Lifestyler with Josie McKenlay: Five most frequently asked diet questions

Josie McKenlay 16:01 06/10/2015
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  • Fruit contains nutrients that are positively good for your health.

    As a Lifestyle and Fitness adviser, there are a few questions that come up time and again regarding diet, nutrition and weight control.  Here are the top five:

    – #360fit: The four pillars of motivation
    – Lifestyler: Multi-tasking stretch for athletes

    1.  Will I gain weight if I eat after 6pm?

    The short answer to this is no, the time of day most people eat won’t cause weight gain so long as they are following a healthy diet.  The food will be processed and stored as energy for when it is required.  In fact, if you work out in the evening, it is important to refuel with a normal, balanced meal within a couple of hours.  “Nutrient timing” is important for “physique” type athletes like bodybuilders or for athletes at the highest level of sport, but for the rest of us it just adds unnecessary complication.

    2.  How often should I do a detox?

    The juice detox/cleanse thing has gone out of control in the last few years.  There are serious health issues associated with such a restrictive regimen: serious nutrient deficiency, fatigue, GI tract dysfunction, blood sugar imbalances to name but a few which will lead to ill health.  For a short time, they can be useful to kick start a healthy eating lifestyle change or a day or two after a holiday to get back on track, but your body is brilliantly made to detox itself so long as you aren’t overloading it with toxins all day long.  If you choose to do this, you need to be resting.

    Swapping bad food for good is the best way to improve nutrition.

    3.  What sort of diet should I go on?

    “Going on a diet” is not a particularly useful way to manage your weight long term.  The best way to get started is to improve your nutrition intake.  Identify areas of deficiency and work on those first.  Most people simply need to get a better balance of foods into their diet and swapping bad for good is the best way to improve nutrition.  Start by increasing the amount of vegetables you eat and reducing carbs such as fries, move on to eating more high quality protein and fewer takeaways, try snacking on fruit each afternoon rather than biscuits, drink more water and fewer sodas and coffees.  Don’t do it all at once: gradually improve your eating habits.  Go for lots of variety in all food groups. This will have a very beneficial effect on your health overall.

    4.  Should I count calories

    It’s almost impossible to count calories easily.  The best way to work out portion sizes for a main meal is to use your hand: Precision Nutrition came up with this handy way of measuring

    • Your palm determines your protein portions.
    • Your fist determines your veggie portions.
    • Your cupped hand determines your carb portions. (See Q.5)
    • Your thumb determines your fat portions.

    5.  Should I avoid carbs?

    There is no doubt that if you cut all carbs, you will lose weight, but most people will stick to a healthy eating plan if they include a moderate amount and variety of good quality carbs, for example, rice, quinoa, grains, root vegetables (definitely do not avoid all other vegetables) and pulses/lentils/legumes.  Adequate carbs help most clients exercise harder and recover better, which is all part of weight control and health.

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