Nutrition
Nutrition is a subject talked about at length, yet rarely understood. Many people have experimented different techniques and with varying results.
With nutrition, it’s important to know we are all different, and results can be different too. If diet and nutrition were easy to understand, then we would have all figured it out. In addition to confusion, we also face modern world issues such as: higher stress, lack of sleep, air pollution, processed foods, grocery stores and convenient food lifestyles with very little movement. It’s a recipe for disaster and no one solution works for everyone.
Here, we’ll look at the simplest ways to define how to eat better.
The definition of Nutrition from the encyclopedia states: Nutrition is obtaining the food necessary for health and nourishment. We have all tried some wacky diet that promised us washboard abs in 2 weeks, or some gimmick to help burn calories.
As mentioned, we are all different and we need to experiment and find what works for us. Athlete’s Kitchen has constructed many plans with over 200 dishes, so that we can build all the plans with one goal in mind: Optimal health.
To have a nutritious meal, you should feel great after, but it should also provide you with health benefits. These benefits include, more energy for the rest of your day. A sense of satisfaction, feeling of joy and happiness. A means to provide better digestion and stronger healthy inside. Food should be your medicine.
The facts on food quality & quantity
At Athete’s Kitchen, we believe that food sources that are sustainable, wild and organic are always best, but if not available then you should then look at the feed. You should avoid processed, genetically modified, antibiotic driven and pesticide driven foods. They are bad for you and will make you sick.
As for food quantity, it’s important to watch the intake with balance in mind. We construct our meals with low carbohydrates and have found it helps many people. However, we also make plans with different carbohydrate sources, whether from vegetables or grains to provide different insulin responses. On the upside we increase quality fats, as this process slows down digestion of sugars and aids with digestion of other nutrients.
Fat is under estimated and highly misunderstood. When we think fat we think deep fryers, hydrogenated oils, margarine, lard and canola. This is not fat, that is more like poison! The fat you need should come from grass-fed animals, Avocados, olive oil, wild fish oil, ghee and other quality fats that promote healthy hormonal responses. Protein being the king of all macronutrients, sufficient amounts of carbohydrate, good quality fats with each meal should be a great way to keep healthy.
One should also look at micronutrients, they are the vitamins we get in pill form or naturally occurring within fruits and vegetables. You should always have a moderate portion of fruits daily. Vegetables are also very important as they should always be the bulk of your diet. When you eat vegetables you get vitamins and most importantly minerals. Focus on getting fruits and veggies in all shapes and colours.
No one has the perfect answer when it comes to diet and nutrition. That’s because we’re all different, we also change as we age, making tests today, not as relevant tomorrow.
The easiest solution is to eat whole food, follow with balanced nutrition. It’s hard to over eat real food so you don’t need to count numbers (calories). Get good rest, destress by meditating and get out and be active, and socialize with friends and family!