Poor Nutrition Means No Weight Loss

Morning everyone! I've been working furiously on new headband styles and lacey undies for weeks. Working from home means always listening to Pandora, 8tracks, Netflix or whatever talk show is on local TV. Have you watched local daytime television lately?

Every show, every show has a weight loss/fitness segment. Every day there's a new workout style or diet recipe. Yesterday they mentioned Dr. Michael Mosley who claims that all you need is 60 seconds a day, three times a week to become "Skinnier and healthier." And everyone is concerned with calories, superfoods, gluten free stuff, and the latest craze, sugar. 

I coach my clients on nutrition before calories. Good nutrition, or what it means to be healthy, means that you're fueling your cells with the proper mix of nutrients so that your bodily processes--like  hormone and blood sugar regulation, metabolism and digestion-- all run smoothly.

These factors can greatly impact your ability to lose weight. For example, a slow metabolism means your body goes into fat-storage mode, burning up muscle for fuel and holding onto that precious tummy pooch. A messed up digestive system is even worse, and can cause a slow metabolism, chronic bloating...read more about that here. Hormones are another big player in the weight loss game. Leptin (a hormone) decreases when you restrict your calories, and tells your thyroid to tell your metabolism to slow down. Read more about leptin here. 

Without proper nutrition, these processes don't run as smoothy as they're meant to. While restricting your calories will cause some temporary weight loss, the weight you lose is water, then muscle, then fat, and if you do achieve any fat loss from calorie restriction your metabolism has become so slow that if you were to start eating normally again, you'd gain it all back instantly. Sound familiar?

If you're lacking in the nutrition department, you most likely have a slow metabolism and a handful of other symptoms; bloating, fatigue, cravings, weak immune system. 

On the flip side, if you're healthy, meaning all of these processes are working smoothly because your cells are getting the proper nutrition, your metabolism could win a race and you shed excess body fat.

If I had a segment on the early show, I'd tell the world this: Stop counting calories and nourish your body. Food is FUEL, but that doesn't mean you can't love what you're eating! I am such a foodie in the nerdiest sense of the word because I love, love eating and cooking (and eating) and all that meant when I changed my eating habits was I had to try harder to find things that I loved to eat.

You NEED to be focusing on realistic portions of the healthiest, most natural foods you can find or afford. Making nutrition a priority means long-term weight loss, improved immune function, and less stress for you because you won't hate your tired, fat body anymore, because you won't be tired and fat anymore.

lol

Grilled chicken, Black beans, leafy green vegetables, complex carbs like whole grains and sweet potatoes and oats, WATER. None of these are expensive. Ditch the stuff that comes in a box with a list of ingredients and stop counting calories, please, because nutrition optimizes fat loss.

And happiness.

Guess what this is? GOOD NUTRITION!

Click here for the recipe.

Teff Flour

It’s the world’s tiniest grain (so small that it can’t be processed or refined) and it is becoming more popular because it’s so versatile. Teff leads the grains in calcium content, which helps strengthen bones and may reduce PMS symptoms. One grain of teff is up to 40% resistant starch, which can help you lose weight if you replace the other carbs you’re filling up on, what I call “carbage” (processed foods like white bread, potato starch, sweets and the like). Teff can be white or dark in color and can be found at your local health food store or online for about $8 per pound. One serving size is about 1/4 cup and 160 calories. Sweeter and milder than wheat, teff has a molasses-like flavor. Teff can be cooked hot for a nice breakfast cereal – 1 cup of teff with 2 cups of water or juice, cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until it’s thick and the liquid is absorbed. Add fresh fruit on top. Teff is also available in tortillas for a great wrap or to make quesadillas (a lot better than refined flour tortillas and gluten-free too!). 

source.

Avocado Salad Dressing (aka heaven).

You guys.

As if I don't eat enough avocados already, I found this amazing avocado salad dressing recipe. Add a little bacon to your salad because bacon loves avocado and you'll be in love!

Recipe Here

Planet Fitness told this girl to "Cover up her toned body".

Planet Fitness, the "judgement free zone" told this woman to "cover up her toned body" because it was intimidating others and they had received several complaints.

What do you guys think? Did Planet Fitness have the right to tell her to "cover up"?

Ban Total Refresh Body Cloths

Just saw these on TV -- haven't tried them, but totally invented this already. I carry around baby wipes to wipe my sweaty body after teaching / working out - but these are cooling, and scented. Try them out!

(Walmart carries them, or buy them online.)

Forbidden Rice: Healthier than Blueberries!

Last Saturday I went to Whole Foods and Trader Joes in Cleveland. One of the amazing things I came home with was "forbidden rice".

Whole Foods' bulk section has I swear like, thirty different kinds of rice.

If you haven't been to Whole Foods, do yourself a favor. Seriously. Rice, grains, pasta, flours, beans, soup mixes, nuts, seeds, dried fruits, COCONUT COVERED DATES (my favorite), organic honey... seriously, go. (If you need more convincing, check out Whole Foods website here.)

We looked up the nutrition facts of forbidden rice when we got home, and it turns out it's exponentially healthier than brown rice. And blueberries, they say.

Here's an article from CNN in 2010 on the health benefits of forbidden rice (also called Black Rice). Black rice bran contains antioxidants called anthocyanins, responsible for the black/purple color. These anthocyanins are also found in blueberries, but black rice doesn't contain sugar.

Ancient Chinese Legend says black rice is so rare, delicious, and healthy that only the emperors were allowed to eat it.

I'm so glad I found this. I don't remember how much I paid for it at Whole Foods, but you can buy it on Amazon here.

What are you going to put black rice in??

We have been eating tons of chipotle-style burrito bowls. Post coming soon!

Eat a burger.

Totally spur of the moment, as soon as I started cooking dinner last night I thought I ought to show you guys this awesome burger. A burger might not be what comes to mind when you think "healthy," but if it's a burger you crave, here's how you make it better.

The Meat

This is your meal's source of protein, so you want it to be as clean and lean as possible. A ground chuck burger (what you'll get at a restaurant) is 70-80% lean, at best. Opt instead for 96% lean ground beef or ground sirloin, which has a lower fat content.

Even leaner are ground turkey burgers. Jennie O extra lean fresh (not frozen) ground turkey is rated highest on Fooducate. Jennie O turkey burgers are next in line, getting a B+. Ground chicken is also an option. Tonight we made Jennie O turkey burgers.

Frozen Burgers

Watch for fat content, fillers, additives and sodium content in frozen burgers, most of them are crap. If you're into frozen burgers, Trader Joes has an amazing selection of hormone/antibiotic free frozen bison, beef, chicken, salmon, and turkey burgers. 

Condiments 

A burger isn't a burger without something on it. Mustard is always an acceptable condiment, but ketchup, cheese, and mayo will all sabotage your diet. 

Ketchup: Use Simply Heinz instead of regular ketchup because it has no high fructose corn syrup.

Cheese: Fat free cheeses are full of chemicals, but sim or low fat cheeses aren't, since they're just made with skim milk. Opt for a cheese that's low in fat. 

Mayo: If you're trying to lose weight, mayo isn't going to do you any favors. But, if you're going to use it, use this:

It's got half of the calories and fat as real mayo, and olive oil is a healthy fat. 

The Bun

As for the bun, don't use one! Two pieces of romaine lettuce instead of a bun will save you at least 100 calories, extra carbs and sugar.

If no bun seems like blasphemy, try it on a sprouted grain wrap. (Ezekiel tortilla).

If you're feeling really saucy, make a burger salad with ketchup and mustard dressing.

Blasphemy, I know. 

Serve it with a side of fresh veggies and viola, a healthier burger. This was one of my lower carb days, so I didn't add any carbs other than my veggies. If you need carbs, add that sprouted grain wrap, some brown rice, or a baked sweet potato.

The pickle really makes the burger for me. I usually dip my few veggies in Opa Greek Ranch, too. 

A healthy burger and healthy ranch dressing. Who'da thought.

We keep basically a raw veggie tray in our fridge at all times. Sometimes there's some cheese cubes in there too (I like Colby Jack because it's low lactose). You should be eating raw veggies every day, so if you're not already doing this, get on it! :)

What's your favorite raw veggie??

The Greatist Table: 5 Healthy Lentil Recipes from Around the Web

5 Healthy, Budget-Friendly Edible Gifts from Around the Web

Oh man, every one of these. Especially the Dark Chocolate Bark with Superfoods. Gimmeeeeee.

Why is your digestive system important?

Did you know that about 60% of your immune system is located in your gut?

A standard American diet (one low in fiber and nutrients, high in sugar, simple carbs, and chemical additives) changes the ecosystem of our guts and promotes an unhealthy gut. An unhealthy gut means it's going to be reeeeeallly hard to lose weight.

How your digestive system works

First, the bugs in your gut function like a rainforest — a diverse and interdependent ecosystem. The 3 pounds of bacteria there include some 500 different species that act as a chemical factory — helping you digest your food, produce vitamins, regulate hormones, excrete toxins and produce healing compounds that keep your gut healthy.

But for you to be healthy, these bacteria must be in balance. Too many of the wrong bugs, like parasites, yeasts and bad bacteria — or not enough of the good bugs, like lactobacillus or bifidobacteria — can seriously damage your health.

This means chronic inflammation (which can manifest itself from anything from fibromyalgia to  headaches to eczema), a jacked up metabolism (you're dieting and exercising but not losing anything), improper nutrient absorption (your body isn't absorbing vitamins from food).

Second, the gut is delicate. Your entire immune system and the rest of your body are protected from the toxic environment in the gut by only a one-cell-thick layer — the epithelium — that covers a surface area the size of a tennis court! If that barrier is damaged, you will get sick and your immune system will become overactive, producing inflammation throughout the body.

And then there’s your second brain. That’s right, your second brain. Your gut literally contains its own nervous system. In fact, the ”brain” in your gut contains more neurotransmitters than the brain in your head.

The intestinal nervous system is wired back to your brain, and messages travel between the two. When those messages are altered for any reason in any direction — from the brain to the gut or the gut to the brain — your health will suffer.

But wait, there’s more: Your gut also has to dispose of all the toxins created as a byproduct of your metabolism. If things get backed up, your entire body can become overrun with toxins.

Get it? Weight loss = impossible.

Finally, in the midst of all of this, your gut must break down all the food you eat, separate all the vitamins and minerals, and shuttle everything across the epithelium into your bloodstream for you to stay healthy.

-experiencelife.com 

So how do you know if yours is healthy or not?

First, take a look at your diet. Are you eating lean proteins, complex carbs, and healthy fats? Or are you eating fast food, processed garbage, and too much/not enough calories?

Second, do you frequently have any of the following?

• Gas
• Bloating
• Constipation
• Diarrhea
• Bad breath

Before you can lose weight, your digestive ecosystem has to be in check. A book called The Schwarzbein Principle explains, in full detail, why the health of your digestive system determines whether or not you will be able to lose weight.

So what do I do?

Doctors tend to overlook digestive health because it's not exactly life threatening. It will, however,  make you and keep you fat, it'll drain your energy levels and wreck your immune system. How do you fix your digestive system? Simple. Eat clean.

- Eat whole, unprocessed fiber-filled foods like whole grains, beans, vegetables, nuts, seeds.

- Take digestive enzymes**

- Add a probiotic supplement into your diet (and eat more greek yogurt!)

- Take Omega 3 supplements, which help with inflammation in the gut

- Glutamine and Zinc can also be gut-healing supplements **

**Always discuss with your doctor before taking any supplement.

Did we even need another reason to eat healthy? Next time you reach for that sugary latte or piece of pizza, think beyond just the calories. A healthy gut means a healthy, fit body.