Hi There,
Welcome back to K&T blog, how are you?
We hope you had a good week, a good first week of February. At this moment, many people have fallen off their health and weight loss resolutions, the vigor they had in January is rapidly diminishing. But we hope things are different for you, that you are still putting in the work to improve your health, this is still the year that you make it. On our side, our engines have completely warmed-up, we have regained the habit of exercising, we exercise almost daily now with enjoyment. But not so much with nutrition, we are still experiencing the peaks and valleys of diet, we are not perfect and certainly not where we want to be, but each day we try 🙂 .
Perfection is the enemy of progress – Winston Churchill
Earlier in the year we highlighted the importance of nutrition when it comes to weight loss, we referenced the 80% nutrition and 20% exercise rule and emphasized that you don’t necessarily have to kill yourself in the gym to lose weight, you just need to eat better and do it consistently so. This week we would like to shed light on some of the basics that one needs to pay attention to, to eat better, healthier and to support weight loss.
Fundamentally, food is broken down into 3 types, Carbohydrates, Proteins and Fats, these are called macronutrients. Every food item on your plate can be classified under these macronutrients:
- Bread, pasta, potatoes, fruits and vegetables are Carbohydrates.
- Meats, Fish, beans and eggs are Proteins.
- Avocado, olives, butter and nuts are Fats.
For maintaining good health, it is advisable to eat a variety of foods from these macronutrients, but we have realized that for weight loss, it is better to reduce or limit the consumption of Carbohydrates, specifically the refined ones. Carbohydrates comes in two forms, simple and complex:
- Simple Carbohydrates are easily and quickly broken down by the body for energy- bread and pastries, cereal, sodas , candy and sugar. Think of a fast car with high fuel utilization, fun and thrilling but dangerous.
- Complex Carbohydrates are hard to break down and slowly releases energy due to fiber – Vegetables, legumes, whole grains such as brown rice. Think of a family car, low fuel utilization, comfortable for long distances and relatively safe.
When you are trying to lose weight , choosing complex carbohydrates works better as they provide you with slow consistent energy throughout the day and makes you feel full. Simple Carbohydrates on the other hand gives you quick short term energy that last only for a little while, which will lead you back to the cookie jar over and over throughout the day. Simple carbs rarely gives satiety, causes you to eat more than you need and remember any extra energy you have is stored as fat. Therefore, for weight loss, complex Carbohydrates + Proteins + Fats is a winning formula, and one great way to try this formula is to follow a balanced plate guidelines for your meals.
That’s it for this week, sticking to the basics of nutrition and making efforts to include food from all macronutrients is the simplest way to create a diet that will work well for you and your weight loss goals, just remember to choose the right carbohydrates, these are not found in processed foods but in real foods.
Until next week ,Stay blessed.
Kat & Tshepi
Kat & Tshepi 