Cheat Proof your Metabolism

Never in history have we, as a species, had access to so much convenient food. Most people in North America live within a few miles of a grocery store or market, and endless supplies of takeout chains.

          Our primitive ancestors did not have readily accessible food. They might only have one big meal a day. Sometimes it would be days between big hunting scores and days between meals. I’m sure they were so hungry between meals that by the time they ate, their bodies insisted on a much food as they could eat! The primitive man’s body was very good at making sure nutrients were saved for those in between times. It was, and still is, stored as fat. You see, your body learns. It learns how to best provide for you based on your habits. Over the centuries and millennium, our bodies have been trained as very efficient fat storage machines…and this may be why you can’t lose weight.

          I’ve been there too… found myself wondering why I only ate two or three meals a day and still couldn’t lose weight and was hungry in between too. I used to think the hunger pains in my stomach were a good thing because it meant my body was now going to eat all my fat and make me skinny. It turns out that wasn’t true. When I didn’t give myself enough food often enough my body was actually storing what I did give it away for the next time I starved it. I also found out that our bodies prefer to snack on our muscle before it will snack on our fat reserves.

          You can train your metabolism J   Ever hear someone say that there is nothing they can do about their weight because their metabolism makes it impossible? There are a lot of heavy people in my family so I erroneously thought it was just in my genes. For some, that might be true, but for the overwhelming majority of us the issue is that our metabolisms are not trained to do what we want them to do.

          So how do you do it? How do you make your body burn calories more efficiently and not store fat. You may have already guessed it. EAT MORE OFTEN. When your body knows its next meal isn’t that far away it will quickly use what you give it and not store it as fat. It learns to trust you to provide the nutrients it needs to keep you running all day long. I eat 4-5 small meals a day…one about every three hours. I bet right now you are envisioning me chained to a stove all day preparing food. I am not, I assure you (not with two kids 6 and under... lol). Some meals are bigger than others but in each meal I balance a carb, a protein, and a fat (yup you can have carbs…you body needs carbs). An example of a day of meals might look like this:

              

Breakfast- 2 eggs and a cup of oatmeal

Mid-Morning Snack- one small apple sliced with organic “no sugar added” peanut butter

Lunch- spinach salad with sliced almonds, dried cranberries, ½ cup of grilled chicken                 breast, with balsamic vinegar and olive oil

Mid-Afternoon Snack- Non-fat Greek yogurt (I love Chobani)

Dinner- A clean eating recipe (perhaps Southwestern Meatballs as posted a few days ago on this blog)

So why is it important that your 4 to 5 meals consist of real food (non-processed, “clean”)? It is because your body doesn’t recognize foods made in a laboratory by chemists… it recognizes food made in nature by farmers. Processed foods are lacking a lot of nutrients. When your body doesn’t recognize the food it’s eating as actual food and is lacking in nutrients, your body doesn’t give you credit and is still looking for more nutrients…so you store fat. By the way, did you know that most processed foods are actually corn, soy, and wheat, and a whole bunch of additives combined to look like your favorite foods with artificial flavors and dyes? That processed turkey meat you put on your sandwich probably isn’t turkey at all, or very little turkey…it’s probably the ingredients above made to look and taste like it. It’s no wonder our bodies are confused. To judge how “clean” your foods are, read the list of ingredients. If there are more than a few ingredients in your food, it’s probably not clean. If there is an ingredient in your food you don’t recognize from nature, it’s probably not clean.

There are many reasons why this way of eating works for weight loss and weight management. One is that you are never hungry. In fact, if you are hungry you should eat. Trust that when your body tells you it needs food, it does. Just make healthy choices and control your portions.When you are not hungry, you make better choices (isn’t that why they say don’t grocery shop on an empty stomach?). Another reason it works is because it’s not a diet, it’s a lifestyle. You can eat this way your entire life and be happy. The scientific reasons why this works are many and it involves your hormones, insulin, thyroid, and the list goes on and on. You’ve probably figured out in my last few blogs that I like to do my homework and pass along what I feel were the best sources of information for me. There are many others out there and I welcome you to do your own research. I think we should all educate ourselves about our bodies. They do come with owner’s manuals, they just didn’t hand them out at birth J I am not a nutritionist, doctor, or anything of the sort. Just like most of you, I have to figure stuff out on my own. For understanding metabolism and how you can affect it, I recommend “Master your Metabolism”, by Jillian Michaels with Mariska Van Aalst.

So, back to my posting title…”Cheat Proof your Metabolism”. How does that work? It’s simple… if you eat this way most of the time, occasional cheats don’t have as profound an effect on weight gain. When your metabolism is working efficiently it will take your occasional bowl of ice cream, process it, and move on. Your body gets in the habit of using food and not storing it as fat. I recommend cheating from time to time. I cheat about once a week with a bowl of ice cream or a couple glasses of wine. It’s important to treat yourself sometimes J The important thing is to return to your clean eating style of life the next day.

I’m not perfect…I’m just trying to figure out this whole health thing just like you. Thanks letting me share my experiences with you J   

Please consult your doctor before beginning or changing your diet and exercise regimen.