ingredients that my clients have mentioned they eat is grilled chicken.
While this is an excellent source of protein, many feel they need to eat
just plain grilled chicken breast to prevent gaining body fat...
YAAAAAWN.... BOOOORING!!! Not only is this not good from
mental/emotional - I'm bored eating the same thing everyday standpoint but
it is also going to sabotage your weight loss progress! Before you numb
your taste buds with another healthy, it's good for me chicken dish
tonight, consider some other lean protein foods.
Most everyone who has trained with me knows that just about every workout
is different. You body needs variety in order to stimulate change and
prevent plateaus. The same is true with your nutrient intake. I can't tell you
how many times I've had clients.. cough-Pat-cough... tell me they are stuck
at a certain weight, or even worse put a few pounds on. When we start talking about their nutrient intake we find they are eating the same thing day in and day out. First off, we need to stagger our caloric intake to allow our metabolism to keep working and second, eating the same foods causes not only our minds to go numb but also our digestive systems, cell receptors etc. as well. Variety with our nutrient intake is key for forward progress whether trying to lose body fat or increasing lean muscle mass.
Protein is one of the most important nutrients for increasing your metabolism and repairing muscle and other tissues of the body. Try some other lean sources for your protein such as turkey, fish and if you're a "veggiehead" like me, quinoa, beans and legumes. If chicken is your favourite dish and you can't part with it, try spicing it up. It doesn't have to be boring grilled chicken breast, try adding some Cajun or Mexican flavour by adding some chili peppers and natural, fresh made salsa. By adding some simple herbs and spices, your chicken will take on a different flavour and will also inspire some more creative foods to accompany your protein.
Speaking of foods which accompany your protein, many "carbophobes" avoid them if not completely, in the evening. Avoiding good sources of complex carbohydrates will set yourself up to crave sugar. I've had a few clients tell me they struggle during the evening. They claim they ate chicken or fish for dinner but during the evening they crave something more and end up eating a whole sleeve of cookies or bag of chips! First of all, swat the cookies and chips to the ground... They shouldn't be in the house in the first place! I've blogged a few articles on the importance of complex carbs in our diet. Our brain functions off carbs... If you find yourself groggy and with no energy, you need to increase your complex carbohydrate intake.
Adding good sources of fiber packed complex carbs to your fish, turkey, chicken or other source of protein will give your metabolism the fuel needed to help break down the protein efficiently. And, having the protein with your complex carb will slow the digestion of the carb minimizing an insulin spike. Try adding a half to one cup of whole grain like quinoa, brown rice or a small sweet potato with your meal.