I'm a type 1 diabetic but I'm in pretty good shape so perhaps I can share some of what I've learned from my dieticians.
- Protein slows down metabolism, so try to get a little bit of protein with each meal.
- What keeps you full is fibre, fibre can't be digested by the human body but it takes a lot of work to extract what can be processed from the fibre. BTW, when you read nutritional labels in North America fibre will be listed and counted under carbs but should be subtracted since it goes straight through, in other parts of the world the fibre is not counted in the carbs.
- You can pretty much eat as much salad/broccoli/cauliflower/celery as you want, bell peppers/carrots/cucumbers have a bit more calories but you can still eat them liberally.
- Get plenty of protein to build muscles, low fat dairy products, chicken, turkey, fish are all excellent sources.
- Your body will burn about 1500-2000 calories per day without exercise, with the recommended 45-60 minutes of cardio per day it's usually closer to 2500-3000. Most of this will be from fats/oils or carbohydrates but there is one twist, your brain burns about 500 calories per day and this needs to be in the form of carbs.
- The body can convert protein to fat and fat to glucose (carbs) but this process is very ineffective and lossy, this is the reason the ketogenic diet works, you basically force the body to create glucose from fat/protein which burns a lot of energy, if I remember correctly the conversion is at a ratio between 1/4 and 1/10 depending on exact details.
So what should you eat to build muscle and burn fat, well green salads, try to aim for about 150 calories from the greens and then add another 100-150 to spice things up with feta, chicken, parmesan, sundried tomatoes, tuna, sesame seeds, nuts, seeds, olives or what ever else you crave that day.
The general rule for carbs is between 45 and 60 grams per meal depending on size and metabolism, now compare this to a small order of McDonalds fries which contain 120 grams of carbs and you'll see why it's important to stay away from fast food, one serving of fast food per day will ruin any diet. Also be sure you read the label on your dressing, I've seen dressings where a single tablespoon of the dressing had more calories than my entire salad.
For snacks try carrots, pickles, olives, dried seaweed (nori),sugarfree jello or even turkey/chicken bites/nibblers but remember that moderation is key.
Try to get 45-60 minutes of exercise per day, if you are out of shape start by walking, try to use those big muscles in your legs to burn and then step up your game as you get into better shape.
