Christian Healthcare Ministries: Health Coaching for Weight-loss

The best diet is the one you can follow.

I’m serious though, a variety of diets work, people won’t follow them if they don’t. The key is to find the diet that works for you. If you are obese, inactive, and at risk for injuries when doing strenuous activities like squats and push ups, then a ketogenic diet will be a good start.

As you don’t need EXTRA carbs…

If you’re an athlete who wants to get stronger, lean out, and all that, then go Paleolithic Bro. Carbohydrates are the primary fuel source of the body. If you are active your muscle cells will store excess carbs as glycogen. Pasta makes you run fastaPasta is not paleo though…Italian???

That’s why I advocate intuitive eating.

It feels like every few years a new diet craze is born. When I started my bodybuilding journey I used IIFYM (If it fits your macros) to get leaner, but as my journey with Jesus started I learned to listen to wise “Words” guiding my decisions. “You’ve had enough.”

Stop eating when you’re 80% full.

The reason there are so many diets to choose from is because all of them have 1 big thing in common, they all restrict calories in one way or another. Whether it’s by cutting out entire food groups, fasting, or by keeping a watchful eye on calories or macronutrients (IIFYM). It’s simple.

We have to eat less and move more.

Paleo For Fatloss

Active individuals should have a healthy metabolism, and following a balanced diet (like Paleo) will provide you with all the energy you need to perform well. However, if your goal is purely based on aesthetics, then I highly recommend IIFYM with weekly refeeds (carb re-loading).

The numbers do matter.

It’s complex to provide a cookie cutter diet. Your lifestyle, body composition, and what you wish to achieve have an impact on your metabolic demands. If you under-eat, you won’t thrive. And even if you eat healthy, without the numbers you won’t be able to fine tune yourself.

Biohacking is brilliant!

People are using the literature, the science, and everything obsessed people seek to know to optimize their health. Biohacking is a synonymous with Silicone Valley entrepreneurs who want to maximize their brains capacity to think clearly. Change your chemistry!

Can you follow the diet?

If you’ve been eating bagels, croissants, and muffins, and you’re fat and inactive, then TODAY is the day to say “GOODBYE!” Throw it in the trash can. Simple carbs will have to go. There is no alternative to colorful vegetables, salads, and fruits. It’s that simple.

Foods to avoid on the Paleo Diet:

  • Dairy products: milk, cheese, and yogurt
  • Cereals, grains, wheat, rice, and barley
  • Legumes, beans, peanuts, and peas
  • Starchy vegetables such as potatoes
  • Sweets, including all forms of candy
  • Sugary soft drinks and fruit juices
  • Processed and cured meats
  • Highly processed foods

The reason dairy is off-limits, is that in some individuals it can cause inflammation. Does your sinus get blocked after eating ice cream? Might be a clue. Cursed Cured meats like polony is also bad news.

Paleo Diet Advice

Ketogenesis

Foods that will put you in a state of ketosis the fastest will be animal meats like beef, lamb, fish and poultry. You will be limited in the area of plant produce on the keto diet. Therefore this option is not for converted vegans, neither for anyone with Familial Hypocholesteremia (FH). Consult your GP and double check.

The ketogenic diet is very easy to follow, but without guidance you can fall into the trap of demonizing certain food groups. No food group is inherently bad for you. It’s a matter of context and portion size. Once you know how to obey that little voice of wisdom telling you to “put the cookie down“, you will see changes.

It’s best to transition into a ketogenic diet with small changes. I recommend starting your day with a keto-friendly breakfast. This can be eggs, bacon, avocado, and cheese. The key is to sustain your energy levels without disrupting your stable blood sugar levels. That’s how you enter and stay in the fat burning zone.

In most cases there is no need to go full keto. You can probably get away with having carbs like pasta for dinner if you steer clear of binge eating and you were relatively active (10k steps per day). Jesus broke bread with His disciples, and He referred to Himself as the bread of life. There is nothing wrong with a fresh warm loaf.

keto versus paleo diet

Experimenting with different diets is the only way we can discover what works best for us.

The keto versus paleo diet debate has been going on for quite some time, but it’s a matter of context. The truth is obesity puts you at risk of type 2 diabetes. Your body become insulin resistant. It’s a warning sign.

Strict Diet

You will stop eating the previous night at 21:00. It takes 3 – 4 hours for insulin to drop, and for growth hormone to elevate. You will then fast until brunch (11 – 1pm). You can drink water.

BREAKFAST (11:00)

Start your day with the best free range eggs you can afford. The yolks are rich in vitamins and minerals for optimal brain function. Add bacon if you feel like pigging out. No carbs though! Start with 4 – 5 eggs, and decrease them by 1 for every 10 – 20lb that you lose. Don’t cut food too soon!

LUNCH (15:30)

Despite what you might be craving, choose to have a grilled chicken salad with avocado, feta, and dark leafy vegetables like spinach. Pop-Eye knows how to flex the B-Vitamins, Amino’s, Iron, folate, and fats. Choosing to have a salad over a sandwich will keep your blood sugar levels stable and energy high.

PRE-WORKOUT (17:00)

Ripe Banana. They are high in potassium and magnesium, both vital for muscle contractions. You can also add a whey protein shake if you want to get faster results. However, supplements are not mandatory for bodybuilding. If we can eat enough (arbitrary) from natural sources, then we don’t need supplements.

DINNER (19:30)

Dinner time is the place where we want to feel the love of a family. Those who eat alone will likely eat more. Go back home and eat at a table with people you love. It will enrich your entire experience of life. Red meat is very good for testosterone production. Colorful veggies also help with things like eye sight, and that’s important. You need to know where you are going.

BEFORE BED (21:00)

If you have a sweet tooth like me you can get away with something like frozen yogurt, low cal ice-cream, sliced banana on rice cakes with maple syrup, or even a 36g Top Deck Cadbury Chocolate. But please take note. If you eat more calories than you used you will not lose weight. It’s as simple as that. Clean is lean.

Final Thoughts

The keto diet is not a long term solution for weight-loss, and you should consider re-introducing carbs to restore muscle glycogen and to boost feel good hormone levels. If you don’t enjoy your lifestyle and diet, then you likely won’t stay consistent with it. Personally I’m in good shape without going full keto.

When following a keto diet for weight-loss you will want to avoid sugar (carbs) for 2 – 3 days straight to tap into ketosis, but it’s really not necessary to go to the extreme if you want to lose weight. The key to losing weight is simply to be in a caloric deficit consistently while you boost your metabolic rate with activities.

The reason strength training is so effective at increasing metabolism is because damaged muscle fibers must be repaired, and the body will use additional resources to do the repair work, and if there is enough protein, it might even add a few extra building blocks to ensure the muscles don’t break down so easily.

This is how we get stronger. We break them down again… Eat. Sleep. Recover. Repeat.

3 Bible Verses For Dieting

“Nothing that enters a man from the outside can defile him; but the things that come out of a man, these are what defile him.” – Mark 7:15

“For one person has faith to eat all things, while another, who is weak, eats only vegetables.” – Romans 14:2

“Every man should eat and drink and find satisfaction in all his labor—this is the gift of God. – Ecclesiastes 3:13

Please take note I am not a registered dietician. I’m a fitness professional with years of experience, and my observations have pushed me to seek good solutions. We should make an effort to return to God’s Original Design and avoid genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Why? Well, tampering with the genetics is kind of like saying “We can do a better job than God.” Things will go wrong later on. It’s called Epigenetics.

Coach Jan

(CEO of GeneCare Life)

Bodybuilding for Christ

Your Health, God’s Way