What's on the Menu with the Venus Factor?

VARIETY AND SPICE : WHAT'S ON THE MENU WITH THE VENUS FACTOR?

Different diets only allow you to eat certain things. Some diets make you cut out carbs. Other diets make you cut out sweets or alcohol. This causes people to have trouble with these diets because they have to get rid of their favorite things cold turkey.

The Venus Factor is completely different. You'll be happy to know that you can eat whatever you like on this diet. You don't have to do all of those crazy substitutes for sweeteners or sodas or anything else. This diet is built around enjoying yourself - but in moderation.

Fruits & Veggies

There is no restriction on fruits and vegetables. Some diets will tell you to avoid fruits because they're filled with sugar, but the Venus Factor does not. Fruits have natural sugars that are turned into carbs. You need the nutrients in fruit in order to stay healthy and keep yourself from being hungry.

The same thing applies with vegetables. There are no “good” or “bad” vegetables. There are only vegetables. Starchy vegetables, like green beans and peas, are just as good as leafy and green vegetables like broccoli and kale. As long as you eat your vegetables, it doesn't matter what type they are.

One thing you should remember is that corn and potatoes are not vegetables. They're starches. You can eat these too but try to get in more vegetables. Don't fill up on starch. You won't succeed on any diet like that.

Protein

Any type of protein is allowed. One thing they do caution you about is peanuts and soy.

Soy is a nut but it's also a protein. Soy tends to have a negative effect on some women. It can actually slow down their weight loss. If you drink soy milk you may have to watch your progress to see if it's affecting your weight loss.

Another thing that they caution you against is peanuts. You can have peanuts but you can't eat a lot of them. Peanuts are high in calories, and since the Venus Factor is about counting calories, you need to watch how many peanuts (or how much peanut butter) you eat.

Other than that, you can eat any type of protein you want. Most women opt to eat leaner meat in order to reduce their calorie intake, but it's not necessary. As long as you stay within your caloric limit for the day, you will be fine.

Snacks

All of us love snacks. Some of us don't like healthy snacks. Fortunately the Venus Factor allows you to snack on basically whatever you want. This includes chocolate, chips and soda.

They do caution you against empty calories. Empty calories are calories that add no nutritional value to your body, like chips. This is why it's possible for you to eat an entire bag of chips in one sitting: they aren't satisfying. They're simply something to munch on. You can have them, but it is advised that you just do one serving at a time.

Another thing you should watch out for is drinking your calories. You can still have soda, sports drinks and alcohol, but you really need to watch how much you consume. These drinks can be very high in calories. You can wind up drinking half or all of your calories for the day if you go overboard. Again, you can have them, but you should only have one serving at a time. If it is a diet or low-calorie drink, such as zero-calorie soda, you can drink that liberally. But that is not a substitute for water.

Water

Some diets allow you to use zero calorie drinks like coffee, tea and diet soda as substitutes for water. The Venus Factor encourages you to drink actual water. There is no specified amount that you should drink. Some people drink four glasses a day. Others drink six or eight glasses a day.

Some people drink up to half their body weight (in ounces) in water a day. For example, if you weigh 180lbs, you would drink 90oz of water a day. As you lose weight you will drink less water. So if you drop down to 150lb, you would drink 75oz of water a day.

So how much is the right amount? No one can really tell you that, but a good rule of thumb is six to eight glasses of water a day. You need water to flush the toxins and fat out of your system. That is why it's important to drink plain water instead of substituting it with something else.

How Often Should You Eat in a Day?

The Venus Factor just encourages you to eat within your caloric limit for the day. It doesn't tell you how often you should eat.

In fact, the book specifically states that it doesn't matter how often you eat on the program. You can eat once a day or six times a day. You need to do whatever is comfortable for you.

The Venus Factor is all about personalization. The creators realize that most of us have favorite foods and we want to keep them in our lives. That is why they allow room for error and growth with their diet plan. Consuming your favorite foods in moderation is a great way to make sure you'll stick to this program.

After all, you're not really restricting yourself from something you love. You're just eating less of it.




My super snoop reporter will be back with even more of the inside story SOON, so keep coming back for the next installment .......  won't ya !