Today, I need to face the harsh reality of my starting diet level.

I think I have the knowledge about what makes a healthy diet for me which is somewhere closer to the Mediterranean diet than the recommended Paleo diet.

After trying the Paleo diet and eating way too much bacon and meat in my sophomore year of college, I ended up with super high bad/LDL cholesterol levels and low good/HDL cholesterol. It was so bad that I was able to lower my total cholesterol by over 135 mg/dL in 2 months.

Since then my diet and my cholesterol have yo-yo’ed up and down. My last test had me at 148 mg/dL for my LDL cholesterol which is about 50% more than is healthy and based on my current diet and historical test results, it has probably gone up to about 170 mg/dL. A reasonable goal in the next 12 weeks would be to get this down to 130 mg/dL.

Level 1: Help, I’m Clueless

I am a complete food newbie.

I eat whatever I want, whenever I want. I don’t really bother with portion sizes or learning about what’s good or bad. I just eat what I want!

I haven’t cooked a meal in forever, and most of my food comes from take-out or drive through. I know I should change HOW I eat, but I’m not quite sure where to begin. I’m not sure how to count calories. I definitely don’t bother figuring out how much protein, fat, and carbs I eat either.

I can level up to LEVEL 2 when: I spend two weeks tracking my food. I don’t make any changes, but I’m just AWARE of the foods that I am eating. Whether it’s taking pictures of every meal, or keeping a simple food journal, I track EVERYTHING I eat.

I have tracked my food before using MyFitnessPal and git. I have tended to fall off when tracking my food and usually end up binging from thinking about food too often when I’m keeping a log so I don’t plan to track my food over the long run. I will try tracking for 30 days to give myself an honest assessment of where I am and how I am progressing.

Level 2: Awareness and Tracking

I don’t eat anything differently, but I’ve started counting calories and have tried to keep my food intake at a certain amount.

I know what carbs, proteins, and fats are (we walk you through this later). I still eat fast food, and I still order out a lot, but I try to focus on eating LESS food overall than I was eating before.

I know that cutting back 500 calories per day from what I was eating on average before can get the weight loss process started.

I can Level up to LEVEL 3 when: I start minimizing liquid calories for one week. Liquid calories are a HUGE problem for weight gain, and I’m going to work on cutting back on them. Whether it’s juice, gatorade, soda, or alcoholic beverages, I make a significant progress over a two-week period to drink less liquid calories.

I tend to avoid liquid calories. I will drink juice or soda maybe once a month.

Level 3: Liquid Calories Reduced

I have reduced liquid calories in my diet significantly.

I used to drink soda for caffeine, now I drink black coffee, diet soda, or tea instead. I know that skim milk, juice, and other drinks are akin to sugar water, and I’m working on cutting these back. Sure, I have a glass of red wine with dinner and some beer on the weekends, but otherwise I’m pretty good about this.

I drink a ton of water – more than I ever have in my life!

I’ve also started educating myself further on what “healthy eating” actually means. So, I try to make one meal per day healthy, and I try to make sure each meal has a protein source in it.

I’ve decided to start with breakfast, making sure it has a good amount of protein and some fruit, compared to my old breakfast which was bagels, cereal, muffins, and/or toast.

I’m getting much better at mindful eating. Instead of eating while watching TV or playing video games, I only eat! I understand that we can often eat WAY more calories than we intended to eat when our mind is preoccupied elsewhere, so I do my best to JUST eat, have conversations with loved ones or perhaps read a good book.

I can level up to LEVEL 4 when: I have swapped out grains completely at breakfast for a high protein breakfast for two weeks straight. Instead of a bagel, cereal, muffin, or donut…I eat a breakfast that is high protein: bacon and eggs, or a homemade omelet. Or scrambled eggs and fresh fruit. Or a whey protein smoothie.

I have stopped eating grains completely at breakfast. However, I believe oatmeal is okay based on my goal of lowering my cholesterol. I drink whey protein with 1% or skim milk on weekdays and do not believe that milk is empty calories since my nutritionist instructed me to drink milk. I have also eaten Kirkland protein bars for breakfast which needs to be cut out due to the chocolate and the sugar craving. If I get hungry in the morning, I can eat an apple or nuts instead of the protein bar.

Level 4: Vegetables > Carbs

I’ve learned that fat is not the enemy, carbohydrates are, with sugar being the most evil of all.

For that reason, I’ve started working on minimizing consumption of sugar and unhealthy carbohydrates.

I’ve purge my freezer of any treats and ice cream and cleared the candy from my desk at work.

I’ve cut out almost all liquid calories. Other than the occasional alcoholic beverage on weekends, all I drink is coffee, tea, and water. I have cut back on diet soda too, as I know they oftentimes are filled with chemicals and preservatives that aren’t good for me.

I have started to learn about the importance of vegetables, understanding that they are what truly make my body function properly, and try to make myself eat at least one vegetable per day. I’m still not much of a chef, so I’ve picked ONE vegetable. I know how to cook and make sure I keep it in stock, even if it’s something as simple as frozen or canned veggies.

I can rank up to LEVEL 5 when: I consume a vegetable with every lunch or every dinner, replacing a normal carbohydrate or starch, for 10 total days in a 2 week period, and I go one week without eating pasta. Instead of french fries, I order broccoli. Instead of white bread, I’m eating asparagus.

In general I adhere to eating a vegetable with every lunch and dinner except on weekends. I don’t regularly eat pasta, french fries, or white bread. However, I could do a better job of keeping frozen broccoli in stock.

Level 5: No Pasta, No Sweets

I have a pretty good grasp about what’s healthy food and what’s not. I’m a smart person and I have made a few key changes to how I attack my daily nutrition.

Liquid calories have been removed for a while now. I now crave water as much as I used to soda!

For at least 6 days a week, I am no longer eating pasta, bagels, muffins, or other empty calories.

Candy and sweets are a VERY rare occasion. AKA ordering dessert after dinner is a treat every two or three weeks (instead of almost nightly).

Every meal has a quality protein source, and every meal has a vegetable. I’m still eating things like rice, potatoes, and some bread (though I’m cutting back on those things in favor of more protein or vegetables in some cases).

I can rank up to LEVEL 6 when: I have gone 12 out of 14 days without eating bread OR pasta, and 12 out of 14 days with a vegetable in every meal I eat.

I have gone without eating bread or pasta and with a vegetable in every meal consistently. However, I still struggle with eating snacks and sweets.

Level 6: Bye Bye Bread

I have eliminated bread from my diet with the exception of a few times per month. I know bread and pasta are calorically dense and nutritionally empty.

I still eat rice, potatoes, beans, dairy, and yeah… I love pizza, so I still have it once a month. For the most part carbs are limited to rice and potatoes.

All meals now have plenty of protein and healthy fats (nuts, olive oil, avocados, fatty meats). I know that how I eat is becoming more of a lifestyle, rather than a simple diet I’m just following to lose weight. This is NOT a one month change, or something I force myself to do because I’m scrambling until I can get back to how things were.

Next, I have started to eliminate this concept of snacking between lunch and dinner. I make sure my meals have enough fats, vegetables, and quality protein so that I am not hungry between meals. Because I’m drinking boatloads of water and eating meals with plenty of protein, I no longer feel the need to eat while bored between meals. I say no to dessert, and instead choose to eat more calories at another meal if I’m hungry.

I know that cutting back on carbohydrates is the fastest path to continued success, so I do a BASIC counting system and make sure to keep my daily carb consumption under 150 grams per day.

I can rank up to LEVEL 7 when: I have gone two weeks without pasta, bread, or pizza, and every meal has vegetables and protein. I’m starting to lower and be more aware of my dairy consumption. I feel like it’s time for me to kick things into high gear, and I want to take my diet to the next level.

This seems to be the level I am at or working to. I still need to work on not snacking on the weekends and at work.

Level 7 (HEALTHY TARGET): Minimize Dairy and Snacking

I now eat a mostly paleo lifestyle, and I’m finding my groove.

I understand the concepts, I love how it makes me feel, and I love the effect it’s having on my outward appearance. It turns out my diet IS 80-90% of the equation, and by focusing on my diet, I’m seeing results faster than I ever have in the past…and I’m not slowing down.

I still eat rice, quinoa and beans, though I try to cut back on consuming both. If I eat starches, I aim for sweet potatoes and yams. I try to keep my daily carb consumption under 100 grams per day.

When I DO eat carbs (such as those listed above), I try to eat them in the few hours following my workout.

I have started to minimized dairy consumption. I may or may not be lactose intolerant, but I’m going to minimize dairy consumption when possible.

My body fat is still dropping, and I know eating more healthy fats and less dairy could potentially help me feel less lethargic, so I’m giving it a try. If I consume dairy, it’s done so in the window directly after working out so that my body can process more of it for recovery and muscle building.

I don’t snack almost ever anymore. I don’t keep snacks in my home. I don’t keep snacks at the office. I don’t go to the vending machine. I eat big healthy meals full of protein, healthy fats, and vegetables.

Fast food is a distant memory too. If I do get stuck eating fast food, I go to places like Chipotle rather than McDonalds.

I’ve learned to listen to my body, and I know what “hungry” feels like vs “bored.” I’m all in. I’m noticing changes, I’m feeling better, and I considering taking this to the next level.

I can rank up to LEVEL 8 when: I have gone 12 of 14 days without legumes or dairy. Although beans that have been properly prepared are high in protein, there are also very high in carbohydrate count, so they are the next thing to be eliminated from my diet.