Running Brain.com

1. No soda (except perhaps diet for the addicted), drink tea instead and put your own sugar in if you want sugar (I use two packets = 32 calories). Powerade has only 50 calories for 8 ounces, so I use this instead of pop (Coke has 140 cal in 12 oz.)
2. No cookies, chips, candy, crackers, or fried foods or fast food. Fried foods are very high in calories.
3. Low fat dairy products only - 1% milk, reduced fat cheese, and lowfat Greek yogurt are OK (Greek yogurt has more protein for muscle recovery.)
4. Breakfast is a must. Cereal and fruit, or yogurt and fruit, or 2 eggs and dry multigrain toast, or oatmeal with raisins, or if you must, an Egg McMuffin (300 cal). V8 juice is 35 cal a can, orange juice by contrast is 140 calories for 8 ounces. Drink a big glass of water each AM and another with dinner.
5. Lunch is soup and salad (dressing is oil and vinegar or low calorie dressing) or a sandwich and salad, or lean chicken with vegetables, or a 6” Subway sub.
6. Dinner is 4 to 6 oz of chicken or fish with vegetables, or a salad with tuna or chicken on top, or multigrain pasta with sauce and vegetables and a salad, or similar. It should not be more than about 600 cal total (a double cheeseburger from Mc’D’s  is 440 cal and a large fry is 500 cal, with a Coke  is > 1100!)
7. Eat a mid-morning snack of fruit (apple, banana, nectarine, peach, berries) or nuts (almonds or roasted peanuts) or a granola bar or a LARA bar (a fruit and nut bar).
8. Eat a similar mid-afternoon snack to keep you from eating too much at dinner
9. After dinner snacking should be kept to a minimum – if you snack while watching TV, eat popcorn, or a half-cup of nuts, or chips and salsa, or low fat crackers and hummus, or veggies dipped in low fat dressing (one ounce of blue corn chips and a cup of pico de gallo is only about 180 calories)
10. Watch the weight fall off…I have lost eight  pounds in a month eating like this while training 4 hours a week.
    

I buy a package of chicken tenderloins and grill the whole package on the weekend after spraying them with canola oil and seasoning them with salt, pepper, and herbs. Then I take two with me to work to put on my salad from the salad bar. I use vinegar and oil. I also take an apple (75 cal), a banana (90 cal) and some almonds (80 cal) or a chewy granola bar (90 cal) with me to use for my mid-morning and mid-afternoon snacks. If I get bored with chicken, I go to Subway and get a 6” turkey and ham sub covered with all the veggies (350 cal). I eat about 2400 calories a day. My basal metabolic rate is about 2100. I average 300 calories of activity (swim, bike, run, or core work, pushups, etc.) per day, creating a calorie deficit. A 500 calorie deficit per day between calories in and calories burned is equal to a pound of weight loss per week. (one pound is 3500 calories).

BMI is a measure of overall health that is better than weight. You can calculate your BMI at this site.

BMI Categories:

• Underweight = <18.5
• Normal weight = 18.5-24.9
• Overweight = 25-29.9
• Obesity = BMI of 30 or greater

The score is valid for both men and women but it does have some limits. The limits are:

• It may overestimate body fat in athletes and others who have a muscular build.
• It may underestimate body fat in older persons and others who have lost muscle mass.