Foods.

With everyday comes a new fad diet and a new way to punish yourself or another reason to starve yourself of basic nutritional food groups. We’re here to tell you that it doesn’t have to be that way, eating can be enjoyable and support you wholesomely.

Our view on food is exactly the same as our view on exercise, what works for someone else may not work for you. Its all about listening to your body and creating patterns and choices that are loving to YOU. Thats why all of our programs are personalised and no two programs are the same.

Our basic thought process when choosing our food is asking ourself what the thought is behind our reasoning to select one food over another, for example:

“Is this an emotional craving?”

“Am I really hungry?”

“Does this food serve my body well?”

“Does this meal make me feel great after eating it?”

Once you’ve starting this line of thinking when it comes to food it will be easy to make decisions based on you and what your body really needs.

If possible try to avoid highly processed foods and food with lots of preservatives and additives, simple is best when it comes to fuelling your body.

Behaviour.

What we eat affects how we feel. Food should make us feel good. However if you eat too little or eat too much, your health and quality of life could be affected. 

By learning how to make healthier and more mindful choices, you may be able to control impulsive food choices. By choosing to make more mindful food selections, you may also gain a feeling of calm, high energy levels, improved body confidence, a more positive relationship to food and alertness from the foods you eat.

Many factors can influence our feelings about food and our eating behaviors, some include social, family, economic status & psychological. 

Many people use food as a coping mechanism to deal with such feelings as stress, boredom or anxiety, or even to prolong feelings of joy. While this may help in the short term, eating to soothe and ease your feelings often leads to regret and guilt, and can even increase the negative feelings. 

Behaviour is one of the major factors in long term success. It is also one of the most challenging factors to address and can take far longer than any of the other stages.

Before we can create diets or workouts we have to focus on how we got to where we are today and how we feel about that. Past behaviours lay the foundation on where to start your journey to a healthier lifestyle. Breaking down these behavioural barriers can at times be very confronting and may seem almost impossible. 

If you need guidance or assistance in choosing the right foods for you or help addressing your eating behaviours contact us today for a free phone consultation. Personalised meal plans and exercise plans available for purchase in our online store.

Portions.

Counting calories and restricting yourself to only using small plates so you don’t eat too much is bound to result in you feeling hungry and making choices out of impulse not out of truth.

A great way to start is to look at the amount of vegetables you eat and water you drink and double it. Most of us aren’t eating or drinking nearly enough of either.

At meal time start by filling your plate or bowl or both with as many delicious vegetables, salad leaves or greens as you like, top with some protein and pack in some flavour ie spices, nuts, hummus etc. Flavour is essential as bland food just isn’t worth eating, life needs to have a little spice in it we think.

Try not to worry too much as to how big or little your portion is, rather try to concentrate on picking healthier options and tune in to how your body is feeling after you’ve finished your meal. If you listen to your body you will know when you’re full or when you’re still hungry and that’s the key to healthy eating.

Drinks.

Water, water, water! We cannot stress enough the importance of hydrating your body each day, especially during & after exercise.

Health Direct Australia recommends as a general rule, men need about 10 cups of fluids every day and women need about 8 cups (add another cup per day if you are pregnant or breastfeeding). So that’s roughly 2.5L for men & 2L for women. The more active you are or the more you perspire the more water you will require per day.

Great ways to get extra water into your day is to drink herbal teas or water flavoured with fresh lime and mint. These will count towards your fluids needed for the day. To help you keep track of your fluid intake try using a bottle that you know the capacity of and only fill it up when empty. That way at the end of the day you can count how many times you filled it up and accurately track your daily water goals.

Sugary juices, soft drinks and energy drinks should be monitored as they contain very high amounts of caffein and sugar which will leave you spiking and dipping throughout the day, unable to regulate your blood sugar levels. If you cannot ever imagine giving up these above drinks try opting for similar but slightly healthier options so you can control the sweetness. Try mixing a low sugar cordial or mixer with soda water that way you can gradually dilute the mixture until your body gets used to not having the sugary drinks.

Planning.

Your meals are only as good as your planning. To succeed in fuelling your body with nutritious, wholesome food you need to be prepared for when hunger strikes.

Meal prepping or cooking ahead is a great way to stick to a healthy habit. Prep snacks the night before, roast up vegetables on the weekend to make mid-week meals quicker and even more delicious.

These days there are plenty of fantastic meal delivery options that are fantastic for back ups or meals on the go at work or school.

Get creative when planning your weekly meals and try to change it up so you don’t get bored of eating dry rice and bland chicken. Flavour is key when cooking and at no point should it be put on the back burner. Pack your meals full of fresh vegetables, proteins and spices to create magic everyday.

Nutrients.

There are 7 main nutrients needed for a healthy human body. These are essential in supporting to a well functioning body and eating correct amounts of them can have the following positive effects:

• Reduce high blood pressure

• Lower high cholesterol

• Improve your well-being

• Improve your ability to fight off illness

• Improve your ability to recover from illness or injury

• Increase your energy level

The 7 main nutrients are made up of water, carbohydrates, protein, fat, vitamins, minerals & omega-3 fatty acids.

Consuming the correct amount of these nutrients is highly important especially when it comes to protein. The Australian Government Guidelines recommend the following daily intake for people aged 19­–70:

• Men: 0.84g per kilogram of body weight per day.

• Women: 0.75g per kilogram of body weight per day.

The average Australian everyday under consumes protein, so putting this at the forefront of any nutrition plan will have great benefits. Protein helps to keep you satiated for longer, build lean muscle, good for your bones, reduces cravings, boosts metabolism and increases fat burning.

For more nutrition information feel free to contact us.