Why you Can't Eat "Just One"

I heard NPR's Ira Flatow interview Dr. Kessler, former Federal Food and Drug Administrator last Friday and want to share the link with you all.  Kessler's understanding of how our brains react to sugar, fat and salt combinations gave me some great insight on why is it so hard for many of us to stay away from the foods we know are making us fat and unhealthy.  I've beaten myself up many times for eating that extra brownie or cookie, when I know I didn't really want it.  Kessler explains the science behind why we are drawn to these foods, how large corporations are capitalizing on our weaknesses and what we can do to re-teach our brains not to go back to the sundae bar again and again.

The link sends you to NPR's website, click the "listen now" button to hear the interview in it's entirety.  You won't be disappointed!

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=106470909

Get the Most From Your Meals

The above meal is eight ounces of broccoli and six ounces of cod.  It has 239 calories, 45 grams of protein and only 12 grams of carbs.  Now, that's almost one pound of food, so you won't have to worry about being hungry.  It's also low in fat (about 2 grams) and will most defiantly keep you full for at least two hours.  If you add lemon juice and salt for flavoring, the meal only has four ingredients.  

Many people who come into Baseline are worried about getting enough protein in their diets while trying not eat too many calories.  The trick is figuring out where the majority of your calories are coming from.  For example, if you eat lots of "junk" foods like crackers, cereal bars, chips, cookies, sauces, etc.,  you are consuming a very high amount of carbohydrates but almost no protein.  There isn't any reason you can consume over 150 grams of protein a day while still losing weight, if your calories are coming from the right sources.

The meal above has 239 calories, as I mentioned before.  What does that look like?

Foods with comparative calories:

3 Oreo cookies

1 small McDonald's french fry

2 1/2 tablespoons of butter

1 cup tomato soup

2 1/2 ounces of cream cheese

1/3 cup almonds

1 Hershey Bar

1 Grilled Snack Wrap from Wendys

1 and 1/2 Nutri-Grain Bars

1 cup frosted shredded wheat with 1/2 cup milk

1 Three Cheese and Broccoli Lean Pocket

Some of the foods above are not "bad" for you, but you can see that for the same amount of calories in the pictured meal, you will not even come close to getting the amount of protein in these comparative meals.  1/3 cup of almonds contains high amounts of heart-healthy fats, but only 11 grams of protein and 19 grams of carbs.

Something else to consider when fixing your plate for dinner is the "staying power" of the foods you are about to eat. Tomato soup may sound like a healthy option, but is it going to sustain your hunger until your next meal?  The same thing goes for the lean pocket and Wendy's Snack Wrap.

Getting the most out your meals can be easier than you think.  Load up on veggies like broccoli, asparagus, green beans and salad greens.  These foods take more work for you to digest and help keep you full longer, not to mention they have lots of antioxidants and vitamins for good health.  Lean protein in 4 to 6 ounce portions is an excellent way to consume your protein without consuming all the extra calories you'll get from ground beef, fried chicken, or any processed meats.  Chicken, white fish, tuna, salmon and buffalo meat are all very lean and offer upwards of 45 grams of protein per serving, and contain 200 calories or less.

What the big deal with protein?

Protein is an essential element of any diet.  Every cell in your body is using the amino acids that make up protein to function.   It is a key part of life, and necessary for survival.

Weight Training

The goal of weight training is to breakdown your muscle, and rebuild it stronger than it was before.  When you are lifting really heavy weight, you are tearing the fibers in your muscle.  In order for those fibers to repair and re-grow, you need to consume protein after your workout. Consistent weight training sessions let your body know that "hey, I need more muscle in order to lift weight", and it will want to respond by building bigger muscle in order to meet the training demands you are putting on yourself.  Muscle is mostly made up of water and protein and cannot re-grow without it. Failure to eat protein within three hours of your workout will result in little to no gains. After you finish training, the body will go into recovery mode and work hard to rebuild, but it cannot do this unless you feed it the amino acids that it requires.  You also need protein to maintain your current muscle mass, so even if you are not lifting weights protein stills plays an important role in maintaining healthy body functions.  If the body cannot get adequate protein from food, then it will respond by breaking down it's own muscle mass to help cells continue to do their work and keep you alive.  

If you have spent hours weight training but are not making gains, you may need to look at how much protein you get everyday.  Most likely you are simply not consuming enough to be able to repair, rebuild and re-grow your muscles.  

Feel Full Longer

Protein takes longer to digest than carbs or fats, moving slowly through the gastrointestinal track.  Slower stomach emptying means you will feel full longer and get hungry much later. Fullness will last longer after you have eaten a chicken breast than if you had eaten the same amount of calories from something like a piece of bread.

Burn More Calories

The breakdown of protein within the body also burns more calories than the breakdown of carbohydrates or fat.  Anytime you eat something, you body will burn calories simply digesting it.  Eating a diet rich in protein can boost your daily calorie burn.  If you have two people (assuming they are eating at the same time of day and have the exact same genetic makeup) who both eat 1,500 calories a day, except one of them is consuming more protein than the other, the person who is consuming more protein will have a higher metabolism.

Slow Rise in Blood Sugar

Protein also slows down the conversion of carbohydrates into glucose in your blood-stream, keeping your blood sugar levels stable. Remember that protein takes longer to digest, so when you pair it with carbohydrates you have less chance of your blood sugar rising like it normally would when you consume only carbs.  A sudden spike in your blood sugar triggers the pancreas to release insulin, and a sudden increase in insulin greatly affects your body's ability to burn fat.

Vacationing from your diet

Did you know that the average person who goes on a two week cruise will gain ten pounds? Have you gone through an intense workout and diet regime to get into shape for vacation, but when you come home you've put on all the weight you've lost, and possibly more?

Getting away for a week or two this summer is a great way to relax and spend time with family and friends. Although the news is reporting more people are taking "staycations" (vacationing within the state) because of the economy, I know three separate families who are on their way to the beach right now, along with other friend who is visiting a friend in Florida and another who is in Vegas. Next month a client at Baseline is going to Italy for a couple weeks. For my husband and I, vacationing is the one week a year we really look forward to. It's a week when we can be on our own schedules and slow down a bit. So, how can you maintain a healthy diet and exercise routine without feeling like it's taking away the fun from your getaway?

First, you must realize that if you go out to eat every night you will be faced with all sorts of diet sabotaging situations. Eating out once a week while you are at home can be mitigated by a week of clean eating, but the damage that eating once or twice a day while on vacation can't be undone so quickly. Mentally prepare for the fact that you will be seeing a dessert menu, and decide before you go to the restaurant if you are going to indulge. Be aware of things that are adding tons of extra calories, like the bread the server will put on your table, any mixed drinks, appetizers, etc. If you are renting a space with a kitchen, your best bet is to grocery shop the day to get to your destination for the week. This will put you more in control of the things you eat, and help to alleviate that piece of chocolate cake you want to have at a restaurant. Cooking for yourself during your vacation will also save you money.

If you are thinking that exercise is the last thing you want to do while vacationing, then understand that if you stop your exercise routine and abandon healthy eating habits, it is very likely you will gain fat weight. However a beach vacation can be a great way to burn fat. Walking through sand will burn 20-50% more calories than regular walking. Most beaches have places where you can rent bikes and kayaks. Water sports will eat up lots of calories, as will walking tours of local sights. The client we know who is going to Italy next month is going on a bike tour. She'll be biking most of the day, so she will be able to consume more calories in delicious Italian food without gaining the weight she would if she was sitting on a beach during the vacation. Another option is the hotel gym. Almost all hotels have a gym or a pool near the lobby, and a quick twenty minute run or walk on the treadmill may be more accessible than you think (it's also a great excuse to get away from the family to have some time to yourself. Everyone sleeping and eating together for a week or more can get stressful, especially if you are vacationing with several families).

Deciding on what you want your diet and exercise routine to be like before you reach your destination will help you stay on track. If you want to eat at restaurants while on vacation but are worried about gaining weight, make a mental promise to yourself before you leave to get in extra cardio that week. Research the area you are visiting, and if there are any bike or walking tours sign the family up! Chances are they won't even know they're getting extra exercise because they'll be having so much fun. And that's just what vacationing is about!

Why We Are Fat

Ok, so America is not the "fittest" country in the world. According to Forbes.com we are #9 in the list of fattest countries. How did this happen?

I recently read an article in the Harvard Gazette explaining why citizens of modernized countries are overweight. Anthropology professor Daniel Lieberman believes that our weight-gain really started about 10,000 years ago. Way back then, we were still hunter-gatherers, and our bodies needed food that was calorie dense to keep up with the physical work we were doing. But about 10,000 years ago we switched from hunting and gathering to farming. Over time this switch has enabled us to increase our population and given us more leisure time, and while our diets are very different than they were long ago, our bodies are essentially the same.

This really got me thinking about what kind of physical activity our bodies need. Hundreds of years ago our springs were spent planing and tilling and raising livestock. We were in constant motion. Most Americans today, well, we sit on our butts. The American College of Sports Medicine estimates that the average american takes between 3,000 and 5,000 steps daily, which is about half of what is recommended for a healthy activity level. So not only are we not moving enough, we are eating way too many calories for our underproductive bodies.

Next time I get on the treadmill and think I've done my cardio for the day when I hit thirty minutes, I'll think about my ancestors hauling logs and plowing fields for 6-8 hours a day. I bet that will kick my butt into doing a full hour! :)