Simple Nutrition and
Healthy Weight Loss Advice.
Long time no blog I know, but I have been busy studying and
doing work to prepare for my Nutrition and Weight Loss Specialist Certification
exam. I thought I would take some time and share some things I have learned and
tips that I will share with my clients.
This is 4 liters of water. Start drinking. |
Water Is the Most
Important Nutrient for Your Body.
Water will not only curb your appetite, but is required for
every important task your body does. You will not be able to digest your food,
get nutrients form your food or grow muscle without water. Depending on
activity you could consume 3 to even 6 liters of water a day! Also, I would suggest you don’t get on
the bandwagon of using additives or sports drinks in water. Ideally, you should replenish electrolytes
and carbohydrates via food. Replenishing these is only critical after an hour
of vigorous exercise and even then, will only benefit performance after 20
minutes. So save that for your half marathon or marathon. Drink water and have
a balanced meal after your workout. One of the things I do is put elastic bands around my water bottle. Each time I empty the bottle I move an elastic band down. So my bottle holds 600 ml, 5 bands start at the top, at the end of the day I should have 5 elastic bands at the bottom for 3 liters.
Fat is not bad, in
fact you need it.
Some of your nutrients are fat-soluble. So that means they
can only be used in the presence of fat.
Omega 3, 6, and 9 are important. Saturated fats are not all evil, but
look at lightly processed or unprocessed fats. Coconut oil, extra virgin olive
oil, and fats from avocado and fish should be included in your pans and plates.
If you would like to find out more about healthy dietary fat, check in next
week. I will be writing all about the good, bad and ugly of fat.
Lastly, Unprocessed,
Whole, Raw.
My training and my personal style encourage clients to enjoy
raw, unprocessed and whole foods. It is very important to avoid things in
cellophane bags, vending machines, laden with heavy preservatives. This is not
as boring as you may think, and not dreadfully difficult. I am not asking you
to cut out your treats, just re-think them. My process involves working with my
clients and finding the negotiations and small changes in diet that have the
biggest impact. Replace preprocessed candies and bars with dates and nuts with
little bits of dark chocolate. If
you enjoy meat, eat the least processed as possible. Cut out sausage, hotdogs,
even hamburgers and go for cuts of meat. Watch this space for more suggestions
and tips on this to come.
Don't like cooking. Try eating raw veggies with a little hummus. No cooking! |