Let's cover 3 things: metabolism, protein and carbs!
I've have definitely talked about the importance of mental clarity; I’ve talked about the minor life style changes you can make to become more active; last week we lightly touched upon the importance of diet, but in general I think I left you hanging. So today, I want to continue on talking about diet-diet-diet.
It is some sort of ancient tradition to eat three meals a day- breakfast, lunch, and dinner; dinner being the largest and most important. Well, I am here today to tell you that in most situations that is not the best eating schedule. Rather, eating several meals throughout the day is a better solution. We have developed the habit of starving ourselves and then when we do eat, we devour! But by providing your body with a constant supply of nutrients and calories, you will be able to maintain healthy blood sugar levels while maintaining your weight. What happens when your body goes for an extended amount of time without food is that it begins to protect itself from potential starvation, thus your metabolism slows down. But, by eating every two or three hours, your body constantly has to break down that food and send it to the right places, keeping your metabolism at work for a longer amount of time. This, over time, can speed up your metabolic rate.
Another thing to keep in mind is that it takes 15-20 minutes for your brain to process the feeling of being full. It’s something to be conscious of during all meals. If you eat till your body tells you that it’s full then chances are, you are overeating, especially if it takes you less than twenty minutes to eat a good sized meal. If you pre-plan your meals ahead of time and have already thought about setting up appropriate portion sizes, you are less likely to overeat.
In our western culture today, there is minimal emphasis put on meal time anymore. This is sad and is only contributing to our obesity problem. From now on, make meal time priority. Make sure that you are eating slowly and chewing your food thoroughly. You will find that eating healthy foods often takes longer than eating junk food. Compare the time it takes you to chomp through a bag of Doritos compared to the time it takes you to eat a healthy salad. Not only does the salad take longer to eat, but it also provides a multitude of nutrients and keeps you fuller longer.
Another thing that I am really going to stress to you is the importance of protein. Protein is one of the essential building blocks in the human body. It is made up of amino acids, which play a part in the growth of muscles, internal organs, hair, nails, and blood. Second to water, protein is the most plentiful substance found in the body and it mostly resides in our skeletal muscles. Evidence shows that a diet high in protein can help treat obesity and perhaps even osteoporosis. A good way to determine how much protein you should eat is by first, calculating your body weight in kilograms. This is easy, whatever your weight is in pounds, divide by 2.2. So a 160 pound person would be 72.7 kilograms. Then just take that number and multiply it by .8. So that 160 lb person would need to consume at least 58 grams of protein each day. But, for those who exercise strenuously daily, that number could be too low. Instead try multiplying your weight in kilograms by 1.2 instead. In that case, the active 160lb person would need to consume about 87 grams of protein daily.
The final thing that I am going to talk about today is carbohydrates. There are complex carbs and simple carbs. Both are going to be incorporated into your diets, but let’s distinguish between the two. Simple carbohydrates require little digestion and therefore can act as a quick energy source. Fruits and milk are simple carbohydrates, but so are candy bars and a lot of other sugary junk food. The difference between the junk and the fruit and milk are that with the two latter you are also in-taking vitamins and nutrients.
Complex carbohydrates require far energy and more digestion time. They are often rich in vitamins, fiber, and iron. They are the best source of energy because they are slowly burned and thus the energy is slowly released. They also help to maintain blood sugar levels. Examples of complex carbs are whole grain wheat products, barley, rice, oatmeal, legumes, and much more. Both are essential elements to a healthy diet. Timing of your foods is of great importance and we will touch on that next week!
Check out the right hand column for the Body-N-Motion Quality foods list and food logs!
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