Glutton Free Lunch

Continuing the theme of what my "glutton free" diet consists of, I present to you: The Glutton Free Lunch.

That's it... a single 200-300 calorie pre-packaged meal, Sriracha hot sauce, and water. For several years now, Lean Cuisine's have been a part of my lunch -- I find them to be both healthy and flavorful. They provide a good mix of protein, vegetables, and carbohydrates. If you don't want to do store-bought meals, you could always portion out your own left-overs in a similar fashion -- but be sure you know approximately how many calories you are eating. By the time I finish my lunch, I am typically at 500-550 calories for the day.

That holds me over until around 3:00 when I have a small, high-protein snack. If I get hungry in between, I just drink more water... that usually helps get rid of the growlish feeling in my stomach. It's easy to get psyched out and say, "I have to eat more than that for lunch", but that's where willpower comes in -- if you allow that voice to win, you will never be successful at trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Now, as I have stated in other posts, there is no cookie-cutter approach to the glutton free way, so there is some flexibility on when you eat the majority of your calories. If it's easier for you to control your dinner calories than your lunch calories, then by all means, eat a bigger lunch. But if your friend calls and wants to go out for dinner, just keep that big lunch in mind when making choices at the restaurant. Or if you come home and find that your spouse has made your favorite spaghetti recipe, you will need to have some self control (even more than if you had eaten a smaller lunch).

Stay tuned for the next episode: Afternoon Snack

Glutton Free Breakfast

Since the Glutton Free way is really about eating a balanced, managed-calorie diet, what each meal consists of is really up to the individual -- as long as it fits within the overall goal. Some will need a larger breakfast and smaller meals later in the day, while others won't need much at the start of the day. I am one of those that doesn't need much to start the day...

This is what my typical breakfast consists of:

One 16 oz. cup of French-press coffee, with raw sugar and half-and-half, and a 120 calorie breakfast bar (full of complex carbs, protein, and fiber). On a typical day, that is all I need. On days when I know I will be running an hour or two later, I need extra protein, and will skip the granola bar and go with a sausage & egg biscuit and some fruit -- or scrambled eggs, turkey bacon, and fruit. Gone are the days when I can chow down on a stack of pancakes or waffles topped with maple syrup -- too many calories, and too many simple carbs.

On weekdays, I eat my breakfast before 6:30, so by 10:30-11:00 I am ready to eat lunch -- then a snack at 3:00 PM, and that leaves me with 1100 to 1200 calories available for dinner. But I won't get into those meals with this post... they will have to wait until next week.