35. Dietary Flow Chart: Increasing Protein Intake and Changing Habits

The third stage involves increasing protein intake during the weight loss period.

Objective 1: Gradually increase the number of large circles and gradually decrease the number of large hearts throughout the day.

Goal 2: To fill in more than 10 large circles and more than 10 small circles within a week.

Objective 3: Ensure the snack record column is blank and the "X" disappears.

The goal this week is to take it a step further in the second week.

How many of the seven items from last week can you do? Try reducing the number of times you do items 1-3 in Phase Two from half to zero. Of course, the key is still to check your meals according to the nutritional components represented by each symbol to see if you are eating a balanced and healthy diet.

Common knowledge

People who snack on cakes, cookies, or other treats while bored or watching TV should definitely change this habit. This is because insulin secretion peaks after a meal, and eating at this time causes insulin to promote the absorption of nutrients as body fat. Also, avoid snacking on an empty stomach before meals, late at night, or before bed, as easily digestible sugars are most readily absorbed by the body at these times.

Although it's best to avoid eating between meals, if you absolutely must eat something, you can have some low-calorie food between lunch and dinner.

The fourth stage is to make recording a pleasurable habit.

Goal 1: Eat three meals a day, breakfast, lunch and dinner normally.

Goal 2: Absolutely adhere to maintaining free time between meals throughout the three meals a day.

Goal 3: Avoid eating late at night.

This week's goal is to gradually get used to keeping a record.

Have you mastered the mindset of eating less fried food, more protein-rich vegetables, and smaller portions of rice? Have you gotten into the habit of not snacking during the day?

"It was really tough!" "I felt so restless and irritable on an empty stomach!"

If this happens, try to come up with some enjoyable ways to eat. For example, if you usually eat out, why not try cooking a delicious and varied meal to treat yourself? If you usually eat at home, why not go out and indulge yourself? As long as you understand the techniques and methods of eating well, it's okay to occasionally splurge on your meals. The essence of the cocktail diet is to maintain a good figure without forcing yourself. Looking at this week's three goals, actually, doing these three things isn't difficult at all!

Common knowledge

Nighttime is often a precious time for both working professionals and homemakers to "catch their breath." To eliminate the fatigue of the day and build up energy for the next day, it's easy to end up like this: wanting only a beer but unknowingly having a second; wanting only a bite of snack but finishing a whole bag. How you spend the hours before bed is crucial. I'm sure you often find yourself munching on snacks while watching TV. How can you completely resist the urge to snack at night? The best way is to keep your hands busy as much as possible. Activities like crafting or surfing the internet are very effective at preventing snacking.

Phase 5: Integrate weight loss with your lifestyle.

Goal 1: Go out more than twice a day.

Goal 2: When you are able to walk, make the most of every opportunity to walk.

Goal 3: Take a bath instead of a shower.

Goal 4: Adhere to a regular lifestyle.

This week's goal is to "continue at this pace" and try to integrate exercise naturally into my life with the most relaxed mindset, such as going out more often and arranging my life more leisurely in a planned way, so that I can lose weight happily while also happily mopping the floor.

It's been a while since I started keeping a diary. Some of you might be saying, "I haven't even lost a single kilogram!" If that's the case, you'll definitely feel indignant. But please consider the process and time it took you to gain weight. It's unrealistic to expect fat accumulated and stored in your body over a long period to disappear in a short time. I believe everyone agrees that we won't waste most of our energy worrying about regaining weight in pursuit of "quick weight loss." This time, we're determined to lose weight once and for all.

A housewife, after consistently changing her eating habits and alternating her exercise routine weekly, didn't lose a single kilogram. However, one day she started losing 1 kilogram instead of 0.5 kilograms, and then her weight inexplicably continued to decrease. Perhaps her basal metabolic rate increased during this period. She wasn't particularly overweight, yet she lost 2 or 3 kilograms in 1-2 weeks. Therefore, patience is crucial to seeing the effects of a "lean physique."

Common knowledge

While it sounds simple, in reality, various circumstances often make it impossible to adhere to these principles. However, during the first month, it's crucial to follow the basic principles despite obstacles. If you know beforehand that the principles will be broken, adjust them afterward by increasing protein intake, exercising more during free time, and so on. Also, when you're truly exhausted and want to give up, try to focus your attention on things other than eating.

In addition, working with close friends, colleagues, family members, or even spouses might make you feel more motivated than working alone.

"I ate too much again and gained another kilogram!"

Sigh! If you have time to feel down, why not take out your diary and check which type of food you've been missing lately? Then eat more of that type of food, and your mood will improve again.

Nutrition Tips

B vitamins play a significant role in the metabolism of carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. Including them as a side dish can help prevent fat accumulation. If you're cooking for yourself, you might want to try incorporating them into your diet. The point is, if you're eating a main meal and want to enhance the metabolism of sugars to prevent them from remaining in your body, eat more foods rich in vitamin B₁, such as pork and seaweed; if your meal is high in fat, eat more black fungus and nori.

◎Vitamin B₁: Pork, wheat germ, eel, seaweed. Its function is to metabolize sugars and carbohydrates. It should be noted that it is difficult to be absorbed through alcohol.

◎Vitamin B₂: Liver, seaweed, soybeans, eggs, and black fungus; its function is to metabolize fat.

Some questions about food flow meters

1. What is the difference between a food intake flow chart and a regular calorie control chart?

Simply controlling calories is often just a temporary solution. First, it may not be effective for most East Asians who are prone to starch-related obesity. Second, many people eat only low-calorie foods for a long time in order to reduce calories, which is not humane and difficult to maintain. In addition, the calorie threshold is relatively high for the average person, because many people give up just by understanding what calories are.

The cocktail diet flow chart is designed to be very user-friendly. It has no learning curve and anyone can follow it. Its categories are easy for anyone with even a basic understanding of nutrition to grasp quickly. Most importantly, it allows you to easily and quickly check if your diet is balanced. When combined with daily weight tracking and localized volume change charts, it can also reveal some of the reasons for your weight gain, making it easier to make effective dietary improvements instead of blindly and painfully dieting.

2. How should I record whether I ate two bowls of rice or just one bite in a meal? Also, how should I record meals that are mixed together, such as one meatball and one bowl of fried rice noodles?

The food intake chart is for comparison with yourself, not others. If your usual portion size is one bowl, but you ate two bowls in one meal, then mark two large hearts. If you only ate a bite to taste, you don't need to record it on the chart (only record everything in detail for the first 3 days to identify the source of weight gain). Recording is a pleasant activity; don't be too stressed. As long as you grasp the main points, it's easy to record.

The most common problem for those who frequently eat out is food categorization. There's no single right answer; it depends on how each food is prepared and how you consume it. For example, meatballs can generally be categorized into two types: large round and large heart-shaped (left side). This is because they usually contain a lot of meat, and the outer layer is fried starch. Small amounts of bamboo shoots, cilantro, etc., are negligible. Similarly, for stir-fried rice noodles, if there's very little meat and vegetables, it can be ignored. If you eat a small amount, you can record it as a large heart-shaped (left side) once; if the amount of rice noodles is large, more than a regular bowl of rice, then record it twice. And so on.

3. I'm very concerned about my current weight and really want to lose weight quickly. How should I distribute my weight according to my body shape to make it easier to lose weight?

The secret to healthy weight loss is to eat more small round vegetables and fruits, in unlimited quantities. The ratio of the other three categories is as follows:

Large heart-shaped (carbohydrate): small heart-shaped (protein): large round (fat) ratio = 1:2:1. After losing weight, you can refer to the following ratio:

Large heart-shaped (carbohydrate): small heart-shaped (protein): large round (fat) = 2:3:5.

4. To which category should beverages be classified?

If it's fresh juice, put it in the small round box. Other packaged drinks, such as cola and packaged juice, don't need to be categorized. Just write them in the snack section or in each meal. But basically, these are foods that should be avoided during weight loss. It's best to mark them with an "X" when you check each day to remind yourself to stay away from them.