[Permanent Preservation Edition] The Ultra-Efficient, Ultimate Diet Method to Control Your Weight at Will

Dieting is about changing your mindset

Many people misunderstand this, but a so-called diet is not about temporary food restriction.
Dieting isabout changing your "habits," and furthermore, changing your "values"itself.

"Doesn't a diet of nothing but chicken breast and white rice mean throwing away the pleasures of life?"you might think.

Here, I would like to introduce a famous saying from the world of Pokémon, born because a certain Pokémon was simply too strong.

"Instead of thinking about how to win with your favorite Pokémon,
it's faster to just start liking Garchomp."

I declare here and now.

"Instead of thinking about how to lose weight while eating your favorite foods,
it's faster to just start liking chicken breast."

I am a lover of fine dining (I have spent an amount of money and effort on gourmet food that I can't really talk about too loudly).But I love chicken breast just as much.
I also have experience living on a meat-free Buddhist vegetarian diet during a 10-day meditation retreat in the mountains.
Because of that, I know how moving truly delicious food can be, and at the same time, I am capable of enjoying "simple meals" as well.

I am also a strength training enthusiast.
After studying nutrition intensely because I wanted to master strength training,I realized that the types of ingredients truly necessary for daily life are, when you get down to it, not that many. You can live a sufficiently healthy and energetic life with a small number of optimized ingredients. This is the foundation of my diet.

However, on the other hand, there is a sound evolutionary reason why humans are omnivores (I will omit the details here as it would take too long).
In short, a certain amount of variety in food is also important for physical and mental health and for adding color to life.

It is easier to say extreme things like "Don't worry about anything and eat whatever you want!" or "Only eat chicken breast!," and I am well aware that such claims tend to go viral in today's world.
But this exquisite sense of balance is the key to my"napovation-style simple meal method."

In this article, you can obtain through a shortcutthe concrete know-how of my ultra-efficient, ultimate simple meal method—from mindset to ingredient selection, the ultimate time-saving cooking methods, and how to create sustainable eating habits—which I arrived at over many years.You can obtain this through a shortcut.
I hope you will take advantage of these benefits and put them to good use.

1. The Three Pillars of the Simple Meal Method

The benefits of simple meals are at least this many, just by what can be clearly perceived.
There are likely also long-term effects in preventing epidemics and diseases.

The simple meal method I practice is not just about endurance or willpower.
Rather, it is based on eating three proper meals a day, or sometimes even more.

1-1. "Hack your appetite" by designing your meals

The most important point of this method is tomaximize the appetite-suppressing effects of protein.Cholecystokinin, a "satiety hormone" secreted when you consume protein, naturally controls your appetite.
Protein also has a high DIT (Diet-Induced Thermogenesis), which has the effect of increasing calorie expenditure.

Recently, the importance of protein has begun to be preached, but from my perspective, awareness is still insufficient.
Especially since dining out is centered on carbohydrates and fats, let's develop the habit ofchecking the PFC balance of ingredientsso that you can choose high-protein meals.
It might be a hassle to check every time, but knowledge of ingredients will be an asset for life.

The appetite-suppressing effect of protein is the exact opposite of how junk food bugs your appetite center and creates a "brain that wants to eat more."
If your appetite itself decreases, mindless eating will naturally disappear.
Therefore, how cleverly you incorporate protein into your meals is the deciding factor.

1-2. Optimize your home cooking process to "hack your time"

For modern people, the greatest enemy of home cooking is "time".
Company employees simply have no time. On top of being busy with work, their free time is constantly being whittled away by hobbies, side hustles, exercise, socializing with friends, and self-improvement.

Home cooking is a game of how to get the maximum benefit with the minimum effort. The key to saving time is to buy in bulk and prep in bulk.

For storage, I recommend iwaki heat-resistant containers. They are microwave and oven safe, suitable for storage because you can see the contents, and their simple structure makes them easy to wash.

By making full use of the latest kitchen appliances, you can dramatically shorten cooking and cleanup time.
The core of my strategy is the freezer and the microwave. By storing ingredients long-term and prepping meals in advance, you can reduce weekday cooking time to almost zero and minimize the hassle of washing dishes to the absolute limit.

It would be perfect if you also had a dishwasher.
Recently, they even sell A4-sized dishwashers for single-person households, so I highly recommend considering purchasing one. Time is money. You can spend the time you save on self-improvement or your hobbies.

1-3. Break free from the "taste bud hacking" of the food industry

The taste buds of modern people are paralyzed, having become accustomed to overly strong seasoning.
The job of the food industry is to get people to eat their products. And to do that, they focus on how to hack the consumer's taste buds.

In the pursuit of "tasty, cheap, and fast," companies arrived at an answer. That is, "salt, fat, and sugar." Originally, the salt concentration in the human body is about 0.6-0.8%. However, the salt concentration in eating out and processed foods is generally around 1%. In things like ramen, it is even higher.

In the simple diet method, to improve nutritional management and flavor reproducibility, the basic rule is to measure the weight of ingredients. Therefore, a
kitchen scale is essential. Just by being conscious of a salt concentration of 0.8% of the ingredient weight, your home cooking will improve significantly. Pros might not need one, but we are amateurs at cooking. If you can avoid failure and finish with a delicious result with just a little bit of effort, you should definitely use one.

Just by bringing your daily meals to an appropriate salt concentration, your dulled taste buds will be reset. Then, you will be able to notice the flavors of ingredients you never noticed before: the sweetness of vegetables, the aroma of rice, the inherent umami of meat... This not only makes your daily diet more enjoyable, but as a byproduct, it also
doubles the pleasure of the occasional meal out.

By the way, the "buzz recipes" found online are cut from the same cloth. Since their theme is how to replicate eating out, I do not consider that to be home cooking.

2. Complete Simple Diet List

In this chapter, I will explain in detail the specific "simple diet" repertoire I practice daily, including cooking and storage methods.
The evaluation criteria are "low processing, simple, and high nutritional value."

As a first step, I want you to consciously change what you put in your basket at the supermarket. Instead of convenient "processed foods," you should choose "ingredients" that are the raw materials themselves. This list will become the bible for your shopping and your eating habits.

It might be hard to tell, but I have posted links to recommended products for each item (underlined sections), so if you are interested, please consider purchasing them.

2-1. Carbohydrate Sources

Carbohydrates are not evil. They are our primary energy source, and if consumed appropriately, they are low-cost and easy to get satisfaction from. What is important is the quality, the quantity, and minimizing the effort of preparation.

• 1. Rice

  • This makes up the majority of my carbohydrate intake. While white rice is delicious, the nutritional value and texture of brown rice are hard to pass up. Personally, I also love fragrant basmati rice.
    

  • The best time-saving technique is "freeze immediately after cooking". Cook 5 cups at once, weigh out 150-200g portions while hot, wrap them in plastic wrap, and put them all in the freezer. When you want to eat, thaw them in the microwave. This reduces the hassle of cooking rice to just once or twice a week.

  • If you continue a simple diet, you will be surprised at how well you can perceive the "natural sweetness and deliciousness of rice." For me, white rice is now a feast. It's also great to eat with furikake, pickles, or kimchi.

  • As the ultimate time-saver, I sometimes eat the microwave-thawed rice right off the plate while it's still in the plastic wrap (it's not good manners, but it reduces dishwashing).

• 2. Soba (Buckwheat Noodles)

  • Because it has a low GI value and does not easily spike blood sugar levels, it is an excellent source of carbohydrates. Microwave pasta cookers can be used to boil them in just a few minutes.

  • It is better to have a higher percentage of buckwheat flour. Ingredients on the back of the package are listed in descending order of quantity, so you should choose ones where buckwheat flour is listed before wheat flour.

  • Cool the soba under running water and keep it simple with mentsuyu (noodle soup base) and chicken or eggs. Provided the buckwheat flour content is high, the soba-yu (the water used to boil the noodles) is rich in nutrients, so you can mix it with mentsuyu and drink it.

  • While it is a disadvantage that you cannot cook it in bulk like microwaveable white rice, if you have no stock, it can be prepared faster than cooking rice.

• 3. Pasta

  • Actually, pasta is also a high-protein, low-cost, and extremely versatileexcellent source of carbohydrates. If you choose whole wheat, you can also get plenty of dietary fiber.

  • Wheat allergies vary by individual. It is generally considered relatively common in Caucasians but rare in Asians. It doesn't bother me personally, so I use it actively.

  • You can complete a nutritionally balanced meal just by mixing it with canned tuna or mackerel, which I will discuss later. Of course, a simple peperoncino or tomato sauce is also good. When boiling, just like with soba, a microwave pasta cooker is convenient.

  • Be careful, as it is easy to consume too much fat depending on the ingredients you eat it with.

2-2. Protein Sources

Protein is the building block for every part of the body, including muscles, internal organs, skin, and hair. It also has an appetite-suppressing effect, making it a pillar of the simple diet method.
You should aim to consume twice your body weight (kg) in grams. If you weigh 70kg, that's 140g per day.

• 4. Whey Protein

  • The biggest benefits are convenience and appetite suppression. If you feel the urge to eat something, first consume 40–50g of whey protein. You will feel full, and your craving for junk food will fade surprisingly quickly. It is also excellent as a meal replacement.

  • Modern proteinisavailable in many delicious flavors. Artificial sweeteners and colorings are also less common than they used to be.
    Furthermore, experts choose the "additive-free plain" flavor.

  • In the morning, no matter how busy you are, make sure to consume protein. It is the ultimate time-saving nutritional supplement. Carrying the powder in a shaker is also convenient.

• 5. Chicken (Breast/Thigh)

  • The star of the freezer. Salad chicken is convenient, but considering preservatives, sodium content, and cost, cooking it yourself is more rational.

  • Buy about 4kg in bulk once a week, divide it into small portions, and freeze. You can also season it at this stage. Cook about 1kg at a time as well.

  • Remove the skin as much as possible, though you can use it depending on the cooking method. I sometimes eat it outside of weight-loss periods. If you remove the skin from thigh meat, the fat content isn't that different from breast meat.

  • The repertoire for chicken is infinite depending on your creativity. Grilling, boiling, sous-vide, chicken soboro, teriyaki, yangnyeom chicken, Marry Me chicken, etc.I plan to create a 'Cooking Method Tier List' for delicious chicken breast on note in the future, so please look forward to it.

• 6. Whole Eggs

  • An almost perfect nutritional food that contains all nutrients except vitamin C and dietary fiber, and the savior that supports the nutritional balance of my simple diet. Most of my testosterone is made from the lipids in eggs.

  • Protein absorption efficiency is better when cooked, so make boiled eggs or scrambled eggs your staple.

  • Actually, if left unheated, they can be stored for much longer than the stated expiration date. However, in that case, heating is mandatory before eating.

  • Egg boileror a sous-vide cooker to make a large amount at once, peel them, and soak them in mentsuyu (noodle soup base) to store them as "seasoned eggs" for over 3 days. These are truly delicious.

• 7. Canned Tuna (Oil-free recommended)

  • High in protein and also provides omega-3 fatty acids (DHA/EPA).

  • It has a long shelf life and the convenience of being able to open the can and eat it as is is the best.

  • Once you get used to a simple diet, you can enjoy the flavor of the fish even without seasoning. Just adding it to peperoncino makes a complete meal.

• 8. Natto

  • A valuable "flavorful" ingredient for a low-salt lifestyle.

  • It is convenient, delicious, and offers high health benefits from nattokinase, a unique nutrient.

  • As a fermented food, it is also effective for improving gut health.

• 9. Beef

  • I try to avoid pork as much as possible because it is high in fat.

  • Beef is a high-quality source of protein and is rich in creatine, making it effective if you want to enhance the results of your strength training.

  • Lean cuts like chuck roll are especially recommended.Avoid high-fat cuts like brisket. The basic approach is to eat lean blocks or thinly sliced beef simply grilled. Horinishi spice makes it even better.

  • Liver is good for iron supplementation, and beef tendon is good for collagen.

• 10. Salmon

  • A high-quality protein source, especially excellent for its omega-3 fatty acids (EPA/DHA).

  • Silver salmon, autumn salmon, trout salmon, etc.The fat content varies by type, so choose according to your goal. Sockeye and chum salmon tend to be lower in fat.

  • I like to grill it simply with the skin on and make a teriyaki glaze with soy sauce and mirin. Salt-grilled or butter-grilled are also great.

  • Sashimi requires no cooking and has the powerful benefit that the omega-3 fatty acids do not oxidize.

• 11. Yogurt

  • Non-fat types are low in calories, but if you are considering the intake of CLA (conjugated linoleic acid), a high-quality fat, you should also include full-fat options. CLA is expected to have effects such as reducing body fat and supporting muscle growth.

  • Always choose unsweetened. Flavored yogurt is high in sugar and is essentially just candy, so avoid it.

  • To ensure the diversity of your gut flora, it is best to rotate between various types.

2-3. Fat Sources

Fat is an essential nutrient that serves as the building block for hormones and cell membranes.
Since it tends to be overconsumed when eating out, keep intake to a minimum in the simple diet method. What you should be careful about is the "quality"; avoid bad oils like trans fats and consume a "moderate amount" of high-quality oils.

• 12. Canned Mackerel

  • An excellent food that allows you to easily consume high-quality fats (EPA/DHA) and protein.

  • Mixing canned mackerel in water, including the liquid, with pasta makes it an almost complete meal. You can even eat the bones, so it provides calcium as well.

• 13. Nuts

  • Almonds, walnuts, cashews, etc. Unsalted and dry-roasted are recommended.

  • Rich in high-quality fats, protein, dietary fiber, and vitamin E. However, they are high in calories, so keep your daily intake small.

  • They are excellent for when you are feeling a bit hungry or as a way to adjust your diet when you are lacking high-quality fats in your daily meals.

• 14. Avocado

  • Known as "butter of the forest." It contains a well-balanced mix of high-quality fats like oleic acid, vitamins, minerals, and dietary fiber.

  • Cut it in half and eat it as is with a spoon, or mix it with salad or natto.

• 15. Oils

  • If your low-fat diet is insufficient, make fine adjustments with oils.

  • Extra virgin olive oil: It is sensitive to heat, so the standard practice is to drizzle a small amount over salads or cooked chicken or salmon. It also has antioxidant properties.

  • Grass-fed butter: Butter made from the milk of grass-fed cows. It is extremely high in nutritional value. Using a small amount for flavoring when sautéing chicken or salmon is exceptional.

  • MCT oil: 100% medium-chain triglycerides. It is digested and absorbed quickly, making it easy to convert into energy, but consuming large amounts can cause loose stools, so start with about 5g. I add about a teaspoon to my coffee or protein shakes. It is tasteless and odorless.

2-4. Vitamin and Mineral Sources

Vitamins and minerals are essential for maintaining normal body functions.
While utilizing supplements, consciously consume them from food as well.
Doctors and bodybuilders alike all agree by saying "Basically, get them from real food rather than supplements.".

• 16. Green and Yellow Vegetables

  • Focus on frozen vegetables.
    Not only do they last longer, but they save you the trouble of chopping, and there is almost no variation due to the season or degradation of nutritional value.
    Basically, heat them in a silicone steamer and season them to eat (because boiling causes vitamins to leach into the water).
    While their importance is lower than rice or meat, they are filling, nutritious, and above all, delicious.Eat vegetables because they are delicious!

  • Nutrient-dense vegetables:
    Tier 1... Broccoli, spinach, asparagus
    Tier 2... Okra, komatsuna (Japanese mustard spinach), tomatoes
    Tier 3... Bell peppers, pumpkin, carrots
    It is also a good idea to keep a mix of these on hand.

  • Dressing: Remember the equation: Dressing = Salty + Oily + Acidic (+ Aromatic).
    You can create an infinite repertoire by using salt or soy sauce for saltiness, olive oil or sesame oil for oiliness, and lemon juice or balsamic vinegar for acidity.

• 17. Fruits

  • You can easily consume vitamins, minerals, dietary fiber, and antioxidants.

  • In particular, blueberries, kiwis, and bananas are highly nutritious and recommended.

  • Avoid dried fruits because they have added sugar.

  • I put them in yogurt, make protein smoothies, or eat them as they are. Be mindful of excessive sugar intake, and consume in moderation.

• 18. Tomato Juice

  • The ultimate weapon for when even preparing vegetables is a hassle. Concentration increases in the order of tomato juice < canned tomatoes < tomato puree. It can be used in various dishes such as tomato stews, mixed rice, and pasta.

  • Glutamic acid, the umami component of tomatoes, has the effect of making the entire dish taste delicious even with little salt. Also, you can easily get lycopene, potassium, vitamin C, etc., and it is also effective for bowel movements.

  • Buy in bulk on Amazon and keep it in stock.

• 19. Miso Soup

  • "Drinkable IV drip." It is a fermented food and rich in minerals. Vitamin B1 also helps with hangovers.

  • If you add seaweed as an ingredient, you can supplement vitamin K, iodine, and dietary fiber, which are often lacking. Adding tofu (protein) and green onions (allicin, which thins the blood) is also recommended for improving nutritional balance and flavor.

  • Instant is fine, but it's easy to just dissolve miso with dashi in hot water and add dried seaweed, cut tofu, and chopped green onions. Wrapping a single serving in plastic wrap and freezing it is also recommended.

• 20. Salt

  • Salt is an essential mineral for maintaining life and is by no means an enemy.
    It is especially important to replenish salt along with the water lost during sleep immediately after waking up. You should choose rock salt or sea salt rich in minerals rather than refined salt. I personally love using pink Himalayan salt and branded sea salt.

  • If you consume only water without salt, your body may try to expel the water, which can actually lead to dehydration. Always make sure to consume an appropriate amount along with high-quality water.

  • You might think, "I don't want to spend money on salt!" but spending money on things you use every day will definitely increase your happiness more than things you rarely use.

  • Buying good meat costs hundreds to thousands of yen, but with good salt, you can improve the quality of your daily meals for just about 5 yen more per day.

2-5. Supplements

Use supplements wisely to replenish nutrients that are inevitably lacking in a simple diet or to obtain specific components for particular purposes. Think of them strictly as a dietary aid,
just as a safety net.

• 21. Multivitamin & Mineral

  • My lifeline. I have been taking them every day for over 10 years.

  • It is impossible to get all the necessary nutrients from your diet every day without any deficiencies or excesses. They help supplement the nutrients you tend to miss in your diet in a balanced way.

  • Taking just zinc or just vitamin C on their own is the height of nonsense.The best recommended multivitamin and mineral supplements are introduced in the note below.

• 22. Probiotics and Prebiotics

  • The gut environment aids in digestion and absorption, regulates overall health from immunity, and even influences your mental state.

  • Probiotics: The beneficial bacteria themselves.Shin Biofermin S Tablets,Bio-Three Hi Tablets are recommended. They deliver live bacteria to the gut.

  • Prebiotics: Substances that serve as food for beneficial gut bacteria and help them grow.Ebios Tablets are recommended.

  • I make it a point to take these two in combination to balance my gut flora.

• 23. Creatine

  • Supports improved workout performance and increased muscle mass.Supplements are essential because it is absolutely insufficient in a normal diet.

  • Loading is unnecessary; it is efficient to take about 5g daily with your protein shake. You should be able to feel a change in the weight you can handle and muscle fullness.

  • Creatine monohydrate is the best.

• 24. Coffee

  • The ultimate natural supplement given by God. I consume it every morning for appetite suppression, improved concentration, and enhanced exercise performance.

  • The downsides are that you build a tolerance with continued use, sleep quality drops if consumed late in the day, and there are withdrawal symptoms when you stop.
    To resolve this, aim for 80-120mg per day (about one cup of coffee), and strictly avoid consumption after 4:00 PM. Withdrawal symptoms are negated by drinking it daily.

  • Occasionally taking a few days off caffeine will dramatically increase its effectiveness when you resume. This is recommended before exams or sports tournaments.

  • I like freshly ground hand-drip coffee, but making "coffee ice cubes" by putting coffee in an ice tray saves time.
    The most delicious store-bought one is Seijo Ishii's Iced Coffee. I will not accept any objections. I buy it by the case every summer.

• 25. Citric Acid

  • Experience the fatigue recovery effects. The standard practice is to dissolve it in water and drink it during or after training. Be careful with the dosage as it is very acidic.

  • Powder is recommended, but if you use apple cider vinegar instead, you can also expect gut health benefits from acetic acid bacteria, as well as cholesterol and blood pressure reduction effects.

  • When I have a cold, I make a special drink by dissolving in hot watercitric acidalong with Ryukakusan throat lozenges and honey, and drink it to feel better instantly. It's my secret remedy that helps reduce throat pain and fatigue.

3. napovation-style "Ultra-Efficient" Routine

How can you incorporate the ingredients and methods introduced so far into your actual life? I will specifically introduce a meal and activity routine for a typical weekday (assuming a day where you go to the office and train in the evening).

[Assumed Target Values (Example for a 70kg adult male)]

• Estimated total daily calorie intake: Approx. 2000kcal

• PFC Balance (Protein, Fat, Carbohydrates):

  • Protein (P): 140g (560kcal)

  • Fat (F): 70g (630kcal)

  • Carbohydrates (C): Approx. 200g (800kcal) *Adjust based on training

Using these figures as a base, I fully utilize weekend meal prep and time-saving techniques to minimize the time spent cooking on weekdays while maintaining nutritional balance and quality of life.
This is the ultra-time-saving simple meal method that maximizes efficiency to the limit.

[A Typical Weekday Routine for napovation (Office & Training Day)]

• 7:00 AM: Wake up, replenish water, salt, and minerals

  • After waking up, dissolve a pinch of pink Himalayan salt in a glass of warm water and drink it.

• 7:10 AM: Breakfast (Ultra-fast protein meal + α)

  • Considering daytime performance, breakfast should be easy to digest, high in protein, and include high-quality fats.

  • In a shaker, combine 40g of whey protein, 100g of unsweetened plain yogurt (full fat), 1 teaspoon of MCT oil, 5g of creatine, and 2 coffee ice cubes, then shake with water.

  • Don't forget your multivitamin/mineral, probiotics, and prebiotics.

  • (P: approx. 38g, F: approx. 12g, C: approx. 8g, Kcal: approx. 290)

• 7:30 AM: Getting ready, input time

  • While getting ready, gather information or study languages via podcasts, etc.

• 8:30 AM: Departure and commute

• 9:00 AM: Start of work and morning tasks

  • Stay hydrated frequently (water or unsweetened tea).

• 12:30 PM: Lunch (Nakau Oyakodon, regular size)

  • Smartly utilize eating out for lunch on office days. Nakau's Oyakodon has a relatively good balance of protein, fat, and carbohydrates, making it an easy way to replenish energy.

  • Ootoya and Yayoi-ken are also recommended.

  • (P: approx. 28g, F: approx. 20g, C: approx. 85g, Kcal: approx. 650)

• 1:30 PM: Afternoon work

  • Focus.

• 6:00 PM: Leave work, energy replenishment before heading straight to the gym

  • On training days, I want to replenish carbohydrates one hour before. After leaving work and before heading to the gym, I consume one rice ball (with simple fillings like salmon or pickled plum).

  • (P: approx. 5g, F: approx. 2g, C: approx. 40g, Kcal: approx. 200)

• 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM: Strength training at the gym

  • Recover with a citric acid drink during and after training.

• 9:00 PM: Return home and dinner (high protein, healthy fats, adjusted carbohydrates)

  • Post-workout nutrition is of the utmost importance. Focus on frozen stocks prepared over the weekend and high-quality fats.

  • Main dish: 100g grilled salmon or 150g plain grilled meat.

  • Staple food: 150g frozen rice.

  • Side dish: Half an avocado, frozen green and yellow vegetables (broccoli, spinach, asparagus, etc.) with olive oil, salt, and pepper. 1 pack of natto (with an egg).

  • Soup: Miso soup with ingredients (seaweed, tofu, green onions).

  • (Example P: approx. 45g, F: approx. 30g, C: approx. 60g, Kcal: approx. 700) *Varies by ingredients and quantity

• 10:30 PM: Pre-bedtime protein

  • Consume 20-30g of whey protein to meet your daily protein goal and suppress muscle breakdown during sleep.

  • (P: approx. 20g, F: approx. 1.5g, C: approx. 2g, Kcal: approx. 100)

• 11:00 PM: Bedtime preparation to sleep

  • For high-quality sleep, practice a digital detox starting one hour before bed.

[Daily Total PFC/Calorie Estimates]

• Protein (P): 136g (Goal 140g)

• Fat (F): 66g (Goal 70g)

• Carbohydrates (C): 198g (Goal 200g)

• Total Calories: 1970kcal (Goal 2000kcal)

[Adjustments for Non-Training Days]

• Breakfast and lunch remain the same.Cut the rice ball before the gym.

• Increase vegetables, mushrooms, and protein at dinner to compensate. Adjust fat intake with nuts or similar sources.

• Since I save time by not going to the gym, I use the time after getting home for self-improvement, such as reading or studying.

This routine is just one example.
By using a complete simple-diet list, you can flexibly adjust based on your mood or physical condition that day.

4. Freedom in a Simple-Diet Lifestyle

4-1. How to Spend the Weekend

Although I am usually thorough about sticking to a simple diet, I sometimes loosen the reins.
On weekends, I often go out into town with friends or family and enjoy regular meals without hesitation.
Assuming you eat 3x7=21 meals a week,if you are disciplined for 19 of them, your life won't fall apart no matter how wild the remaining 2 meals are.

Furthermore, my taste buds are reset and sharpened by my usual simple diet.
Because of this, every meal I eat out on the weekend feels sensationally delicious.
In fact, by eating properly on the weekend, I prevent becoming excessively thin or having an unbalanced diet, and one could say I ammaintaining a balance between mind and body.

In my case, perhaps because people know I work out or can tell by looking at me, I sometimes get asked at social gatherings, "Don't you need to be careful about what you eat?"
At times like that, I can make a good impression (especially on older people) by answering,"Since it's a special occasion, I've decided to eat whatever I like!"

The thing I want to avoid most is, during precious opportunities to share fun times like eating out or traveling, saying "I'm on a diet" or "I'm a simple-diet advocate" andbeing the only one who doesn't eat anything, ruining the atmosphere.

I have failed at this a few times in the past myself.
If it's a close friend, you can have them make a joke out of it like "Look at this guy weighing his meat at a drinking party lol," but acquaintances you aren't that close with will simply think you're a weird person.
Also,in my experience, even if you barely eat or drink at a party, you are still expected to split the bill equally..

A simple diet is not an act of penance, but something to make life more enjoyable in total.
When you should enjoy yourself, enjoy it from the heart.
To that end, I practice discipline daily, keep my physical condition in check, and sometimes perform short-term intensive adjustments like mini-fasting.
Such secret efforts are the secret to balancing good relationships with others and your own quality of life.

4-2. Are Cheat Days Necessary?

When you continue a simple diet stoically, even if you don't feel it's a burden usually, there are times when you crave junk food or fat so much that your reason feels like it's about to blow away.
At times like that,don't hold back. Eat honestly.

I call this acheat dayand consciously set it about once a month.
On that day, I eat out to my heart's content, buy whatever I want at the supermarket, and literally stuff my face until I reach my limit while watching a movie at home.
For me, this is a type of stress-relief routine as important as a hot spring or sauna, and it's a way to vent mental pressure.

That said, although I was initially attracted to "obvious" things like ramen and donuts, recently I've started to find it more enjoyable to grill a thick steak or salmon.
Perhaps the environment of America makes me do that, butonce a simple diet becomes a habit, your values change and your threshold for happiness lowers.

By the way, there is no scientific basis for cheat days in weight loss.
People say things like "it resets your metabolism that has gone into energy-saving mode," but your metabolism won't return just by eating for one day.
Understand that it is purely for mental restand use cheat days effectively.

4-3. The Most Important Thing

The most important thing is to continue.

There is a saying, "Do it before aiming for perfection."
Even if a diet method is 120% more efficient than that of an average person, if you can't execute it even once, the efficiency is 0%..

A person who can continue a simple diet for their entire life is, in a sense, a person with a special talent.
I am an ordinary person. That is precisely why I incorporate moderate "margins" so that I can continue from a long-term perspective.
Although I am on a fairly simple diet usually, I take breaks one way or another, so I don't think of it as being that harsh or stoic myself.

Summary

To reiterate, the most important thing is the basic principle of keeping your daily meals thoroughly simple and plain. It doesn't have to be perfect. The important thing is to start. Eat bland foods, savor simple ingredients like rice and chicken, and actively consume protein.

Potato chips, McDonald's, and Ramen Jiro are cleverly designed to make humans addicted. If you only eat those, your dopamine will easily glitch, and you will end up with a 'junkie tongue and body' that cannot be satisfied unless you eat highly stimulating food at every single meal.

That is precisely why I strongly recommend keeping your daily meals thoroughly simple and plain. By doing so, you will find that
the beef bowls and restaurant meals you eat occasionally will taste surprisingly delicious. This is a small but certain way to greatly increase your life's happiness.

Build a foundation with simple meals, wisely supplement missing nutrients, and satisfy your heart with a meal out about once a week. This balance will prevent malnutrition and rebound from excessive dieting, and will gradually, but surely, lead you to
a lean, toned, and tough body.

There is still room for improvement in time-saving cooking and breakfast optimization. Thinking about 'Can I do this more efficiently?' or 'Is there a tastier way to cook this?', experimenting, and improving in daily life is, for me, a very fun intellectual game.

I hope you too will adopt this concept of 'strategic simple eating' to sharpen your physical and mental condition and help you lead a more fulfilling life.

■ References

■ For those who found this article interesting

I am posting a 'Strategy for Life' on note under the title 'Self-Improvement 2.0'.

In connection with this article, I update articles 2-3 times a week on themes such as muscle training, mindset, and efficiency necessary for becoming happy.

The content of this article corresponds to '1.1. Body' in the 'Self-Improvement 2.0 Logic Tree'.

1. 外見：人は見た目が9割
  ★1.1. 身体★
    1.2. 顔
    1.3. ファッション

2. 内面：知性・スキル・行動・関係性
    2.1. 情報処理能力
    2.2. 実行力
    2.3. 生産性向上
    2.4. コミュニケーション
    2.5. 英語学習

3.マインド：思考のフレーム・哲学・認知の軸
    3.1. メンタルモデル
    3.2. 哲学・人生観
    3.3. メンタルヘルス
    3.4. 習慣化

4. 経済：資本主義社会を生き抜くための必須知識
    4.1. 収入増加
    4.2. 資産形成・管理
    4.3. 支出最適化

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• Join the note membership
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