Getting lean and muscular is not always fun, but it can at least be simple. Just follow these 4 eating tips to get lean and ripped!
Tip #1. Drink Water When You’re Hungry
When you first get hungry, drink some water. It’s as simple as that. Most of the time when you get a little hungry, you’re actually getting thirsty. Those sensations are so similar that most people get them confused. I can’t always tell which is which. So, I just drink some water. Then I know that I either was thirsty or that I’m actually hungry.
Tip #2. Eat Calorie Dispersed Foods
A calorie-dispersed food is my name for any food that has a lot of fiber, water, or other bulk to it but without a lot of calories. These foods will make you feel full without actually consuming very many calories.
Salads, tomatoes, asparagus, celery, and mangoes are all foods that fall into this category. They provide you with a lot of bulk to chew without a whole ton of calories. With these fruits and vegetables you will feel full faster, without actually eating all that much in caloric terms.
Tip #3. Eat More Protein and Fats
Tasty foods like steak, fried eggs, omelets, pork chops, veal and roast duck can help you get lean. All of these foods are great diet foods to get lean and they taste great too!
Foods that are high in protein and fat serve several purposes. First, you feel more satiated quicker when you consume protein and fat. This will make you naturally eat less.
It also takes a lot of energy for your body to break down and use meat for fuel. This is called having a high “thermic effect” which means your body spends a lot of energy and releases a lot of heat to break the food down.
So, from eating protein you get less energy to work with than you would with carbohydrates. This in turn, means less energy that can be converted into fat.
And, if you’re eating healthy to get lean you’re probably also working out. At least, I hope you are working out because that will have a big bearing on how muscular you look after you’ve dropped a lot of fat.
If you’re working out, you want lots of protein that your body can use to easily rebuild your muscles. Keep those muscles strong, so they’ll be useful (and beautiful) once you’ve burned off the fat to draw attention to them.
Tip #4. Control Your Portion Sizes
You probably tend to eat until you are “done”. Meaning, until you have finished the food on your plate. This might come from your mother telling you to finish your food when you were young, or just the habit of eating all you have taken. Whatever the reason, choose smaller portion sizes and/or eat on small plates. Or, if someone gives you a heaping mound of food to eat, just don’t finish all of it.
Seriously, everybody (myself included) tends to eat until the food is gone, unless you’re stuffed to the point of bursting. It’s easy to control your portion sizes when you make your own meals, but try to do it when you eat out as well. This is a simple and easy way to get in the habit of eating less and getting lean.
And Now…
Put these lean eating tips to use. They are simple and really effective, but they only work if you make the effort.
