Optimal Nutrition

Optimal nutrition is possibly the most important aspect of your overall progress. In order to achieve great results you must apply sound nutritional guidelines and be mindful of the food that you eat.

Optimal nutrition has an effect on all areas of your life. Eat right and you will achieve results much easier and will experience a massive shift in your level of vitality.

Today we live in a society that is so preoccupied with weight loss (or making money off other people's pain) that it becomes an obsession.

Instead of the weight loss approach, we focus simply on optimal nutrition for all circumstances, the weight loss is a natural by-product of that.

• Eat Whole, Natural Foods: It’s easy to grab processed food now days, it seems to be everywhere. Processed food is easy to prepare and is often ready to eat.

  The problem with processed food is that it is packed with unnatural ingredients that your body is not meant to consume. These chemicals and additives leach nutrients from the food and create all kinds of havoc for various systems of the body.
  

  Whenever possible, choose foods that are whole and natural. This may sound obvious but many people don’t do it. In addition to fresh food, some healthy alternatives are frozen vegies, canned foods such as baked beans (a great breakfast food and an overall super food), canned fish, some canned vegies, canned fruits and anything that naturally preserves the whole food inside.

  Eating whole, natural foods will make a major impact on your overall health and vitality.

• Cut Down on Processed Grains Rather Than Fat: Fat is something that many people blame for their weight or health issues.

  By cutting fat you are increasing your appetite for it because you need it. With this craving you will seek out alternatives, which come in the form of sugars or high glycemic index carbohydrates. These excessive carbohydrates contribute more to fat gain and health issues than natural fats.

  Forget low fat, just don’t eat too much of a good thing.

• Eat 5-6 Smaller Meals Per Day: We have all heard this one before but how many people pay attention to it and actually apply it? Not many.

  Eating frequently can stimulate your metabolism as much as exercise. This is not just good for weight loss, it also applies to leaner people. By eating frequently you are ensuring a larger percentage of the nutrients are absorbed and used rather than creating waste and storage.

• Eat Less Carbohydrates Towards The End Of The Day: Towards the end of the day we need less energy as our body begins to slow down and is less active.

  Choose night time meals that are lower in carbohydrates, especially heavy or quickly absorbed carbohydrates like sugars.

  High carb foods include pasta, rice, bread, cereals, starchy vegetables like potato and corn and anything with sugar, wheat, corn or other grains.

  You should still eat some carbs but work towards cutting the amount and eating higher protein foods.

• Eat Enough Protein: Many people don’t get enough protein, and I'm not talking about processed protein that you find in shakes and other supplements.

  Protein is essential for muscle repair, growth and organ function. Eating a serving of a protein food at every meal will help keep you satisfied, it will help repair lean body mass and will cut the amount of empty calories you are likely to consume.

• Balance All Macro-Nutrients: Macro-nutrients are those that come in large amounts. The three macro-nutrients are carbohydrates, protein and fat. If these are not balanced then you risk causing all of them to not be absorbed and used properly.

  Without carbohydrates the body cannot maintain fat loss or synthesise protein, without fat you cannot produce hormones effectively, without protein you cannot repair tissues after exercise. Balance all macro-nutrients by eating an appropriate serving of each with every meal.

• Never Feel Full, Never Feel Hungry: When you feel hungry your body does two things, it creates a famine response where you will hold onto more energy and store it for later, and it also breaks down lean body tissue (i.e., muscle mass). The rule we go by is to never let yourself get hungry, eat before that happens.

  On the other hand, you don’t want to eat until you are full either, not the type of full we are conditioned to anyway. We get the nutrients we need from a meal well before our body tells us we are full. So eat until you have slightly satisfied yourself and don’t let hunger set in before the next meal. keep servings small and adequate.

Optimal nutrition, sports nutrition and nutrition for any type of lifestyle should become a major focus for you. Quite often health issues stem from a poor diet, well actually most health issues come from less than optimal nutrition.

of course, these basic nutritional guidelines only outline the bare basics of optimal nutrition. If you were to ask me what one tip I could give you for optimal nutrition it would be to eat like a wild caveman. In other words, eat as if you had to live off the land.

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