Food list

Believe it or not. What you eat doesn’t matter very much for fat loss. But it does for health, especially long-term. There are two major factors you need to take into account when eating for health:

• Eating wholefoods

• Eating fruits and vegetables

• Having a wide variety of foods.

Despite the fact that you can eat anything, most clients find it helpful to have a list of foods they can eat. I will provide 3 different food lists with different levels of complexity and categorization.

Level 1 - Basic

Protein: Lean meat, Dairy

Carbs: Whole grains, Fruit, Vegetables

Healthy Fats: Nuts and seeds, eggs, oils

If you're just starting out, this is a great way to conceptualize your diet.

Level 2 - Intermediate

Here is the second list, which also has some group categories, but it aims to be more extensive. This is a great framework for health, since it includes all the most important food groups.

Lean meat: Fish, Seafood, Lean cuts of Poultry/Beef/Pork

Fish: Try to consume fatty fish at least 2 times per week, as omega-3 is very beneficial. The best sources are fish low in mercury and high in omega-3. The best sources are sardines, herring, anchovy, mackerel, trout, salmon, redfish and crab.

Vegetables: Tomatoes, Peppers, Asparagus, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Celery, Zucchini

Dark leafy vegetables: Kale, Spinach, Broccoli, Collard Greens

Fruit: Bananas, Apples, Oranges, Kiwi, Peach, Watermelon, Strawberries

Whole grains: Oats, Quinoa, Wild rice, Brown rice, Whole grain pasta, Whole-grain bread

Dairy: Yoghurt, Milk, Cheese, Cottage Cheese (low-fat options preferred)

Nuts and seeds: Almonds, Cashews, Pecans, Walnuts, Chia seeds, Flax seeds, Pumpkin seeds, Nut butters.

Legumes: Beans, Lentils, Chickpeas, Green beans, Peas

Other fats: Eggs, Olive oil, Canola oil, Coconut oil

Level 3 - Advanced

This is categorized by macronutrients and then further by specific food groups.

Protein:

Lean meat: Beef, Chicken, Lamb, Pork (lean cuts), Turkey

Fatty meat: Bacon, Beef, Pork

Lean fish: Halibut, Sea Bass, Swordfish, Tilapia, Trout, Tuna

Fatty fish: Anchovies, Hering, Mackerel, Salmon, Sardines

Seafood: Clams, Crab, Mussels, Octopus, Scallops, Shrimp

Protein powders: Casein, Pea/Rice protein, Soy protein, Whey

Meat substitutes: Seitan, Tofu, Tempeh.

Protein + Carbs/Fat:

Dairy: Greek yogurt, Icelandic yogurt (Skyr), Cheddar cheese, Cottage cheese, Feta cheese, Gouda cheese, Mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, Skim milk, 1% milk, 2% milk, Whole milk, Kefir

Legumes: Black beans, Chickpeas, Edamame, Green peas, Kidney beans, Lentils, Red beans

Others: Eggs, Soy milk.

Carbs:

Grains (whole-grain preferred): Bread, Breakfast cereals, Corn, Couscous, Farro, Granola, Oats, Pasta, Quinoa, Brown rice, White rice

Fruit: Apples, Apricot, Bananas, Cherries, Grapefruit, Grapes, Kiwi, Mango, Melon, Oranges, Peach, Pear, Pineapple, Plum, Strawberries, Watermelon

Berries: Blackberries, Blueberries, Cranberries, Goji berries, Raspberries

Root Vegetables: Beets, Carrots, Onions, Potatoes, Radish, Sweet potatoes, Turnip, Yams Dark

Leafy Vegetables: Arugula, Bok Choy, Broccoli, Cabbage, Collard greens, Kale, Spinach, Swiss Chard, Turnip Greens

Vegetables: Artichoke, Asparagus, Brussell sprouts, Celery, Cauliflower, Cucumber, Eggplant, Lettuce, Leek, Mushrooms, Onions, Peppers, Squash, Tomatoes, Zucchini

Fat:

Nuts: Almonds, Avocados, Brazil nuts, Cashews, Hazelnuts, Macadamia nuts, Peanuts, Pecans, Pine nuts, Pistachios, Walnuts

Seeds: Chia, Flaxseed, Hemp seeds, Poppy seeds, Pumpkin seeds, Sesame seeds, Sunflower seeds

Butters: Almond butter, Butter, Cashew butter, Peanut butter, Pistachio butter

Oils: Avocado oil, Canola oil, Coconut oil, Grapeseed oil, Olive oil (EVOO), Sesame oil, Sunflower oil.

This totals roughly 100 foods, so you have plenty of variety as long as you are creative and not too picky. You don’t have to eat the same meals over and over. Although in the beginning, it helps if you simplify it, you can increase the complexity as you gain experience.