Blog Post 7: Nutritional Mindset
little humor for ya!;)
In the process of trying to lose weight we attempt to do the very best we can but in our Western American society losing body fat seems to be one of the biggest challenges. Why is America so over weight? There are so many factors from convenience of high caloric dense foods to high increase amounts of cortisol we're producing due to the stress of life and inner issues that are holding us back such as self worth, shame, guilt. It's no wonder every year the obesity count increases but I'm here to tell you it's not your fault. Our belief system about ourselves needs to shift and we need to get our minds focused on the order of importance of nutrition and our body gaining or losing fat. In this blog I am going to lay out this major issue and the solution in my opinion for you. I am mostly driven to give this advice because I too suffered from all of the above. I was clueless about nutrition and I had a deep root of rejection that was a strong hold on my life causing me to be in a self sabotaging mode when trying to accomplish my goals. In Romans 7:15 Paul says "I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do." This was definitely the point at which I was at. So what brought me out of this spiral and trap? Well lets back up a bit and I'll go into the education of nutrition then we'll dive into the inner healing aspect in regards to the redemption of the cross. There's an order of importance your mind must be at in order to understand and know how to get where you want to be. Many diets fail at this by putting this order out of order. So the number 1 and very first thing to know is energy balance. Some people say "I don't count calories that's crazy." I say "Well whether you are or not your body sure is." We gain fat by taking more energy in than burning off and if we have no clue of what we are taking in or burning off then weight loss, muscle gain and any change in our body is by luck and not awareness. In today's technology there are apps like My Fitness Pal that allow us to easily track our intake and know what we're eating. The point here is to eventually have this being second nature but in the beginning we need to be aware because you would be surprised at the amount of calories in the foods we eat every day. For people who are exercising I use a calculator that works pretty well for about 80% of the population from 20 to 40 years old; (Body weight * 10 * 1.3 - 500 = weight loss calories a day).
Healthy Energy
The second factor in nutrition is macros. Macros is short for macro nutrients and that's simply protein, carbohydrates and fats within your total calories. 1 gram of protein and carb is 4 calories and 1 gram of fat is 9 calories. On food labels you can see the nutrition breakdown and serving size for items. For instance 1 banana has 30 grams of carbs and is a carb source because the fat and protein is very low. A calculation I do for macros is your lean body mass in protein. So if I am 215 lbs and 12% body fat then I need 189 grams of protein a day because that's 215 minus 12%. Fat is a bit more tricky and for younger folks you actually need less than for older due to carb sensitivity as you get older and hormonal imbalance. I shoot between 15 and 25% of calories from fat. Lets go with 20% in this example for this 215 lb male. Finally left is carbs and that makes up the remainder of the calories. Here's an example of the calorie and macro nutrient beak down in a day for a 215 lb 27 year old male at 12% body fat who's trying to get to 6% body fat and lifts weights 6 days per week.215 * 10 *1.3 - 500 = 2295 calories189 grams of protein = 756 calories55 grams of fat = 495 calories261 grams of carbs = 1044 The next crucial key is food sources. Now here's where people mess up. They often put this above the top two steps and as it seems like the right thing to do it's all wrong. Types of foods wont get you ripped but they will help nourish your body. I always say macros get you fit and micros get you healthy. Micro nutrients are all the vitamins and minerals from food sources.
Healthy soil makes healthy plants, healthy plants make healthy animals & healthy animals & plants make healthy human beings. Making sure you know the source of your food is an important step towards health. Seek out small local farmers for your food & if you can’t get local make sure it’s fresh.
Whoa.. Blunt but so good!!:)
The term organic has been bought and paid for and no longer guarantees a pure and healthy food- large scale agriculture can now produce food to be sold as “organic”. Just because they are using organic pesticides & fertilizer does not mean the food is healthier or sustainable. Nature loves diversity so farming 100’s of acres of 1 crop is not creating a healthy ecosystem that supports healthy life. Seek out produce grown using poly culture systems meaning more than 1 crop. Even pasture raised beef, lamb, pork, eggs needs diversity within the pasture e.g varies species of plants.
Farmers that rotate crops, compost and rotational graze for meat production are looking after the soil by allowing it to rest & produce. Forcing the soil to produce more with chemicals only depletes it further & when farmers have to use herbicides to control unwanted weeds & pests it’s a sign that something is out of balance.
The vitamin, mineral and enzyme content is high in truly organic food and these are extremely important for creating a healthy body. Remember fats, proteins, carbs & calories alone are not a measure of nutrition so go out of your way to get high quality produce.
The fourth and fifth steps are meal timing and supplements and honestly these are so minute and non important I'm not even going to talk about it. meal timing and having to eat certain things at times is false advertising so supplement companies can sell their protein like the "30 minute window" after training.
Start with yourself
OK! lets go back to the inner healing aspect because I believe its so very important. In order to be healed and to eliminate your worst enemy which is you under bondage and strongholds that have been set from your past you must dive into the most painful parts of it. This process is best done within a group of fellow believers who are skilled in personal ministry. People who can walk you through your life from the very beginning and help you identify unforgiveness that's in your heart that's weight on your shoulders. Once you can forgive others and yourself for the past and lay it down and give it to God because of His ultimate sacrifice of Jesus for you then you will begin to heal and feel like the picture to your goal is clear and obtainable. There are some great resources for these principals like "Living in the Freedom of the Spirit" by Tom Marshall or "Walls of my Heart" by Dr. Bruce Thompson. Vineyard Church in Kansas City Northland also has started an incredible inner healing program called "Oaks of Riotousness". I hope this blog is helpful and may God bless you!