Top 10 Nutritional Guidelines to Live By
By Carole Griggs, Ph.D (c)
1) Eat right for your Metabolic Type.
- Eating low-fat can be a disaster for some, and a recipe for health for another. Listen to your body, and eat what's right for your metabolic type.
2) Eat every 3-4 hours, and drink H2O throughout the day.
- Eating every 3-4 hours keeps blood sugar levels stable, avoiding the “crash”, as well as the over-consumption after skipping meals. It also allows plenty of time for digestion before eating again. Drinking water keeps the body properly hydrated, flushes out toxins, and allows all functions to operate as intended.
3) Consume protein at each meal.
- This includes nuts and seeds if you’re a vegetarian, yogurt or cottage cheese, protein shakes, or good meats.
4) Eat veggies at least once per day.
- Depending on your Metabolic Type, you may need more or less.
5) Eat starchy carbs first thing in the morning (and for most) only in small quantities post-exercise.
- Again, depending on your Metabolic Type, you may need more or less, and may be able to digest starches efficiently throughout the day.
6) Eat a balanced fat profile containing 1/3 of each type of fat.
- Omega 3, 6, 9 – find a good balance of fats.
7) Ditch the calorie-containing drinks.
- If you’re thirsty, drink water. Period.
8) Use whole foods as your primary source of nutrition.
- If you can’t picture the food (or all of it’s ingredients) hanging off a tree, growing out of the ground, or walking/swimming the earth, don’t eat it. It’s probably not meant for human consumption.
9) Develop food preparation strategies.
- Keep your fridge stocked with good foods, carry foods (such as nuts) with you while on-the-go, and prep things like chicken etc at the beginning of the week.
10) Balance daily food choices with healthy variety.
- Rotate your foods. The body needs a variety of nutrients from a variety of sources. This will also help eliminate the potential for developing food allergies.
Is a Calorie Just a Calorie?
By Carole Griggs, Ph.D. (c)
I have met many personal trainers and fitness enthusiasts over the years, and many of them take on the "calories in, calories out” philosophy as a whole. Are they right? This is the general thought in many nutrition programs and in worldwide health and fitness facilities today. There is some truth to it, but can individuals really eat whatever they want, so long as they burn the same number of calories that they have taken in? Let’s take a deeper look.
Believing that a calorie is simply a calorie, regardless of the macronutrient ratios, is nothing but over-simplification of a much deeper scientific answer. In working with hundreds of clients, I have witnessed over and over again the incredible impact the “type” of foods you eat can have. If I were to put two clients on a 2,000 calorie diet, one eating nothing but fat free corn flakes with fat free milk, and the other eating only dark meat chicken and green beans, the results would be staggeringly different. There is just no comparison what the outcome would be. The body fat composition of these two individuals is simply incomparable, even with both clients on the same workout program.
For example, Sue is a naturally thin gal. She can eat most anything put in front of her and easily stay nice and lean. Diane on the other hand, has natural feminine curves and has to watch every morsel she puts in her mouth, not to mention finds she needs to hit the gym almost daily to keep the weight from packing on. So what’s the difference? If both ladies were to eat a large frappacinno from their favorite coffee shop, or stop at the local fruit-smoothie place on the corner (consuming 100-200 grams of sugar), their bodily responses would show quite different. Since Sue is naturally thin, her body might be able to properly secrete the right amount of insulin to shuttle the mass amount of carbohydrates to utilize as energy. Diane on the other had is a different situation. Eating this same sugary treat may be disaster to her body, sending out way too much insulin causing crazy blood sugar spikes, often resulting in the calories being stored as fat. None of this is to say that anyone should be consuming such items in their daily diet, regardless of their metabolism or body-type. But the type of food does affect different people in different ways.
Now don’t get me wrong, total calorie intake does have an impact, but it is only part of the entire puzzle. Every body is different. Every body assimilates food differently; requiring a different macronutrient ratio to function at is optimum. When eating foods right for your type, the body naturally finds it’s comfortable weight. Granted there are other components to this nutritional typing, such as hormones, stress levels, sleep patterns, water intake, etc. which we will get into in later articles.
Bottom line, calories do play a significant role, it’s just simply not the whole picture. This doesn’t have to be an incredibly complicated balance to discover, but when you do find the balance right for you, hunger cravings dissipate, weight finds it’s naturally place, energy levels, mood stabilizes, and food anxieties tend to drop off. We are all different. One “diet” is not the right “diet” for all. There is no one-size-fits-all deal. One persons’ food is truly another person’s poison. Perhaps it’s time to find out what works for you. Most fitness fanatics and nutritionists don’t want to hear this, nor do they want to believe it. I challenge you to find out for yourself.
Believing that a calorie is simply a calorie, regardless of the macronutrient ratios, is nothing but over-simplification of a much deeper scientific answer. In working with hundreds of clients, I have witnessed over and over again the incredible impact the “type” of foods you eat can have. If I were to put two clients on a 2,000 calorie diet, one eating nothing but fat free corn flakes with fat free milk, and the other eating only dark meat chicken and green beans, the results would be staggeringly different. There is just no comparison what the outcome would be. The body fat composition of these two individuals is simply incomparable, even with both clients on the same workout program.
For example, Sue is a naturally thin gal. She can eat most anything put in front of her and easily stay nice and lean. Diane on the other hand, has natural feminine curves and has to watch every morsel she puts in her mouth, not to mention finds she needs to hit the gym almost daily to keep the weight from packing on. So what’s the difference? If both ladies were to eat a large frappacinno from their favorite coffee shop, or stop at the local fruit-smoothie place on the corner (consuming 100-200 grams of sugar), their bodily responses would show quite different. Since Sue is naturally thin, her body might be able to properly secrete the right amount of insulin to shuttle the mass amount of carbohydrates to utilize as energy. Diane on the other had is a different situation. Eating this same sugary treat may be disaster to her body, sending out way too much insulin causing crazy blood sugar spikes, often resulting in the calories being stored as fat. None of this is to say that anyone should be consuming such items in their daily diet, regardless of their metabolism or body-type. But the type of food does affect different people in different ways.
Now don’t get me wrong, total calorie intake does have an impact, but it is only part of the entire puzzle. Every body is different. Every body assimilates food differently; requiring a different macronutrient ratio to function at is optimum. When eating foods right for your type, the body naturally finds it’s comfortable weight. Granted there are other components to this nutritional typing, such as hormones, stress levels, sleep patterns, water intake, etc. which we will get into in later articles.
Bottom line, calories do play a significant role, it’s just simply not the whole picture. This doesn’t have to be an incredibly complicated balance to discover, but when you do find the balance right for you, hunger cravings dissipate, weight finds it’s naturally place, energy levels, mood stabilizes, and food anxieties tend to drop off. We are all different. One “diet” is not the right “diet” for all. There is no one-size-fits-all deal. One persons’ food is truly another person’s poison. Perhaps it’s time to find out what works for you. Most fitness fanatics and nutritionists don’t want to hear this, nor do they want to believe it. I challenge you to find out for yourself.
Pitfalls of the Yo-Yo Diet
By Carole Griggs, Ph.D. (c)
1. You learn how to imprison yourself for a given period of time, increasing cravings and challenging will power more and more each and every day. Dietary intake is a lifestyle, not a short-lived “diet”. Stop the mental struggle, and shift into the lifestyle that sets you free.
2. Fat-storing enzymes are at its peak – imbalanced macronutrients and calories restricted by a “diet” will cause havoc in your system. Listen to your body. Eat right for your Metabolic Type.
3. Fat cells increase when you eat large portions of food in one sitting.
4. Lean body-mass decreases and basal metabolic rate drops.
5. Each time you hop on the yo-yo bandwagon, it makes it that much more challenging for your body to settle at its natural basal metabolic rate.
6. Insulin and blood sugar problems thrive in this environment, often creating a prime environment for fat storage.
7. Hormones often get out of whack, particularly with women.
8. Stress levels increase, causing cortisol levels to rocket and fat to be stored.
9. Calorie cutting and vegetarian “dieting” often decreases the proper amount of protein intake, causing problems for many, particularly those women that are more “Protein Types”. This often decreases muscle-mass and slows metabolism.
10. Most dieters drop the amount of good fat consumed. When you are only “allowed” a certain number of calories, “points”, or particular foods, you start to choose foods for the wrong reason. Rather than choosing foods that work well for your body, you choose foods to stay within some human-made restriction, encouraging you to choose low fat, low carb, low calorie... Fat doesn’t make you fat. It actually takes fat to lose fat!
Cutting calories too low, eliminating protein, reducing healthy amounts of fat, will do nothing but increase stress on the body, increase cortisol levels and fat storing mechanisms, shift hormones out of whack, slow your thyroid down, shoot your metabolism to an all-time low, and eat what’s left of your fire-burning muscle for energy. This is not the answer.
Let’s not make food our prison. Eat well for your metabolic-type, get some rest and quiet time in your day, play outside, laugh a lot, and love yourself and others.
2. Fat-storing enzymes are at its peak – imbalanced macronutrients and calories restricted by a “diet” will cause havoc in your system. Listen to your body. Eat right for your Metabolic Type.
3. Fat cells increase when you eat large portions of food in one sitting.
4. Lean body-mass decreases and basal metabolic rate drops.
5. Each time you hop on the yo-yo bandwagon, it makes it that much more challenging for your body to settle at its natural basal metabolic rate.
6. Insulin and blood sugar problems thrive in this environment, often creating a prime environment for fat storage.
7. Hormones often get out of whack, particularly with women.
8. Stress levels increase, causing cortisol levels to rocket and fat to be stored.
9. Calorie cutting and vegetarian “dieting” often decreases the proper amount of protein intake, causing problems for many, particularly those women that are more “Protein Types”. This often decreases muscle-mass and slows metabolism.
10. Most dieters drop the amount of good fat consumed. When you are only “allowed” a certain number of calories, “points”, or particular foods, you start to choose foods for the wrong reason. Rather than choosing foods that work well for your body, you choose foods to stay within some human-made restriction, encouraging you to choose low fat, low carb, low calorie... Fat doesn’t make you fat. It actually takes fat to lose fat!
Cutting calories too low, eliminating protein, reducing healthy amounts of fat, will do nothing but increase stress on the body, increase cortisol levels and fat storing mechanisms, shift hormones out of whack, slow your thyroid down, shoot your metabolism to an all-time low, and eat what’s left of your fire-burning muscle for energy. This is not the answer.
Let’s not make food our prison. Eat well for your metabolic-type, get some rest and quiet time in your day, play outside, laugh a lot, and love yourself and others.
Good Foods and Bad Foods, Really?
By Carole Griggs, Ph.D. (c)
It’s always interesting to hear what people have deemed as a “good” food and a “bad” food, a “healthy” food and an “unhealthy food”, or what they “aught to eat” or “shouldn’t eat”.
Take a poll, and you will find that some people claim the following:
Bread makes me fat.
Bread is a healthy carbohydrate.
Eggs have too much cholesterol.
Eggs keep my blood sugar and energy stable.
Meat is bad, I only eat soy.
Soy is poison, I only eat good meats.
Brown rice is my health staple.
Brown rice makes me fat.
Lean meats keep me thin, red meat makes me fat.
Lean meats keep me hungry, red meats keep me thin and satiated.
So what is a “healthy” food? Is there even such a thing? Let’s explore a little bit and find out.
Can it really be true that one food is really “healthy” for every individual? Is one food really “unhealthy” for every individual? Is that even possible? What about our own physiological make-up? How come one diet “works” for one and is a disaster for another?
There are some foods that, without question, are not meant to be consumed by humans. Generally speaking, if you don’t see it hanging on a tree, growing out of the ground, or walking/swimming on the earth, it may not be for us to eat. Artificial ingredients are just that; artificial.
Too much of anything, even things that work well for your Metabolic Type, can become a not-so-good thing quickly. Balance and moderation always play a part.
Nutrition plays a tremendous role in one’s health condition, and so does adequate exercise, proper sleep, meditation, lots of laughter, and self-love. So although we can certainly take a deep look at what we’re putting in our mouth, we best be sure to take a look at the other components affecting our overall health.
How “healthy” is the environment in which we’re dumping food into? Can this really affect my health condition? Stay tuned for the next article on “Lifestyle .. Environment” and find out.
Take a poll, and you will find that some people claim the following:
Bread makes me fat.
Bread is a healthy carbohydrate.
Eggs have too much cholesterol.
Eggs keep my blood sugar and energy stable.
Meat is bad, I only eat soy.
Soy is poison, I only eat good meats.
Brown rice is my health staple.
Brown rice makes me fat.
Lean meats keep me thin, red meat makes me fat.
Lean meats keep me hungry, red meats keep me thin and satiated.
So what is a “healthy” food? Is there even such a thing? Let’s explore a little bit and find out.
Can it really be true that one food is really “healthy” for every individual? Is one food really “unhealthy” for every individual? Is that even possible? What about our own physiological make-up? How come one diet “works” for one and is a disaster for another?
There are some foods that, without question, are not meant to be consumed by humans. Generally speaking, if you don’t see it hanging on a tree, growing out of the ground, or walking/swimming on the earth, it may not be for us to eat. Artificial ingredients are just that; artificial.
Too much of anything, even things that work well for your Metabolic Type, can become a not-so-good thing quickly. Balance and moderation always play a part.
Nutrition plays a tremendous role in one’s health condition, and so does adequate exercise, proper sleep, meditation, lots of laughter, and self-love. So although we can certainly take a deep look at what we’re putting in our mouth, we best be sure to take a look at the other components affecting our overall health.
How “healthy” is the environment in which we’re dumping food into? Can this really affect my health condition? Stay tuned for the next article on “Lifestyle .. Environment” and find out.
