Shape up, Emporia! "You are what you eat"
Ali Schneider - Special to the Gazette
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Shape Up, Emporia!, is a weekly fitness and health column aimed at readers of all ages to get off the couch and get into shape. Each week will feature a fitness, health or nutritionprofessional from around the area who will share some friendly tips on how to improve your overall health. Our goal is to make getting in shape fun and easy to fit into your existing lifestyle and daily routine.
“You are what you eat.”
If this phrase is true, what do your eating habits say about you?
Now that I’ve got you thinking, each one of you will have something different initially come to mind. For example, anyone who knows me would probably say that I am a head of lettuce; my husband would be meat and potatoes and my dad would definitely be cheese, salt, grease, and everything else that I tell him to cut back on.
Even though many of us don’t want to believe it; it is true. Everything that you put into your body has an affect on how you feel and how you look. Being in good physical shape takes a combined effort of exercise and a healthy diet.
However, I know that with the ever changing world of nutrition, the fad diets and all the media, it is hard to know what to believe. I am not a certified nutritionist, but I have a strong background in nutrition and I believe that what you put into your body strongly impacts the way your body works and looks. I want to help you understand a few key things in hopes that you will be able to lead a healthier lifestyle. Here are eight simple tips that I try to follow which will hopefully help you have a better understanding of what your body needs.
Balance & Variety: Everyone needs a balanced diet; not many people actually achieve it. Our bodies need certain nutrients on a daily basis in order to achieve optimal wellness, allowing the body to function properly. Our bodies need proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, minerals and water. Eating a diet that has a healthy balance between all of these key nutrients may take a little effort and planning, but also may just give you the energy that we all seem to be lacking these days. If everyone achieved a balanced diet, there would be no need for all of these “fad diets;” which leads me to tip number two.
Stay Away From Fad Diets: I know everyone wants a quick fix, but when it comes to your body, wouldn’t you rather have a lifetime fix? Fad diets tend to starve your body of certain nutrients (i.e. no carb or low carb diets), causing you to eventually overeat in order to get the nutrients that your body lacks. Yes, you may initially lose weight. However, you cannot starve your body of the essential nutrients forever. You will eventually run out of energy and end up right back where you started.
Eat Often: Surely you can all handle this one! We all like to eat, right? Well, I’m telling you right now that you need to eat and you need to eat often. That’s the good news. The bad news is that it does matter what you eat and how much you eat. We’ll get to that later, but it is extremely important to understand that in order to speed up your metabolism and burn calories, it is good to eat something every few hours.
Eat Breakfast: There have been many changes in the health world since most of us were in elementary school. However, one thing is still the same; breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Eating breakfast gets your day started off on the right foot. You get your metabolism going right away and you give your mind and body the energy you are going to need to make it through the day. If you only take one thing away from this article, make it this — EAT BREAKFAST!
Read The Labels: Know what you are actually putting into your body. Food companies are great at tricking people into buying a product because of something they put on the front of the box. However, they are required by law to include the food label somewhere on the packaging, with the ingredients that show exactly what was put into that product. One common misconception is the package that says “whole wheat” on the front. Many of these products are only made partially with whole wheat. You must read the food label in order to know whether or not it is 100 percent whole wheat.
Do Not Deprive Yourself: You cannot completely give up all of your favorite things. This will only make you crave them more and eventually over indulge. Everything is ok in moderation. If you are an ice cream fan, have some ice cream every once in awhile. Just try to avoid having it all the time or in excessive serving sizes.
Write It Down: Hold yourself accountable. Keep a food log so that you can keep track of everything you are putting into your body. Computer based nutrition programs are now available to help you understand which foods give you the nutrients that you need and which foods are just empty calories. If you do not have access to an online nutrition program, at least try to keep a food diary of your own. The simple task of writing down everything you eat in a day makes you have a better understanding of what your body is getting too much of and too little of.
Carbs Are Not The Enemy: I know that so many of these new fad diets are telling you that carbohydrates are your enemy. That is not completely true. There are different types of carbohydrates; some your body needs and some you don’t need. The complex carbohydrates (whole grains, vegetables, fruit) are essential for your body to achieve optimal wellness. The simple carbohydrates (white breads, processed foods, sugary drinks) are empty calories that may give you a sugar high initially, then leave you with no energy the rest of the day.
I could go on forever about nutrition and the importance of a healthy lifestyle. Truth is, these eight tips are just the start of things. Being the manager at Emporia Fitness, I get many questions about this topic, so I have tried to address some of the most popular questions and concerns that I hear on a daily basis. I hope this helps answer some of your questions and gets you on the road to a healthier lifestyle for you and your family.