Carbohydrates such as bread, rice, potatoes and pasta provide great energy, but Kaushal Nanavati, MD, from Upstate‘s department of family medicine cautions eating them early in the day.

“The point is, you don‘t fuel your car up when you pull back in the garage. You fill it up before you go out on a long trip,” he says.

“Carbohydrates early in the day are great fuel to use up the rest of the day, but you don‘t want to eat them and then sit. So, the idea is, you can have some of these things early in the day, but continue with your protein and your vegetables throughout the rest of the day.”

He tells his patients to eat seven to nine servings of vegetables per day, preferably including some cruciferous vegetables such as kale, cabbage, broccoli or cauliflower.

He favors beans, lentils and legumes for protein. For people who eat meat, Nanavati suggests fish, turkey or chicken.

Hear the interview from which this is excerpted.