Hulkster

this is something i always refer too as far as diet is concerned


The A-Food, B-Food Lecture:

How to Get Good Grades on Your Food Choices
This very minute as you read this, old cells in your body are dying and new
ones are replacing them at a rate of about 50,000 cells per second. The raw material
for new cell construction comes directly from the foods you eat. You are literally what
you eat. The condition of your body today is the result of the sum total of all the food
choices you’ve made in the past. The condition of your body in the future will be the
sum total of all the food choices you make today. Most people take their food choices
very lightly, not realizing that everything they eat has an impact on their physical
condition. Even worse, some people give no thought at all to what they eat every day
– they choose anything without giving any consideration to the long term
consequences.
Choose low grade foods and you’ll have a low grade body. Choose high grade
foods and you’ll get leaner, stronger, healthier, more muscular and more energetic.
The problem is, how do you know what to choose? Which foods get good grades and
which foods get bad grades? When you walk down a supermarket aisle or look at a
restaurant menu, you’re faced with a dizzying array of choices. Label claims like “low
cholesterol,” “low fat”, “30% less fat,” “all natural,” and “100% organic” grab your
attention and seem to scream, “pick me!” But how do you really know what’s a good
choice and what’s a bad choice? Worry no more, because I’ve created a one of a kind
rating system you can use to “grade” your food choices. First, you figure out what kind
of “grades” you’ve getting now, then you start working on improving your grades.
This rating system is set up in a scale like grades, because food choices don’t
simply fall neatly into two categories; “pass” or “fail.” Rather, food quality can range
from very poor, to poor, to fair, to good to excellent. It’s a scale or a spectrum – the
same way temperature and color are spectrums. At what temperature does hot
become cold? At what volume level does loud become quiet? Where does black
become white? Black and white are simply two ends of a spectrum. It’s the same with
food choices. Food quality can range from highly processed with zero nutritional value
on the low end (an “F”) to all natural with high nutritional value on the high end (an
“A+”).
Here's an example: an apple is an A-grade food. An apple is a raw food found in
its natural state, un-tampered with by man. Now, what about unsweetened
applesauce? It too is nothing but pureed apples, but still, it’s not in its MOST natural state, so now it’s a "B" (still a good "grade," mind you). Turn it into apple juice and
you're down to a "C" (still a passing grade). Then if you add sugar (sweetened
applesauce or apple drink), now you're down to a "D". Finally, if the apples eventually
become an apple pie, now you're down to an "F".
You could take nearly every food type through this type of scale to “grade” it.
Your task is simple: look for places in your diet where you can improve your
grades…then improve them. If you have straight A’s already, the chances are
extremely good that you’re in great health and in excellent shape.
Ask The Million Dollar Question
"A” foods are those that are NOT man made and are NOT processed or refined.
How do you know if a food is in its “natural state” or not? Simple, you ask the “million
dollar question”: “Did this food come out of the ground or off the tree this way?" If
the answer is yes, then it’s all-natural and it’s an A grade food.
"A" foods should make up the majority of your calories, but if you only ate A
grade foods and nothing else, this means your diet would be somewhat restricted and
limited (an A grade diet is a strict diet). It might also make it difficult to gain weight,
because many A foods lack the caloric density required to stay in caloric surplus.
That’s why it's ok to use “B" foods like pasta or whole wheat bread sometimes -
especially on a muscle size-gaining program.
A Simple and Easy Way to Improve Your Food Grades
Before we move on to the actual grading system, here’s an easy way to quickly
and easily improve your food grades: Shop in a health food store, natural foods
market, or a gourmet supermarket. Not only will this improve your grades almost
automatically, but you’ll also find a much greater variety than you would in a regular
supermarket. For example, you’ll find shelf after shelf of whole grain, natural cereals.
In a regular supermarket, there are only a few brands that fit the bill. Shredded wheat
is one. Look at the ingredient list: 100% whole wheat. PERIOD. Nothing else! Pretty
bland, but this is type of food gets a high grade. You can always slice up strawberries
or bananas on top of the cereal to sweeten it.
A+ Foods
An A+ is the highest grade a food can receive, and it’s not easy to earn. To
qualify as an A+ food, the food must not only be natural, but also extremely nutrient
dense. These top-of-the line “super-foods” are packed with vitamins, minerals,
antioxidants, carotenoids, phytochemicals, essential fatty acids, fiber and other
healthy stuff that’s extremely good for you. For examples, red peppers are the only food with an entire days worth of
vitamin C. Tomatoes contain cancer-fighting lycopene. Spinach is rich in calcium and
vitamin D. Orange veggies like carrots, sweet potatoes, and butternut squash are
packed with carotenoids. Asparagus is loaded with vitamin K. Deep leafy greens like
spinach are nutritional powerhouses with ample quantities of Vitamin K, carotenoids,
calcium, iron. Potassium and vitamin C. Did I mention brussel sprouts and broccoli?
These are winners too.
There’s only a small handful of starchy carbs in the A+ category, including
yams (sweet potatoes), black eye peas, lentils, beans (navy, pinto, kidney, garbanzo),
barley and old-fashioned unsweetened oatmeal. These are the starches that are 100%
natural, eaten almost exactly the way they come out of the ground. They are also
either low on the glycemic index or they have a nice balance between carbohydrate
and protein, which causes them to be released slowly into the bloodstream as glucose.
Even on competition diets, these are the carbs of choice for physique athletes.
Most nutrition experts would put a lot of fruit on the “A” list; especially nutrient
dense fruits like blueberries, strawberries, etc. However, coming from a physiqueenhancing
and body composition improving standpoint, fruit “only” gets an A-grade in
my book because fruits are simple carbohydrates. Fibrous carbohydrates such as
green vegetables get the highest grade possible not only because of their nutritional
value, but also because of their effect on helping reduce body fat via low calorie
density.
A+ carbohydrates
Spinach
Kale
Broccoli
Brussel sprouts
Asparagus
Collard greens
Red peppers
Tomatoes
Yams & Sweet potatoes
Barley
Oatmeal (Old fashioned unsweetened)
Beans
Black eye peas
Slow cooked, brown rice (long grain/basmati)
Lentils
A+ proteins
Salmon, Rainbow trout, herring
A+ fats
Flaxseed oil
Udo’s Choice essential oil blend
Fish Fat (salmon, trout, herring, sardines)
A Foods
An A is the second highest grade a food can receive. To receive an A grade, a
food must be 100% natural (not refined or processed in any way), and it must be fairly
high in nutrient density, while low in calorie density. Like the A+ foods, A foods are
also high in nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, carotenoids,
phytochemicals, essential fatty acids and fiber. The A grade starchy carbohydrates like
yams are staples for energy in hard training athletes, bodybuilders and fitness buffs.
A-grade proteins are the LEAN, complete proteins (those containing all the essential
amino acids). A-grade fats are those high in omega-3’s and other healthy essential
fatty acids. An A is a great grade. Eat mostly A-grade foods and you’ll get great
results.
A grade carbohydrates
White potatoes
red potatoes
Carrots
Quick brown rice
Quick oatmeal (unsweetened)
All fresh fruits (not including canned, sweetened, or juice)
A grade proteins
Chicken breast
Turkey breast
Fish
Shellfish
Egg whites
Non fat cottage cheese
Top round steak, eye or round
Whey protein
B Foods
A “B” is a good grade. Not the best grade, but a “good” grade nonetheless.
Physique athletes (bodybuilders and fitness competitors) often drop out B grade foods
prior to competitions, opting for 100% A-grade choices. This makes the diet much
more restrictive.
There are many good B grade foods that you can and should eat regularly.
Whole wheat bread is one example. The only reason whole wheat bread doesn’t get an
A is because it is processed. Although it may be whole grain, a loaf of bread doesn’t
grow on a tree does it? It’s unsweetened (except for a tiny amount of corn syrup) but
it is slightly processed. An all natural food is one which you eat in the same form that
it came from the ground or off the tree/plant.
Carbohydrates
100% whole grain, unsweetened boxed cereals
100% whole grain pastas (amaranth, spelt, quinoa, wheat, etc)
100% whole grain breads (100% whole wheat, rye, spelt, etc)
100% whole grain cooked cereals
Whole wheat pitas
whole grain, unsweetened muffins
Grits
cream of rice
white rice
B grade Proteins & dairy products
Flank steak
Extra lean top sirloin
Low fat sliced turkey breast
Low fat sliced chicken breast
Non fat sour cream
Non fat cheese
Non fat cream cheese
1% low fat cottage cheese
B-grade Fats
Olive oil
Canola oil
Natural peanut butter
Nuts & seeds
C Foods
A “C” is an average grade; not poor, not failing, but not good either. If most of your diet consists of “C” grade foods, your results will be average…not poor…not absent….but not good either. Breakfasts cereals like Cheerios are C list foods. Cheerios only get a C because even though they’re made from whole grain oats, they’re sweetened with white sugar. If you go to a health food store you can often find generic brand Cheerios (usually called “oat o’s or “Oat circles” or something like that).
This would bump the grade up to a B. Any cereal that’s sweetened with refined sugar automatically gets bumped down to a C. If the cereal is mostly sugar it gets a D or an F. C-grade carbohydrates are those which are processed or sweetened slightly, but still made from a whole grain. C-grade carbohydrates also include those that are very calorie dense, like fruit juice. Fruit juice is a fairly healthy food, but it’s also very calorie dense, which is not good when your goal is calorie control for a fat reducing diet. C food proteins are those which are moderate in fat and or processed or cured with flavor enhancers, sodium additives and/or preservatives.
C-grade carbohydrates
Pasta made from enriched flour (durum semolina)
bagels
Cheerios
Sweetened and /or flavored oatmeal
Kellogs raisin Bran
Total cereal
Enriched wheat bread
Unsweetened fruit juice
Sweetened low fat yogurt
C-grade proteins
Sliced low fat ham
Low fat sausage
Regular ground beef
Chicken thighs
Turkey, dark meat
Turkey, ostrich, emu -jerky
Low fat (2%) cream cheese
Low fat (2%) cottage cheese
Low fat (2%) sour cream
D Foods
A “D” is a poor grade, no doubt about it. If you’re eating a lot of D-grade foods, your results will be poor for sure. D grade foods are also bad for your health. D foods are those that are high in refined sugars or made primarily from bleached white flour.
D-grade foods also include proteins that are high in total fat and or saturated fat and
proteins that are highly processed and refined.
D-grade carbohydrates
Sweetened boxed breakfast cereals with no whole grains
Bleached, enriched white bread (i.e., “wonder bread”) or white bread products
Crackers, muffins and baked goods made with white flour and hydrogenated oils
D-grade proteins
Regular ground beef
Moderate fat cuts of red meat
Roast Beef
Ham
D-grade fats
Sour cream
Cream cheese
Cottage cheese (regular, whole-fat)
F Foods
F foods are the foods you should almost never eat. And if you do ever eat
them, it should be a rare occasion indeed. These are the foods that not only spell disaster for your physique; they’re also horrible for your health. F-grade foods include the following categories: 1) foods containing trans fats, 2) foods high in saturated fats, 3) Highly processed or refined foods, 4) highly sweetened foods or foods that are pure sugar, 5) foods that are high in refined sugars and fats, 6) processed, high fat meats.
Foods high in saturated fats & trans fats
Palm oil
Palm kernel oil
Coconut oil
Hydrogenated oils
Anything deep-fried
Dairy products made from whole milk
High fat cuts of red meat such as porterhouse and prime rib Foods made mostly of white sugar or other refined carbohydrates (corn syrup, etc)
Candy
Sweets
Chocolate
Cookies
Soda (coke, pepsi, etc)
Sugar Sweetened beverages
Baked goods high in fats and sugars
Pies
Doughnuts
Croissants
Éclairs
Cinnabons
Cakes
Pastries
Foods high in refined carbohydrates and saturated fat
Doughnuts
Fettuccine Alfredo
Potato chips
Hot Dogs on white bun
Fast food hamburgers on white buns (even worse with cheese, bacon)
Sweetened peanut butter (“skippy, etc)
Processed, high fat meats
Hot dogs
Beef jerky
Salami
Ham
Sausage
Bacon
Your Score?
So how did you do? Did you pass? Did you get straight A’s? Did you flunk?
Don’t worry, if your “grades” weren’t so good, it doesn’t matter. What’s in the past is done. What matters now is that you look ahead and make a concerted effort to improve your grades. Don’t feel like you must get straight A’s starting today. In fact, if you get mostly A’s & B’s, you’ll get fantastic results. Just do your absolute best to improve your grades by improving your choices, starting with your very next meal. Remember – everything you eat helps or hurts; moves you forward or backward. From a cellular and physiological standpoint, there’s no such thing as standing still or “maintenance.” One of the few things in life you can always be certain of is change. Make sure your body is changing for the better.