Informative podcast from the Strength Physio interviewing Dan Meek about the validity of some of the most common nutritional myths.

I think listening to this might be a helpful reminder for most of us!

http://www.strengthphysio.com/tspp003-nutrition-myths-dan-meek/

Dan reminds us of a few simple truths:

The less activity you do, the less sugar you should eat.

And you should be aware that refined carbs are mostly sugar.

That doesn’t mean avoid carbs entirely. But most of us do need to eat more proteins and more healthy fats.

Do we need to eat every 2-3 hours to encourage effective metabolism?

There is no evidence to support this. Protein synthesis is maximally stimulated for up to 4 hours after eating. Hence why people are able to get good results through fasting diets.

Does it matter when you eat your carbs? No. Eating carbs in the evening can help you sleep – the body slows down at night and can concentrate on digesting. This is your parasympathetic system at work, which is the opposite to your sympathetic system (which provides your flight or fight responses in stressful situations). In the opposite scenario, the body will take resources away from digestion if you are in a life-threatening situation in order to direct energy towards your brain and your limbs to get you out of danger quickly.

Slumps from carbohydrate-heavy meals are more likely to be caused by the fact that you haven’t eaten protein and good fats. However, reducing carbs will help you reduce overall calorie intake. And higher carbs are often found in processed foods.

Are wheat and gluten so bad for you?

The problem with wheat or gluten is that it is usually found in processed food. If you have coeliac disease, this is a different matter. But an intolerance to wheat or gluten may just be an overload of processed food as well as an excessive amount of wheat and gluten. If you give up wheat and gluten for 4 weeks and then eat foods containing those only once a week or so, then you may find your symptoms disappear.

Is fat-free good?

No! If it’s a product that should have fat in it (yogurt, cheese etc) then if it doesn’t have fat in it, what does it have in it?! What is replacing that fat to make it taste similarly to the original product?

Fat isn’t bad for us. We are designed to eat meat. That contains fat. It all comes back to eating natural food.  Nuts, avocado, meat and seeds are all natural sources of fat.

And we need cholesterol. Our glucocorticosteroid hormones require cholesterol. But eating too much processed food will artificially alter your cholesterol levels.

In summary:

Try to eat protein with every meal. Keep it lean. Chicken, fish, turkey, eggs, beans are all useful.

Use spices and unprocessed marinades as much as you like.

Keep your sugar intake low, especially if your lifestyle is quite sedentary.

Eat lots of vegetables.

Keep it natural. Try to stick to foods that resemble their natural state. Potato waffles? Eat a potato instead. Baked, roasted, mashed, lightly fried. Try a sweet potato instead or another type of potato. There is a huge variety.