This one simple meal hack will help you stay lean

What order do you eat your food in?

If you're anything like the gluttons in the JOE office, you just wolf it down without a second thought (and probably without chewing it too). Well, don't be so hasty, greedy guts, because being more methodical with your meals could keep you in shape. Eating proteins and vegetables before carbohydrates is one secret to staying lean. The reason is that when you eat carbs (particularly simple carbs like sweets and sugar) it releases a lot of glucose into your blood stream - and fast. That means your insulin hormone levels spike in order to deal with all this glucose and shunt it into your muscles - and worst of all, your fat cells where it is stored. But by eating protein first, it blunts your insulin response. It does this by triggering a first-phase insulin response which keeps your blood sugar steady and stops it rising higher when you eat the carbs. It also means you need less insulin to process a meal. Add in your green veg and the soluble fibre will slow down the digestion of blood sugar-raising carbs. The bottom line is keeping your blood sugar steady prevents your insulin from spiking (which locks fat into your cells - not good for staying lean). Another good tip is to stick to Low Glycemic Index (GI) carbs which are absorbed slower and keep those insulin spikes down. So polish off your protein and veg before eating those carbs.