Life isn't an even number, so here are 11 insightful thoughts on nutrition to help guide even the most experienced athletes and those just beginning a fit healthy lifestyle. Enjoy!
1) To transform your body, you must drink enough clean water, eat high quality REAL food 4-6 times daily and challenge your body with resistance. And then plan the next day. Consistency and planning lead to physical success. The little things done daily make ALL the difference.
2) Don’t overcomplicate things…simply make only one small positive nutritional change at a time until that small change becomes a good habit, and then add the next small change. Over time this will work out much better than changing many things at once– (and the results will last longer too). Also, be sure to add protein to every meal that you eat! Our research has documented that this helps to promote fat loss and muscle mass gains.
3) Enhancing body composition implies maximizing lean muscle mass and reducing stored body fat. In terms of maximizing lean muscle mass, supplement with creatine monohydrate. Not only is this supplement safe and inexpensive – it WORKS.
4) Pay attention to what you eat before, during and after your workouts and be sure that regardless of the goal a good bit of general advice is to eat at least 1-2 grams of protein per day (especially when trying to lose to maintain the muscle you do have), healthy fats are wicked good for you and should be at least 30% of your macro breakdown for fat loss OR muscle gain and don’t be afraid of carbs!!!
5) If you want to lose fat and gain muscle, you need to eliminate the single nutrient that will stimulate fat storage: sugar. In a study conducted by researchers at UCONN, men who ate a high-protein, moderate-fat, zero carb diet lost significantly more fat and gained almost double muscle than men who ate more sugar and less protein. Rule of thumb: if it tastes sweet, only eat it after your workout, if at all.
6) You have to just do it (i.e. nutrition and training) consistently. You need proper nutrition (including appropriate, credible supplements) and a training plan tailore to suit your goals. It must be a lifestyle not a quick fix. Quick fixes don’t work; because they are quick to come and quick to go.
7) Adding lean protein is hands down the best way to promote muscle growth – it is the building block. Losing fat and gaining muscle at the same time is a tall order, so also adding Branched chain aminos pre workout for preserving muscle is a good plan as well.
8) Change your mindset in how you view food. Every time you eat you have a choice to choose foods that provide the body with stable energy, enzymes, and nutrients to improve the efficiency of the body and decrease inflammation. Get out of a diet mindset and make your food choices with those positive principles in mind
9) Make sure your resistance training program is practical (nobody gets an ideal physique by doing bicep curls while balancing on an inflatable disk) and that the weight/load and/or volume are substantial, throughout any variations, to satisfy muscle building. Supplements (i.e. whey protein, caffeine, creatine and beta-alanine) and diet are complementary to body composition enhancement as well as exercise regimen progressions. But don’t think for a minute that there is a magic pill, powder or potion that makes you exempt from eating cleaner and working harder!
10) Muscles lack the necessary enzymes to use alcohol as fuel. It negatively affects reaction time, hand-eye coordination, balance, thermoregulation, fluid balance, glycogen conversion and muscle growth. Alcohol decreases strength, power, speed, muscular endurance and cardiovascular fitness. For these reasons, the healthiest alternative is abstinence.
11) Eat leafy greens at every meal, they contain omega-3 fats too! Think spinach & eggs with salsa for breakfast, a handful of mesclun greens tossed into a smoothie mid morning, a big composed salad of tuna & beans on a bed of arugula for lunch, romaine lettuce wraps filled with Greek yogurt, shredded carrots & olives midday, and steamed kale alongside a baked sweet potato & lean grass-fed beef or steamed fish for dinner. Power meals don’t come in containers.
In closing Everyone wants a simple explanation as to how they can gain muscle and lose fat. The reality is that it’s a difficult process with no easy way from point A to point B. The best advice I can give you is that patience, dedication, and hard work are by far the key ingredients for changing body composition. The worst plan executed with the best work ethic is way better than the best plan executed with poor work ethic.
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