Formosa Fitness

 Yes, I'm going to enjoy writing this post as much as you'll probably enjoy reading it. This is high on everyone's list of favorite topics. And unlike a lot of other trainers, I'm not going to tell you to forgo all of life's little pleasures like Boston Cream Pie. Instead, I focus on how to enjoy these little delicacies while not having them destroy your health.

So first of all, this topic arose from a discussion I had with a client and I hope she doesn't mind me sharing it with you. My client has had great success getting fit with us but this past week, she ate a lot of cookies at work because she was hungry. From that I realized that she and most of all of us don't realize how to best eat sweets.

The first mistake she made was to eat a sweet like cookies when she was hungry. Tip #1: when you're hungry, eat a meal or something as close to it as possible. When you're hungry, you need food, not sweets. Sweets, especially mass-produced junk food, are amazingly low in nutrients. They're just poor quality food. Being poor quality, you have to eat lots of them to feel full. And surprisingly, most of it has intentionally been produced to get you to eat more of it. Yes, companies manipulate ingredients to get you to eat more of their product. It helps sales. Eating junk food when you're hungry is therefore the worst possible time -- you're at your most vulnerable.

If a meal isn't possible then use tip #2: have a backup meal replacement like a whey protein shake available. The variety of protein shakes available today is staggering and they are very useful. Mix the protein with maybe half milk and half water and you have the ideal meal -- high in protein, moderate in carbs and fat. That's exactly how I advise people to eat anyway and your protein shake reflects that. BTW, we carry the Biochem protein flavors because they are ideal for fat loss, being naturally a bit sweet but high in fiber. They are great to kill a sweet tooth while giving you a boost of nutrition. I highly recommend the hemp flavor!

There was a time when sweets were dessert and they were consumed after a meal. That was simply the way to do it properly and it still is. Eat your meal first and then have something small and rich for dessert. You will eat less of the sweets since you're either full or close to it already. And the richness of the sweet will signal your brain to be satisfied.

We got away from doing this for various reasons, perhaps one is that eating dessert become associated with how rich people eat. So the masses never picked it up. The problem is that the more affluent the family, the thinner they tend to be. Ever notice that? Dessert is likely part of the reason why. But by displacing sweets away from their role as dessert, they became everyday snacks we eat between meals, making their impact of us more profound.

So stop eating sweets between meals and have a small sweet after a meal, instead. Or drink a healthy protein shake. That way you can have your cake and eat it, too.

Catch the first episode of this show if you can. The problem with our food is institutionalized at this point, as the show clearly illustrates. And frankly the institutions are the enemy. They don't want change, they don't want you to know what's in the food, they've been lying to you and manipulating the process from the beginning. The only way for you to take control of your health is to opt out of the system wherever you can. Educate yourself about what you're eating, about what you're putting into your body everyday.

When you watch the first episode, you'll get introduced to "pink slime." This is a central ingredient to all ground beef. It's beef "parts" that have been cleaned with ammonia to kill the bacteria. Is ammonia on the ingredient list for ground beef? Absolutely not. Why not? Becasue the powers that be don't want you to know it's in there, so you don't. And there you go. They'll make your decisions for you. But education empowers you. When you know what's in it, you can make a choice NOT to eat it. And that's what this is all about.

Please watch and support this show!

If you don't want to listen to me, then listen to top coach Mike Boyle. Here's what was in his newsletter this morning on fat loss:

3#- Not enough protein. Everyone yaps about how bad high protein diets are for you. First off this is a fallacy. Second, most peoples’ protein intake is so low it doesn’t matter. Try to eat more lean protein. Have ham and eggs for breakfast. It’s good for you. No kidding. Canadian bacon and eggs might be better. On a 2000 calories diet following a 40-30-30 plan you would need 600 calories from protein. That’s 125 gms per day. By most peoples estimate that’s a lot of protein. Very few who don’t take supplements can get 125 gms. of protein a day.

Why won't people listen to this?

At Formosa Fitness, we carry a range of protein powders to fit your needs. But each one is lightly different. Let's see how they differ. Which one is right for you?

Biochem Whey Isolate -- Vanilla and Chocolate

Biochem whey is 100% whey isolate, NOT the cheaper and poorer quality concentrate that is so commonly found. Isolate is a purer form of protein with as few carbs as possible, making it ideal for calorie conscious exercisers. Biochem is also different because it’s the only flavored protein I’ve found that uses NO artificial ingredients or sweeteners.  The list of ingredients is short and simple. You don't need a PhD. in chemistry to read the label.

The vanilla is light in flavor and is preferred for baking (think protein bars, mmmm...) or with mixing with other things. Chocolate has a stronger flavor than vanilla. The whey isolate is a little thinner if you're looking for a meal replacement and it passes through your system very quickly. This makes it ideal after a workout but before a meal because it won't make you feel full. If you're wanting to feel full and have the protein stick around longer (like before bedtime) then be sure to have the whey isolate with milk. The milk protein digests slower than whey and the combination will make you feel fuller.

Biochem Vegan Vanilla Protein

This is one of the best protein powders I’ve ever tried. I use it and I’m not even vegan! This powder has 20grams of protein from pea, hemp, and cranberry sources. Plus this powder has fiber that makes you feel fuller than our whey powder — perfect for staisfying that gnawing hunger you get when trying to lose weight. Sightly higher in carbs than our whey isolate, this protein is a great choice to kill a sweet tooth. Many people also notice that it is thicker than our whey isolate, so this protein is ideal for those wanting a thicker shake. This protein is a concentrate -- not an isolate -- so there are some carbs in this one.

Biochem Vanilla Hemp and Whey

This one sells out the fastest! This is the highest fiber protein we carry -- coming in at 4gm of fiber per serving! The protein is very filling because of that. It has eight times the fiber of our vegan protein. It's also the sweetest protein we carry, especially when you mix it with the local milk, which might be sweeter than milk found in the West. But for those looking for a dessert protein, this would be the top choice. Despite the hemp source in this blend, it is still primarily an isolate -- clocking in at 20gm of protein per serving with very few carbs. This one combines the best of the vegan and whey proteins together and is a personal favorite.

Biochem Berries and Whey

This is IMO the best tasting protein we carry and the best choice for those who like their protein with water. Blended with water it tastes almost exactly like fruit juice. The flavor is a blend of goji, acai, blueberry, raspberry, and strawberries. As with all Biochem products, all of these are all natural -- no artificial flavors are used. Goji and acai are highly touted for their health properties but are really expensive. This protein is a good way to get their benefits with a lot of protein.

Again, if you think protein powders taste like chalk, this one will shock you.

Biochem Natural Whey Isolate

This one is for the hardcore amongst us that don't want anything to stand between them and their protein. Natural flavor is a nice way of saying "no flavor" in that nothing is added to this one. It's just the protein. This makes it ideal for baking or cooking, where you wouldn't want the flavor to get in the way.

A couple of quick notes about all our proteins. Biochem is unique amongst whey protein producers in that they use NO artificial flavors or ingredients! Look at the back of that cheap protein you're considering getting and you'll be shocked. A long list of chemicals and artifical flavors and sweeteners is the norm in the industry. Biochem DOES NOT add that kind of stuff and we carry Biochem exclusively because we know customers care about that.

Also, Biochem whey proteins are totally free of growth hormones and all the other hormones so common in the industry. Biochem doesn't just use the cheapest whey they can get their hands on. This is high quality stuff. Because of the quality, Biochem proetien powders aren't the cheapest you can get but suprisingly, they aren't the most expensive either. Remember, you get what you pay for and this is your health we're talking about here.

Finally, all proteins are 20gm of protein per serving but each serving size is somewhat smaller than others in the industry. The Biochem scoop is a scoop, not a shovel. If you want more protein, simply use more scoops. Other brands claim 40-50gm of protein per serving but the scoop is the size of a shovel -- making their claims a bit misleading. Don't be fooled!

All proteins are NT1500 for two canisters -- a one month supply if taken roughly once a day. Please feel free to try two different proteins!

The advantages of protein powder are huge. Let's go over a few:

1. Convenience. Can't cook? Don't have time? Can't carry what you cook with you? You can't beat protein powders for convenience. They are easily stored and carted around with you to work or the gym. This is a major reason to use them.

2. You know exactly how much protein you're getting. Exactly how much protein is in that piece of chicken you're eating? The buffet meal you went to yesterday? Who knows? With protein powders, you know EXACTLY what you're consuming. Unless you're weighing and measuring your food like bodybuilders do, then you have no idea. That exactness is rare and having a protein shake is a good way to ensure you're getting what you need.

3. Digestability. Let's look at my previous post on why I recommend so much protein. Notice the BV chart. Here it is again:

How do whey concentrate and whey isolate fit on the chart? They are practically off it, aren't they? They are more digestable (biologically available) than any other protein!! Whey is more digestible than just about any other protein source on earth. And the isolate we sell clocks in at 159!! That means that if you eat it, it will go STRAIGHT to your muscles. Digestability is a big issue for many people. Many people have stomach issues and/or constipation. Whey isolate is so highly recommended by coaches because we know that if you take it, it will work immediately despite digestion problems that might hamper getting your protein from other sources. There simply isn't a more potent source of protein!

Whey isolates are highly recommended after a workout for this very reason. If you want the protein to hang around longer (like when you sleep), mix it with milk. It's just that simple.

So that's the cheerleading for whey protein. What's the other side of the story? Whey protein is meant to be a supplement, it isn't a one-stop source of your protein needs. I often get this impression when I mention protein powders to people.

Whey protein is NOT meant to be your sole source of daily protein and I'm not recommending you make it that! 

You need to be getting significant protein in your meals and use the protein shakes after workouts, as snacks, or as meal replacements if you can't get a good, regular meal. So let's dispel the notion that I think you should be eating nothing but protein powder all day. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Whey protein is THE most widely taken supplement in the fitness industry because the reasons to take it are so solid. Don't let wrong impressions prevent you making progress!

Some folks might argue that 1 gram per pound of body weight a day is excessive. Smart folks might have picked up on the fact that some experts call for 1 gram of protein per kilogram of body weight, not per pound. Others might note that still other experts call for 1 gram per pound of lean body mass, not per pound of whole body weight. Finally, I might actually be criticized for advocating too little protein. Some serious atheletes take more than I'm recommending. So why the 1 gram per pound per day?

First is the issue of protein quality. Nutritionists measure protein quality in terms of biological value (BV). BV is basically your body's ability to digest and use the protein you eat and it varies greatly by source. Here's the second link I found through Google:

As you can see, different protein sources provide different BV values, showing that not all protein sources are created equal. The protein you get from animal sources tends to be much more useful for your body as compared to plant sources. This has profound implications for your diet, especially if you're vegetarian or vegan.

Notice right away that eggs are the gold standard of whole foods in terms of BV. One egg might only have 6 grams of protein but it is highly potent. Still, in bang-for-your-buck terms, tuna, chicken breast, and lean beef give you more grams of protein per serving and still have high BV values.

So if we're wanting to meet our protein requirements for the day, we would need to eat a lot less of beef, tuna, etc. in terms of volume to get our protein. Vegetarians and vegans will have to consume much more bulk and the quality of the protein is much less. That means they would have to consume that much more to make up for the deficit in quality as well as quantity. I'm not saying it can't be done, especially by lacto-ovo vegetarians. But it makes the diet that much harder in terms of protein requirements.

The problem that BV shows is that not all the protein you consume is the same quality, yet this gets overlooked in absolute values. When people think they're getting 150 grams of protein a day at 150lbs. of body weight, the fact that not all of that protein is equally bio-available doesn't usually enter into the equation. Looking at the chart above, one cup of lentil beans has 15 grams of protein but your body can only absorb half of it because the BV of lentil beans is only 50% So in real terms, you're only getting 7.5 grams of protein from a one cup serving. What happens when you eat 150 grams of protein but your body can't use a certain percentage of it because it isn't digestable enough?

If not all of that protein is equally bio-available then it stands to reason that erring on the side of more rather than little will ensure that a client gets enough quality protein. You might eat 150 grams of protein a day at a body weight of 150lbs. and actually absorb 120 grams because of the varying BV of the different foods you ate that day. For all practical purposes, you just consumed 120 grams for all the good it did you. If so, you'd be deficient for that day. See how this works? Even at the supposedly high rate of 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight, you're still not likely absorbing and using that exact amount. Now what happens when you don't even consume 1 gram per pound a day?

Bascially you run around in a protein deficient state all the time.

The seond major reason I recommend so much protein is that it's as close to a magic bullet in terms of nutrition as we're ever likely to see. Consider that the two most requested fitness goals are fat loss and muscle gain. Despite the disparities in the requirements to meet those two goals, one recommendation unites them: high protein intake.

Starting with the obvious, protein is necessary to support muscle growth in those wishing to gain weight. The body must have the basic building blocks it needs for protein synthesis, otherwise mass can not physcially be built. If you're only consuming what your body needs for maintanence, you can't add mass. You need extra for that in terms of calories and protein.

Ironically, protein also meets the needs of dieters by both supporting the growth of lean muscle tissue and providing excellent satiety -- your feeling full and staisfied from a meal. Increased lean muscle tissue protects your body from injuries as you get fit, allowing you to work out longer and harder and stay injury free. Increased lean tissue also allows you to use heavier weights as you exercise -- greatly increasing your calorie expenditure. you'll burn a heck of a lot more calories swinging a 20kg kettlebell than an 8kg kettlebell.

Satiety is often over-looked but protein is very satisfying when consumed at high quantities and qualities. A big salad before a big steak is a very satisfying meal and eating this way regularly can help you avoid the excess calories you'd get from over-consuming carbohydrates.

Another over-looked factor in protein consumption is that it takes more energy to digest protein than the other macronutrients fat and carbohydrates. 

Here's how it works:

"A protein-based meal will elicit a thermic effect that is close to 30 percent of the total calories itself," explains Jack Groppel, Ph.D., co-founder of LGE Performance Systems in Orlando. This means that if you have a protein-based meal of 600 calories, you'll burn 180 calories just by eating it. This is largely due to digestive processes as well as the extra energy the liver requires to assimilate and synthesize the amino acids in protein.

So you burn 25-30% of the calories from protein just by digesting it. Now see why I recommend high protein intake for fat loss clients? Imagine eating 600 calories for the price of 420. That's what higher protein intake can do for you. You can consume a higher calorie, more satisfying diet that supports your training and keeps you more injury free through higher protein intake. That's a major reason I say this is as close to a magic bullet in nutrition as we're likely to get.

Finally, I know that even if I suggest a higher protein intake, most people will still fall short of it, at least on some nutritionally poor days. Few of us can 100% control what we eat every single day. What would happen if I suggested a lower protein intake? Clients would definitely be protein deficient. Keep the protein intake high constantly and those days where you fall short will not set back your training recovery or leave you open for injury. Set the protein bar too low even on good nutrition days and you will pay a heavy price on poor nutrition days. With a low protein recommendation, you're on the boderline all the time and eventually it will catch up to you -- either in terms of an injury or by reaching a training plateau that you won't be able to overcome.

We often forget there's a major difference between having an abundance of health and fitness and always doing the bare minimum. With the bare minimum of protein, exercise, or anything else, you're never far from losing what little you've managed to gain in the first place. Your body is the same way. If you want great results, you have to give it in abundance what it needs to attain super health and fitness. That includes protein.

Give it the bare minimum and you'll achieve the bare minimum in return.

Protein has gotten such a bad rap from the mainstream press in the past few years that it's almost impossible to have an intelligent conversation about it. Environmental groups, animal rights activists, and various other non-fitness groups have been allowed to dominate the discussion because of their supposedly good intentions. The problem is that none of them are primarily concerned about the health and fitness of normal people let alone athletes and their domination of this topic has clouded the minds of too many people. Frankly speaking, their concerns have nothing to do with fitness and folks looking for fitness gains should seek elsewhere for quality information.

The amount of protein that a typical client we see at Formosa Fitness would need tends to be a shock. Across the board in the weightlifting community, 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight per day is highly recommended. Kettlebell training, especially the metabolically demanding type we practice, constitutes weight training and clients should eat protein to support the training. Otherwise, gains in the gym will taper off and the chance of injury will increase.

One gram per pound of body weight per day would equal 200 grams of protein intake per day in a 200lbs. man. A 150lbs. woman would need 150 grams per day. This is necessary everyday because you're either training that day in the gym or you're recovering from the day before and your protein needs are therefore going to remain high regardless. 

Weightlifters in the various communities will naturally debate the merits of research and some will recommend much more than this and some will recommend slightly less. This average emerged as athletes tried out the various recommendations and kept track of the results. Those results showed that one gram per pound meets most athletes needs.

Please keep in mind that these communities were solely interested in health and fitness. That was their primary concern and if you're looking to get fit, then the advice of those who are all about fitness should be very informative to you.

Environmental groups, animal rights activists, world health agencies, etc. all have their own agendas that might or might not be worth paying attention to, but one thing is for sure: fitness is NOT their primary concern. Most of the time their recommendations are based on minimal requirements just to stay alive, not to get fit and support athletic training! The amount of protein needed to keep a villager from dying of starvation is NOT the same amount of protein needed by someone trying to acheive optimal fitness.

If 1 gram per pound of body weight per day is the goal then what do we have to eat to attain that goal? Most of you would be shocked at how little protein is in the average diet. This chart from the USDA (PDF) is very useful. If you look at the amounts of protein in the various foods, you'll see that animal products like steak and cottage cheese are quite high in protein and other sources are not. But even a chicken drumstick comes in at only 13-14 grams of protein. If you're supposed to be eating 150 grams of protein based on our recommendation of one gram per pound, then how many drumsticks should you eat everyday? Eating TEN a day would still leave you short. Are you shocked yet?

Certain foods like steak and cottage cheese do score pretty highly and I highly recommend you make these higher protein foods a staple of your diet if you can. But from experience, I know that very few people are eating these every day. From talking with clients, I know that most folks are eating primarily carbohydrates, a couple of servings of greasy meats, and almost no fruits and vegetables. High quality protein sources for various reasons are NOT on the menu of most clients.

The reasons for this are many and are beyond this article unless I want to write 20 pages, and I don't. Suffice it to say that carbohydrates in the form of bread, pasta, rice, etc. have gotten a free pass in recent years and the fact that ALL carbohydrates are sugars is a fact that is simply not widely known. The typical diet is drowning in sugar and deficient in protein, which contains no sugar BTW.

So let's look at a typical client meal and let's just pick lunch as an example. We'll use the USDA chart and be as generous as we can.

Rice is major part of most local meals so we'll pick one whole cup of rice and we'll pick the highest quality protein rice they list (does your meal REALLY use the highest protein quality rice listed? Hmmm....) so that comes in at around 15 grams per cup.

Let's get totally crazy and say this meal contains a whole cup of cabbage, which is unlikely but we're being generous, so that comes in at around 1 gram per cup.

Let's continue to be generous and throw in one whole cup of broccoli at 2.5 grams per cup. We're up to 18.5 grams of protein.

Now let's add that drumstick in at 14 grams and we have a typical meal here in Taiwan. The grand total is a whopping 32.5 grams of protein and this is likely to be the highest protein meal people are getting each day!

If a client at 150lbs. ate five meals like that, then the protein would be adequate. But no one is doing that and if you did, the calories would kill you.The caloric density of non-lean protein sources is a whole other article. Lean protein sources are a must if your goal is fat loss. The difference in protein quality from the various sources is also a whole other article.

Breakfast tends to be even worse than the meal above since most people don't eat any significant source of protein for that meal. Not eating protein for breakfast leaves just TWO MEALS to get all your protein for the day.

Ask yourself honestly then: are you REALLY getting all the protein you need?

We have a great new protein flavor to tell you about: berries and whey. If you drink your protein powder with water, then this is the flavor for you! I usually don't like protein with water because the flavors aren't strong enough so i use milk instead. But the berries and whey is EXCELLENT in water. So for the ultra-l...ow carb folks who still want good taste, grab this on while you can. I have three canisters. Have a good weekend!

Here's your cheet sheet for Precision Nutrition. I suggest printing these out to keep in your wallet.

1. Eat every 2-3 hours, no matter what. You should eat between 5-8 meals per day.

2. Eat complete (containing all the essential amino acids), lean protein with each meal.

3. Eat fruits and/or vegetables with each food meal.

4. Ensure that your carbohydrate intake comes from fruits and vegetables. Exception: workout and post-workout drinks and meals.

5. Ensure that 25-35% of your energy intake comes from fat, with your fat intake split equally between saturates (e.g. animal fat), monounsaturates (e.g., olive oil), and polyunsaturates (e.g. flax oil, salmon oil).

6. Drink only non-calorie containing beverages, the best choices being water and green tea.

7. Eat mostly whole foods (except workout and post-workout drinks).

One of the biggest mistakes you can make regarding nutrition is to not start with a comprehensive plan. Many people read somewhere that fish oil is great so they think they should take it. And they hear about this famous book saying that all carbs are bad so they want to cut carbs. Then they watch a youtube video about how bad meat is or something like that and they try to change what they're eating now based on all this various advice they got from here and there.

The problem is this is a path to no where. It's a REACTIVE response to a bad nutritional situation. People get blown this way and that depending on what they read and hear and don't start with anything solid that will address most of the fundamental issues. A tried and tested plan is a ACTIVE approach because you put it in place and follow it. This allows you to tweak it later if something isn't working. When you're here, there, and everywhere with nutritional advice (and most everone is) then you're basically NO WHERE in terms of results. You'll never know what's working and what isn't.

The reason I stick with Precision Nutrition is that it's one of the best overall plans that people can actually live with and still get great results. There's also a huge community built around it for support. But if that doesn't appeal to you then find something that does and stick with it!

Over the past year and a half, I went from 25 to 14% body fat. It wasn't just training that got me there, it was paying attention to nutrition, too. Fixing my protein intake was a key to my progress. 

I found that many of the protein sources I was consuiming every day had high levels of fat. Fried chicken, pork chops, fatty meats, etc. were staples of my diet and although the protein count was good, the calories were really high. I needed the protein to support the heavy training I did but the excess calories hindered my progress.

I looked around for advice and many people suggested simply getting cleaner sources of protein, usually by cooking your own meat. But that only worked sometimes. I simply didn't have the time or means to cook all the time. Even when I did, I still wasn't sure how many calories I was getting in what I cooked.

Looking for a simpler solution, I bought some protein powder and used it as a meal replacement. By reading the label, I knew exactly how many calories and how much protein I was getting. If I wanted a light snack, I mixed the protein powder with water, thereby cutting the calories even further. If I wanted to use the protein as a meal or snack replacement, I mixed it with milk, fruit, cashew nuts, and/or oatmeal. Any combo of those ingredients produces an easy and yet nutritious meal replacement that's still fairly low in calories.

If you're looking to drop fat, a low-cal protein powder like Biochem whey protein makes a solid addition to your nutritional arsenal. If you need help on how to use it, feel free to contact me.

Biochem whey is 100% whey isolate, NOT the cheaper and poorer quality concentrate that is so commonly found. Isolate is a purer form of protein with as few carbs as possible, making it ideal for calorie conscious exercisers. Biochem is also different because it’s the only flavored protein I’ve found that uses NO artificial ingredients or sweeteners.  The list of ingredients is short and simple, the way it should be.

There’s no finer whey available and this is offered exclusively in Taiwan by us!

NT$1500 for 1.8lbs. (28 servings, enough for one month)

This is Biochem Whey Isolate Protein Vanilla flavor. I have one unopened can for sale at NT$1500. It goes to the first person that calls.

I'm experimenting with importing some of the few supplements I regularly take. Biochem protein powder is one of the absolute best you can buy and that's why I'm trying to get it here to Taiwan. It uses NO artificial flavors or sweeteners and is whey ISOLATE, not lower quality concentrate. Whey isolate is almost impossible to get in Taiwan. All I found was Now Foods Unflavored Whey Isolate.

I've tried a can of Biochem and found it one of the lighest proteins I've ever tried. The taste was great. It dissolves very easily and is great for cooking, too. Protein bars are easy with this protein.

So if you want one of the best protein powders you can get, then give me a shout today.

P.S. We now carry a full range of protein powders, including vegan. Call us today and get yours!

The American diet has gotten totally out of hand. Glad to hear Jamie telling it like it is. And again, notice that he doesn't have a six pack or 10% bodyfat. The diet changes he recommends won't have you consuming lettuce, crackers, and water all day. Good stuff.

This is going to be very interesting. I whole heartedly support his efforts. American nutrition is absolutely disgusting. There, I said it. And deep down, people know it's true. People know they aren't supposed to weigh 300lbs. and they know we aren't supposed to be feeding kids pizza for breakfast, as in the clip above.  Americans have to try harder and do better. As you can see from the "We don't want to eat lettuce all day" comment, Jamie has his work cut out for him. But we can't make a change unless we're honest that something is wrong. And it is.

The thing is, Jamie is proof of what he preaches. His recipes aren't exactly the most spartan you can get. He uses butter and everything else people want to eat. Example:

His main thing is getting people off processed crap food and getting them eating real, nutritious food. It will be interesting to see how his efforts pan out.

One of the things people think they need but really don't when discussing nutrition or shorter term dieting is variety. One of the most amazing things I discovered in the one nutrition course I took in university was how few foods I was eating. The teacher had us keep a food journal for one week (an extremely powerful exercise -- try it out) and we had to write down everything that went into our mouths over that time. I was shocked at how few foods I was eating and how many times a week I was eating certain foods.

Most of us don't have time to plan for a nearly endless variety of meals during the week. But as soon as people start thinking of changing their diet to reflect more nutritious choices, they ask for more variety.

Instead, focus on finding healthy foods that you WILL eat and make them staples of your diet.

The variety thing is more likely rebellion against poor food choices to begin with. The meals are bland because people think that's what they should eat. So they want variety to get away from that. It's the wrong focus.

Stick to choosing nutritious foods, especially "superfoods," that you find appealing and changing your eating habits for the better will be much easier.

A week ago, I took my little boy to a great local indpendent hamburger joint and had a cheeseburger, fries, and a root beer (that's hard to find in Taiwan). We thoroughly enjoyed it and I didn't feel an ounce of guilt.

One of the biggest misconceptions people have about nutrition is that if they start eating healthy, they can never again eat their favorite foods. Since they know they can never give it up completely, they feel they will fail so why even try. So then they say, "What the hell. Pass the bag of potato chips." That's not how it works.

You don't have to give any food up completely. It just isn't necessary. You simply have to stop abusing the priviledge of eating fast or heavy foods.

How to do that? Learn to eat according to a healthy nutrition plan like Precision Nutrition and stick to it 90% of the time. That means you can indulge somewhat for 10% of your meals each week.

But right here is where people run into trouble. They're usually glad to know they can indulge once in a while, but then they immediately rebel against the idea of eating healthy 90% of the time. If you eat healthy 90% of the time and you eat 5 small meals a day, that means you get to splurge for about four meals a week. Oh no, doesn't sound so fun now.

Two things:

One, unless someone learns to stop emotional eating, gain control of their life and eating habits, and learn to DELAY gratification, then they will NEVER get fit. NEVER.

Now this can be a process, it can take a long time, you can make small changes slowly as a kind of fitness and nutrition on-ramp, etc. But eventually someone is going to have to look at a bag of Doritoes and say "no." It's going to have to happen sometime. So expect it. The gain is delayed gratification in the form of weight loss and looking great. You trade that little pleasure of stuffing your face today for looking great naked later. There, I said it.

Second, you'd be surpsrised how good a well-prepared burger is when you don't eat them all the time. These foods become pleasure foods again, not staples, as they were intended to be. There's no way you should be eating at Burger King everyday if you're overweight. You probably don't even taste it any more if you it every day. Have it once a week at most and learn to savor it.

So remember, you don't have to give it up permanently. You just have to let it have it's proper place in your overall diet.

A poster on a local board asked for help. He/she apparently weighs 400lbs. Here is the advice I gave:

First of all, it likely took you a while to get to 400lbs. so it's going to take a while to get the weight off. Don't let "The Biggest Loser" fool you. You're likely talking in terms of years. So don't pressure yourself to change everything all at once. go slow.

Second, I'd recommend walking 30 minutes a day everyday. And do it. Don't fall into the "I don't have time" trap because everyone really does. Some people just don't want it badly enough.

Third, diet and nutrition is what gets everyone. People may exercise but few want to change what they eat. I'd recommend that you just take one step by not drinking anything but water. No sodas, no juice, no nothing but water. Keep your eating habits where they are for now.

Take one step into eating better and one into exercising and stick to it. Then go from there.

Finally, when you do slip up by not exercising one day or having one soda then don't beat yourself up and quit the program. It's very common for people to say, "I had one cookie, I ruined my diet and exercise program. Give me the bag." If you do that, there's no hope. Set your goal at 90% compliance and seriously aim for it. I allow myself two sodas a week. Bumps now and then won't sidetrack you.

Good luck.

One of the main things people need to do is stop drinking their calories. Drink nothing but water and this one change alone will make a big difference over time. Sodas, milk tea, and juice have a whole heck of a lot more calories than people think they do. Do some Googling if you're not sure.

Drinking 350 calories a day will equal one pound of bodyweight (3500 calories) in 10 days. Most drink a heck of a lot more than that. If people cut that out, drank nothing but water, and made no other changes, they could cut a pound of weight in just over a week. What would they look like in a year?

Follow through is naturally the catch.

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