How to get an A in dieting

I’ve never excelled in academics.

My high school report card is living proof that I always got a C in most of my subjects.

It continued some more when I got into university. Our grading system was a lot more different but I always settled for the passing mark… which back then was a C.

After 3 or so years in university, I suddenly got tired of it. I suddenly hated my life.

So I said to myself…

I want a B-.

Just kidding! Of course I want an A! But it has to start somewhere, right?

Have you ever met someone who’s dead on on their diet? 100%? I think that’s insane. Even bodybuilders can’t go a hundred percent. That’s why they have cheat days to give them “psychological” relief from dieting. It’s too overwhelming! So I’ve devised a way on how to look at it. Just to be able to give everyone here a different perspective so they can finally start that impending diet plan.

Just think of your diet as a percentage based grading scale. Yep. Just like the one you had in school. Look below.

Letter Grade Equivalence	Equivalence
A	92% – 100%
B+	87% – 91%
B	83% – 86%
C+	79% – 82%
C	75% – 78%
D	70% – 74%
F	below 70%

Some questions you have to ask yourself before you start: How many times do you eat in a day? Is it 3? 6? For the purpose of discussion, let’s keep it at 6.

So if you’re having 6 meals a day, multiplied by 7 days… that’s 42 meals a week.

Out of your 42 meals, you think you can reduce the serving portion for 2 meals a day? Say instead of having 2 cups of rice, make it one cup.

14 meals with less rice. That leaves you with 28 “normal” meals.

Tweaking 14 out of 42 meals is 33% of your whole week! Not too bad, right? But it’s still not a passing mark.

You need to at least make it D or C-.

Just a little more effort.

So I advise you now to write down how many meals you have in one week. Is it 21 meals (3x/day) or 28 (4x/day)? Does it fluctuate? By looking at it, try to find which meals you can adjust the serving portion or add more protein to.

Do it on a weekly basis and assess yourself at the end of the month. I’m sure it’s gonna help you be on track. The better grade you get, it’s gonna translate into results.

Don’t try to cheat by justifying that you’ve always been an A student so you should rate an A in dieting. The more honest you are in assessing your diet, the more success you can achieve. This can also help tweak the kinds of food you have regularly.

So, what’s your grade? Don’t be ashamed. I’m not perfect either. But I try to be in the B range at least. I am no bodybuilder and fitness model but I would like to set a good example because I do this for a living.

Were you an A student? Doesn’t count anymore because school’s over. Ready to hurdle your diet exam? I got a B+ this week!

Don’t feel bad. If it’s any consolation, I’ve always been a C student.

Sweet Potatoes

                                                                                          Photograph: Simon Smith/Getty Images/Dorling Kindersley

My Mom used to force me to eat sweet potatoes when I was a kid.

I hated it.

Why? Because she never told me why I should eat it.

She told me what carrots can do — good eyesight.

Corn — energy. That’s why boxers eat them all the time.

But not sweet potatoes.

“Just eat them, son”, she said.

Well, they said Mothers know best. So below are the reasons why WE SHOULD EAT ALL OUR SWEET POTATOES.

1. Its’s a great source of nutrients.

One baked sweet potato (3 1/2 ounce serving) provides over 8,800 IU of vitamin A or about twice the recommended daily allowance, yet it contains only 141 calories making it valuable for the weight watcher.

This nutritious vegetable provides 42% of the recommended daily allowance (RDA) for vitamin C, 6% of the RDA for calcium, 10% of the RDA for iron and 8% of the RDA for thiamine for healthy adults.

2. It’s very high in fiber.

Sweet potatoes have a very high fiber content that can also help prevent constipation, hemorrhoids, high cholesterol, high blood sugar, obesity colon cancer and heart disease.

3. It has a low G.I. rating.

G.I. stands for glycemic index. The glycemic index is a ranking of foods from 0 to 100 that tells us whether a food will raise blood sugar levels dramatically, moderately or just a little time. Sweet potato rates 54 on the glycemic index. This means it’s great for diabetics who want to control their blood sugar levels and healthy people because it reduces the secretion of insulin over the course of the day. It is also highly beneficial for athletes because it gives them a slow release of fuel for the exercising muscles extending endurance.

4. It’s very economical.

Sweet potatoes are very affordable and can be bought almost anywhere. Your local farmer’s market, the grocery… heck, even in some convenience stores!

It took me awhile (only around 15 years) to get back into the habit of having sweet potatoes and that was because I wanted to look good at the beach. And my sweet potato diet worked!

From then on, I’ve always included sweet potatoes in my diet. I’ve never looked back since.

Thanks to you, Mama.