12 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THE BRAZILIAN GUIDE TO WEIGHT LOSS

By Meagan Morris

This isn't another diet plan designed to get you looking like a Victoria's Secret model.

What do you think of when you see the words "Brazilian" and "weight loss"? If you're like many, you think of the tall-and-toned bodies of Brazil-born models like Gisele Bundchen and Adriana Lima. However, this isn't a diet plan designed by some celebrity trainer in order to get a model body. Instead, the 143-page Brazilian weight loss plan was developed by country's government to get people eating real, traditional foods—not the processed crap now available everywhere.

We think of America as the country where everyone is overweight, but England is ripe with its own troubles and one in seven Brazilians are obese. In fact, in Brazil, the majority are at least overweight, thanks to the influx of candy and soda. This "official" plan for the public is simple and effective, so it might be exactly what you're looking for to slim down your own waist. The U.S. of A. certainly has its own recommendations that have come straight from the White House, but hey, maybe you want to feel more cultural about it. So, without further delay, here's your essential cheat sheet for following the Brazilian Guide to Weight Loss. 

1

FORGET THE
FOOD PYRAMID

The key to the Brazilian food guide is simplicity, meaning there's no need to worry about keeping your foods within confusing guidelines like the infamous food pyramid. There's no measuring of calories and macronutrients—instead, you focus on tradition and natural foods.

"Usually, traditional food means homemade food, fresh food," Brazilian food show host Bela Gil told The Atlantic. "There's no way that instant noodles are traditional. Growing up, we always had real food at home: Rice and beans and vegetables."

2

EAT LIKE YOUR GRANDMA
WOULD WANT YOU TO EAT

When it comes to menu planning, think back to those nice meals your grandma or mom used to prepare for you. The Brazilian guide offers several sample meal ideas that would make them proud, including a lunch of rice, beans, and veggies. For dinner? Go with the tried-and-true chicken with rice and beans. Dessert? Fruits, of course.

3

USE CONDIMENTS
AND OIL SPARINGLY

The guide is meant to promote good nutrition, not completely restrict diets and take out the taste and fun of eating. That said, oils, fats, salt, and sugar can be used—but are recommended in small amounts. In other words, don't drown your food in any of it.

4

AVOID SODA AND OTHER
SUGARY SNACKS ALTOGETHER

The Brazilian food guide recommends against eating "ultra-processed" foodslike packaged snacks, instant noodles, and soda because they are nutritionally unbalanced. "As a result of their formulation and presentation, they tend to be consumed in excess, and displace natural or minimally processed foods," the guide says. "Their means of production, distribution, marketing, and consumption damage culture, social life, and the environment."

5

EAT AT REGULAR
INTERVALS AND SLOW DOWN

The Brazilian weight loss guide also calls for regular meals and no snacks in between. The reason: Snacks are often processed cookies or other boxed goodies and aren't nutritionally balanced. Instead, the guide calls for three balanced meals—breakfast, lunch, and dinner—that will give you all the sustenance you need. Start the day off on the right food by avoiding these 20 Worst Breakfast Habits for Your Waistline!

6

BUY LOCAL
WHENEVER POSSIBLE

The guide's whole simplified approach to eating includes taking it back to the time when people shopped for fresh food each day—and bought it from the local farmers and grocers. The guide recommends that you look for vegetables and fruits that are locally grown in season. "Whenever possible, buy organic and agro-ecological based foods, preferably directly from the producers."

7

EAT IN THE
RIGHT PLACE

Are you a serial couch eater? Or worse, do you eat in the car? Stop that right now. Healthy eating involves eating in the right place, "a clean, quiet, and comfortable places encourage attention to the act of eating mindfully and slowly, enable meals to be fully appreciated, and decrease overeating." They're right, too: A study published 2013 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutritionfound that distracted eating leads to overeating.