The U.S. is a country of excess. We have the biggest, best, baddest and worst of everything. Take Jay Cutler for instance. He has won the Mr. Olympia title four times and he is huge!
There’s also another kind of huge America.
Of course, we could debate how healthy it is to be a bodybuilder. My point really was to demonstrate that there are some big guys, and girls, in the U.S. today. Obviously, it takes much more effort to to turn your body into a bodybuilding world champion than it does to become obese.
The problem facing Americans today is that there are so many bad food choices that are available for cheap. On top of this, we’re told that food that is bad for us, junk food, foods with high fat content and processed foods, are not all that bad and that we can eat them in moderation.
We would never suggest that an alcoholic should drink a little bit of beer. Nor would we suggest that a lung cancer patient would be okay smoking 5 cigarettes a day. So why do we insist on telling people who are obese that it is okay to eat a [McDonalds/candy bar/piece of cake/steak]? The thing is, the reason that there are so many fat Americans is because, in general, we are making poor dietary choices.
On the West coast, we have great weather and great beaches. So we have every opportunity to get outside, enjoy the fresh air and get active. This is important if we want to get into and stay in shape. The other factor that is vital for our success is thinking about what we are putting into our mouths each day.
Forget all about calorie restriction. If you want to lose weight, what you have to do is fuel your body with the right foods. What we’re talking about here are fruits and vegetables – LOTS of them. A piece of fruit between meals is a start. But really, this is just scratching the surface. What I am getting at, is eating so much fruit at meal times that it becomes our meal.
Have you ever tried eating 10 bananas? Do you think it’s healthy? Too right it is healthy. In fact, 10 medium sized bananas is about 1,000 calories. This might sound a lot, but it is 1,000 good calories. Compared to a Big Mac at 540 calories, the banana meal is going to fill you up for longer and energize you for much longer. Of course, there is way less fat in the bananas. And bananas taste great too!
There’s another great option for getting fruits and vegetables at meal times. Instead of eating them, you could drink them. There are two options, juicing and blending. Juicing is the process of separating the liquid in fruits and vegetables from the fiber (pulp). Blending on the other hand is simply the process of liquidising some fruits and vegetables in a blender. Learn about how to choose a juicer so that you pick the right sort of appliance for your needs. There are all kinds of different juicers and blenders on sale right now.
Reference: Find out more about Obesity and Overweight Americans here.