When we are constantly being bombarded with the “right” thing to be eating, one week is higher fat, next week is less carbs, it can be so hard to know what is “right” and who we should listen to. I completed a training in nutrition and eating difficulties and I was still confused!
I just left the gym and on my way out the PT said to me, “what are you working on at the moment sweet, losing fat, burning muscle, toning? I said to him, right now I am trying to move away from this #fitspo, eat this, eat that, work harder at this, train this muscle and listen to my body, what exercise it enjoys and what it feels naturally drawn to in terms of food, alongside what I know to be true re nutritional guidelines. In a way that’s not entirely true, I have experimented over the years through various diets and learned the hard way when I have eaten something that I had perhaps denied myself, to gorg on it and then to feel the impact in terms of my mood and energy levels.
With my job I need to be focused and cognitively switched on, and often have about ten minutes in between appointments to eat, pee and top up my water bottle! Therefore I try and use the nutrition info to mainly support my energy levels, get me through the day, and to have food that I enjoy eating.
I think I probably started dieting when I was about 13-14, and it has taken me this long ( ha ha, I am not that old!) to understand my relationship with food and probably feel the healthiest I have ever felt.
So what do I do that might help you…
- I now try and eat all the food groups in my meals, so a combination of fat, carbohydrates ( the complex ones), protein and fruit and veg. Having cut out food groups in the past, I realised how hungry it would leave me and therefore my blood sugar levels would drop…honestly you don’t want to meet me when I am hangry! I try not to measure out my portions, yet if for any reason you have lost contact with portion sizes or are worried about trusting yourself then I would suggest 4-6 portions ( size of your fist) carbohydrates a day, complex carbohydrates are our wholegrains, wholemeal bread, wholegrain pasta etc and are slow releasing, which simply means they take longer to digest and therefore give you energy for longer! Three portions of protein ( the size of your palm), your five a day in terms of fruit and veg and have a higher ratio of veg to fruit and about a thumb size portion of fat twice a day. I wouldn’t recommend getting overly caught up in measuring unless you want to re-establish your relationship with food, otherwise it can feel like you are restricting or dieting. Due to my job I usually eat as soon as I wake up and every three hours with three snacks in between. I am in no way the oracle though so begin to listen to your body and see what you need, there is a picture attached to this post that can help you tune into your hunger and how hungry you feel. I would suggest eating when you are at about a 2, if we wait until 4 then there is a risk that we might eat more than our bodies need as we are beyond the point of being able to listen to ourselves due to feeling so hungry, and then we make different choices around food that we might not ordinarily make.
- I drink about 2.5 litres of water a day. The benefits of water are probably no stranger to you, and what I find is that on days when something has prohibited me from sleeping properly, in the past I would stock up on caffeine thinking that would help, and shocker it dehydrated and drained me! I really notice the difference now as it really supports my mood and energy levels. I have a pretty bottle that I drink out of…seriously I know it sounds weird yet I am committed to continuing to use it and never want to lose it!!
- Variety and balance, when dietitians talk about balance they mean across your month or week, generally rather than panicking if you didn’t get your five a day in yesterday. Again, experience has taught me that I am someone that if something is denied to me then I just want it more so I don’t go without anything now, I strive for 80:20 in terms of eating smart during the week for my energy and productivity and then allowing myself a bit of what I want on my weekends. This way you don’t end up craving those things that actually when you eat them, you wonder why you bothered ( because the fantasy and denial made them more exciting), so then you get more satisfaction from the things that you do love. When we get into restricting, we then make choices from a place of denial and longing, whereas if you gave yourself permission to have what you want when you want it, what would you instinctively choose? You probably wouldn’t want to eat ice cream every day all day because of how it would leave you feeling, yet the denial of something as we know makes it all the more tempting!
- Finally, I cook a lot too…this might not be your thing, and my friend will tell you there was a time when I had no idea how to make my own pasta sauce! I just love it because I know what I am putting into my food and that helps in terms of balancing my energy levels too. For example, I love my homemade granola because I know exactly what’s in it and therefore how its going to impact on my sugar spikes. Cooking can also restore your love for food, if you have a tricky relationship with it, trust your instinct though, if it feels overwhelming and unsafe for you, then don’t go there right now or see if there is someone who will support cooking with you, so you don’t feel on your own. Last year I was traveling loads for work though and therefore it was difficult to cook and take food with me as I was staying overnight, Katie Chapman, The Nutrition Box ( based in Bexhill) helped me by planning my meals for me when I was away and helping me make the right food choices, she was ace…plus she was on hand if I wasn’t sure about anything or needed to check something out!
Well, I hope that has helped clear some of the fog for you too and do get in touch if you need any support with psychological barriers or challenges around food or anything raised in this post. Its not easy and take care of yourself.
Claire. x