Category: Tuesday Tip

Tuesday Tip: Obsessed with cutting carbs? 🥖

The idea of cutting carbs to lose weight is so pervasive and it’s something that many people cling on to. Even clients who I’ve worked with for years still find themselves wanting to cut carbs when trying to speed up progress. Why is this? Aside from the fact that the media often promote it as a weight loss ‘hack’ there are also other reasons we are obsessed with it.

This fascination with cutting carbs may come from the idea of rapid weight loss, which often feels almost magical. The initial shedding of pounds encourages you with the belief that cutting carbs is the key to achieving quick and effective results. This quick “success” reinforces the idea that carbs are inherently bad and detrimental to weight loss.

However, this stems from a misunderstanding of what’s actually happening. The initial weight loss observed when cutting carbs is primarily due to the depletion of glycogen stores in the muscles and liver, along with the loss of fluids. This is not a true representation of fat loss. Glycogen, which stores carbohydrates, holds onto water molecules. As glycogen diminishes, so does the water it’s bound to, leading to a noticeable drop in weight.

In addition, when you then go back to a typical meal containing carbs it replenishes glycogen stores and rehydrates the body, resulting in regained weight. This reinforces the idea that carbs are bad and make you gain weight/fat. The cycle of losing and regaining weight due to fluctuations in glycogen and fluid levels can create a sense of frustration and confusion.

In reality, the key to sustainable and effective weight loss involves a balanced approach to nutrition and physical activity and the creation of a consistent calorie deficit. Overly restricting carbohydrates can lead you to nutrient deficiencies and an unsustainable eating pattern. It also leads to low energy levels, poorer exercise performance, irritability and tiredness. Focusing on a variety of nutrient-rich foods, portion control, and regular exercise can help you achieve long-term, meaningful fat loss results without the rollercoaster effect caused by drastic carb cutting.

Remember knowledge is power and whilst fluctuations on the scale can be demoralising understanding the science behind weight loss, including the role of glycogen and fluid fluctuations, can help you make informed decisions about your dietary choices and avoid falling into the trap of chasing quick fixes that may not yield lasting benefits.

If you want to lose weight and keep it off long term, you have to learn to do it right!

Happy Tuesday 🤗xx

Tuesday Tip: Common Tracking Errors 😳

Tracking calories is a tool we can use strategically at certain times to accomplish specific goals, whether that’s improved health, sports performance, fat loss, or muscle gain. It can teach us quite a bit about food and nutrition as well, such as learning the energy and macronutrient composition of various foods. Tracking accurately is a skill though and it’s very common for people to unintentionally and unknowingly under-report or under-track their food intake in general. Small mistakes with tracking can really add up over the days and weeks and can mean the difference between you losing fat or maintaining your weight.

Here are some common mistakes:

# Eyeballing portions

Estimating and eyeballing portion sizes can be the difference between being in a calorie deficit or not. Weighing with a food scale in grams or ounces is the most accurate method you can use.

# Grazing and mindless bites

Untracked grazing, bites, snacks, sips, and licks still count towards your calories and can really add up. Often , we’re not even aware we’re doing this, so increasing your mindfulness and awareness can be key.

Plan out your snacks ahead of time and consider portioning things out in advance into serving containers. Or, buy your snacks prepackaged.

# Raw vs Cooked

Food loses and gains water weight when we cook it. For example, rice and pasta “gain” water weight while potatoes, protein sources, and vegetables “lose” water weight when they are cooked. Cooking methods and times affect how much water is gained or lost. The most accurate method is to weigh your food raw – or before you cook it. But what matters the most is that you are consistent with the method you chose and you choose the right calories to log – so check that whether the cals listed are “cooked” or”raw” entries.

# Generic meal entries

Your homemade spaghetti bolognese will have vastly different calories than many of the generic entries available in your tracking app. Track your meals by either entering each ingredient or (a more efficient way) use the recipe function in the app.

# Oils, dressings, condiments etc

Cooking oils, mayonnaise , mustard, ketchup, BBQ sauce, butter, milk in coffee, sauces, preserves and salad dressings are easy to forget. However, they can quickly add up to be a few extra hundred calories.

Don’t forget to track the oil you cook with (or swap to a 1 cal oil spray), condiments, milk, and dressings etc.

# Not checking the accuracy of entries

Certain tracking apps (like MFP) are notorious for having inaccurate or misleading entries. Sometimes the serving size is incorrect, sometimes the actual calories are out so if you can double check the entry against the label then do. Also, make sure your serving sizes are accurate in bought items and in your own pre-loaded meals or recipes (we tend to change servings over time so worth revisiting now and then).

# Forgetting to log

It’s so easy to forget what we’ve consumed – studies all support this and even trained nutritionists don’t recall everything. The best way to prevent this is to track in advance or as you go along. Before something goes in your mouth just open the app and log it. Don’t wait until the end of the day to log things. Aside from forgetting what you’ve had it’s also too late to make any changes once you’ve eaten it.

Happy Tuesday 🤗xx

Tuesday Tip: Consistency is key 😇

Consistency is key – I say it all the time and I’m sure you find yourself saying it too – ‘I just need to be consistent…and then I’ll start seeing results’. But whilst that is undoubtedly true the issue lies in what we think of as ‘consistency’. Often we struggle with consistency because our expectations and perception of what consistency looks like aren’t realistic. We assume it means being 100% on our nutrition every day, smashing out 1-2 workouts every day hitting 10,000 steps daily, getting to bed early every day, and being 100% on it and motivated every single day.

But who can actually do that every day? I couldn’t! We’re all busy with work, families, social lives and many of us are already running on close to empty as it is. Trying to eat and workout like an Olympic athlete isn’t going to work. You don’t have time and you can’t sustain it . And this is why you feel like you’re failing – your expectations don’t match your capabilities. The better approach is to have a realistic, sustainable plan based on what you can manage.

A good way to do this – every Sunday (or any day that works for you) have a think about:

⁃ How many workouts you can realistically fit in and that you want to fit in that week? Maybe it’s 2 maybe it’s 4 … whatever is fine! Schedule them in.

⁃ Food wise could I keep it simple with the same basic breakfast and lunch for a few days? If so what do I need to get for that?

⁃ What social events/meals out do I need to plan ahead for?

⁃ How many steps did I manage last week? Could I do the same or slightly more this week (500 extra steps for example).

⁃ What small steps could you take this week to help reach your goal e.g. only drinking alcohol 2 nights instead of 4, swapping a heavy calorie snack for a lower calorie one etc

Focus on being consistent at things that you can actually fit into your life and you’ll find you’ll actually succeed.

Happy Tuesday 🤗xx

Tuesday Tip: Average Calories 📊

You need to be in a calorie deficit to lose weight but that doesn’t mean you need to be in a calorie deficit every single day. This is where people often get confused and struggle. It’s averages over weeks and months that count.

If you’ve determined that you need to eat 1700 cals per day to give you a deficit to lose weight most people assume that means they have to have 1700 every single day to get results. But of course it doesn’t work like that – in reality you just need to average 1700 cals per day. Some days you could eat more calories, and some days you could eat fewer, but if you’re averaging 1700 cals by the end of the week, you’ll be on track.

E.g.

Monday – 1700 calories

Tuesday – 2200 calories

Wednesday – 1400 calories

Thursday – 1700 calories

Friday – 1500 calories

Saturday – 2000 calories

Sunday – 1500 calories

Weekly Average – 1714 cals (basically on target)

Now, let’s say that you hit 1700 cals every day for a week, but then you have a day where you have a bit of a blow out at the weekend.

Monday – 1700 calories

Tuesday – 1700 calories

Wednesday – 1700 calories

Thursday – 1700 calories

Friday – 1700 calories

Saturday – 2600 calories

Sunday – 1700 calories

Weekly Average – 1828 calories.

So yes in that second example you’ve gone over but your weekly average is still not far off the deficit goal and long term that small amount of extra cals won’t stop progress. So many people will have a bad day and think they destroyed their progress for an entire week, but that’s not the case. You’d have to have that blow out Friday, Saturday and Sunday to have any meaningful impact.

You will have days where you go over your calories – intentionally or unintentionally. When that happens, don’t panic and think f*ck it and then ruin the next few days. Just put it behind you and, most importantly, get back on track the next day. Do that, and you’ll still be moving in the right direction.

Happy Tuesday 🤗xx

Tuesday Tip: Magnesium and sleep

There’s been lots of talk about the benefits of magnesium for improving sleep quality so what’s the evidence actually like?

Magnesium increases our gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) levels by binding to GABA receptors in the brain. GABA is the neurotransmitter responsible for quieting down nerve activity. When GABA levels are low, the brain feels like it is constantly switched on, which makes it very difficult to relax and can lead to increased stress and anxiety which can lead to poor sleep. Magnesium, in theory, helps you “wind down” and prepare for sleep.

Studies have shown a possible association between low magnesium and poor sleep but there are few studies actually testing the impact of increasing magnesium. Studies on insomnia found that on average people got to sleep 17.36 minutes quicker and had an increase in total sleep time of 16.06 minutes with increased magnesium intake. In terms of general sleep the results are less clear but they did find an association between higher magnesium intake and better sleep for those with very poor sleep but there wasn’t anything suggest that magnesium supplements help sleep in the average person. There is a lot of anecdotal evidence from people measuring their sleep who have found some level of improvement with magnetism supplements but these aren’t proper studies so need to be taken with a pinch of salt.

The standard recommendation is 300-400mg ~1hr before bed. You can get magnesium from dark leafy greens, nut, seeds, fish, bananas, oats and tofu etc. I’m a fan of a food-first approach but there may be a case for taking a supplement too. Most people don’t get enough magnesium from their diet and it may not be realistic to get it from food, in addition there is evidence that the acute dose of magnesium matters i.e. getting 300-400mg in one hit – hard to do from food alone. There are plenty of options of supplements but magnesium glycinate is recommended.

So in summary, whilst the evidence isn’t conclusive it could be worth increasing magnesium intake if you struggle with sleep as it’s relatively cheap and safe when used in appropriate amounts.

Happy Tuesday 🤗xx