The most common question I get asked as a weight loss Physician is “Which diet is best?

Atkins, Keto, Weight Watchers, South Beach, Whole 30, Vegan, Beach Body, Paleo, Mediterranean, Blood type diet…you get the point, there are many options!

The best and only diet I recommend is the Common Sense Diet. If you were presented with two dinners and asked to pick the health conscious option; dinner 1 : roasted salmon with grilled asparagus and sweet potato mash vs. dinner 2: macaroni and cheese with fried chicken tenders and peach cobbler, I guarantee nearly 100% of you would choose dinner option 1. That’s the common sense diet! You know what you should eat more of and what to eat less of, but then why is nearly 60% of the US population overweight or obese?

Fad diets, such as those mentioned above, usually require major changes in behavior, it does lead to short term weightloss success, but the problem lies in weight regain which occurs immediately after you stop the fad diet. The key to dieting is not losing weight, but in keeping the weight off after you’ve lost it.

Reduce foods that contain chemicals, preservatives, artificial flavoring, poor quality fats, artificial colors, and artificial sweeteners. Increase real foods in their most whole form including proteins, fats, and carbohydrates; also known as the MACROnutrients. Eat balanced meals. Eat 2-3 meals/day. Avoid grazing and snacking between meals! Include a variety of color on your plate. This is the Common Sense Diet! Your gut intuition usually always steers you in the right direction, just stop ignoring it.

Below are some recipes to inspire you to get back into the kitchen. I’ve also included links to some wonderful online health content creators who have 100s of recipes as well.

80/20 is a great rule to live by. 80% of the time make health conscious and common sense decisions around your food intake, 20% of the time it’s okay to indulge within reason and don’t feel bad about it!

A great tip when on the common sense diet, when at the grocery store, stick to the perimeter of the store and avoid the aisles as much as possible. Think about it, the perimeter is where you’ll find fruits, vegetables, meat counter, poultry, etc. The aisles is where you’ll find heavily processed foods such as boxed cereals, cookies, pasta, chips, crackers, pop, etc. You’ll also notice foods found on the perimeter of the grocery store have a short shelf life and will spoil if not used vs. foods found in the aisles usually can sit on your shelf for months if not years before expiring!

So now that we’ve established the best diet to follow, please familiarize yourself with the ingredients the recipes below call for, start stocking these in your fridge. In addition, if you are within driving distance of our clinic, I’ve included some local businesses that make excellent Common Sense Diet approved ready to eat meals!

Ready to eat meals:

https://fitbitesllc.myshopify.com/

Health food stores in downriver:

https://www.thebetterhealthstore.com
/better-health-southgate.html

https://thfdownriver.com/

Online health content creators:

https://cleananddelicious.com/

https://healthcoachkait.com/blog-posts


Chunky Monkey Overnight Oats
SERVES 1



INGREDIENTS:

¾ cup rolled oats
1 cup unsweetened milk of choice
1 tbsp chia seeds
1 tbsp raw cacao nibs
1 tbsp peanut butter
1 tbsp hemp seeds
½ banana sliced
Drizzle of pure maple syrup

INSTRUCTIONS:

Add the oats, milk, and chia seeds to a mason-style jar container and mix well. Set in the fridge overnight.
In the morning before serving, top with cacao nibs, peanut butter, hemp seeds, banana slices, and pure maple syrup.
Enjoy!



Baked Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs




Ingredients
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thigh 8
1 tablespoon avocado oil
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons onion powder
2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon cumin (or smoked paprika)
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
Preheat oven to 425ºF and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
Remove the chicken from the fridge at least twenty minutes before baking.
Using a sharp knife, carefully trim and excess fat off of the chicken thighs and pat them dry with a paper towel.
In a small bowl combine garlic powder, onion powder, Italian seasoning, cumin, salt and pepper.
Place chicken thighs in a large bowl, drizzle with avocado oil and sprinkle with spice mixture.
Use your hands to mix the spices into the chicken and then transfer the chicken onto the prepared baking sheet.
Bake for 20 minutes or until the chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165ºF.
Let the chicken rest for 5 minutes so the juices can redistribute and enjoy



Cauliflower Salad




Ingredients
1 head cauliflower
1/2 cup diced tomatoes
1/2 cup sliced scallions
1 cup chopped cucumbers
1/2 cup chopped parsley
1/3 cup chopped mint
1 cup garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup chopped green olives
Dressing
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
 

Instructions
Slice the cauliflower in half and use a knife to remove all the florets. Cut some of the larger florets into smaller pieces so they’ll fit in your food processor.
Place cauliflower florets in the food processor and pulse back and forth until you have a fine, gravel-like consistency. You may have to work in batches.
Transfer cauliflower to a large bowl and add in tomatoes, scallions, cucumber, parsely, mint, garbanzo beans and olives.
Dressing
In a small spouted cup combine; garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Gently whisk together.
Pour dressing over salad and gently toss together. Adjust seasonings and enjoy.
 

Best.

Dr. R

 

Disclaimer: We live in a world where there is unlimited resources available to us. While this is something I’m very grateful for, it is also overwhelming. The intention of this blog is to make information accessible for our community and staff in one place. We are not trying to recreate the wheel or present new groundbreaking information, but rather share and spread! An office visit doesn’t allot the time to discuss these matters, and I promise you the tips shared here are far more important than most conversations occurring during a doctor’s visit. As a Primary Care and Obesity Medicine Clinician I am constantly researching ways to improve health & wellbeing; all post will have references.

References for this post:https://www.jillianmichaels.com/
blog/weight-loss/why-diets-dont-work http://www.kantrowitz.com/kantrowitz
/commonsensediet.html https://cleananddelicious.com/baked-boneless-skinless-chicken-thighs/https://
www.jillianmichaels.com/blog/food-and-nutrition/chunky-monkey-overnight-oats https://cleananddelicious.com/cauliflower-salad/#recipe