In my world of helping people see real results, there are a few key rules of supportive nutrition and all must be addressed in the context of my Four Cornerstones of Fitness. But for now, let’s just focus on the #1 cardinal rule necessary to develop a healthy metabolism: Eat Small & Frequent Meals that Contain Quality Food in Each. Many people mistakenly believe they should eat less to weigh less. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
When you eat less, a few negative consequences can occur. First, fewer calories means less sugar (energy) going to your brain, which could make you tired, depressed, irritable, or all of the above. In addition, less food in your system could make you weaker because there’s not enough energy being supplied to your muscles and nervous system. Also, when you eat less food, you can trigger the vicious “craving” cycle that so many people fight. Your blood sugar level drops or “zigzags” throughout the day. When the level is low, you crave high-sugar, highly refined and fatty foods. Your body is looking for a temporary “fix,” which is just that. You give in to the craving, spike your blood sugar, then it drops again. This happens day after day and leads to the accumulation of body fat and, therefore, weight/fat management problems.
Most people violate the #1 cardinal rule of supportive nutrition every day, meaning they eat large and non-frequent meals that contain low quality foods. They’re eating too much of the wrong types of food. Notice I didn’t say they are eating too much food, period. They are selecting a lot of processed foods that are empty calories. These types of foods satisfy your emotions but leave you nutritionally bankrupt. Foods that are nutritionally empty have no real metabolic purpose to help you nurture and protect your muscles. And they will not keep your energy level balanced to help combat body fat.
You need to make sure you make quality food selections if not at every meal, then at the majority of meals. People tell me every day that they are eating healthy, but they’re not. It’s not that they’re lying; they are just misinformed and really believe their food selections are quality. For example, in my eyes, eating a cup of salad versus eating a cup of broccoli is totally different. The cup of broccoli will last longer and boost metabolism faster. For those of you who do eat four or five small meals per day of quality food and are still not happy with your results, you’re probably not eating enough of those quality foods. You read that right! You need to eat more of the quality foods at each meal to help boost your metabolism and burn that body fat! Your body needs energy to burn fat.
Body fat accumulates when the body is deprived of proper nutrition. That’s because excessive body fat functions as a survival energy source. When we aren’t feeding our body enough quality foods frequently throughout the day, the body feels deprived and stores fat as a defense mechanism. People who eat less may weigh less, but they aren’t losing fat in the process. Instead they’re losing that fat-burning muscle tissue we talked about last month. And then they’re left with a body that weighs less but is still flabby.
When planning small & frequent meals that contain quality food in each, be sure to eat what I call “power portions” that “power up” the metabolism. As “homework,” I want you to start eating more frequently throughout the day. At around 4pm, eat one of the following: 4-6oz. of cottage cheese and a piece of fruit, or a handful of almonds and a piece of fruit, or half of a turkey sandwich (4-6oz of turkey) on whole grain bread, with mustard, lettuce and tomato. This will take practice and planning but you can do it!
