Making Nutrition Less Complicated

This week we are going to cut through some of the fluff and confusion on nutrition, what works and what doesn’t.

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Things That Make You Go Hmm….

Nutrition can be a touchy subject. On top of that, the amount of contradictory information you can find on the old interwebs is pretty profound. Influencers and online trainers pushing their programs, sponsored products, and newest diets with their “high success” rates and before and after photos can easily flood us. Understandably, it can get pretty confusing. If you’re in that boat of wondering what the best approach is and your best friend is raving about the new diet they are on and how well it’s working but you aren’t so sure about it, you’re not alone. And there is an easy way to cut through the fluff to see if it’s really a viable option for you. These few, simple thoughts can help.

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First:

Many claim that their new “diet” is working so well because of it’s specific approach. The reality is that we forget to compare this to what their nutrition was like BEFORE they started it. Chances are, it wasn’t so good. If you go from eating donuts, scones, and frappuchinos for breakfast, skipping lunch because your busy, then over eating at night when you go out to the fancy restaurants that are often loaded with fat, toss down 3 glasses of wine, and enjoy a slice of cake for dessert, you’re total caloric intake, let alone sugar is probably higher than you think. ANY diet the has you starting to eat less processed food and is a lower calorie diet is going to work.

Second:

That last sentence above  is often the crux. For the most part, weight loss and body composition come down to a calories in vs. calories out issue. If you are consuming less than you are burning, weight loss will follow. If you are consuming more than you are burning, stagnating or weight gain is likely. HOW we go about this can have a wide variety, but some simple principles remain.

The more real, unprocessed foods you have like meat, vegetables, fruit, etc, the more you can have since they aren’t as calorically dense. The more processed foods you have like some pastas, cookies, “protein bars” or supposed shakes from specialty stores, and generally anything that comes in a box or package, the less you can have since they are more calorically dense.

Third:

Is what you are doing sustainable? This is often easily overlooked and can be a huge stumbling block for many people as they go through their journey of nutrition. No matter what the approach, if what you are doing doesn’t provide some level of flexibility and fit with your lifestyle long term it isn’t going to work. Weighing and measuring food, tracking your macros, going keto, vegan, paleo, the list goes on! It won’t work long term if it’s not something you can sustain. So before you dive in head first, consider if it’s something you can do long term. Exploring different approaches isn’t bad if they have sound principles but should only be done after you establish a healthy baseline.

Fourth:

Alcohol has generally no redeeming value. I know, bummer. It effects your sleep quality, can increase craving and appetite, and inhibit your body’s ability to burn fat for up to 36 hours! Depending on the amount of alcohol consumption someone is currently at, simply eliminating this from their diet can have a profound effect on their weight loss, body composition, and overall health.

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What does all this mean? Simply, starting somewhere is better than not at all, if you consume less than you burn you will loose weight, real foods allow you to eat more and are better for your overall health, sustainability is key, and if you can ditch the alcohol do it!

Simple… but that doesn’t always mean it’s easy. If you find this newsletter and topic helpful let me know and maybe next week, we can talk about some approaches that can make this easier for you. Additionally, if you're looking to set a baseline to see what works best for you, we suggest a Dexa Scan to learn more about your body comp. Doing one every 3 months or so to compare outcomes can provide some real, tangible results.

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Keep up the hard work!

Chris

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