Hidden Secrets –– Healthy Fats

Eating to build lean muscle and burn body fat really isn’t a mystery. In fact, it’s really pretty 101 when you think about it. All human beings are made up of cells and all cells need some fundamental and essential molecules. Every human being needs the oxygen molecule. The next most important molecule is water. No oxygen… no water no life, right?

In past posts I also talked about protein, carbohydrates, vitamins & minerals. We want to make sure that every meal has Water, Protein, Carb’s and Fat in the cleanest and most natural and raw state possible.

So let’s take a closer look at healthy sources of dietary fats. In the past fats got a bad rap. The conclusion was wrongly made that dietary fat equals body fat. Whoa… not so fast. Let’s take a closer look.

The truth is that low fat eating is counterproductive to both fat burning and muscle building. Look at 4 things that occur with low fat eating:

High in Sugar: Low fat diets and diet foods are almost always higher in sugar: and refined carbohydrates such as breads, pasta and refined sugars. Read the food labels of so called “low fat” or “fat free” foods and you’ll find they are usually higher in sugar.

Appetite and Cravings: Keeping healthy fats in your diet keeps you satiated and feeling full whereas when you keep your fats too low, you’ll find yourself having more cravings and feeling hungrier.

Low Fat Causes Increased Body Fat: When you limit healthy fats the body fights back with a fight or flight response. It perceives danger or an emergency to it and holds onto fat as a survival response. Remember the most primal source of motivation a human being has is survival so a threat to survival will be fought by the body’s instinctive forces.

Testosterone: Everyone knows testosterone is king when it comes to building muscle. It also has a profound affect on burning fat. There’s a ton of scientific evidence now that healthy fats can and do promote testosterone production as well as several other health building effects.

The goal is to get your fats from plant and fish sources, which provide Omega 3 and Omega 6. We all need the 2 essential fats Omega-3 and Omega-6 with Omega-3 being the most important.

Salmon
Cod
Tilapia
Raw Peanuts (and peanut butter)
Raw Almonds (and Almond butter)
Avocado
Flaxseed oil
Udo’s oils
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Fish Oil (I personally recommend a lemon or orange flavored fish oil taken with a spoon as opposed to a capsule because it produces no after-taste or burping. I find that taking my oils in capsule form is unpleasant)

The recommended portion sizes of these healthy fat sources is one tablespoon at each meal or in the case of nuts or avocado a portion the size of your thumb.

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