I was at the gym the other day with one of my work out buds and a trainer was offering free stretching sessions. We both decided to sign up. While he was being stretched he started complaining about how he isn't as cut as he'd like to be. He's in very good shape and even challenges me when working out. Naturally, the trainer and I asked him about his diet. It quickly became clear to me that he doesn't really understand healthy eating. I tried to explain the effects of ethanol, high fructose corn syrup, sugar, soda... and saw him slipping into a world of confusion. I realized that I was throwing a lot of info at him and most of it was stuff he had never heard about. Later that night it became clear to me that I was trying to shove all the knowledge that it took me 5 years to obtain down his throat in a matter of minutes. I thought back to when I first started studying nutrition and imagined how I would want to be introduced to all this new information. The result were these simple points. 

1. Try and get a close as possible to single ingredient foods.
- the less the ingredients food has the more likely it is food.

2.Stay away from processed and fast food
- processed and fast foods use a lot of artificial ingredients and hydrogenated oils.

3. Eat mostly vegetables and fruit

4. Drink  a lot of water

5. Avoid artificial sweeteners 

6. Minimize or preferably eliminate alcohol and soda consumption 

7. Cook as often as possible 

     These points are just a really simple outline that got me started on the complex and very rewarding physical journey in fitness that has helped get from good shape

To Great Shape!