main choices are fish and poultry. Both offer a great source of lean protein and the fish has the added benefit of being a rich source of omega 3 fatty acids.

Even though we eat well, we still take whole food supplements made from human foods. These natural supplements ensure we're getting all of the essential fatty acids, amino acids, fiber, vitamins, minerals and the phytonutrients we need to stay well and healthy. There you have it - my family's free healthy eating plan. All you need to know now is to drink lots of water and, if you want to lose weight, burn more calories than you eat.

“In the long term, it doesn’t really teach you anything about the diet, and, in fact, going gluten-free can put you at risk for nutrition deficiencies, such as omega 3s, B vitamins, and fiber,” Chaparro adds. Instead of cutting gluten, keep whole grains part of your eating plan and cut back on refined carbohydrates, like cereal, white bread, and white pasta.

Like swearing off gluten, cutting out alcohol for the sake of weight loss is a no-no, says Tanya Zuckerbrot, R.D., author of the F-Factor Diet. When you give yourself absolutes—banning items from your diet—you’re more likely to feel deprived. And then when you indulge just a little, say, in a glass of wine, you’re more likely to totally fall off the weight-loss wagon, says Zuckerbrot. Sure, alcohol is full of empty calories, but there’s no denying that for many people it's part of being social.

“Therefore, if you’re already following a low-calorie diet, there should be enough room to have a glass or two of wine a week,” Zuckerbrot says. Banning booze is especially bad if you plan on reintroducing it into your diet once you reach your weight-loss goal, she says. That's because you’re creating temporary habits instead of lifestyle changes.

Reworking your daily habits, like what you snack on, how much you move, and the foods you fill your plate with will actually help lose more weight and keep it off. If you’re looking to shed pounds, it’s time to step away from the treadmill. Focusing solely on cardio to burn fat is a big mistake many of us make.

And while, yes, heart-pumping exercise does accelerate the rate at which we eliminate fat, it only does so for the time we’re actually on the machine, says Heidi Powell, ACE-certified personal trainer, co-host of Extreme Weight Loss. Instead, you should focus your exercise efforts on weight lifting and resistance training plus cardio, says Powell.

When you build muscle mass, you increase your metabolic rate and set yourself up for a better future. Zuckerbrot says that women naturally lose muscle mass as they age, slowing your metabolism. So the more you maintain your muscle mass, the less likely you are to gain weight. While cardio is a part of any good workout plan, both Zuckerbrot and Powell recommend devoting more time to strength training through weight lifting, swimming, barre class, and even yoga.

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