I had dinner with a friend the other evening. She is someone I have known a relatively short period of time and I have noticed that she often comments on how she needs to exercise to keep her midsection in check. This type of comment is a red flag for me because we should not have to exercise to tightly control our weight. This type of thinking and behavior borders on exercise bulimia.
It is true that we all need to move our bodies to maintain an healthy body mass index (fat to muscle ratio) and to support our physical health. Exercise not only builds strong muscles (and I am not talking about looking like Arnold Schwartznegger in his former life), to support joint health, to improve elimination of toxins and to keep our brains healthy. But we should not be waging war against our bodies with exercise as the weapon.
I began to ask my friend about what she typically ate and why. She stated that she tried to avoid carbs. Well, carbohydrates, more precisely the most primitive form thereof, glucose, is the preferred fuel for our cells. It takes a long time and a lot of the right kind of energy to get energy from protein or fat so we have to eat carbohydrates to survive. All carbohydrates must be broken down into indidual molecules and what we know as "simple carbohydrates" are one or two carbohydrate molecules. They are ready for use as fuel upon consumption what is not used is stored as glycogen in the liver and muscles. Once that storage capacity is full, the rest gets converted to fat and is stored in our "reserve tanks" around the midsection or hips and thighs.
Carbohydrate molecules are attached in chains in complex carbohydrates such as potatoes, yams, winter squash, brown rice and other grains, corn, peas and legumes. It takes time and energy for the body to break these chains apart and make the individual glucose molecules available to fuel the body. This why eating oatmeal, a complex carb, for breakfast provides you a longer lasting source of energy than eating fruit, which contains the single molecule, fructose.
I could almost see the light bulb go on above my friend’s head as I explained this to her. I went on to explain that a fiber and a little fat with the carb would slow down the digestion and therefore the absorption of the food which adds to the "time release" affect of eating complex carbs.
Of course we need protein as well and some fat. Fat is essential for the absorption of the fat soluble vitamins E, D, A & K. It is also essential to maintain a good hormone balance. Of course we want to get dietary fat from sources such as avocados, olive oil and raw nuts (soaked in water makes them easier to digest).
Fiber is available in many foods, especially vegetables. Vegetables also provide the essential micro nutrients that are important for optimal functioning of all of our organs and systems. We can survive on protein, carbs and fat, but with out the micro nutrients, we cannot thrive, which means we cannot maintain a healthy body weight.
I like to show people how to eat with use of a pie chart (no pun intended) which was perfect for my oh, so analytical friend. Imagine a plate half filled with non-starchy vegetables, twenty five percent filled with complex carbs, twenty percent filled with protein and five percent with fat, and that is how I recommend that we eat. Of course all foods should be fresh, organic, and as naturally grown or produced as possible.
Of course eating three meals a day, or whenever we are truly hungry is essential.
More to come…
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