Even though we all know nutrition is a huge component of living a healthy life and getting the body you desire, eating well can be hard. Often times we don’t know what to eat and are presented with delicious, fast, but unhealthy, foods that are hard to pass up.
All this month, I’d like to share with you the basics of eating correctly. You’ll learn the foundation of how to make the right choices when putting food into your body. If you’re also doing one of the WOW workout programs, you’ll see specific nutritional guidance geared towards the specific goals of that program. See more of those programs here.
WOWs nutrition philosophy is based on 3 basic tenets:
Choose Natural
Macronutrients
Nutrient Timing
First, let’s dive into Choose Natural.
If you visit your average supermarket, you’ll notice that most foods lining the shelves contain a lot of processed ingredients. These items include ready-to-eat meals and snacks that often contain high amounts of sugar, sodium, and fat, while being low in vitamins and minerals. Eating too much of these nutritiously empty items can make it harder to reach your fitness goals, while taking a toll on your overall health.
The first step towards a healthy diet is to cut out as many processed foods as you can while focusing on eating whole, natural foods that are dense in nutrients. That means eating more fresh fruits, vegetables, lean meats, whole grains, and low-fat dairy products. You’ll immediately start to feel the difference and never want to go back to the old, processed foods once you make the switch.
Let’s talk about Macronutrients.
Many diets and eating plans focus on counting calories. While your daily caloric intake is important, I believe counting them shouldn’t always be your primary focus. Rather, what’s even more important is the QUALITY of foods you eat, which will keep you satiated without making you feel deprived.
I want you to start focusing on feeding your body with the proper balance of the 3 primary macronutrients: Protein, Fat, and Carbs. Rather than focusing on ways to limit and control your caloric intake, you’ll start to enjoy the richness and vibrancy of the food that will nourish your body, fuel workouts, and aid in recovery.
By consuming high quality nutrients from your macros, you’ll begin to build a solid nutritional foundation and your body will no longer crave empty calories, aka sugar and processed foods. Continue to focus on fueling your body with the highest quality nutrients and your body will begin to transform into how you want it to look.
Let’s look at what all of this entails.
Protein
Focus on lean protein choices.
Protein is the building block of muscle tissue. If you don’t feed your body enough protein, your muscles will not receive the proper nutrients they need to repair and grow. On the other hand, too much protein will tax the kidneys, lead to dehydration, and be stored as fat. Getting this balance right will help you maximize the effects of your workouts.
Protein is divided into two components: essential and non-essential. There are nine essential amino acids (EAA) that your body doesn’t produce and must be acquired from food. The foods that contain all nine EAA are called “complete” proteins and are found in lean meats, dairy, fish and eggs. Other lean meats include buffalo, elk, venison, and other wild meats.
For vegans, there are plant-based foods that are also known to contain all nine EAA, such as soy and quinoa. Other sources of plant-based foods that contain some of EAA’s are legumes, grains, and seeds. When you combine different incomplete proteins, you can create a complete protein. They don’t have to be combined at the same meal, just so long as they are eaten in the same day. Examples of food combining to make a complete protein include:
- Legumes with grains – sample meal: Black beans and rice with cumin and lime juice.
- Seeds with legumes – sample meal: Spinach salad with garbanzo beans and sesame seeds.
Carbohydrates
Focus on lower glycemic carb options.
Fad diets have given carbs a bad name, but they’re absolutely essential as an energy source during exercise. Generally, you should try to eat carbs with low glycemic loads, like those found in whole, unrefined plant-based foods. Not only will the quality of the carbs be better, but you’ll also take in essential vitamins, minerals, fiber, and antioxidants. Great carb choices include green leafy vegetables, beans, legumes, oats, amaranth, quinoa, whole grains, and starchy vegetables. Stay away from empty carbs like white bread, pasta, and sugary snacks which can increase your glycemic load. Fruit is another great natural source of energy.
What does glycemic load mean? The glycemic load reflects the expected increase in blood glucose when consuming carbs. Or essentially, how much a carb adds to your blood sugar level. The higher the glycemic index, the quicker the carbohydrates are digested and utilized. Typically high glycemic foods provide very little nutrients. Only right before or right after your workouts are higher glycemic carbs recommended. At all other meals you should stick to low-glycemic carbs that will help you feel full longer.
Fat
Focus on healthy fats.
Consuming moderate quantities of healthy fat is essential for forming healthy cell membranes, which are needed for optimal hormonal function and blood sugar control. The two essential fatty acids are linoleic acid (omega-3 fatty acid) and lenolenic acid (omega-6 fatty acid). Examples of fat that you should be eating are butter from the milk of grass-fed cows, nuts, and olive oil.
There are four types of fatty acids: saturated fat, monounsaturated fat, polyunsaturated fat, and trans fat. For optimum results, it’s important to limit your intake of unhealthy fats while increasing your diet of healthy fat in order to provide the building blocks you need for sustaining a healthy metabolism.
Here are the fats you should try to include in your diet:
- Omega-3s (polyunsaturated fat) are essential and should be incorporated as your primary fat source. The best sources of Omega-3’s include wild or sustainably raised cold-water fish (salmon, sardines, herring, sable), flaxseed, and walnuts.
- Monounsaturated fats are known as omega-9 fatty acids and are found in nuts, seeds, avocado and olive oil. This type of fat is non-essential, meaning your body can make these fats as needed. Omega-9s also have added benefits by protecting against heart disease and they may play a role in controlling blood sugar.
As a general rule, I recommend that you try to have 35% of your macronutrients in a meal be carbs, 35% protein, and 30% fat. Don’t worry if you deviate from that exact ratio on some meals – just always try to stay close and have at least one perfect meal per day.
The final piece of the puzzle is Nutrient Timing.
Another important aspect of nutrition is the timing of meals and snacks. In order to consistently fuel your body throughout the day, you should be eating every 2-4 hours. This way you’ll keep a constant flow of fuel going into your body and won’t overeat at any one meal.
Here are a few helpful tips for what you should be eating and when.
Breakfast
NEVER skip breakfast. After a night of sleep, your body needs to replenish the nutrients used while your body was recovering. A good breakfast supplies these nutrients, as well as providing additional fuel that your body will need through the duration of the day. Try to eat within 30 minutes of waking up. I will talk more about what to eat
Pre workout
A pre-workout meal will provide the energy you need to get the most out of your workouts. Timing your pre-workout meal is important. If you are eating more than 30 minutes before your workout, then your meal should contain both slow digesting complex carbohydrates to help fuel your workout and lean protein to stabilize your blood sugar and keep you energized. You can also add fiber and a bit of fat to your pre-workout meal. If you have fewer than 30 minutes before you exercise, aim for faster-digesting carbohydrates with less focus on complex carbs, fiber, protein, and fat.
I recommend using a high quality supplement, like the Isagenix E-shot. It delivers a supercharged blend of performance ingredients to boost your strength and stamina. When you fuel up with this delicious blend of nutrients before your workout, you’ll be providing your body with the support needed to build muscle, maintain proper pH levels, and delay fatigue.
Post workout
After each workout, it’s crucial to eat fast-digesting carbs. This meal is probably the most important meal of the day. You might think consuming carbs after your workout will hurt your results, but not consuming them soon after your workout actually can slow your progress. You are breaking down muscle tissue while you’re working out, so you have to rest and help your body recover when you’re done. After each workout, it’s crucial that you eat fast-digesting carbs like bananas, blueberries, or starchy carbs like sweet potatoes.
List of fast-digesting carbs and proteins
- Fast-digesting carbs: rice cakes, banana, grapes, watermelon, potatoes, jelly, bagels, oats
- Fast-digesting protein: egg whites, whey
One great way to get all the nutrients you need is with Isagenix IsaLean. It includes the carbs you need as well as protein and other nutrients to speed up your recovery after a tough workout.
Then, about two hours after a workout, you’re going to want to eat a larger meal which should include slower-digesting carbs, such as green vegetables and brown rice. Also make sure to include a source of protein here so your body can properly build and repair muscle.
Recipes and Resources
All of this I know may sound a bit daunting but don’t worry because I’ve prepared a sample meal plan that is easy to make and tastes great. If you would like more meal plans, as well as full weekly menus, recipes, and shopping lists, check out more of the WOW programs here.
Sample meal plan
- Breakfast (7:30 am): Egg Burrito: 1 whole egg + 2 egg whites + 2 tbsp salsa + ¼ chopped avocado + 1 corn tortilla
- Snack (10:30 am): ½ apple (chopped) + 10 almonds + 4-6 oz Plain Greek yogurt
- WORKOUT (12:00 pm)
- Lunch (1:15 pm): IsaLean Shake + IsaGreens
- Snack (3:30 pm): 3 ounces chicken + 3 oz baked sweet potato
- Dinner (6:30 pm): 4 oz tilpaia + 1 c steamed broccoli
- Snack (9:15 pm): Banana, chocolate, Peanut butter bites + Chocolate IsaPro Shake
Want another FREE MEAL Plan?! Click here to check it out.
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