This is a question I’m sure many of you are wondering, should you diet or exercise? It all depends though, really, it is not a simple question to answer. 

We start off with the simple idea of how your weight works. Calories. Your weight multiplied by 12 is how many calories you take in an average day. A 150lb person takes in a total of around 1800 calories a day. If you want to lose weight, you have to start making sure that your calories are less than 1800 a day. If you want to gain weight, you have to make sure you are taking in more than 1800 a day. The question now remains, do you diet or exercise?

One of exercising’s main benefits is the increased metabolism rate. After an intense weight-lifting session, you increase your metabolism both in the long term and short term, whereas with cardio you only do for the short term, and you do not at all by dieting. Working out will also make your weight loss look good, you won’t look skinny, you will look slim and toned. A mixture of cardio and weights will tone your body and you will look great. The downside to exercising though, is that it gets in the way of dieting. You may reward yourself with a hamburger thinking “I’ll just work it off later with an extra 20 minutes”. It’s easy to consume all the calories you burned off in a matter of minutes.

You could just focus on dieting, and you will end up losing weight eventually. There are advantages to this, you may find you have more time to spare, you may have more energy, and you will save money on gym membership/equipment. You also force yourself to eat healthier, which is great in lowering cholestoral and preventing many diseases and complications. Eating healthy is very important! The downside, however, you will not build any strength and you will have to maintain your diet forever to stay at the weight you wish.

At the end of the day, I know you may not want to hear this answer, but it really is a combination of both that helps you lose weight. If I honestly had to choose one though, it would be dieting. At least in dieting, you may not look as great, but here and there you will work your muscles, and at least you do not eat junk food that will haunt you in the future!

I’m sure you’ve heard it all. That dairy is bad for you, that wine is good for your heart, that carrots are actually orange zucchinis (actually, I just made that one up) but what is actually true and what is not? Some diet myths have been better for us, and some have been a waste of time. Let me break it down for you:

Never Have a Late Dinner

Wrong! I actually grew up eating late dinners, and I’m fine! In the myth’s defense, I’ve also always been a night bird, and I can count all the times I slept before 11pm on one hand. It is bad to eat then fall asleep, or even lie down right after, but if you sleep at 3AM and eat dinner at midnight, don’t feel bad about it. Calories don’t have a clock, they will hit you no matter what, but staying awake after you eat helps your body digest the food and calories.

Skipping Meals Make You Lose Weight

This is not true either. By skipping meals, you’re just making yourself hungrier. Your body will then tell itself to digest slowly, and pack the food into your fat cells because you’re eating less food, and this will cause you to actually either gain weight or stay the same in the long run. The healthy alternative to skipping meals is to eat a big breakfast, and then eat frequently throughout the day but in small increments. So have oatmeal, with fruits and a tall glass of juice for the morning, have healthy-snack bars every 2 hours, have a sandwich for lunch, another healthy snack every 2 hours, and a small dinner, with a couple of healthy snacks until 2 hours before you sleep. That will help you lose weight. Remember to eat healthy though!

Low-Fat Food Is Good For You

This whole idea of “low-fat” is great in theory, but often bad in practice. Fat is necessary for your body to function. Without fat, you would tired very often and get sick easily. Just like anything else in your body, too much is never good, so too much fat is bad. Also, low-fat versions of food are often packed with alternatives like sugar which do not effect you immediately, but do in the long run!

There you have it, three myths which you do not have to believe any longer! So feel free and eat when you want to, just eat healthily, don’t worry about buying low-fat versions of food, but only in moderation, and eat after 7PM, don’t be shy!

Fruits and vegetables are very important in your diet. If you do not eat many fruits and vegetables right now, you’re going to have to get used to the fact that your workout plan is almost guarenteed to be doomed without them. Get used to eating fruits and vegetables, and I don’t mean 5 fruit juice boxes and a couple of Caesars a day, I mean, some solid fruits and vegetables!

Fruits and vegetables fill you up when you are hungry. Instead of munching on potato chips, you can munch on an orange and it’ll be much healthier! Here are some easy ways to put fruits and vegetables into your daily diet:

• Sliced Fruits For Breakfast – You could have some low-fat yogourt with sliced fruit, or maybe oatmeal with peaches, or cereal with strawberries. Incorporating sliced fruits into your breakfast is a great start for your day!
• Snack On Vegetables - Carrots and dip have been around for decades, and they are just as delicious today as they were when they began. Buy some low-fat dip, or make some if you wish, and slice some carrots, celery, broccoli, etc. and snack on it while watching TV or on the computer.
• Steam Vegetables For Dinner - There was a good month where all I would have for dinner was either fish or chicken breast, and steamed vegetables with rice. It was great, until I got bored of it, and it kept me in shape! Steamed vegetables with a bit of low-fat margarine and just a dash of salt is great, and filling too!
• Drink Smoothies - Yum… Milk, ice, fruits, blender. Such a simple recipe for a great drink. Smoothies are easy to make, taste amazing, and good for you all at once!

Fruits and vegetables should be a part of your daily diet. If you’re craving sugar, eat some fruits, if you’re not, eat some vegetables.

It seems like unhealthy food has so many immediate advantages such as lower price and better taste. When I started working out, I was in college, and it was difficult to buy all the expensive healthy foods that were required to stay in shape. I was living off of noodles and Twinkies, just because they were cheaper and easier for me to get a hold of. It then hit me that it was really detrimental to my progress of getting into shape, so I came up with a plan to diet on a budget.

Shop Bulk Bins:

Bulk bins are generally cheap and rich in quantity. Nuts are a great way of getting protein, and you can stock up on countless nuts for a low price just by stopping by the bulk bin aisle in the grocery store. You’ll also find other snacks that are delicious and healthy, like dried fruits. Make sure you also stock up on rice, which should become a staple with your daily meals, and pasta. 

Cook the Food Yourself:

Although Jared’s Subway diet may seem convenient, you could easily save countless dollars just making the food yourself. Rather than buying pre-made supplements, shakes and meals, you could just make them yourself. Look up recipes on the internet, you can find tons of recipes and save over half the price just by making food yourself. Why pay for the branded packaging?

Make Sure You Have Peanut Butter:

Peanut butter makes every better. You can put it on your bread, on a bagel, on a muffin, anything! It’s delicious, cheap and CONVENIENT! Peanut butter is also good for you, with all the protein and healthy fat it has, it’s great for you to have on hand!

There’s other things you can do to save money, for instance, eat your egg yolks, don’t waste food, eat more fruits and vegetables. Shop around when you look for food, and be smart with your money. You don’t have to be rich to be healthy!