No BS Nutrition and Fitness

I start every morning with the best of intentions; no sugar, no grain, no crap.  Most days this works out and I have no problems, I’m prepared, I’m disciplined and I can get through the day without reverting to those habits.  But then there are the days where I am 9 months pregnant with allergies and a raging appetite.  Yesterday I walked across the entire building (damn near a quarter of a mile I think) because they were giving away cookies.  I had a 5 minute walk to talk myself out of it… but I didn’t… after all it was a sugar cookie with colorful frosting and in support of Autism Awareness.  (As if eating a cookie was going to support the cause).  I ate the cookie and it was really one of the best sugar cookies I’ve ever eaten, which did make me feel slightly better about my poor willpower…but not much.  I would like to say that this was an isolated situation but it’s not, there have been many other cookie/ice-cream/pizza/chocolate incidents along the way.

In the bigger picture a cookie really isn’t a big deal, but this isn’t about the cookie.  This is about letting sugar and grain sneak their way back into your diet when you have chosen and know that those things aren’t going to help you on your quest for optimal health.  Everyone once-in-a-while you have to take inventory and see how many little pretzels, M&M’s, or “bites” of desserts have snuck into your daily diet and eliminate them.  It’s easy to let this happen and hard to make it stop.

Sugar has many aliases.  It’s so dangerous it tries to hide in food labels.  Some of the many disguises sugar hides behind are listed below.  Keep in mind some of them are “natural,” but they are still going to break down into your body as glucose and cause the same reaction.  Some natural forms of sugar are okay, just eat them in moderation–that does not mean daily.

• barley malt
• beet sugar
• brown sugar
• buttered syrup
• cane-juice crystals
• cane sugar
• caramel
• carob syrup
• corn syrup
• corn syrup solids
• date sugar
• dextran
• dextrose
• diatase
• diastatic malt
• ethyl maltol
• fructose
• fruit juice
• fruit juice concentrate
• glucose
• glucose solids
• golden sugar
• golden syrup
• grape sugar
• high-fructose corn syrup
• honey
• invert sugar
• lactose
• malt syrup
• maltodextrin
• maltose
• mannitol
• molasses
• raw sugar
• refiner’s syrup
• sorbitol
• sorghum syrup
• sucrose
• sugar
• turbinado sugar
• yellow sugar

Check your labels, better yet, if it has a label don’t eat it.  Stick to meat, vegetables, fruits, and nuts (and a moderate amount of dairy if you choose).  You’ll have your pitfalls but keep those situations isolated, don’t let them become your norm.  Remember that excess sugar becomes fat and nobody wants that!  Start today by cleaning up your act, prepare your meals ahead of time, and recommit yourself to an optimal diet. 

*The above list of sugars was provided by fitsugar.com

I couldn’t think of a better time to start my blogging comeback than with the start of the 5^th Better Body Challenge at RARE Crossfit.  I realize not all of you are RARE Crossfit members, but the information I hope to provide should help/entertain/inform any reader.  The Better Body Challenge lasts 6 weeks with an emphasis on nutrition, but also includes workouts, recovery, and the use of fish oil.  As coaches we have found that with the combination of these elements we have been the most successful.

80/20

You’ve probably heard me say it before, but I don’t mind repeating myself (ask my husband): 80%of your fitness is due to nutrition and the remaining 20% is made up of how you workout, rest, and recover.  I’ve always believed this, but it wasn’t until the last 35 weeks that I REALLY started believing it.  I haven’t blogged about my pregnancy  (well I haven’t blogged at all actually) and I will keep it brief today, but during the last 35 weeks I have had a strong focus on my nutrition, even stronger than usual and it has made all the difference.

Knowing that I am growing a human has helped me focus on not only staying away from things that inhibit our (baby and me) health, but increasing the things that will increase our level of health.  Through proper nutrition, I’ve avoided morning sickness, increased blood pressure, swelling, excessive weight gain, a lot of back pain, and the overall exhaustion I hear a lot of women talk about.  Not to say I didn’t gain weight, have some back pain, and spend my share of days tired and grumpy, but those things were minimized through my nutrition.  I’ve religiously taken my fish oil and vitamins and that has helped immensely in my energy levels.  And until recently, I’ve rested like I’ve never rested before!

Exercise did play a role in this, but on average I’ve probably only worked out a couple times a week throughout my pregnancy.  During week 20 I pulled a muscle that has continued to bother me, especially when I am overly active so this has put a cap on the amount of activity I can do.  I have completely relied on my nutrition to not only keep Baby Elijah healthy and growing, but to keep mommy sane and comfortable.

Optimal Health

Just because you are not pregnant doesn’t mean your nutrition isn’t important.  Optimal nutrition will lead you to optimal health.  Many diseases can be avoided through nutrition. I believe that proper nutrition throughout multiple generations would drastically reduce the level of disease we have in this country.  It takes a lot of foresight and determination to think about how your lunch plate is affecting your health on a daily basis, but I challenge you to do so…at least for the next 6 weeks.

This isn’t a weight loss challenge, if it was we’d call it the Biggest Loser, this is a BETTER BODY CHALLENGE.  We challenge you to a better body and in turn a better life.  If you would like to know more about the RARE Better Body Challenge, visit http://rarecrossfit.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/BBC-5-Instructions.pdf  If you are not a member of RARE Crossfit and would like to challenge yourself for 6 weeks, nothing is stopping you from looking at the criteria and doing the same as the rest of the challengers.

It’s been brought to my attention that I haven’t written in over two months!  Actually, I think about it often I just haven’t been sure what to write about.  After all, I’ve only got baby on the brain and this isn’t a pregnancy blog (and I appreciate having male readers so I’m not going to turn it into one).  My husband says I should write about sex–you can see what’s on his mind.

After a few minutes of pondering and scouting my kitchen for ideas, I’ve decided to write about my new favorite sweetener.  No, not agave nectar, which I am learning is not nearly as natural as we think. I have not done enough research to deem myself an expert so I will just say this; apparently much of it isn’t made from the nectar of the agave plant at all and is processed in the same way as high fructose corn syrup. As with anything, I would highly suggest you read up on the topic and form your own opinion. Here is a good article to start; Weston A. Price: Agave Nectar Worse Than We Thought

So what is my new favorite sweetener?  Raw Coconut Nectar.  It is extracted from the sap of the coconut tree and then evaporated at temperatures never exceeding the temperature of it’s original climate to get rid of some of the moisture and allow it to thicken.  Coconut Nectar has a glycemic index of 35, which is low, and it is also low in carbohydrates at 13 grams per tablespoon.  I’ve used it in multiple recipes this week, including the paleo mug cake I will write about soon– and it taste great too!

From what I’ve research about Raw Coconut Nectar, it is indeed coconut nectar not a strange fabrication with a deceiving label.  As with any sweetener, natural or not, I used it with moderation as a tool to keep me on track with my healthy lifestyle.  It is not a staple food to keep my sweet tooth primed, it is merely something I use to keep my sanity when everything is loaded with high fructose corn syrup and sugar.  I found it at Wegman’s, but I’m guessing Whole Foods and places like that would have it as well!  Give it a try and let me know what you think.