I run every 2 or 3 days I cant afford diets and expensive healthy foods what is really bad/good?

Answer 1

Lean meats like chicken are great. Fresh veggies and fruits. just watch you fruit in take because of sugar. drink lots of water and cut back on carbs ( breads and pastas )

Answer 2

Fortunately, we don't need diets. We need the right diet.

The first question that you need to answer is, "Why do you want to do this?" If it's to lose weight, you can do that any number of ways, on any number of diets. But if it's to be healthy, that's a different matter. To do that, we need to be vegetarian.

No, really.

All the popular "diets" for decades really have been just variations on either the low-fat/high carb or high-fat/low carb diet. They have been repackaged and have had added to them exotic foods (like grapefruit or noni) or some secret ingredient (like a cortisol "blocker"), but the ingredients don't work. the diets only work because they get us to cut calories. The only difference in all the diets that have been trumpeted and hyped is the difference between high-fat and low-fat. That's it.

In the short run, either type of diet will do, but in teh long term, the best one is a low-fat lifestyle.

So avoiding a diet is not a problem. Choosing a good one that you can live on for the rest of your life is your important choice.

Expensive "health" foods are not necessary, either. The only expense you need to make is to buy whole foods that you like.

Now, I happen to be a low-fat person because it has been shown scientifically (see the work of Dean Ornish, Caldwell Esselstyn, and the Portfolio Diet out of the University of Toronto) to reduce cholesterol and triglycerides, and therefore the chance of heart disease.

But cutting out fat isn't expensive. Cutting out meat isn't expensive. And while you can have some (not much) meat, cutting it out altogether is far better for us. That lowers cholesterol the most.

Now, what does that leave us?

Read Dean Ornish's "Everyday Cooking With Dr. Dean Ornish."
You'll find there a number of very good recipes that are pretty easy to follow and aren't expensive.

Go to websites like "Vegweb" and "Vegsource" for recipes. Go to other recipe sources, but be careful to choose the ones that have no cheese or meat or cream in them in order to keep your fat intake low. "Recipezaar" is pretty good.

You don't have to rely on meat substitutes or soymilk, which can be expensive. Just pick up vegetables and beans and whole grains and some good cookbooks and enjoy eating your way to health.

Some meat won't kill you, I suppose, but be careful with it, because it's the cornerstone of the diet that is killing Americans with heart disease.

It's an interesting note that, when people immigrate to another place--any place--within one generation and without mixing genes, the immigrants assume the cancer risks and rates of the host population, which tells us that much cancer is diet and lifestyle related.

So eat well--stay away from junk food, even in the grocery store, and if the packaged food has more than five ingredients listed on it, don't buy it. If it has anything on the list that you can't pronounce, don't buy it--and exercise.

It's good that you run. You don't say how far, though. Is it enough to take you 45 minutes to do? Can you increase that to three to four times a week? Your HDL level will love you, and your cholesterol level will fall.

Any vegetable or fruit that has a lot of color in it (that doesn't include bananas, I'm afraid. They aren't bad for you, they're just not as good for you as a Red Delicious apple or a carrot or a squash is) will be good for you. And you can fix them just about in any way you want, and they'll be great. Beans and lentils are such a good source of protein that you won' t need meat or milk.

Buy whole-grain bread, or, better yet, make your own. Become involved in the kitchen, use it as a way to serve the other members of your family, and you'll enjoy it even more.

In short, don't be swayed by the advertizing of food products (including soy-based products. Tofu and soy is good for you, but Gardenburger is expensive, and you really don't need it. If you like it, that's ok, but you don't need to buy it). Buy only what you need and know is good for you. I've been doing this for years and run 20-30 miles a week, and have fun. You can, too.

Good luck.

Answer 3

Good food on a budget:

Water -- free from the tap
cereal -- eat it anytime
soup -- low sodium stuff is best for you
eggs -- protein at low price
bread -- can make sandwiches and toast
tea -- is good before bedtime or early morning
hot dogs -- very cheap (.69) for a pack. Feed you for a week if you buy 2-3 of them. Not very good for you though.

If you buy chicken breasts, make sure you freeze the stuff you are not cooking because they will go bad. Freeze every meat you are not using.

Answer 4

just keep it simple fresh fruit vegs, simple meat, yogurt cheese