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Your probably not going to like the first step. I want you to go to through your pantry and fridge and look for any food items that contain any of the following ingredients: Hydrogenated Oil, Partially Hydrogenated Oil, Margarine, or Shortening. Now throw them into a garbage bag. If you are not willing to do this please stop reading and give up now.

Any food with trans-fats in it is garbage for your body and therefore needs to be thrown into a garbage bag (yes all of the above are trans-fats, despite what your bag of Doritos promises). We are not interested in digesting calories we cannot burn. You can have a metabolism gifted by the Gods of Athens themselves, but if you eat a fat your body cannot use as energy it does not do you any good! While your at it, ditch any processed foods that are high in fat. They only serve to make the process of losing weight more difficult. Oh and one more you should really consider junking is anything with high amounts of processed sugar in it as this only serves to make your fat -and- diabetic. When your done with that come back here and lets look at your new, healthier and surprisingly cheaper grocery list.

Now that you have thrown out all the crap from your pantry, its time to go grocery shopping. You need to look at food in three main categories: Proteins, Carbs and Leafy Greens. If you want to get technical we can break it down further but that just over complicates everything.

Below I am going to compile a generic grocery list of common foods I used in my diet. Primarily the consist of lean meats and low fat dairy as protein sources, fruits and vegetables and a small amount of starches from high fiber grain products. Most of my fat intake comes from my meats, dairies and grains. My list below is also meant to be cost effective so some foods like fresh fish and boneless/skinless chicken breast tend to be too expensive to be a common item.

Protein Sources – Canned White Albacore Tuna (rarely Light Tuna), Eggs, Egg Whites (Carton),  Cottage Cheese, Yogurt, Lean Beef/Ground Beef, Boneless/Skinless Chicken Thighs, Canned Kidney/Pinto/Lentil/Black Beans, Tofu.

Carb Sources (starch/breads) – Whole Grain Pitas,Whole Grain Tortilla’s, Wasa Crackers, Potatoes, Sweet Potatoes, Rice (I am partial to White Short Grain myself, though you should be getting brown), All-Bran cereal (for snacking — A way better choice then chips/candy/etc), Oatmeal (Quick Oats/Oat Bran).

Carb Sources (vegetables/fruits) - Carrots, Broccoli, Bananas, Grapefruits, Apples, Oranges, Celery, Peaches, Kiwi.

Leafy Greens – Spinach, Coleslaw style salad mix.

Other - Fat free Salad dressing, Mustard, Soy sauce, Fat free mayo, Raw sugar, 2% Milk (for my coffees), Coffee, Tea (Oolong is my all time favorite), Club Soda, Cooking Spray, Avacado (makes a great dip when mixed with Soy Sauce), Flax Oil/Ground Flax Seed

Obviously your tastes will be different then mine, so some of those foods may not work for you. Whatever you put on your list try to stick to the standards above – Lean Meats, Low Fat Dairy, Fruits, Vegetables, Minimal breads/Starches, and lots of leafy greens.

Did you notice what foods I did not include in my list? Oils and butter, jams or spreads, juice or soda, snacks in general. I never cook with oils of any sort – A single spoonful of “light” butter has over 100 calories which is an absolute waste in respect to your daily intake of calories. You could have eaten an entire banana or even 85 grams of Chicken breast instead. That butter will not make you fuller and will not give you near the nutrients your other options would. As for jams and spreads, I rarely eat toast and if I do I usually just sprinkle cinnamon on it, or use mustard for dipping (I love mustard). Drinking your calories is also a waste when trying to lose weight and juice is no exception. Sure it has -some- nutrients (if your not drinking powdered/concentrate), but not like the actual fruit itself would have.

Once you build a good grocery list, time to go shopping. Once you come back with your new food items lets move on to the next step: Meal Plans.