The 21 Day Blast Plan: Lose weight, lose inches, gain strength and reboot your body. Annie Deadman

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СКАЧАТЬ in the body (stuff that happens without us noticing)

       • In muscle contraction (you’re going to need to do a bit of that)

       • In the manufacture of hormones, which send messages around the body

       • To make haemoglobin, which carries oxygen around the body

       • The repair and strengthening of bones, hair and nails

      Protein is made up of building blocks called amino acids, of which there are twenty different types. Twelve of them can be made in the body but the other eight must come from our food. Meat, fish and eggs are known as ‘complete proteins’ because they provide all twenty of the amino acids.

      Nodded off yet?

      The eight amino acids that we must get from our food are known as ‘essential amino acids’. It’s an odd term since they are no less important than the other twelve. They are – brace yourself – leucine, lysine, isoleucine, phenylalanine, methionine, tryptophan, threonine and valine.

      The best sources of these eight essential amino acids are animal products. However, if you’re a vegetarian who eats eggs and dairy, then you will manage to obtain all of them. If you’re vegan and opting for a more plant-based way of eating, then you should focus on foods that contain high levels of lysine. That’s because foods that contain even very small amounts of lysine will also contain substantial amounts of the other essential amino acids, so you will be sure to get enough of the whole package. Examples of lysine-rich foods are tofu and tempeh (also a soya product but more flavourful than tofu). Pistachio nuts, black beans, quinoa, soya milk and pumpkin seeds are also good sources.

      Protein repairs our muscle tissue. During the 21 Day Blast plan you will be doing some exercise, and during that exercise your muscles will be challenged and placed under stress, but in a good way. Ensuring that you have enough protein in your meals will help the muscles repair, recover and keep them strong and firm. This also means that the body’s systems are more likely to use your body fat for fuel rather than to start breaking down this muscle. Holding on to our muscle is vital for successful fat loss and I will be droning on about this in Chapter 9. To aid protein awareness, so to speak, I’ve added the grams of protein per portion to each recipe in Chapter 8.

      Now, on to fat. That’s dietary fat, not the stuff round our middle.

      FAT

      Fat is absolutely essential in your diet. Don’t let any book, newspaper, magazine, bloke down the pub fob you off with some story about fat being fattening. Yes, it’s high in calories (9 calories per gram, compared to protein and carbohydrates, which are both 4 calories) and that’s probably where the reputation has come from. So you only need a little dose to give your health and weight-loss processes a massive leg-up.

      So why is fat important?

       • It is vital in the production of those hormones

       • It provides you with energy

       • Fat makes your food taste delicious

       • Every cell in the body has a layer of fat, so fat is essential to keep these cells healthy

       • Fat cushions and protects your organs and nerves

       • It is a powerful aid in the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E and K . . . that’s eyesight, bones, skin, immune system and heart-disease prevention, in a nutshell)

      This next bit is worth learning off by heart – and reciting to anyone who will listen . . .

      Back in the day, fat was hailed as a major contributor towards heart disease, strokes and a challenge to good health. We were sucked in and we believed it. This led to a whopping rise . . . and rise . . . of the ‘LOW FAT’ label.

      The fat was taken out of food products and sugar was added in its place. This meant it was cheap and its shelf life was long.

      ‘Yesssss . . .’ thought the food manufacturers, thumping the boardroom table. ‘Result!’

      Alas, it was us, the consumer, who lost out. The added sugar made them moreish. Too moreish. Addictive even. If you dump this book and read no further, make a promise to yourself that you’ll scrutinise a few labels on your next food-shopping trip. You’ll see what I mean.

      Nearly done with fat. We just need to gen up on the different types. Couple of matchsticks for your eyelids for this next bit.

       • Saturated fats (meat, eggs, dairy, coconut oil): Saturated fat’s previous bad reputation for being a main player in the causes of heart disease, strokes and other inflammatory conditions has eased. It’s a natural product and has a rightful place in our diet.

       • Unsaturated fats: These can be categorised into monounsaturated (avocados, nuts, seeds, some oils, like rapeseed, groundnut and olive oil) and polyunsaturated (vegetable oils and oily fish), which comes in two forms, omega-6 and omega-3. Omega-3 can’t be made by the body, so that means we need to make sure we eat it. Oily fish such as salmon and mackerel are great sources, but if they turn your stomach then a variety of nuts and seeds will make sure you are filling that fat gap.

       • Transfats: Sometimes known as hydrogenated fats, or trans-fatty acids, these fats started out life as polyunsaturated liquid fats and have been chemically processed with the addition of hydrogen. Shall I repeat those words?

      Chemically processed.

      This makes them into hydrogenated fats and their molecules change shape. They have morphed into something unrecognisable.

      Despite this, food manufacturers love them and they make regular appearances in processed fast foods, such as biscuits, cakes, pies and pizza.

      Transfats have no known nutritional benefits and research shows that they increase blood cholesterol levels (the bad stuff) and the risk of heart disease.

      On Blast we don’t cut out food groups. But for this little mini sub-group, we do. Transfats are not on the Blast menu.

      ‘Oh Lord. You’re going to say the words “clean eating” aren’t you?’

      No, as it happens I’m not. But I AM going to say this. I promised I would show you how to lose body fat and a way of eating that will soothe your insides and highlight any intolerances that may have been preventing you from losing fat in the past. This means the food you will be eating will cause the minimum of disruption to your digestive system. I’m not an advocate of the ‘if you can’t pick it or kill then don’t eat it’ rule, but I absolutely am all for fuelling our bodies with good, delicious unprocessed fare that is easy to cook, delicious to eat and will put a spring in your step.

      The 21 Day Blast plan will trim and shape. It will empower the faint-hearted, firm the slack, reignite the flagging and make you strut your stuff like a goddess.

      I am NOT, repeat NOT, going to make you become a slave to kale.

      ALCOHOL

      Yes, it’s a food group. And, yes, we feel warm, fluffy and invincible when we’ve filled our boots with fizz. Sadly, it does nothing to help us СКАЧАТЬ