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When it comes to what it means to “be in shape” it can be very confusing. There are so many ideas and misconceptions it’s hard to know what to think. Not only that, it’s just as confusing, or more so when it comes to knowing what to eat to help get into shape.

I have always been a “normal” weight for my height and, also, pretty active physically so I thought I was “in shape”. Plus, I considered I ate well – hardly any junk food, sugar, etc.

Well, I had an eye opener one day when I enrolled in the local gym. I had my body fat measured and – lo and behold – I certainly had too high a ratio between fat and muscle.

So, whether a person is a normal weight or not they can be out of shape. Essentially the same principles apply for getting in shape whether you’re considered obese, overweight or normal.

First, let’s look at what you eat. It kind of goes without saying that you shouldn’t eat chips, soda, sugar, etc. if you’re trying to lose weight or for health purposes in general. But let’s take it one step further.

Nearly everyone believes that one component of a healthy weight loss diet is eating lean meat. While there is some truth to that, it is not altogether true. Even lean meats that are purchased in your usual grocery store are not actually that good for your optimum metabolism. Why? Simply because the cattle are fed with soy, grains, antibiotics and hormones. What happens then, of course, is that you are ingesting these things, which actually upsets your hormonal balance, which is key to a good metabolism. Interesting, huh?

So, what’s the solution? Fish, you say. Well, not necessarily. Even with salmon, (unless it’s wild Alaskan salmon) though high in Omega 3′s, they can be high in heavy metals, like mercury. The alternative then is grass-fed beef, as it is high in omega 3′s, plus, it will be free of all those things which upset your metabolism.

When it comes to the nutrition part of getting into shape, organic is definitely the way to go.

Now, when I used to think of organic food I thought of two things: bland and expensive. Nothing could be further from the truth. As far as expense goes you just have to shop around a little and you’ll find that there are quite a few stores that sell organic food that are actually more economical than your regular grocery store. You can find many organic food products online (even beef) that are delivered right to your door. When it comes to taste, organic food is much tastier than no-organic because it is free of pesticides that are artificial ingredients that in reality kill the food and rob it of it’s naturally good taste.

You can make great tasting chili, beef stews, or roasts that are really flavorful AND great for weight reduction (just leave out the potatoes and sides of bread.)

Here’s to eating your way into shape! Bon appetite’!

This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 16th, 2010 at 7:08 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.