The foods listed in this article work together.  Keep in mind that although each category can be simplified with a main role in the body, the categories eaten together affect each other. Let’s now look at their basic roles:

 

CARBOHYDRATES

 

High Energy Carbohydrates

 

Important note – Although these carbohydrates are high in energy content, they can cause tiredness if eaten in excess or alone without other foods.  For best results eat with at least a source of ‘Protein’ (dairy or eggs apply).  ‘Healthy Fats’ (in moderation) and ‘Fibrous carbs’ can also add to the energy you receive from a given meal.  The ‘balance’ of these foods is what slows the absorption time in your stomach and provides longer lasting energy.  While, for example, a large bowl of pasta will absorb quickly and lead to a strong drop in energy followed by fat storage.  Have you ever felt this way after a big dinner?  Even if the dinner is ‘balanced’, simply eating too much at one time can also cause the same effect.

 

High Energy Carbs include:

 

• Oatmeal (Old Fashioned or Quick Oats)
• Sweet Potatoes (Yams)
• Beans (pinto, black, kidney)
• Oat Bran Cereal
• Brown Rice
• Farina (Cream of Wheat)
• Multigrain Hot Cereal
• Pasta
• Rice (white, jasmine, basmati, Arboria, wild)
• Potatoes (red, baking, new)

 

Fibrous Carbohydrates

 

Fibrous carbs (as the name implies) are still carbohydrates with extra fibre.  These are great to keep the appetite in check since they provide a feeling of fullness without a large amount of carbohydrates.  These usually contain lots of vitamins and minerals in comparison with other sources and promote regularity.  The fibre actually forms sort of a gel in the stomach and makes the rest of the food release slower and provide longer lasting energy.  If you are going to have a fizzy drink with dinner or desert, make sure to have broccoli!  This will lessen the negative effect significantly!

 

Fibrous Carbs inlclude:

 

• Green Leafy Lettuce (Green Leaf, Red Leaf, Romaine)
• Broccoli
• Asparagus
• String Beans
• Spinach
• Bell Peppers
• Brussel Sprouts
• Cauliflower
• Celery

 

Other Produce & Fruits (also Carbohydrates)

 

As far as the body in concerned, simply another form of carbohydrate, including:

 

• Cucumber
• Green or Red Pepper
• Onions
• Garlic
• Tomatoes
• Zucchini
• Fruit (if acceptable on diet) – bananas, apples, grapefruit, peaches, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries
• Lemons or limes

 

Proteins

 

Used to build and repair muscle and fight off colds and flue by supporting the immune system.  Protein will be used and taken from our muscles for energy on a very small scale; however this will drastically increase if we go on a crash diet or low carbohydrate diet.  Muscle protein is needed to burn fat.  ‘Complete’ protein (as found in these foods) also helps us to release fat.

 

Protein foods include:

 

• Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breast
• Tuna (water packed)
• Fish (salmon, sea bass, halibut)
• Shrimp
• Extra Lean Ground Beef
• Protein Powder
• Egg Whites or Eggs
• Rib eye Steaks
• Top Round Steaks or Roast (aka Stew Meat, London Broil, Stir Fry)
• Top Sirloin
• Beef Tenderloin (aka Fillet, Filet Mignon)
• Top Loin (NY Strip Steak)
• Flank Steak (Stir Fry, Fajita)
• Ground Turkey, Turkey Breast, Slices or Cutlets (fresh meat, not deli cuts)

 

Dairy & Eggs (also protein)

 

Just another source of protein and a great alternative for vegetarians.  Eggs are one of the best sources of protein without the yolks.  One or two yolks are OK, but if you need more protein than this – keep the whites and throw away the yolk!

 

Includes:

 

• Low fat cottage cheese
• Eggs
• Low or Non-Fat Milk

 

Healthy Fats

 

Fats create a signal to the brain that says “I’m full”.  They also are essential for healthy skin!  A handful of nuts before a meal will usually make you eat less.  Natural fats, as listed below, are more likely to create these positive effects. They also play a role in getting rid of excess body fat, when used in moderation.  Lots of healthy fat is no better than eating a large pizza.  Balance is the key, as with all the food groups.

 

How much fat do we need in our diet?

 

Typically, most people will need about 7-12 grams of fat per meal to reap the benefits without overloading themselves.

 

Fat serves three main purposes in relation to fitness:

 

• Sends signals to our brain that say “stop eating, I’m full.”  Munching on a few nuts while you are cooking dinner may actually stop you from overeating or being hungry for sweets afterwards.  Peanut or any other kind of nut butter is also a great addition to bread as long as it’s kept to a medium sized spoonful, for most of us.  Although it is healthy, it is very high in fat calories and it’s easy to have too much of a good thing!  Also make sure to buy the natural kind with no added sugar.
• Fat is essential for the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K.
• Slows the absorption rate of food into the blood stream and therefore lessens the amount of insulin that releases into the bloodstream.  This slow response as we know helps our energy, muscle building, fat burning, concentration, and a whole host of other benefits.  This is why eating a little fat actually helps us burning fat.  Of course, eating too much fat will have the opposite effect.  For most people, less than 15 grams per meal is a safe bet.

 

 

 

 

 

Water

 

Drink a lot of water!  This is deceptively difficult.  Ideally 6 litres of water a day is best, but with that amount, you are drinking frequently.  Try to get as close as you can.  You will have the added benefit of feeling full throughout the day.  This is also a healthy practice to rid your body of toxins.  Try distilled, or pure spring water if available.

 

Water also helps to transfer food particles through our body to do their job.  It also helps to decrease appetite.

 

Water is a major component to increased muscle shape and tone, so drink lots of water!  Think of muscle dehydration as “the raisin effect”.

 

If you are an active individual and are drinking less than 1 and 1 – 2 litres of water per day, you are probably suffering from mild dehydration.

 

Water lubricates your muscles and joints, making movement easier.

 

INSULIN FACTOR

 

As mentioned earlier, among its other functions, insulin is a transport hormone that moves fat to be stored.  However, it also transports nutrients and protein to the cells of your body, helping them rebuild and perform.  The optimal goal within a diet or nutrition programme is to regulate insulin so that it is secreting a slow and steady amount throughout the day.  You can see that coffee or tea for breakfast, a quick lunch and a big dinner with late snacks is not the way to regulate insulin.  It is a common, but unhealthy way of eating.

 

Can you imagine a belief system that says – “I’d better hurry up and eat or I’ll start gaining weight!” – This could be a good belief!!!!

 

For energy, eat balanced meals, with near equal portion sizes of carbohydrates and proteins.  By having an equal amount of protein, and adding enough fibre to your diet, you release the food from your stomach slowly and don’t have the peaks and crashes of energy.  When you supply your body with this constant supply of energy, you are able to use fat during exercise because your body doesn’t support the need to hold on to it any longer.

 

I often see in sports people that they use a carbohydrate based drink like Lucozade or Poweraid before a workout to aid recovery.  The problem here is again the hormonal response that the imbalance creates.  Although these drinks contain large amounts of sugar and it is in fact true that they quickly turn into blood sugar, the source of energy for your workout, the problem occurs with the high amount of blood sugar absorbed in a short space of time.  Insulin, the wonderful hormone that stores protein, also stores sugar.  Reasonable amounts of insulin (released through a balanced meal) store the sugar as muscle glycogen to power your next workout, and the body is able to fully utilize the available sugar as an immediate source of energy.  However when the blood sugar is too high (though quick-absorbing sugar drinks) and excessive insulin is released to counteract this, the blood sugar becomes low again very quickly.  You wonder why you’re feeling tired at the end of the workout at this point (as you just drank a high energy drink) and even worse, you question where all this sugar went, as you are not feeling it!  That’s right, body fat!  You get on the treadmill after your workout now hoping to burn fat, however the excessive insulin vs glucagons balance is actually preventing fat being released into the bloodstream.  You wonder why you don’t have the energy to continue that 60-minute cardio session and even worse you certainly aren’t seeing changes in the mirror.

 

Now, carbohydrates to some degree are equal, as they all eventually end up as blood sugar.  However it is the time that it takes to digest and turn into blood sugar that makes them different.  The old way of thinking used to compare simple sugars like the energy drink mentioned above to complex carbohydrates like pasta.  This simply related to the molecular bonds that needed to be broken apart first in complex carbohydrates, which makes them slower releasing by nature.  This is however one piece of the puzzle and by itself not an accurate way to determine the rate of release into the body.  The rate of carbohydrate release is not just based on the carbohydrate food itself, but the components of the entire meal, which may include proteins, fats, fibre and water, all of which could turn a traditionally simple “unhealthy” sugar into something that creates a “healthy” speed of release into the blood stream.  Having a large bowl of pasta for example by itself, although pasta is a complex carbohydrate, is highly refined at the manufacturing stage before it hits the grocery store shelf.  All of the fibre is released which makes it highly calorie dense.  Effectively this means that although the carbohydrate itself is complex, it is not very filling, and you are more than likely to eat more than the optimal level of carbohydrates.  Eating a large amount of complex carbohydrates has exactly the same effect as a smaller amount of simple sugars.  If the end product in the blood stream is a larger amount then the body needs, an excessive amount of insulin will be released and low blood/fatigue/fat storage will be the result.

Did you know?

 

• Even though too many carbohydrates in a meal can cause you to store fat, too few carbohydrates will actually stop your body from burning fat.  Fat is burnt in a flame of carbohydrates.

 

• Doctors recommend 25-30 grams of fibre per day is minimum for basic health.  Most people get about 13 grams per day!

 

Understanding Quantities

 

The available levels of blood sugar for energy depend on the type of carbohydrate, but also the quantities of the entire meal.  If the meal is too big, however well balanced, the resulting hormonal release will have a negative effect.  So how do we determine the right quantities for the individual?  The most basic method that works well as a starting point for most people is using portion sizes about the size of your fist in 3 parts.  1 part lean protein source (egg whites, chicken breast, etc), 1 part lean carbohydrates (potatoes, brown rice, whole wheat bread), and 1 part green leafy vegetables or similar.  With these examples, fat should be added in small amount, roughly about 1—20 grams per person.  The benefit of including a small amount of fat is increased satisfaction which should eliminate snacking between meals if the overall ratio is right.  Fat sends a signal to the brain that says “I’m full” and slows down the eating drive.  This in turn reduces the need for carbohydrate excess, which is the real culprit when it comes to body fat, rather than dietary fat itself, although too much dietary fat will equally lead to this being stored as body fat.  Balance is the key here.

 

A more scientific approach can be used with calories/ratios based on lean body mass and this is especially beneficial in the early stages.  Although this requires weighing and measuring your food, it can be an enlightening learning process to know how many carbs, proteins and fats are actually in the food that we eat.  Over time, this will become second nature and we will be able to “eye ball” the portion sizes in line with our requirements.

 

The following calculations can be used as a starting point.  For the majority of people, even if the ratios are not optimal, they will see significant benefits though a reasonable balance and eating smaller meals more frequently.  This is assuming that the majority of people do not eat anywhere near an optimal diet.  For the avid sports person however interested in serious improvement quickly, the question is “what is reasonable?” and how do we go about creating the optimal diet?

 

 

 

Determine Lean Body Mass

Using the Parrillo Method – carried out by a qualified fitness professional.

Determine Calories/Day

Male: 16.4 calories/pound Lean Body Mass divided by 4 or 5 meals/day = calories per meal.

 

Female:  14.6 calories/pound Lean Body Mass divided by 4 or 5 meals/day = calories per meal

 

Determine Percentages

Percentages cannot be determined by portion sizes alone as the amount of energy in a particular food may be more/less dense depending on the type.  For example compare a portion of cheese with a high amount of fat may equal 400 calories, while a similar sized apple with large amount of water/fibre making up the weight may only be 100 calories.  This is why reading labels and/or having a nutritional reference guide is so important when working out your diet.

 

How to find out the grams

We read food labels based on grams of carbs, proteins and fats as they are much easier to work with the calories.  They provide baseline targets that are easy to check and meet.

 

1 gram Carbohydrate = 4 calories

1 gram Protein = 4 calories

1 gram Fat = 9 calories

 

Starting Ratios

If your starting ratios are 55% Carbohydrates, 25% Protein, and 20% Fat, first you need to break this down into calories, before you can find the target grams of each.

 

Total Calories per meal x .55 = calories of carbs, divided by 4 = grams of Carb per meal

 

Total Calories per meal x .25 = calories of protein, divided by 4 = grams of Protein per meal

 

Total Calories per meal x .20 = calories of fat, divided by 9 = grams of fat per meal

 

55% carbohydrates provides a baseline to support metabolic processes and fat burning.  Raising it higher than this may result in unfavourable insulin levels and encouraging excess carbohydrates to fat storage.  Conditioned athletes may start at 50% while body builders may be able to sustain 45% or even 40% without reducing lean body mass, especially during an intense weight training programme.

 

25% is based on a “complete” protein source.  Proteins in bread, peanut butter, or similar should be part of the overall calories, but should not be included in this target.  A target of 25% for most people provides an effective release of glucagons to support lipolisis (breakdown of body-fats into the blood stream).   This can be increased to 30%, 35% or even 45% for competitive athletes.

 

20% fat is enough for most people to support the regulation of hunger and sustain insulin levels.  Since fat is very dense, this needs to be monitored carefully with small adjustments made.

 

Meal Frequency

 

Once the calories per day are defined, the first question is whether 5 meals per day is a realistic goal based on lifestyle and previous history (where 2 may have been the norm).  4 meals/day is often a good goal.  The meals will be a little larger, but not so large as to have an unfavourable hormonal response.

 

You’re only as good as your last meal;

Most of us, especially if striving towards a healthy lifestyle, try to maintain days that are similar in length to allow for rest and recovery.  However there are days where work demands or otherwise may get in the way of your fitness regime.  For example, personal trainers often have the first clients at 7am, so have breakfast at 6am, and may have their last client at 9pm on a particularly long day.  With this schedule they may not get to med until midnight.  On this basis a 4-meal plan you may find that your meal times are 6am, 10am, 2pm and 6pm.  You get home at 10pm after your last client of the day are starving for a 5th meal!  At this stage you have been awake for a long period of time and blood sugars are low, so you should have a 5th meal.  It has long been believed that eating before bed (especially carbohydrate foods) should be avoided at all costs – as the food turns to fat while you are sleeping and not using the energy.  There is absolutely no scientific basis for this as your metabolism works the same while you are sleeping.  A well-balanced meal (especially if your body is asking for it) before bed will keep blood sugar levels sustained until morning increasing fat burning while you sleep.  It is only large meals and sugary snacks usually associated with the late night munchies that have this negative effect, but the effect would be the same anytime of day.  The night time however, when we settle down and watch TV is usually the point where the low blood sugar kicks in and says “I’m hungry”, giving the feeling that you haven’t eaten all day!

 

How do I know if I’ve got the balance right?

 

The right balance should mean that you are naturally hungry every 3-4 hours.  This does not mean the starving for high carb/fat containing foods that we associate with being really hungry, particularly in the evenings.  The feeling should be such that you could easily go another few hours without eating, which is why the smaller portion size will do you just fine for another 3-4 hours.  At first, it will be an effort to eat at the right meal times and you may find yourself working your schedule around this.  You may even need to use the alarm on your mobile phone to remind you to eat.  However, over the next 2-3 weeks for most this will be a natural process and the body will feel naturally hungry in 3-4 hours.  You may still feel a normal afternoon slump as we all do, but this will be reduced in both intensity and length.  Your energy and concentration should be high, your workouts will be intense, and your body fat levels will start to go, one week at a time.  If any of these things are not happening, (providing exercise and sleep are in tune) you may not have the balance right.

 

Junk Food Cravings

 

It is also important to consider the position the body is in before the meal.  Excessive hunger or sugar cravings, which happen to most of us late at night, are a result of not eating frequently enough during the day or eating meals of of balance.  Either one of these two can cause blood sugar to lower past what is normal and causes excessive hunger or cravings.  Not only have we lowered our metabolism by not eating enough during the day, but we have eaten too much food at one meal or too much sugar and/or fat rich foods to compensate for the low blood sugar that was created.  You see, in all ways, nutritional planning or otherwise, our bodies will always try to maintain a certain balance called homeostasis.   It’s not a question of will power.  Many times we just think we’re not disciplined enough when in reality, we shouldn’t have to be hungry to accomplish any fitness goal.  It is actually counterproductive to be hungry.

 

Alcohol

 

Alcohol blocks the release of acetylcholine, which is essential for liver function.  The restriction of the release of this substance also causes decreased levels of seretonin (cells in our brain which make us happy).  Tests have shown increases of muscle strength at low doses because this disables the central nervous system of neuromuscular impulses.  Other common side effects are impaired glucose production, poor temperature regulation, increased diuresis (excretion of urine), all of which affect athletic performance.  Alcohol also decreases exercise time to exhaustion and has been shown to decrease performance in middle-distance running events.

 

Athletes participating in sports such as shooting or darts believe they are more relaxed and less tense as a result of alcohol, however they actually have a decreased level of hand-eye coordination and impaired judgement.

 

 

 

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