Don't Diet, Reset It.
“Move more and eat less….” Apparently that’s all you need to do, right? This is the message we've been taught to believe in the health and fitness industry for years. Cutting calories, increasing exercise, replacing meals with shakes and smoothies, intermittent fasting and a whole host of other calorie deficit protocols are common practice. None of this is new, and most of it has been around for decades. More often than not, calories deficit diets fail to deliver the results that many are seeking.
What is a Sustainable Diet?
If you struggle with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), a low-FODMAP diet might be better for you. If you have an autoimmune disease, you may consider an autoimmune protocol and avoid foods like grains, dairy and eggs. If you have high histamine levels, you should eat a diet low in histamine. People who are suffering from thyroid issues should NOT be following a very low-carb-diet as insulin is required to convert T4 into the more active form of thyroid hormone T3. A very-low-carb diet will slow down the production of insulin and decrease the T4 to T3 conversion and make matters worse.
Why eat a high protein breakfast?
At TSTM we advise our clients to shoot for a minimum of 40-65g of protein at breakfast, which is quite a bit. Most animal sources of protein are between 23-35g of protein per 100g, meaning you will need to eat 170-285g for breakfast (depending on body weight and goals). It is quite a bit more than you would get from eating two eggs (6-7g protein each), for example. You would need to add some fish or meat to the breakfast plate in order to reach these targets.
Breakfast: Sweet Potato and Zucchini Fritters With Herb Aioli
If you follow the blog or our social media feed, you will know that we are not big fans of gluten or highly processed gluten-free products. More and more research is linking the many of the proteins in grains like wheat, to severe illness and disease and we encourage our clients to avoid it as much as possible.
Often, our clients find breakfast become a tricky meal when you remove bread and cereal out of the diet. These quick and easy low nutrient high carbohydrate processed foods have become a staple in many peoples breakfast, and it becomes a head habit to break. What other options are there?
The Carb That Makes You Leaner and Healthier
Eating carbohydrates before bed has become a hot topic in nutrition, and some people think its a bad idea. This often comes from the belief that eating carbs before you go to sleep leads to weight gain. There is some evidence to support this argument, but all carbohydrates are not equal, and certain types of carbohydrates can help you lose weight and get a good night sleep.
The KetoDiet can reduce athletes' anaerobic performance
The "Ketogenic diet" (KetoDiet) is a hot topic at the moment due to quick weight loss results and improvements in endurance based sports performance. However, recent studies have found that a KetoDiet is not a great option for strengths, speed and power athlete looking to improve their performance. [1,2]
Many endurance athletes have found success with KetoDiet because fat provides more energy than carbs in an aerobic driven environment. [3] This is not true for the anaerobic energy system because the Krebs cycle, the primary energy generator in the anaerobic energy system, produces significantly less energy when catabolising fat or protein when compared to carbohydrates (CHO).
One small behaviour change that can lead to a healthy community
There is no excuse why we can not eat a healthy diet. Healthy eating is easier than ever. That’s because we know so much more about what a healthy diet looks like than we ever have before. Choosing healthy seasonal foods based on sound science remains the best-known way to reduce your chances of developing cardiovascular diseases and autoimmune diseases. A sustainable diet is possibly the single most crucial factor that determines your health and longevity.
How rice can be a heathy carbohdrate, boost health, and sports performance
One of the oldest grains, rice is believed to have been grown for at least 5000 years. Rice can be a quality CHO if selected and prepared correctly, more on this later. Rice is a grain (yes I know, its not Paleo) that TSTMethod recommend to our clients because it is naturally gluten free and highly unlikely to cause any digestive issues, allergies or food intolerance. Rice also contains some amazing nutrients that can balance hormones, imrpove blood glucose management, assist recovery, and increase energy levels.
"If it fits your macros" is not good enough
There is no arguing that “if it fits your macros" can produce weight management results, but what are the side effects of ignoring the quality of macronutrients and micronutrients you eat? What are the long-term impacts of neglecting food quality and only focusing on the quantity or cutting calories? Most client food diaries I see are full of empty calories and lacking in nutrient-rich foods.
Mitochondria, Magnesium & Oxidative Capacity
High-intensity exercise can results in an increase of mitochondria if supported by the diet. In order to make new mitochondria the body needs Mg as a co-factor. If your Mg levels are low, you are going to have a difficult time benefiting for the high-intensity training and increasing your total mitochondria count. If your goals are to improve your fitness levels you need to seriously be looking at your diet.