Priorities.
Do you know what yours are? It is easy to get confused by the amount of information we have out there and it is easy to be drawn to supplements and quick fixes. It’s what sells, it’s what we all want.
Building a strong foundation may take more time, but don’t we all ultimately want results that will last and that we can maintain? It is surprisingly easy to lose weight; where the statistics get more depressing is in our ability to maintain and sustain weight loss.
I believe that if you play the long game and look at the big picture, you can have both. Let’s look at how to build our pyramid of success.
- Lifestyle, adherence and consistency are all key. There is no perfect diet out there, what’s important is finding one that suits your lifestyle and that you can maintain. Moreover, you can be eating everything right but if you are not getting enough sleep or are under way too much stress you will never achieve the results you’re seeking. Finding success with your nutrition is not about doing the hardest thing possible for 30 days, then returning to all of your old habits and hoping the results stick. It’s about changing your lifestyle and building your success on daily, healthy habits that you can actually sustain.
- Next comes the calorie balance. It doesn’t matter if you eat only the highest quality, home-grown, organic and hand-fed magical chickens. If you’re eating more calories than you’re burning, you will not succeed. On the same token, if you eat too little for your needs you will also run into major road blocks with your health, hormones and body composition. This is actually more common than we would like to see with athletes.
- Macronutrients: Every food is composed of a combination of three macronutrients: proteins, fats, and carbohydrates. Alcohol is the 4th macronutrient, but we will ignore it for now. There are tons of macronutrient splits and distributions out there to follow. Some people go for low fat, high carb or vice versa. What is the best one? The best way to approach this is to find what works for you, your activity, your lifestyle and your personal preferences. Recent studies show that both low carb and low fat had merit and produced results. The one separating factor was and always will be adherence and finding what is sustainable for you. One caveat is– and if you are here today, chances are you are a Crossfitter– Crossfit is a glycolytic sport that will be best fuelled by carbs. You may succeed on a low-carb diet for a while, but it will likely not last; you need to think in terms of your health and your performance.
- Micronutrients: What your food is made of. Prioritizing whole healthy food and ensuring you are getting all your vitamins and mineral needs is especially important for athletes to help combat the effect of inflammation and stress on the body brought on by training. Additionally, antioxidants play an important role in our immune system, which tends to be compromised when training at a higher level. They also reduce exercise-induced oxidative stress and muscle damage, which is particularly relevant during intense training periods and higher periods of stress, both physical and emotional. Micronutrients are the vitamins and minerals that we only need in tiny amounts, so they are sometimes easy to discount. But they can make a big difference in your health, performance, hunger levels and mental state.
- Timing & Frequency of Meals: I often get asked about this first, and I can see why: we are constantly being bombarded with information on this and the promise of quick results. While we do provide our clients with guidance when it comes to timing and frequency of meals, a lot of it will come down to your lifestyle and personal preference. Ultimately, WHAT you eat matters a whole lot more than WHEN. You must dial in the bottom of your pyramid before even thinking about this. The one thing I am passionate about as a coach is your post-recovery nutrition, and even this only is a concern for athletes training at high frequency, such as twice a day and 5-6 times a week.
- Supplements: Supplements are the same, they sound sexy and can certainly be helpful but will only make a difference once you have the rest of your priorities under control. Take care of the base of your pyramid first and then we can worry about this.
As usual, our coaches are here to help you. Reach out and let us help you find your sustainable success.
Annie 🙂