A Diet Plan for Body Type E

A Diet Plan for Body Type E
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If you try the body type diet, you will follow a meal and exercise plan that purportedly works best for your particular metabolism. Michael Thurmond, diet book author and weight loss coach on the television series "Extreme Makeover," identifies five body types, one of which is body type E. This body type, also called an "ecto-endo," has a skinny frame that resembles a tube. People with this body type, Thurmond claims, need to eat considerable amounts of protein to add muscle and gain a shapely body.

Frequent Meals

The body type E eating plan consists of small meals consumed throughout your day. Eating several small meals in lieu of a couple big meals is one good strategy for weight loss, according to University of Maryland Medical Center, or UMMC. By eating every three hours or so, you avoid feeling excessively hungry, which makes it easier to avoid overeating. However, the strict nature of Thurmond's eating plan may be difficult to maintain, according to DietsInReview.com. A sample breakfast for body type E consists of two to three egg whites, 2 oz. lean beef and one serving of a grain such as brown rice, millet or oatmeal. You may also consume one serving of fruit.

Lunch

A Body Type E-prescribed lunch includes 2 oz. chicken, ½ cup brown rice and 1 to 2 cups mixed vegetables. Thurmond recommends eating slow-digesting, complex carbohydrates like brown rice and avoiding simple sugars and processed carbohydrates such as white bread. Thurmond also recommends chickpeas, black beans, broccoli, collard greens, asparagus, alfalfa sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts. Eating the wrong carbohydrates or consuming carbs without protein will slow your metabolism, Thurmond warns. For example, avoid sweet fruits like watermelon, oranges and cherries and choose berries and grapefruit instead. Thurmond recommends type Es consume more red meat than people of other body types, explaining that red meat is valuable for Body Type E due to its creatine and amino acid content.

Dinner

A typical dinner for Body Type E resembles your lunch. It includes 2 oz. chicken, 1/4 cup brown rice, 1/4 cup beans and 1 to 2 cups mixed veggies. The diet for this body type features more beans than the diet for other body types. Beans provide protein along with carbs as well as fiber, minerals and B-complex vitamins. Workouts -- an essential part of any weight loss program -- are an important part of the diet plan for Body Type E as well. Thurmond advises eating one of your meals with 2 oz. protein and the allotted carbs 30 minutes prior to exercising. However, this may be poor advice. Registered dietician and personal trainer Natalie Digate Muth suggests consuming a rapidly digestible source of carbohydrate if you eat only 30 minutes prior to a workout. High-fiber carbs before workouts can cause gastrointestinal distress; eat them at least three hours prior to a workout.

Snacks and Considerations

Thurmond recommends consuming 3 oz. protein following a workout if you are Body Type E, whereas some other body types take in 2 oz. at this time. For example, you'd consume 3 oz. lean beef and 1 to 2 cups greens or 3 oz. chicken and one serving of fruit. You get two to three snacks a day on this meal plan. When you consume the other snacks, you take in 2 oz. protein and either the greens or fruit. Your body type has difficulty maintaining muscle, so you need a constant protein supply in your diet, according to Thurmond. Muth concurs, explaining that a protein snack after a workout helps your body repair muscles. She also suggests consuming carbohydrates post-workout to replace the glycogen, or stored energy, used during your workout. Muth recommends 1.5 g carbs per 2.2 lbs. body weight after long cardio workouts. Eating your post-workout snack or meal within 30 to 60 minutes of the workout is most effective because your body's cells are more sensitive to insulin and take in the nutrients you consume more efficiently, according to the textbook "Performance Nutrition."

References

Article reviewed by Jane Pine Last updated on: Jul 26, 2011

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