Category: Nutrition and Calorie Tips

Nutrition and Calorie Tips

Sometimes the “bad” option isn’t so bad…

Dr Nancy P

Sometimes the “bad” option isn’t so bad… 🌯

So obviously getting a chicken wrap from a takeaway restaurant is always going to be more calories than making one at home and I’m certainly not suggesting a KFC or Nandos are the healthiest meal choices. But fast food is definitely something you can have now and then as part of a balanced diet if you want to.

There seems to be an underlying assumption that compared to somewhere like KFC, Nandos would provide a ‘healthier’ or ‘good’ takeaway option. Certainly their chicken wrap would generally be considered a healthy choice. It’s a grilled chicken breast, in their signature sauce, in a wrap.

In contrast the KFC Flamin’ wrap would probably be considered a ‘bad’ option. It’s deep friend in a batter, and comes with cheese as well! However the reality is it’s actually considerably fewer calories, around 200 fewer in fact! The KFC wrap is 335 cals and the Nandos one is 537 cals. Now I don’t know about you but that surprised me!

Both these restaurants have all their calories on their website so it’s very easy to check before you order. Both are perfectly good lunch or dinner options, but it just does go to show that we need to consider our preconceptions about certain foods and whether the are “bad” or “good” and remember that ultimately it’s the calories that count.

Enjoy 🤗

xxx

Nutrition and Calorie Tips

Reasons to run… or not…

Dr Nancy P

Reasons to run… or not… 🏃🏼‍♂️

Everybody runs…. don’t they? Well it often seems as though they do!

I often hear clients say they ‘really should start running’. There seems to be a bit of unspoken social pressure to run and enjoy it, and that it’s the ‘best’ exercise you can do, especially during lockdown. I thought it might be handy to remind you of a few reasons why you should run, and perhaps why you shouldn’t?

Reasons you should definitely run; first and foremost, because you enjoy it! If you love running and it’s your thing then that’s brilliant! Enjoy it! If you’re training for a specific event, triathlon, half marathon etc then you should definitely be running – you’re going to need to! It is extremely convenient; you can do it anywhere and don’t need anything but a pair of trainers, and you can tailor it to the length of time you have available. If you’re trying to catch a bus, get somewhere faster or escape zombies then yes please definitely run! 🤣

Reasons not to run though… I’m not going to say running is ‘bad’ for you, it isn’t when done properly, in moderation and combined with other strength based exercises (too much of any one thing can always be ‘bad’!). But just because ‘everybody’ is running doesn’t mean you need to, you really don’t need to feel like you ‘should’ run! There are tonnes of other things you can do to keep fit.

Running to lose weight is another bad reason. It’s food that counts not the exercise you do. You can’t out-exercise diet and if you run regularly you will quickly adapt to it, which is why running to ‘burn more calories’ is a common misconception. You can actually burn more cals overall by being generally active and walking etc. Exercise should be for health and well being, not to justify eating, so running to ‘allow’ you to eat more isn’t a good reason. You don’t need to ‘earn’ foods you enjoy. If you’re injured then it’s a definite no! Pounding the streets when you have an injury is a bad idea, seek physio advice instead. The most important reason not to run is if you don’t enjoy it! Exercise should be fun and if you’re going to stick to it then it needs to be. There are SO many fun ways to exercise – find yours!

If you do decide to run and are new to it then try using something like the couch to 5k app that will build up the running safely and gradually, and consider also including some other forms of exercise as well to keep you fit and injury free!

Enjoy!

🤗

Xx

Nutrition and Calorie Tips

I’ve been good….

Dr Nancy P

I’ve been good…. 🤔

It’s very easy to get sucked into the idea that certain foods are inherently “good” and others are “bad”. I hear this sort of thing so often… a client may be feeling pleased that they’ve had a “good” snack – raisins, cashews and a protein smoothie. On another day they would be beating themselves up because they had a really “bad” day because they had a Mcdonald’s for lunch. The often feel like they’re blown everything, they’re disappointed and angry with themselves and feeling guilty.

Now I’m not suggesting a Mcdonalds is a “healthy” option, nor am I suggesting it’s got more nutritional benefits than the fruit and nuts. They’re both very different nutritionally, and they both taste very different too. But for many people trying to lose fat or weight they might naturally assume that the McDonald’s is a terrible option and that by having it they’ve ruined their day (diet -wise). Whereas if they chose the fruit, nuts and smoothie they would be feeling guilt-free and virtuous and like they were on track. However in actual fact the good snack has more calories and a lot more sugar, than the 6 nuggets, small fries and coke. The McDonald’s does have more fat and less protein, but is fewer calories overall.

So if you had to grab a McDonald’s (or just fancied one) it’s not THAT bad. I’m certainly not suggesting your whole diet be made up of “junk food”, but it’s important to be aware of the facts to avoid unnecessary guilt. And remember that lots of the foods we perceive as being “good” or “healthy” may in fact be higher calorie and therefore unhelpful for weight loss if you’re consuming them without realising the calories. At the end of the day, as always, it comes down to calories. If you want to lose fat or weight, then you need to be at a calorie deficit. It’s important to still have foods you enjoy as part of an overall balanced diet. So don’t sweat it if you end up with a McDonald’s now and then if you want it, but then have a dinner with a range of whole foods and vegetables etc.

Be curious about what you’re putting in your body, look at the nutritional labels on food and don’t always assume the “health” food is the best choice.

🤗

Xx

Nutrition and Calorie Tips

What you need to lose fat/ get fit…

Dr Nancy P

What you need to lose fat/ get fit… 🏋🏻‍♀️

At this time of year, and even more so during lockdown, social media is FULL of “guaranteed” ways you can lose weight/fat and/or get fit. You’ll see plenty of self proclaimed fitness/health/well being “coaches” and influencers trying to suggest you really need to do whatever it is they’re selling. For example:

Replacing whole foods with Juice Cleanses / Shakes / Supplements can result in fewer calories and rapid initial water loss and a possible calorie deficit from meal replacement. Supplements provide a laxative effect or promote excessive bowel movements etc which result in water loss.

“Detoxes” (cutting certain things from your diet (like meat or carbs) or taking certain products) allegedly remove toxins from your body and cause fat loss. Fad diets/ diet clubs (5:2, intermittent fasting, slimming world, WW etc) often restrict the window of time you can eat, what you eat, or assign points/labels to certain foods. They usually involve regular weigh ins or rewards of some type.

Diet or fitness based challenges are also very popular, 7 day, 21 day, 30 day etc e.g. 30 day squat challenges etc. They can be great fun, but more often than not they’re just a hook to get you into a ‘private’ group or to sign up for longer term plan later.

All of these things can result in fat loss, but how many of them are sustainable long term, educate you on managing energy intake, fit your lifestyle and build new long term habits? Some are actually damaging: laxative supplements and fasting can cause bowel damage, kidney damage and development of silent acid reflux etc, as well as promoting disordered eating. And almost all require you to spend money.

Obviously if you want to do any of these things then go for it, but you really don’t need to. All you need is a calorie deficit, to move a bit more than you do now (any way you enjoy), to have functioning organs (if you didn’t you’d be hospitalised so don’t fret!) and to eat a balanced diet. That includes all the things you enjoy eating, but in moderation. So skip the expensive fads and focus on these fundamentals! 🙂

Xx

Nutrition and Calorie Tips

Practical New Year’s Resolutions…

Dr Nancy P

Practical New Year’s Resolutions… ⭐️

It’s January which means many of us are full of New Year’s resolutions and wanting to make a fresh start at health and fitness. Often these resolutions will be things like to “lose weight” or to “get fit” or perhaps “eat healthier’. Now whilst these are all great goals they’re quite hard to achieve without some practical steps. They’re outcomes of changes you need to make rather than actual resolutions per se.

So if you are making New Year’s resolutions about your health and fitness, then instead of making generalised statements try to focus instead on small actions you can take every day that will lead to those end goals.

So instead of resolving to lose weight, perhaps instead resolve to identify where the excess calories are in your diet. Are they coming from alcohol? Extra snacks? Take aways? Portion sizes? And then you can take steps to reduce them and therefore reduce your calorie intake (leading to fat and weight loss).

Instead of resolving to “get fit”, instead focus on upping your daily steps. Rather than choosing an arbitrary goal of 10,000 steps, instead commit to increasing your steps. If you’re already hitting 12,000 steps a day then aim for 14,000, if you’re getting 4,000 aim for 6,000 etc. Also consider adding some exercise 1-3 times a week. It doesn’t matter what that exercise is really just pick something you actually enjoy; dancing, running, weight lifting, swimming cycling etc.

Rather than resolving to “Eat healthier” commit to adding a portion of fruit or veg to every meal. Aside from the fact that it will increase your overall nutrition, it will increase fibre levels, and will probably help reduce overall calories as by filling some of your plate with fruit and veg you’re going to eat less of other, more calorie dense foods.

This approach is far better than making massive changes, subscribing to fad diets/detoxes/challenges etc which may well cause you to lose weight quickly but will also see you putting that weight back on once you’re back to eating normally again. Take small sustainable steps and you’ll find you’ll hit your goals and be able to maintain it within your lifestyle too! 🙂

Xx