Weight Loss: Grow Your Own Health And Nutrition In Your Backyard

By Author: Bruce Tucker
Total Articles: 174
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We all at some point would like to drop a few of those extra pounds we put on, whether it was from mom's thanksgiving dinner, or an extra piece of that birthday cake, over time they all add up around the waist line.

Lucky for all of us we have the power to do something about it. No it doesn't mean that you will spend countless hours in the gym training as if you were getting ready for the Olympics, it means we can implement a healthy eating plan today and start losing weight right away. The best part is you can grow some of these foods right in your backyard which saves you some money too!

If you want to lose weight, you need to eat right, drink plenty of water and do some physical activity. In this article I am going to focus in on the eating right portion.

For optimal weight loss you need to eat small well balanced meals throughout the day. In other words you should consume one meal every two and a half to three hours everyday. Each meal should consist of equal portions of proteins, carbohydrates and green vegetables grown from your own garden.

You might be wondering just how much a portion ...
... size is because even too much of any of those can be more than enough right? Well, yes and no. You should limit yourself to a portion size, more on that in a moment, for your proteins and carbohydrates, however for your green vegetables you can consume as much as you want.

Instead of using a scale or counting calories a good way to remember a portion size is to make a fist. Your clenched fist should be the size of a portion that you are going to consume. This is also the same amount of green vegetables that you should at least eat, although as mentioned earlier you can eat more of them.

The reason why you can eat more green vegetables than proteins or carbohydrates is that they are very low in calories and high in minerals in nutrients your body needs, as well as they can fill you up. So if you ever find yourself hungry, reach for a nice big tossed salad of greens.

I mentioned earlier how you can grow your own nutrition. What I mean is all of the green vegetables that you can consume, broccoli, asparagus, spinach, lettuce and others, can all be grown right in your backyard. By growing your own vegetables, not only will you be growing the food that will help you lose weight, but the amount of money you will save by eliminated that cost from your weekly shopping trip will add up quickly.

To maximize your weight loss, remember to eat frequently throughout the day, six smaller equally portioned meals. Eat one meal every two and half to three hours each day. Make sure each meal has one portion of healthy proteins (chicken breast, lean meat, fish, egg substitutes), one portion of healthy carbohydrates (multi grain breads and cereals, brown rice, potatoes), and at least one portion of green vegetables grown from the garden in your backyard. Follow these simple tips and you can lose 5 to 10 pounds in no time.

Just remember to obtain a complete physical from your primary care physician prior to starting any type of physical fitness program or nutrition eating plan.
About the Author
Bruce is the co-author of the book Vegetable Gardening for the Average Person. It is a practical easy to follow book that teaches gardeners everything from composting techniques, aeration and frost conditions, to choosing the right tools and picking the right seeds. To learn more about Mr. Tucker you can visit: AveragePersonGardening.com.