REAL Meal Plan to Look Great & Lose Weight

The REAL Meal Plan

This program focuses on the quality of what you eat and how the different macronutrients affect your health and metabolism, not on how much you eat. Calories do matter, but what you eat matters just as much. The conventional approach to weight loss is more concerned with trying to get you to eat less. Semi-starvation and constant hunger are never good ideas for long-term success. Eating sufficient amounts of food, especially fat and protein, will keep you satiated longer and blood sugar under control. In short - you won’t be hungry! Once everything else is in order you can look at portions.

Eating healthy is meant to be nutritionally sound and enjoyable!

Do you get wet by dipping your toes or diving right in?

My recommendation is to take the plunge and make a full commitment to follow the program’s guidelines. This makes decisions about what to eat easier. If it doesn’t fit the guidelines, you can’t eat it! 

You can also ease into The REAL Program by working on one guideline or one meal at a time. If this sounds less intimidating and more do-able, then go for it. While this approach is certainly acceptable, it does not allow you to feel the immediate effects these dietary changes can have. This approach will also keep your body from becoming fat adapted. It will continue to rely on glucose (blood sugar) as its main energy source until all the guidelines are met, setting the stage for “cravings’. You know yourself best and only you can decide which is the most appropriate way for you to go.

Decisions regarding your health can be life changing and sometimes take great courage to act upon. But a lack of a definitive decision is a major cause of failure.

Have the courage to go all in!

Ready to Jump In!

For the next 30 days build your meals using protein, natural fats and non-starchy vegetables. No ‘cheats’! That means no desserts or alcohol and starchy vegetables are only allowed following intense exercise. (Remember you only need to be this strict for 30 days, but in all honesty you should be eating this way 90 – 95% of the time.) Many people find it extremely motivating to see and feel immediate improvements and this 30 day challenge will do just that. So if you’d like to jump-start your fat loss and get your metabolism to begin the transition from burning glucose (carbs / sugar) to burning stored body fat, then get ready!

REAL Guidelines

Eat real food – Whole nutrient rich food in as close to its natural state as possible like meat, poultry, fish, shellfish, eggs, vegetables, healthy fats, fruit. Choose grass fed, pasture raised, wild caught, free range and organic whenever possible.

Foods to avoid

• Refined or processed grains or food – Refined foods are mechanically or chemically processed resulting in the removal of nutrients. Processed foods are altered in some way and may or may not remain nutritious. Deli meats and sausages are fine if you choose varieties with no fillers, gluten or preservatives.

• Foods or beverages with added sugar or artificial sweeteners – Sugar is empty calories that wreak havoc with your metabolism. Artificial sweetners in soda, gum and candy can set up sweet cravings for sugary foods. Read labels looking for added sugars (sugar comes in many forms) in all canned, jarred and packaged food. (A nice dessert for a special occasion is perfectly fine)

• Vegetable and seed oils or foods containing them – Refined oils like canola, corn and soybean are made using heat, pressure and chemicals. This processing distorts their molecular profile and when eaten disrupts metabolism and cellular function. Virtually all packaged foods contain some type of vegetable oil. Read labels and avoid ones that do.

Additional guidelines

• Do not eat sugar-free, low-carb or gluten free junk food – candy, gum, Jell-O, pops, soda, chips, crackers, muffins, breads, waffles, meal replace bars, etc.

• Do not consume liquid calories – This includes soda, fruit juice, sports drinks and milk for some people. (An occasional adult beverage is fine!)

• Limit your consumption of starchy foods to vegetables such as sweet potatoes, yams, turnips, beets, carrots and winter squash. A serving size is ½ potato/yam or ½ cup when mashed; ½ cup for others. (Top with butter and salt!)

• Eat plenty of green leafy and fibrous vegetables – A total of 5 + servings of vegetables are recommended per day. A serving size is equal to ½ cup raw chopped or cooked vegetable and 1-cup raw leafy vegetable.

• Packaged, canned and jarred products should have a short list of ingredients – One is best.

• Healthy fats – olives / olive oil, avocados, butter, coconut oil, nuts (walnuts / macadamia)

Easing in Plan

Below is a multi-step approach to the program listed in the order of importance. Begin with step #1 and continue to move through as each one gets integrated. If any of these steps are already part of your routine just cross them off and congratulations! (Be sure you are eating adequate amounts food including a protein and fat at each meal.)

1. Eliminate processed carbohydrates and junk food. Save sugary desserts for very special occasions.
2. Eliminate products containing added sugar and vegetable oils (read labels on all boxed & jarred products and keep packaged products to a minimum).
3. Exercise – Begin a consistent program (I will be sending details on exercise).
4. Eliminate or minimize grains (especially ones that contain gluten) and legumes.
5. Eliminate artificial sweetners.
6. Eat starchy vegetables (or grains if consuming) only with exercise
7. Food quality - Eat more grass fed meat, wild caught fish, etc.
8. Macronutrient ratios and portions – adjust based on your goals and results

It’s time for your plan to take shape. Start by creating a Favored Foods List. Make a list of your favorite proteins, fats, non-starchy vegetables, fruit, and full-fat dairy products (not low or no-fat and include only if you tolerate dairy). These items are the staples of your diet and should always be readily available.

Whichever way you plan to roll doing it right will take planning and preparation. Using your Favored Foods List put together sample meals by selecting a variety of protein sources, natural fats and non-starchy vegetables. Choose foods you’re comfortable preparing and used to eating. At first it may seem difficult to construct and plan properly balanced meals but with practice and consistency you will accumulate a wide array of options. Don’t be afraid to try new foods in all categories. If your meals are boring or unsatisfying you will quickly tire of them. By creating an extensive Favored Food List and combining the different proteins, fats, vegetables and spices, you should have an unlimited combination of meals.

Here are more strategies to help you

Plan your meals in advance – Get into the habit of planning what and where you eat. Daily menus and regular shopping will help you stick to your nutrition plan.

Pre-cook what you can – Many foods can be cooked in advance so a quick and healthy meal is always available. Most meats, fatty fish and vegetables taste just fine re-heated.

Planning and pre-cooking are the keys to making this whole thing work

If you'd like more details on the entire program consider purchasing the ebook.

For more information or to set up a consultation contact me nick@realdietandfitness.com

Melt Fat and Flatten Your Belly!

Are you ready for the New Year’s onslaught of weight loss plans, diet products and exercise devices? Popular media advertisement will soon bombard us; along with infomercials and Internet gurus trying to convince us there are magic pills and specials programs to ‘Melt Fat and Flatten Your Belly!’ Most people know when something is a complete hoax, but many intelligent folks, including myself, have fallen prey to the lure of quick results and great marketing tactics.

I am also here to warn you of another hoax. One perpetrated by the medical profession and our government for the last 30+ years. They continue to tell us a low fat / low calorie diet coupled with increased exercise is the best treatment for obesity. Meanwhile the rate of obesity (and all its complications) have sky rocketed.

We’ve heard the message, “Eat more fruits and vegetables and avoid red meat and saturated fat.” I agree people should eat more vegetables and fruit, but high quality protein and the essential nutrient – fat? Protein and fat are extremely satiating, not to mention absolutely necessary for optimal health. Not including sufficient amounts of either in your diet necessitates the discipline to live with constant hunger while depriving your body of essential and required nutrients. You can only hold out for so long and then wham! You just can’t take it, give in, and then blame yourself. What I’ve found is probably what you’ve experienced – unsatisfactory results, displeasure with food choices and lack of long-term compliance – not exactly a recipe for success. Obesity statistics and research confirm these plans have not and will not work in the long run.

I am sure you or someone you know has experienced success following this advice. I would argue the weight loss occurred in spite of and not because of these recommendations. These diets only address a symptom (obesity) and ignore the reasons why people gain weight.

Weight loss is not a simple matter of calories in vs. calories out. It has more to do with how the different macronutrients affect your body’s biochemistry than it does the amount of food consumed. Two-thirds of the people in this country are not overweight or obese because they eat too much and exercise too little. They have a metabolic disturbance most likely caused by the over consumption of processed carbohydrates, added sugar and unnatural fats. Eating less and exercising more is at best a temporary solution and not a long-term plan.

There are no magic fat loss formulas or exercise routines. Certain strategies work well for some people and not so well for others. There are individual genetic differences, body types, personal and socio-economical situations to consider. All will play a role in designing the most appropriate program for you to achieve the best outcome. And who will design your ultimate program? You will! And I will teach you how. It will be a program you can follow for a lifetime because it will be customized by you to fit you.

In a series of post over the next few months I will present practical advice on how to optimize your health, manage your weight and get fit by eating real food and exercising smarter. Stay tuned and happy holidays! 

Let The Cows Eat Grass

Let The Cows Eat Grass

The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) published an interview in their October 2011 issue of Nutrition Action with Robert Lawrence, director of the Center for a Livable Future and former director of Primary Care at Harvard Medical School. In the interview titled, “Fewer Cows, More Vegetables”, Mr. Lawrence says it takes 7 pounds of grain to produce one pound of beef and 840 gallons of water to grow that grain. He talks about the problem with the consolidation and concentration of how we raise animals for human consumption and the disposal of the animal waste, which he states used to be a rich source of organic fertilizer.

“We have lost [farming] diversity because of the large concentrations of row crops, particularly the corn and soybeans that feed the animals we eat. We have also come to rely more and more on fossil fuels to produce synthetic fertilizer, pesticides and herbicides.” (I assume he means we need these for the crops.) His solution – eat less meat!

Here’s a better solution – let the cows it grass. Let’s look at what this solution would accomplish. Replacing the corn and soybean fields with grass would not require nearly as much water and allow the cows to eat what they where meant to eat. No fossil fuels to make fertilizer for the crops. The cows will do a nice job at fertilizing the grass, eliminating the need to get rid of the waste. And by the way, not only will the cows be healthier by eating their natural diet and being out in the sunshine, humans will be healthier by eating their natural diet of quality meat raised in a natural humane environment.

For more information about the supposed benefits of eating less meat, read The Vegetarian Myth by Lierre Keith.

Design Your Own Strength Training Routine

You can easily design your own workouts by following these guidelines. Choose:

A1 - 1 upper body pushing exercise

A2 - 1 lower body pushing exercise

A3 - 1 abdominal / core execise

B1 - 1 upper body pulling exercise

B2 - 1 lower body pulling exercise

B3 - 1 abdominal / core exercise

Perform 3 – 4 sets of each exercise in circuit style - complete all sets of "A" exercises before moving to "B" exercises. Be sure to select different exercises for your next workout.

Click on the Fitness Tips tab for video demonstrations of the exercises

Upper Body - Push - push-up / chest press / shoulder press / band press

Lower Body - Push - squat / step-up / lunge / split squat / RFES

Abs / Core - crunch w/wedge / plank / side plank / anti-rotation / roll-outs

Upper Body - Pull - row / lat pull-down / pull-up / inverted row

Lower Body - Pull - bridge (bent knee) / bridge (straight knee) / SB leg curl / Romanian deadlift

Advanced Abs / Core* - leg scissors / pike tucks / ab slide / plank variations (*see videos)

Nutrition and Fitness Programs - What to look for

Commonalities of a Good Nutrition and Fitness Program

There is no one size fits all when it comes to a healthy eating and exercise plan. But all sound nutrition plans, diets or weight loss programs should have certain aspects in common. If a program relies on foods that are pre-packaged or processed, foods that contain added sugars or artificial sweeteners, bars, shakes, cleansing or minuscule portions, beware! If the workout routines require a herculean effort or endless hours of training, be very afraid!

A good nutrition and fitness program should first look to optimize your health. So when deciding whether or not to adopt a particular nutrition and fitness strategy, consider the following:

Does the program emphasize

Whole real food – nutrient dense & minimally processed (grass fed, wild caught, free range, organic whenever possible)

• Protein – high quality & complete sources – meat, seafood, eggs
• Fats from natural sources – meat, fish, fruits, nuts, dairy
• Carbohydrates from vegetables & fruit, not processed grains & sugar

Optimal amounts of each macronutrient – protein / fat / carbohydrate – with varying ratios of each depending on your particular metabolism, energy expenditure and goals

Smart Exercise – cardiovascular and resistance training appropriate for your level of fitness, workouts geared toward your goals and that suit your personal style of training

Ongoing support – to answer questions and provide additional information as needed

If the program includes all of these features, the last thing you need to ask is, "Can I follow this plan for the rest my life?" 

What is a "Toned" Body?

What is toned?

We would like to look “toned”, but many people don’t know what toned means, even though they know it when they see it. “A toned body is one that has a reasonable amount of muscle placed in symmetrical proportion, with a low enough percentage of body fat, so that those muscles are not covered up by the fat.” (Barry O'Toole) And to get those muscles you must lift weights. “Somehow toning is believed to be different than strength training or weight lifting. But toning is nothing more than lifting light-weights that produce minimal muscle size.” (Mel Siff) To achieve the benefits of weight training, lift with enough intensity (weight) so that your muscles are getting a true workout.

Strength training workouts are ideally performed 2 – 3 days per week, separated by a day or two of rest. The two workouts below are full-body workouts that can be done in your home or at a gym. They cover all major muscle groups, create a very balanced workout and can be completed in about 30 minutes. The only equipment that is required is dumbbells and resistance bands. (The bands I recommend using can be purchase by going to the products tab. Yellow / blue band (#7731S / #7732S) for women or the blue / black band for men (#7732S / #7733S).

If you’re looking to “tone up” for swimsuit season a nice mix of strength training 2 x per week; 2 x 30-45 minute aerobic (walk, run, bike, swim, etc.) sessions per week; 1 x 12-15 minute interval training session (sprints, bike, jump rope, etc) per week should do the trick. Don't forget the nutrition!

Workout # 1     10-15 reps / 3-5 sets (circuits)

• Push-up or chest press
• Bridge (bent knee 1 or 2 legs)
• Plank (1 x 30 sec or 3 x 10 sec)
• Side plank R/L (1 x 30 sec or 3 x 10 sec)
• Squat
• Row or 1 arm row

Workout # 2     10-15 reps / 3-5 sets (circuits)

• Shoulder press (alternating sides or single arm R/L)
• Split squat or step-up
• ½ kneel row or lat pull-down or pull-up
• Bridge (straight leg 1 or 2 legs) or RDL
• Curl-up (using MECA Back wedge or towel roll under low back)
• Alternate arm/leg x 10 reps (5 per side)

Videos of these routines can be viewed by clicking on the video links.

Re-Think Breakfast

Ever had an omelet for dinner? Salmon for breakfast? People get hung up on thinking you can only eat certain foods at certain meals. It's cereal, a bagel or eggs for breakfast. A sandwich or salad for lunch and meat or fish with rice and vegetables for dinner. Truth is all food and meals are inter changeable. Most don't have trouble with lunch and dinner but breakfast is another story.

For the past two weeks I've made a commitment to eating a vegetable at every meal, including breakfast. This requires some creativity as the traditional "healthy" high-carb breakfast of oatmeal or cereal and say broccoli don't exactly go together. What have I come up with? Zucchini and cheese frittata, ground beef hash with asparagus, steak with mushroom sauce and side of broccoli, smoked salmon and egg salad. These well balanced (protein, fat, carbs) meals require some pre-cooking but the nice thing is I just have to throw the food in the microwave or you can scramble some eggs and veggies and enjoy a hot nutritious breakfast in less than two minutes. 

No time to even do that. How about Greek yogurt (plain, full fat) with fresh berries or hard boiled eggs (make a bunch in advance) with a mixed greens salad (bagged, pre-washed) or an apple. Simple. Fast. And nutritious!

Check out the recipes tab at for more ideas.

Dairy Fat & Saturated Fat - The Truth!

Stephan Guyenet creator of Whole Health Source did a review of a dairy fat intake study and also provided information regarding saturated fat as it relates to cardiovascular disease. A quote from the study’s abstact: “There is no consistent and significant association between total dairy intake and total or cause-specific mortality. However, compared with those with the lowest intake of full-fat dairy, participants with the highest intake had reduced death due to CVD”.

Dr. Guyenet goes on to say, “People who ate the most full-fat dairy had a 69% lower risk of cardiovascular death than those who ate the least. Otherwise stated, people who mostly avoided dairy or consumed low-fat dairy had more than three times the risk of dying of coronary heart disease or stroke than people who ate the most full-fat diary. The fat is where the vitamins A, K2, E and D are. The fat is where the medium-chain triglycerides, butyric acid and omega-3 fatty acids are. The fat is where the conjugated linoleic acid is.” This is the good stuff!

Two additional articles reviewed on his site were on saturated fat intake. One looked at the Framingham study organized by Harvard in which investigators “analyzed the relationship between saturated fat intake, serum cholesterol and heart attack risk, they were so disappointed that they never formally published the results. We know from multiple sources that they found no significant relationship between saturated fat intake and blood cholesterol or heart attack risk.” Guyenet The other post reviewed an article written by Dr. Ronald Krauss, a prominent lipid researcher, in which Krauss’s group found no association whatsoever between saturated fat intake and heart disease or stroke: A meta-analysis of prospective epidemiologic studies showed that there is no significant evidence for concluding that dietary saturated fat is associated with an increased risk of CHD or CVD.

In a time where there is so much misinformation regarding what to eat and how to keep ourselves healthy, Dr. Guyenet's blog helps us analyze and cut through the medical dogma that has been shoved at us for the past 50 years. Rock on! 

Review of "Why We Get Fat"

Why We Get Fat by Gary Taubes should be mandatory reading for doctors, dietitians, personal trainers and anyone trying to lose weight or “eat healthy.” The book examines the biological reasons for weight gain providing plenty of well-documented evidence that it’s not just excess calories that make people fat. He lays out why the prescription of eat less move more doesn’t work very well. This standard recommendation for weight loss has been proven to have a dismal success rate. Taubes explains why people can fatten while getting plenty of exercise and eating a low calorie (semi-starvation) / low fat diet. (If you don’t believe that, check out all the over weight folks at the gym. Many of them there everyday, then going home to eat fat-free whatever.)

The second half of the book explains the Law of Adiposity – how fat cells in our body operate and that “We don’t get fat because we overeat; we overeat because we’re getting fat.” Difficult to understand at first but makes sense when you read through the rationale.

The book is full of references to studies showing the best way to lose weight is to eat less starch and sugar. This information has been well known for more than a hundred years, but we keep being told to eat less fat. (It’s not the fat – it’s the carbs!) Also well explained is how carbohydrates raise insulin levels – “Carbohydrate is driving insulin is driving fat” and how eating too much carbohydrate is the real cause of high triglyceride and LDL blood levels (not by eating too much fat or cholesterol).

Taubes doesn’t just leave us with why we get fat, but lays out what must be done to lose weight and regain our health. He ends with a plea to doctors and public health officials to look at the science and not dismiss carbohydrate restriction diets as a fad.  “Until our doctors / public health authorities truly understand why we get fat, the job of losing that fat and remaining healthy will always be far more difficult than it need be.” Amen.

Make yourself uncomfortable.

Feeling a little "stuck"? Scale not moving? Reflection in the mirror still the same? Try getting out of your comfort zone. If you've been eating the same foods, performing the same exercises with the same weight or doing the same 30 minute program on your favorite cardio machine for so long you can't remember, it may be time to shake things up.

In order for your body to change it needs a new stress or stimulus to adapt to. If not, we give it no reason to change. Our bodies (and mind) like the status quo, we must force them to change and adapt.

Ideas & Tips

Clearly identify what you're dissatisfied with, make the decision to do something about it and put it in writing.

Is it your lack of weight loss? Try tracking your calorie intake by weighing and measuring what you eat. Replace your starchy vegetable at dinner for a green one. Switch one regularly eaten snack food with a lower calorie option.

Not seeing improvement in your body fat (muscle tone) or strength? Try lifting heavier weights for fewer repetitions. Add an extra day of strength training per week. Try a different version of some key exercises (ex. squat --> deadlift; chest press --> alternating floor press).

Cardiovascular and fitness levels stagnant? Add interval training 1-2 x per week. Start by performing 30 sec of high intensity cardio followed by a 1-2 min rest. Repeat 5-10 times. Change the form of cardio you do (ex. elliptical trainer --> treadmill; jog --> bike).

After you've implemented some changes be sure to stick with them for at least 2-3 weeks and track your results. Also, don't change more than one variable in each category at a time. This way you can pinpoint what's working or not working.