PROTEIN

• Protein is of primal importance- it is essential. The very nature of the word means of primal importance, or first.
• Protein is required for proper structure and function of all of your cells!
• Proteins most bioavailable form is from animals (meaning your body utilizes it most efficiently from animal sources.
• While there is some protein in vegetables, the digestibility and availability is less than that of animal sources; vegetables are carbohydrates (see below).
• The quality of the protein you eat should be a factor in your choice: naturally raised, pastured, free-roaming and grazing animals provide a clean, high quality protein, whereas factory farmed animals may not. Still, this is a better choice for health and performance than protein from non-animal sources.
• Protein doesn’t have to be deep fried to taste good. 😊

FAT

• Fat does not make us fat (however highly refined carbohydrates…too many carbohydrates from grains, cereal grains and pseudo-grains can!)
• Fat is satiating, good for your skin, brain function and cells, and can be health-protective. Healthy fats come from animals, animal products (butter) and sometimes plants (olives, avocado, nuts, coconut, and seeds).
• Fat can also provide energy – for some trained athletes, it can provide fuel for endurance workouts, and for all of us, it can provide energy for the brain. Think about it like mental energy – certain kinds of fat can make us more alert and help our brains work better. (Also see carbohydrates for “physical energy”).
  • Note that last part: Fat is energy for the brain.

CARBOHYDRATES

Repeat after me:

• Carbohydrates are not all bad.
• Carbohydrates are fruit.
• Carbohydrates are ALL VEGETABLES (even broccoli is a carbohydrate).
• Carbohydrates are oats, and rice, and potatoes.
• Carbohydrates are also chips, cookies, crackers, cake, candy…
• Carbohydrates are not ALL bad!
• Carbohydrates from ancestral roots (roots as in history not necessarily roots and tubers, although still true!) are higher in nutrients, antioxidants, phytonutrients than other neolithic refined-grain-based carbohydrates like wheat, corn and oats.
• Starchy carbohydrates, for most of us, are best seen as energy…the more physical energy we need, the more starch we need. The more sedentary we are, the less starch we need. When we’re active, our bodies use circulating blood glucose for energy. That’s great! But if we eat a lot of starchy carbs, which turn into circulating blood glucose, and then we sit around, that’s when the wheels fall off the bus! High levels of blood glucose are not a good thing, generally.
• Note that last part: Carbohydrates are energy for physical activity.
• Carbohydrates from plants (non-starchy vegetables like carrots, broccoli, tomatoes (technically a fruit), celery, greens, cucumbers, mushrooms) may contribute to a healthier gut microbiome (healthy gut bacteria) which we’ve learned is the root of your immune system and the more diverse your gut flora are, the healthier you are!
• Carbohydrates are not essential for life. Wait…say whaaaaaaat? It’s true – you can literally live without carbohydrates which is untrue of our other two macronutrients: protein and fat. HOWEVER, carbohydrates add variety, and again, nutrients, and energy for our active, CrossFitting, performance-based and lives. They also allow us to remain social when friends want to “go out”. And yes, someone may live a healthy existence void of carbohydrates (in a ketogenic state, for example), and studies show that though we can evolve to live in this type of culture (the Inuit people still do!). But in general, they have a place in most of our lives.

So now what? I know…that didn’t help a bit did it? Well, it should have a little. You really do need to understand what you’re eating. So aside from the little history lesson here on what are the three main macronutrients (above), how about some tips for trying to understand how to put this all together?

TIP #1 – INGREDIENTS MATTER

Sometimes it’s simple: Apple. Banana. Chicken Breast. Potato. Egg. It’s easy to know the ingredients in these foods. And, here’s the important part: you know exactly what you’re putting in your body. When we start to eat from boxes and packages, take out food and food we didn’t cook, it gets harder. Start reading the “INGREDIENTS” on the packages you buys (if you MUST buy packages😬).

If you make it, generally you know what’s in it better than if you bought it right? Right! Think about that.

TIP #2 – BUILD YOUR MEALS THINKING ABOUT THE THREE MACRONUTRIENTS ABOVE AND THE PURPOSE THEY SERVE

1. Lead with protein – what will be your protein source for breakfast, lunch and dinner? 4-7 ounces (less if smaller sized or women, more if larger sized/men). Cook your protein in high quality fat like grass-fed butter,
2. Add veggies! Yes, the non-starchy kind. Don’t like them? B.S! You all have phones and computers – google recipes. Don’t be a victim…find a solution. Be resourceful.
3. Add starch to fit your activity level. If you’re a couch potato today, you don’t need as much (maybe more fat instead). If you’re CrossFitting, gardening, biking and playing with kids/grandkids today, you definitely need some physical energy!
4. Fat usually takes care of itself, for example, in dressings and cooking the protein. But if you feel you’re low on fat, add some nuts, avocado, oil or butter to veggies, or choose a fattier cut of meat.

TIP #3 – DON’T BELIEVE THE HYPE

You have to be an advocate for your own health (a “rebel” for your health as I like to say it). You can’t believe everything you see published…especially if there are sales afoot! Package labels have a goal: to sell you something. Just flip the package over and read the ingredients.

One miraculous ingredient is not going to provide you with exceptional health or help you meet your goal of weight loss, muscle gain, or improving your health. Nope, not açaí, no Chaga, not any supplement or superfood. It takes a combination of high quality foods, in the right amounts, with good activity and socialization to build a healthy human. Don’t believe the hype. Dig in, do the work. It takes time, but it’s worth it.