Many nutrition philosophies tend to go all or nothing and vilify certain foods. It’s a mistake. Low carb says all carbs are bad. Low fat says all fat is bad. Many diet people say pizza or a cheese burger is the Devil. I don’t believe any particular food is bad in and of itself. Many of those same foods are however evil when prepared commercially.
Pizza in its original form was whole wheat flour bread with natural cheese, tomatoes, herbs and maybe a vegetable or meat. That is healthy. Pizza Hut is not and what they make chemically isn’t even in the same universe.
A hamburger in its original form should be a good cooked natural beef, whole wheat bread with possibly real farmer’s cheese (not that slice of preformed sheet cheese in a plastic wrapper), vegetables or condiments. It can be healthy. What McDonald’s sells should be outlawed. It’s not even close and it’s not really even still a viable food let alone healthy.
Getting the point? Even sweets which I occasionally eat can be healthy. Heather (my wife –you should know that by now), makes a sweet potato pie which is completely natural and is my favorite. I’ll fight you over this pie… seriously, step away.
Right now you’re probably saying, “What?! Blasphemy! Well maybe he means that occasional slice of pie isn’t going to kill you.”
Wrong. I mean this pie is literally good for you. It has a homemade whole wheat crust, simple ingredients of sweet potatoes, eggs, tupelo honey, lemon juice, spices and milk. That’s it. No chemicals, only slightly different than if you baked a sweet potato and put butter on it.
See where I’m going? Its how the food is grown, prepared and processed that determines whether its healthy or not. The specific food itself isn’t evil. In fact most things that are food from nature are actually good for you. For example olive oil, made from olives – good for you. Canola oil – Well you ever seen a canola? No, of course not, there isn’t such a thing and it is not a real food.
Now to answer a bit more specifically on the question that started all this rambling. How much would be in a typical day’s food for me?
The first meal might be two servings of oatmeal with half a cup of blueberries or a banana (1 cup of oats/2 cups of water), or a large bowl of ambrosia (southern fruit salad with oranges as the base). If I’m really hungry add two to three eggs and a piece of whole wheat toast or a homemade whole wheat biscuit and of course coffee.
The second meal might be a 6-16 ounces of beef, 2 medium potatoes, and 3 cups of broccoli/mixed vegetables, etc. Maybe some whole wheat biscuits or possible one my wife’s desserts. That’s just an example with typical portions to give you an idea. I generally drink at least three liters of diluted un-sweet decaffeinated green tea or water a day. Significantly more with a hard workout or a workout in intense heat. Sometimes a multi-vitamin or energy (Emergen-C) packet. If the workout is very long or I got really crazy sweating sometimes an electrolyte drink, occasionally homemade by adding honey to that green tea.
How does that compare to when I was 375lbs? Well at that time 6-8 eggs would have been normal for breakfast along with bread or grits, potatoes or mean, etc. Dinner would have been about double what it is now and I was nowhere near as strict about “food in its natural state.” I don’t think I’ve lost my muscle from changing/cutting back, just lots of fat.
Stay tuned for more diet and nutrition info in the near future.
God bless,
Bud Jeffries
4 Comments
Bud,
I could not have said it better myself. I tell the same thing to my friends and peers after they ask me what I eat. Once I say I eat hamburgers, pizza, steaks, and of course..fruits and vegetables–they simply brush me off. “It’s impossible to lose weight while you’re eating pizza and hamburgers.” Like you said, as long as it is naturally made–none of that commercial crap, it is indeed healthy for you. As i stated before, I lost 115 pounds as well. Eat when you’re hungry, don’t stuff yourself, dedicate yourself to some hard physical work and you’re set. Maybe that’s over-simplified, but it’s true. I absolutely second everything Bud Jefferies say about nutrition.
*I absolutely second everything Buf Jeffries said about nutrition. Heed his advice, my friends.
“Canola oil – Well you ever seen a canola? No, of course not, there isn’t such a thing and it is not a real food. ”
good one, Bud.
i have a question. in your second meal you list 6 to 16 ounces of beef?!?
isnt that too little protein/fat for someone of your stature..
im guessing you let hunger dictate portion size but still
in a much earlier post you mentioned having a big appetite, so
pls shed some light on this [;
Hi Bud,
there is certainly no Canola plant. Canola is an abbreviation and means Can(adian) O(il) L(ow) A(cid). It is actually rape seed oil, which was bred to reduce certain toxic fatty acids like erucic acid and glucosinolates. Furthermore some of the newer forms are even higher in alpha-linolenic acid than olive oil. Many of our nowadays crops are bred from wild forms, so what is wrong with that?
Apart from that, very interesting article, thanks for this undogmatic approach!
I am reading your website in South Australia and it has become my favourite on strength and conditioning.
Cheers
Reinhard