You have made the first step to creating a new you! You know what kettle bell swings are, you can run a mean set of stairs, and complete a spin class or two! But what about health eating? With so many fad diets out there, many have no idea where to begin. Atkins says one thing, while Jenny Craig says another. So where do you go from here? Below is a basic list of guidelines to consider while making choices with food. Remember this isn’t a diet. You are not restricting yourself, rather making choices to create a healthier, happy you. Eating clean doesn’t have to be hard, you do not need to count calories or completely eliminate the foods you have learned to love. Rather, the secret is moderation, and reorganization. You can do this! All it takes is a little planning and time, getting used to, and you will see within days your energy will sky rocket and your will no longer feel slow, bloaty or lethargic.
1. Eating Sufficient Fibre!
Fibre is essential for life, but is often overlooked. Dietary fibre is the indigestible portion of plant foods that pushes food through the digestive system, absorbing water and combating constipation. There are two types of fibre, soluble and insoluble. Soluble dissolves in water, binding to fatty acids slowing down the time it takes to empty into the stomach. This slows down the rate of sugar absorption by the body. Insoluble fibre does not dissolve in water. It has many functions such as moving bulk through the digestive track, and controlling the pH in the intestines.
2. The Magic of Protein
Regardless of if you are a vegetarian or not, you need protein! It is essential to eat a complete, lean protein every time you eat in order to create muscle mass! Even if you are vegetarian, this still applies. Protein is vital to life, providing to structure in all living things. Our muscles are made of protein, with amino acids being the building blocks. Protein is not only essential to keep our hair, skin, nails and brain healthy but it is also important to rebuild the damaged muscle fibres after working out. Eating protein after exercising will help your body restore, and increase your recovery. Good sources of complete proteins are white chicken, white turkey, fish, seafood, egg whites and protein supplements like protein powders.
Chicken! Don’t be afraid to be creative.
3. The Key to Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates occur in foods as sugars and starches. Digestible carbohydrates contribute 4 calories of metabolized energy per gram. Carbohydrates are an efficient,generally inexpensive source of energy. Most of the carbohydrates that we consume should be in the form of complex carbohydrates (polysaccharides) such as starch rather than as simple sugars (mono or disaccharides) such as table sugar.
Monosaccharides found in foods are glucose, fructose and galactose. These are referred to as simple sugars because one of their main functions is their ability to impart a sensation of sweetness; however, sugars vary in their sweetening power.
Start with little changes, switch from white to brown rice.
Disaccharides are formed by the union of two monosaccharide molecules. Disaccharides are also considered as “simple” sugars. The most important type of carbs are disaccharides. Polysaccharides differ from simple sugars by being insoluble in water and generally tasteless. Most of the polysaccharides used in food products are derived from plant or seaweed sources and contribute to the thickness or viscosity and textural properties of food products. Examples are starches, cellulose and xanthan gum.
When eating carbohydrates, be sure to eat them with a fibrous carbohydrate to control the release of insulin. By controlling this, it is less likely to store carbs as fat, and will not cause a spike in your blood sugar. Carbs will also spare proteins, letting you use protein to do its correct job, rebuilding your muscles.
4. Good Fats
You hear it everywhere in the media to stay away from fats, but in reality they are vital to good health. There are three types of fats, saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated. Guess what the best part of it is, eating a healthy balance of fats will not only improve your health but help you lose fat.
These are a few of my favorite things! Add nuts, avocado and oils to jazz up your salads!
Saturated Fats- these should come from animal products, or limited amounts of butter or coconut oil used in cooking
Monounsaturated Fats- these should come from mixed nuts, olives, and olive oils
Polyunsaturated Fats- these should come from flaxseed, flaxseed oil, fish oil, mixed nuts
5. Water!
For years now reports have said to drink at least 8 glasses of water a day, well they were absolutely right. But what they didn?t include was the fact that you not only need 8 glasses, but even more than that to maintain balance within your body. Start off by ensuring you are drinking at least 2.5L a day- then gradually work your way up to drinking around 3-4Ls. I know it seems like a lot, but really it isn?t. This doesn?t have to come just in the form of tap water, rather any water based liquid. Your morning cup of coffee to your afternoon tea counts. Just think, your Venti Starbucks Tea is 591.5 ml, right there is half a litre of fluid.
Invest in a good water bottle, it will be your not only your best friend but the environments!
6. 5-6 Small Meals vs. 3 Large
Eat every 2-3 hours. Are you doing this ? no matter what? Now, you don?t need to eat full meals every 2-3 hours but you do need to eat 5-6 meals and snacks to keep your metabolism in full swing. Have your breakfast, lunch and dinner- plus some food between those times. Why? This will not only help to charge up your metabolism, but it will also allow you not to binge when you do finally sit down for a meal.
7. Salt
Basic rule of thumb, when eating processed foods like salad dressings, or sauces, eat those that contain around 100milligrams of salt per serving. Salty foods cause you to retain water, thus leaving you feeling bloaty and in the end not very happy. There are plenty of alternatives on the market for low sodium choices. You would be surprised the difference that this will make. Try sodium reduced soy sauce, Mrs.Dash seasonings and making your own condiments, as these tend to be the foods highest in salt.
Add Mrs.Dash to almost anything, from seasoning vegetables to spicing up tuna!
8. Consuming Enough Calories
Simply said, not eating enough calories will make you feel like a wet dishrag. Very low calorie diets for longer than two weeks are hazardous to your health. Your personal calorie rate depends on your gender, age, activity level, and exercise intensity. For men, anything under 1600 calories and women over 1000 calories per day does not contain enough vitamins, and nutrients to keep the body vital and healthy.
9. Catching enough zzzzz’s…..
Sleep is essential for a person?s health and wellbeing. Yet millions of people do not get enough sleep and many suffer from lack of sleep. Everyone?s individual sleep needs vary. In general, most healthy adults are built for 16 hours of wakefulness and need an average of eight hours of sleep a night. However, some individuals are able to function without sleepiness or drowsiness after as little as six hours of sleep. Others can’t perform at their peak unless they’ve slept ten hours.
So why do we need sleep?
- The metabolic activity of the brain decreases significantly after 24 hours of sustained wakefulness
- Sleep deprivation results in a decrease in body temperature, a decrease in immune system function as measured by white blood cell count (the soldiers of the body), and a decrease in the release of growth hormone
- Sleep deprivation can also cause increased heart rate variability
- In order for the nervous system to work properly
- Increased drowsiness and decrease in concentration can occur without sleep
- Impairment of memory and physical performance and mood swings may develop.
- Release of growth hormone in children and young adults takes place during deep sleep
- Most cells of the body show increased production and reduced breakdown of proteins during deep sleep
10. Preparation!
Why are fast food chains so popular? Life is busy, simple as that. The last thing you want to do at 5am is eat breakfast, plan your meals and make everything for that day. It doesn’t have to be that way! Take an hour out of your day on the weekend, or evening. Grocery shop, and plan out some meal ideas. Cut up veggies, cook meats, and utilize your Tupperware! With a little pre-planning, you can not only eat healthier but also cut down on food costs, and decrease the stress of last minute cooking!
Try cutting up all the vegetables you need for your week. Put them in ziplock bags, and tupperware to make for easy access!
