Individualizing the program

Several of you have asked about how to individualize the nutrition plan specifically for you, so here's an explanation of how to do just that.

Also, I'm setting aside time at 9:30am on Saturday to meet with any of you who would like more guidance!  Bring your food journal with you and I can look over it and give you some pointers.  Bring any questions you have! 

Main points

Establish some basic nutrition guidelines to follow (this is what we've been doing with the AT and PWO meals!).

Take regular progress measurements.

Are you giving it enough time?  It takes 2-4 weeks on a program to start seeing results.  

If you aren't seeing progress, assess your compliance with the nutrition guidelines.  Are you strictly following it?  This is what the daily and weekly check-ins are for; to see how many AT meals, PWO meals and freebies you are having.  Remember anytime you have a freebie, it means you are not sticking with the nutrition guidelines.  Start by cutting back on your freebies.

If you've been strictly compliant with the guidelines for at least 2-4 weeks and aren't seeing progress, then you can start tweaking the guidelines.  Try swapping a PWO meal out and replacing it with an AT meal.  Try dropping one serving of fat per day.  Just make one or two changes, stick with it for 2-4 weeks, and keep progress checks going so you can figure out what works for you! 

About the sleep issue...

So, I'm a little worried that after reading the sleep goal for this week, and finding out just how important adequate sleep is for body composition goals, you may be ready to throw in the towel completely.  You figure that you're a lousy sleeper, there's no way you can get 7 hours of sleep each night, so this whole "eating right" thing is a complete waste and you're ready to go back to donuts and pizza.  Stop right there...

Yes, a lack of sleep is a huge stressor on the body, but so is poor nutrition.  Stress has a cumulative effect, so eliminating stress anywhere you can will help!  You only had 4 hours of sleep last night?  Well at least you ate whole, nourishing foods so that your body is better equipped to handle the stress of your sleep deprivation.  Oh wait... you only slept 4 hours and you feasted on beer and chili dogs, after running 12 miles?  Ok, well, that's not so good.  You'll probably wind up with achy joints and a fever because your immune system is shot and your body is so inflamed.  

Do you see the point here?  Eating right, drinking right, and sleeping well are all vital to your health!  But it's not an all or nothing deal.  If you truly can only accomplish one of those items, that's better than nothing.  So don't give up!  And while you're working on improving all of these key contributers to health and a rocking physique, here are some tips to help with better sleep:

Lights out

This means a pitch black bedroom, with no light sources.  Not even an alarm clock.  A sleep mask won't cut it!  Believe it or not, your eyeballs aren't the only part of your body that can register light.  There are proteins in your red blood cells that can detect light and carry that information to the brain, which can block secretion of the hormone melatonin.  You may have heard of melatonin- it tells your brain that it's time for sleep, and helps you stay asleep all night.  Do you know what works in direct opposition of melatonin?  Cortisol- the stress hormone.  When cortisol is high, melatonin is low (this should be happening in the early morning when it's time to start waking up), and when cortisol drops, melatonin is elevated (this should be happening toward the end of the day, when it's time to get ready for sleep).  When you are overly stressed, cortisol remains elevated, keeping melatonin from being released, so you lay there staring at the ceiling all night.  And then, your cortisol/ melatonin production winds up being flipped, so that you're exhausted in the morning and wired at night.  Eliminate stress wherever you can, people!

No screens

Avoid looking at your phone screen or a tv screen for up to 2 hours before bed.  I know, this is how everyone winds down for bed!  But these screens emit bright, blue light, which signals to the brain that it's day time, time to get up and at 'em!  If you have trouble falling asleep, switching to reading rather than watching TV would probably be helpful.  If you can't handle the thought of no screens before bed, download the app f.lux.  This free app automatically dims bright white and blue light on your phone, tablet or computer and emits a warm light that won't shout "DAYTIME" to your brain.  There are also blue blocking glasses you can wear to prevent the daytime-looking light from your TV and lightbulbs from entering your eyes.  There are many out there- just do a search for blue blocking glasses.

Avoid sweets and alcohol before bed

Consuming sweets or alcohol close to bed time can cause a middle of the night sugar crash, which can wake you up and make it nearly impossible to fall back asleep.  I know, that nightcap sure is great for helping you fall asleep, right?  Maybe, but it's not good at all for helping you sleep all night!  You're better off without it! 

Temperature

Make sure the temperature of your room is cool enough to send you off to sleep.  Your body temperature decreases to prepare for sleep, and a cooler room temperature can help facilitate this process and thus, your ability to fall asleep.  How cool does your room need to be?  Studies have shown that temperatures between 60-67 degrees are ideal.  Go ahead and splurge on the energy bill to keep your night time temps low!  Your sleep is worth it. 

Exercise

Some people can really konk out and get a great night's sleep after a tough evening workout, while others feel totally amped up and can't settle down for several hours post workout.  Know what works for you and get in your exercise, either in the evenings or early in the day!  Everyone should be shooting for 3-4 workout sessions per week, but avoid high intensity exercise daily, as it can wind up being another source of stress, rather than stress relief.  It's all about balance... be sure your are giving your body time to rest and recover between workouts.  How quickly you are able to recover is greatly dependent on your overall stress load (good nutrition and sleep mean you'll be recovered and ready to workout again sooner!)  

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A note about the 7 hours sleep goal...

Ok, so now you have some tools to work with to try to improve your sleep.  But what if you lay there and stare at the ceiling all night?  As long as you are in bed with lights out for a solid 7 hours, then you have met your goal for the purposes of this program.  So just GET to bed 7 hours before you have to wake up in the morning, and you can check the "yes" box on the sleep goal.  Got it?  And keep in mind that 7 hours is the absolute minimum required!  If you can get more, please do!  

My food log

Today was a busy day for me, without much time for meals, so I thought it would be a good idea to show you guys how I managed my food! 

I didn't eat breakfast this morning... just had coffe on my way out the door.  Sometimes, I prefer to wait until after my morning classes at the gym to eat. 

Lunch was meatballs I had cooked in the crockpot the day before,  with store bought Muir Glen organic tomato sauce on top of a pile of sautéed spinach. It took about 7 mins from the fridge to my bowl!

2 protein (meatballs) + 3 fruit/veg (2 fist sized raw spinach and 1 fist sized tomato sauce)

For a snack, I had half of a banana topped with dark chocolate and a little bit of flaked coconut and walnuts. I created a post on Instagram and Facebook about making these!

0.5 fruit/ veg (banana) + 1 fat (dark chocolate)

I ran into Starbucks before the kids' soccer games and found a pack of meat and cheese, and had a bottle of green veggie juice with it.  Score!  Whole veggies are best when you can, but when you can't, the juice will help get in those nutrients! 

1 protein + 1 fat (cheese) + 2 fruit/veg (that bottle is two veg servings!) 

Tonight was Johnny's Pizza pig out night for the middle school, so we stopped after the games to pick up pizza for the kids.  I dug through the fridge and threw this together for myself.  It's 1 cup of organic cottage cheese (this stuff is packed with protein!) and I added pumpkin (seasoned with pumpkin pie spice and stevia) and topped it with flax seed and chia seed to add a boost of fiber and a bit of healthy fat.  If you can't stomach the cottage cheese, this is even better with plain Greek yogurt, too!   

1 protein (cottage cheese) + 1 fruit/veg (pumpkin) + 1 fat (seeds) 

Total= 4 protein + 6.5 fruit/veg (0.5 was fruit) + 3 fat

Even though I did a workout today, I didn't have any carb servings.   That was by choice, and that's my norm, because I feel much better with more fat and less carbohydrate.  It's not for everyone, though... find what works for you!

See?!  It doesn't have to be complicated. It can be done even on the busiest of days 😉. I'm going to have my fish oil supplement, too, since I didn't get it in food form.  

Week 3 questions and comments...

"Hectic days lead to less than three meals per day and insufficient protein...how can i get a score in the WIN column even if my food intake isn't a win?"

Yep, hectic days make it really tough to get those meals in.  Keeping some convenient foods on hand, even if they're less than ideal, is always a good idea!  Gulp a protein shake or eat a stick of beef jerky, or even a handful of nuts.  (Read through the response to the next question for another approach to this problem!)

As far as getting a "win", you are getting your win every day that you do your check in form!  Whether you check the "yes" box or the "no" box, you are working on improving your eating habits, and that's a win.  Having you consistently doing the check ins is what I'm after, because it means that you will get into the habit of at least thinking about the goals every day.  While you may not hit the goal every time, you are aware of it, and slowly improving on it.

"I feel like I am getting my protein in ok, but it may not always be at all three meals. Some meals may have more intake than others. In other words, I may not always have the full serving at one meal, but may have more than one at another. I guess getting in the full daily requirement is the bottom line or goal? And is it just me, or is it difficult to take in that much protein a day? Seems like a lot. ?? Lol"

Yes, that's right!  If you're getting in 3-4 servings of protein per day, exactly when you eat it isn't so important.  Trying to work one serving in per meal is an easy way to approach it, but it isn't the only way to do it!  This also applies to the question above... if you can't get your protein serving in at lunch because of a hectic day, you can always make up for it by having a larger serving of protein with breakfast and dinner.  Find what works with your schedule and go with it!  Setting the goal of 3-4 servings of protein a day, rather than one per meal, is perfectly acceptable!

A lot of people do find it hard at first to get in all that protein, but it's because it's something you aren't used to!  Protein is the most satiating macronutrient (it makes you feel more full, and for longer, than either carbs or fat do), which means you don't usually feel like eating a lot of it!  But once you get used to it, your metabolism will ramp up and you'll have more of an appetite for it.  This is a good thing!

If you wind up not getting in every serving of protein every day, it's not a failure!  Remember that eating right takes practice, just like any other skill, and consistent practice will make you better at it.  If you're getting more protein in now that you were before you started this program, then you're making progress and that's what counts!

 

Another nice little perk from getting in your protein...

Protein is the most thermogenic food, meaning that your body expends a good deal of energy just to digest it.  In fact, you only absorb about 70-80% of the calories in protein dense foods, because you burn the other 20-30% off just by digesting it!  Digestion from carbs only burns off about 5-10% of the total calories, and only 0-3% of the calories from fats are burned off.  So basically, just eating more protein increases your metabolism, and should help you eat less of the carbs and fat, because you aren't as hungry after getting in that protein!

Week 2 questions/ comments

I know the meal planning and prep thing really isn't easy, but it's far easier than trying to throw together a good, quick dinner every night with whatever you just happen to have on hand!  Getting it done at the beginning of the week is a real game changer, and it seems that most of you are realizing that.  Keep it up!  I promise it will continue to get easier!

I had a question about substituting one meal with a protein shake, and which meal is best to sub it for.  Real food is always best, but when that isn't an option, a protein shake is certainly better than nothing!  It's a great way to get in some nutrients when you truly just don't have time to eat.  As for the best meal to have the shake, I'd say the meal that's the hardest to get in!  Time of day really isn't important here.  Whatever works best for you and your schedule is what you're going for.

Slowing down and eating seems to be a challenge for many of you.  I get it!  The days are so busy, it's hard to make time to just sit and eat.  Just do your best.  If you can set an alarm for lunch time and stop what you're doing even for 5 mins to eat, DO IT.  Fifteen minutes would be better, but 5 is better than nothing!  Schedule your meal times on your calendar if you have to, just as you schedule time for everyone else.  You deserve to be on your schedule, too!  But there may be meal times when you truly have zero time, and that's ok.  As long as you are making an effort to eat slowly and stop at 80% full every time, then you're making progress!  You don't have to be perfect in achieving every goal every day, but you do need to be conscious of the goal, and doing the best you can to achieve it.  Doing better than you did last week is a great step in the right direction!  So don't beat yourself up if you don't get it right every single time.

BUT... even if you don't meet the goal for the day, I still need to you to fill out check-in the form I text you in the evening so that we both have record of what you are able, or aren't able to do.  This is the only way you will know what is or isn't helping you make progress, and it will also help me see what's going on with you and try to help you find other solutions when something just isn't working for you.  I'm not using these forms to judge you if you check the "no" box.  I promise!  Think of this as your own science experiment to find out which eating habits get you closer to your goal.  First, you need a baseline (your intake form- finish those if you haven't yet!!!), then you need detailed information on what you're doing (your daily check-ins), then you will compare your next progress check to your baseline to see if anything is changing.  The information is vital!  The forms can be done right there on your phone, and shouldn't take more than a minute or two.  If you're having any issues with them, please let me know and I'll see what I can do to help :) 

Stress Eating

For a lot of you (me included), the cravings really hit when you're stressed, so the question is how to deal with this situation.  First of all, it helps to know WHY this happens.  Certain foods are addictive- they stimulate the pleasure centers of your brain, just like drugs.  There is a pretty immediate release of some feel good hormones and you wind up with this nice warm, fuzzy feeling, which is really what you're craving when you're stressing out.  Some people reach for alcohol, some reach for drugs, and some reach for food to get their high.  We are a society of food abusers, people!

So when you're stressed out, you aren't really craving chocolate (or Doritos, or cake, etc); you're craving the warm, fuzzy FEELING those foods stimulate.  The key here is to find other ways to stimulate those feel good hormones, and to deal with stress before it gets overwhelming.  Deep, belly breathing (like the box breathing we did, or the ujjayi breath in yoga) actually stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system, which essentially turns off the body's stress response.  Exercise, laughter, gratitude, helping others, and connecting with friends all release feel good hormones.  Adequate amounts of quality sleep help you handle stressful situations better,  and excessive caffeine can exacerbate feelings of stress.

If stress eating seems to feel out of your control, it's not a food problem; it's a problem of dealing with situations you find stressful.  Your best bet is to work on ways to keep your stress in check daily.  Don't wait until your head is about to blow off before you decide you need to work on it!  Some things to try: work on getting adequate amounts of sleep; take 5 minutes out a few times each day to focus on deep, slow breathing; start a gratitude journal; find ways to make someone else's day brighter; exercise regularly; laugh with a friend.  The list goes on.  And when you do get into a situation where you're feeing overwhelmed and all you care about is chocolate, just know that it's not the chocolate you need- it's the relaxed, happy feeling you get from it.  So have a glass of water, take a few deep breaths and a walk if you can, find something you're grateful for (there is ALWAYS something to be grateful for), and figure out how to deal with your situation one single step at a time.

Week 1 questions

Hey guys!  You all seem to be doing really well so far!  Most of you have your intake forms complete and have your meal planning done for the week.  Some of you couldn't get to it until today, and that's ok- just get those items checked off ASAP!  And for those of you on Facebook, keep using the BodEvolve group page to communicate with each other and share your experience so far.  This will be a great tool for you all!

In yesterday's check-in form, I left a space for you all to ask questions or make any comments for me.  I'm going to address those here, because I think all of you will benefit from seeing the questions that were asked and my responses to them...

What are some good snack choices?  What would be a good yogurt to add in?

Good snack choices can be fruit and veggies (maybe carrots with hummus to dip?), nuts, protein shake or bar, etc.  Whole foods are always the best choice, but when that isn't practical, shakes and bars will work.  Greek yogurt is a good choice, because it has a good amount of protein.  Just avoid any added sugar- plain greek yogurt is best, and you can mix in fresh berries and sweeten with a couple drops of liquid stevia or some raw honey, if you'd like.  

Will you be making suggestions based on our individual needs and goals?

The first part of this program will be helping you guys make the switch to high quality foods.  We will work on which foods you should be adding in... and once we get the QUALITY of food covered, then I will give you tips on the QUANTITY of food you should be aiming for.  Typically, once you focus on quality foods, quantity will take care of itself.  We have built-in mechanisms to control how much we eat, but those mechanisms only work properly when we feed our bodies the food we were built to eat.  Processed foods override our natural hunger/ satiated signals.  Think about it- how often do you over eat on whole foods?  When you binge, is it on chicken and broccoli?  Probably not.  

Biggest concern at this point is being away from home and the kitchen three nights a week.  But I do feel certain I will find some solutions :)

This is tough!  Most of us do have busy schedules with the kids that keep us from being able to have time in the evenings to cook dinner.  This is why prepping in advance is so important!  Having some protein and veggies already cooked and in the fridge to heat is an easy solution, or you can toss a meal in the crockpot in the morning so it's ready when you get home.  A salad can be thrown together quickly, a wrap, or even some spaghetti (I like to buy the brown rice pasta) with a jar of sauce and ground beef that you already have browned.  When you know you'll be out late, be sure you have some sort of snack with you so you aren't absolutely ravenous when you get home.  It takes a bit of time to build this habit of preparing ahead, but it will get easier, and you will all figure out what works for you!

Looking for a healthy ranch salad dressing- is Whole 30 ok?

Yep!  Any homemade dressings should be great, and if you're getting a store-bought dressing, just check the ingredients and look for things you can understand!  If there are things in there you can't pronounce, put it back on the shelf.  

It seems that the biggest concern I'm seeing is wondering about what foods to eat.  Don't worry too much about that yet!  We will get there, I promise ;)  Just focus on making your plan and using it through the week to stay on track!  

Week 1- Shannon's Meal Prep

Here's a rundown of my meal prep for the week:

1. Put eggs on the stove to boil.
2. Sliced up a bag of colored bell peppers from Sam's.  Half of them were put into a ziplock bag, raw, and the other half were sautéed with 2 sliced onions.
3. Sliced and sautéed a pack of mushrooms from Sam's.
4. I thawed out a 3 pound bag of frozen chicken breasts from Sam's the night before.  I sliced half the breasts into strips and seasoned with Mexican spices- chili powder, oregano, cumin, garlic, salt and pepper.  I sautéed these on the stove.  The other half of the breasts I left whole and seasoned with an Indian spice blend I have, called Garam Masala.  I baked these breasts at 375*.  Tip for precooking chicken breasts: leave the chicken slightly undercooked, so they will finish cooking when you reheat them.  If they're cooked all the way through, it's easy to overcook them when reheating, and you wind up with tough, leathery chicken!
5. Peeled the eggs and packed everything up in storage containers in the fridge.
6. Mixed up a batch of Bircher meusli.
7. DONE!  This took about 1.5 hours of total time, including clean up.

Already in the fridge or pantry:

1. Hummus
2. Spinach, salad greens, cherry tomatoes, avocado, baby carrots
3. Pre cut broccoli and cauliflower florets
4. Greek yogurt
5. Deli meat
6. Canned tuna
7. Frozen berries
8. Fresh Eggs
9. Salsa

I have a bunch of storage jars I use to keep all this stuff in.  Storage containers are a must!  If you don't have these on hand, you must go shopping!  Now that the prep is taken care of, here's how I'll use all of it throughout the week...

For breakfast,  I have Bircher meusli (I love this stuff!!) ready and will just add Greek yogurt and some berries to serve it.  I can quickly scramble some eggs with my sautéed mushrooms, peppers and onions.  I can also use the frozen fruit and whey protein I have for smoothies.  I can always just go with Greek yogurt topped with fruit, too.

I can get a salad together for lunch with the salad veggies I have in the fridge, and can add in cooked chicken strips and boiled eggs, or maybe some tuna.  Another option would be to mix together my cooked veggies and chicken and heat it up together, or turn it into a fajita bowl by adding some canned black beans, salsa, and avocado.  I have hummus in the fridge, too, and I can use it to dip chicken in or some sliced raw bell pepper and baby carrots.  In a pinch, I like to put some hummus on a few slices of deli meat and roll them up.  It's a really easy quick snack!

Dinners can be thrown together the same way.  If you have a day that doesn't go according to your plan, and you aren't able to get something else cooked, you always have these easy options to fall back on!

I hope this gives you some ideas, and shows you how simple the process can be!

Week 1- Shannon's Meal Planning Sat 9/3

Hey guys!  I just wanted to show you what my meal planning looks like for the week so you can get some ideas.  I like to write everything out on paper, but of course, you can just use the notes in your phone if you prefer.  I found that "What to Eat" pad at Books-a-Million :)

Under each day, I write in what I plan to fix for dinner that night, but as the week goes on, I may wind up moving things around.  And that's ok!  As long as I have a blueprint that shows me everything I'll be making for the week, I know I will have those ingredients on hand.  

I tend to choose 3-4 breakfast and lunch items to keep handy and just pick which I want on each day.  I'm ok with lots of repeats, so that makes things easy for me.  I also make sure to always cook more than needed for dinners so I can have leftovers for lunch!

I also make a list of quick bites to have available in case I want something between meals, or I can use these as side items to build a quick meal, also.

Once the meal planning is done, I write out my shopping list.  I double check items in my fridge and pantry to be sure I have enough left of items I already have.  I like to make a Sam's list, a Brookshire's list, and a Fiesta Nutrition list, when needed.  It just makes the shopping trips easier and faster to already have it divided up!  

That's it!  Planning and shopping are done, so the prep work comes next...