A.C.E. Power Plan
Eating for health and performance

by Rob Anger

The A.C.E. Power Plan is not a diet, it is not a fad.  It is natural and healthy food choices for developing nutritious meal planning, centered around improved health and performance. Everybody understands the need for good health but what exactly is performance?  For you it may be different than for someone else.  Performance may mean walking up a flight of stairs with less stress upon the body, or perhaps it may mean running a full blown marathon better than you did last year.  Performance is a result of optimum health and this is where it gets interesting.  This is a plan for you, to be customized for you, as an individual with specific needs and a unique lifestyle.  Just as no two people are exactly alike, nor do they have the same demands, therefore no one diet can be applicable to everyone, this will allow you to take into consideration your needs, preferences and goals.

The A.C.E. Power Plan is a method of looking at the entire balance of macronutrients, A's (amino acids), C's (carbohydrates), and E's (essential fatty acids), and most importantly, the portion size needed to achieve your fitness goals based upon your body type and size.

That's it, it doesn't have to be anymore complicated than that. There aren't anymore nutrients than these three.  As all micronutrients (vitamins, phytochemicals, enzymes, and minerals), come from, or should come from your foods, which are made up from those three macronutrients, provided of course, that they come from well balanced, nutrient rich sources.  Now this is the trick, balancing your macros in order to achieve your micros.  This will all be explained in further detail.

Along your successful journey of nutrition and exercise, you will find many changes.  Some of the changes you will notice will be in your clothing size, physiological changes, your goals will broaden, the quality of your sleep will improve, you’ll have increased energy levels, your awareness levels, better eating habits, better posture and even a positive attitude that will carry over to other areas of your life.  Exercise will account for many of these changes, but as you will learn, nutrition plays an even more important role.

No one would disagree that your car needs a refined fuel source, as not many of us would dare to put in anything less than the pumps have to offer, yet people have no problem putting just about anything into their bodies and expecting their bodies to get "great mileage" and performance.  In other words, most of us treat our cars better than we treat our own bodies.  Think carefully about your fuel sources.

The next few pages will outline basic nutrition guidelines necessary to achieve the changes you desire.  If you understand that reading about an exercise is not the same as consulting a good trainer, to fully understand the biomechanics behind that exercise, the same wisdom applies even more to nutrition.  With all the misguided information out there, the contradictory statements, and seemingly endless amounts of information, it is so important to consult a qualified nutritionist. 

The following illustration displays how nutrition is the most important piece of the pie, (pun intended).

The Rule Book
My nutritional guidelines are fairly simple and they are just that, guidelines for healthy eating.  Personal counseling with a certified nutritionist can elaborate and provide specific guidance.  Nonetheless, the rules for this guideline will take the "die" out of "dieting".  There is no starvation required, in fact, just the opposite, we want to provide the body with all the nutrition it needs to heal, repair, build and stay healthy.  It doesn't matter if your trying to get ripped, build up a chest of Tarzanian proportion, just trim down or lose a whole lot of bodyfat, the same rules apply to everyone and doing this without suffering is easier than ever, here's how.

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