In this day and age of nutrition confusion, I have four wishes for you, my sports-active readers. May these wishes help guide any New Year’s Nutrition Resolutions you are pondering…
- Be as nice to your body as you are to your car. Fill up with premium nutrition before you embark on a busy day. Be sure to notice the benefits that come with eating a dinner-like breakfast: plenty of energy, highly productive all day, no obsessing about food, able to walk past the office candy jar, feeling happier, and not overeating at night. When you live well-fed (and not feeling hungry all the time), your body functions better. And fear not: if you eat a dinner-like breakfast, you will want just a breakfast-like dinner. Trust me.
- Make time to properly fuel your body. You might want to think twice about why you have time to work, workout, watch TV, etc., but “no time” for breakfast or lunch. You can make time to do what you truly want to do. The majority of my clients who have “no time” to eat well commonly believe that by skipping meals and snacks, they will lose weight. False! Skipped meals lead to extreme hunger, which then leads to over-eating. If weight loss is your goal, you want to fuel by day, and then diet by night. Lose weight when you are sleeping, not during the busy part of your day.
- Think twice before going on a diet that might interfere with your quality of life. Paleo? Ketogenic Diet? No Carbs? Intermittent Fasting? Only start a food plan that is sustainable for the long term. Do you really never want to enjoy a piece of birthday cake ever again? Or eat pizza with your pals? Your better bet is to learn how to eat (not how to diet). Talking with a sports nutritionist can help you create a sustainable food plan. Check out the referral network at www.SCANdpg.org to find a local food professional. You don’t know what you don’t know.
- Do not feel guilty if you enjoy an occasional treat: a chocolate chip cookie, some birthday cake, fried clams. There is not a bad food, just a bad diet. Eating a little nutrient-poor food will not negate all the nutrient-rich foods you put in your body. Eating is not cheating.
Best wishes for a nourishing holiday season,
Nancy