A lean, healthy body isn’t built with exercise and sweat. Building your best body also requires proper nutrition that allows your muscle to perform optimally and then recover efficiently to maximally respond with gains in strength and size. Let’s be more specific. It will be the foods and beverages you choose that provide the fuel that powers workouts and the vital nutrients your muscle needs to recover and become stronger and bigger as well as the nutrients your body needs for optimal health and function. So where do you go to get the right foods in addition to your sport nutrition retailer; the supermarket of course. This article provides the seven keys to making strategic choices in the supermarket to help you achieve a leaner, fitter body.

 1. Draft a Game Plan

You wouldn’t think about showing up at the gym without a workout plan, so neither should you show up at the supermarket plan of action. Your supermarket game plan needs to include: 1) lean protein to build and maintain muscle mass, 2) healthy carbohydrates to optimize muscle energy stores, and; 3) fruits, vegetables and whole grains for optimal body function, health and appearance. Next, since most supermarkets are set up so that produce, dairy, meats and fresh baked items are on the perimeter of the store, so start your attack there. Once you complete the perimeter and have acquired most of the essentials you can move through the aisles for strategic food items such as canned fish, frozen fruits for protein smoothies, whole grain pastas and breakfast cereals.

2. Look for the Lean

Choosing leaner meats will save you a lot of unnecessary calories, not to mention rid your diet of a lot of the type of fat that seems to go straight to those hard to lean out parts of your body. Red meats are excellent sources of protein and a variety of vitamins and minerals, but since most of their fat is saturated you will want to choose the leanest cuts and trim away visible fat. Choose lean/extra lean grades of beef such as the loin or round cuts as well as leaner pork cuts such as tenderloin, sirloin and top loin. For tender cuts from the loin, consider low-fat cooking methods such as broiling, grilling, or roasting on a rack. For less tender cuts, such as round cuts, use moist-heat methods like braising or stewing, or marinate to tenderize before cooking.

3. Go Fishing

Fish and shellfish are a great source of protein and some types such as tuna, salmon, pollock, shrimp and crab are a staple food for many bodybuilders and fitness enthusiasts. While the fat content of friends from the lakes and seas varies, they are generally lower in saturated fat and are an invaluable source of omega-3 fats. Omega-3 fats are needed for optimal brain function and to reduce the risk of heart disease and joint conditions. In addition to fish, shrimp, clams, crab, scallops and lobster are relatively low in fat making them lower calorie fish choices. Avoid seafood packed in oils as well as frozen fish that is breaded to reduce the calorie and fat content. For those that don’t like fish or avoid it for concerns of heavy metals and contaminants, look for a good fish oil product in the supplement aisle.

4. Pick up some Poultry

Chicken and turkey are great protein sources and can be included in a variety of dishes from wraps and sandwiches to soups and salads to the stand-alone main item on the plate. Turkey white meat has less fat than darker meat and the breast is leaner than thigh for both turkey and chicken. Be sure to remove the skin and then bake, broil or grill your chicken or turkey over pan or deep frying! And on the subject of poultry, don’t forget eggs. Despite what Rocky Balboa did in the 1970s and then again some 30 years later, eating raw eggs is never a good idea because of salmonella. Meanwhile, cooked egg whites are almost all protein and egg-white omelettes are among the favourites of weight trainers and fitness competitors. You can try substituting two egg whites for whole eggs in recipes to lower the calories and fat level. Also, experiment with products like Egg Beaters which contain pasteurized egg whites.

5. Get Down with Dairy

Milk is rich in protein and particularly concentrated in branched chain amino acids (BCAA) and in particular leucine. Leucine seems to have a special relationship with muscle protein and is involved in the processes that manufacture protein within muscle cells. Milk is also rich in calcium and phosphate, two minerals crucially involved in muscle action, as well as vitamins A and D. Choosing lower fat dairy products over milk and whole milk derived dairy foods is one of the simplest ways to trim calories from your diet. Use skim milk on cereals and in recipes including protein shakes and smoothies. At the same time top off home made pizzas, salads and eggs with part skim to non-fat cheeses. If you are not a fan of dairy (or meats) try tofu, which is a good protein such and isn’t too far behind dairy proteins in BCAA levels.

6. Get your Hands on Some Whole Grain!

You train hard and need your carbs, that’s all there is to it. Carbohydrate in muscle is the principal fuel source that powers intense workouts. Choose breads, bagels, rolls and wraps are that made with flours from whole cereal grains to get the carbohydrate your muscle needs and the health promoting nutrients such as fiber, flavonoids and key vitamins and minerals such as selenium, copper and zinc. Don’t go by color alone as some ingredients such as molasses may deceptively darken the color. Also, certain label claims such as 100% Grain, 7-Grain and multi-grain can also be deceptive and do not guarantee that it is a whole grain product. Double check for the whole grain ingredients as well as the fiber content on the Food Facts as there should be at least 2 grams/serving.

7. Add a lot of Color to Your Cart with Fruits and Vegetables

Fruits and vegetables should be consumed with most meals and they make for great snacks as well. Fruits and vegetables are most nutritious when eaten fresh, however frozen fruits are pretty close in nutrition value and nothing beats a protein smoothie with frozen berries. When it comes to cutting calories to loose weight, fruits and vegetables are generally low calorie-density, higher volume foods, which promote fullness. If vegetables are to be heated, try heating lightly in the microwave or a stir-fry pan. Choose a variety of colors to provide a variety of health promoting nutrients such as carotenoids (e.g. lutein, lycopene), polyphenolics (e.g. quercetin), vitamins, minerals, water and fiber.

Being supermarket savvy can ensure that you will have the right foods at your disposal to achieve a leaner, healthier body. Also, choose foods that: 1) are versatile, meaning that they can be used a variety of ways, 2) can “rollover” or reused in a different dish, and 3) will have “leftover” appeal. Always visualize how the food will be used before you buy it. And lastly, be sure not to shop when you are hungry or stressed as you are more likely to end up with unwanted foods in your cart.

This article was published in Status Fitness Magazine Fall 2008.