Thursday, January 31, 2013

The Best all natural appetite suppressants


Hi Everyone,

Let's face it when we are working on changing our nutrition to decrease our calorie intake and limit our exposure to processed food, we can use some help overcoming cravings & the natural increase in appetite that some people feel in response to a lowering in calorie intake.

Remember, the first thing is to never drop your calories more than 20-30% of your needs.  Whichever end you can handle, stay there.  Otherwise, you're setting yourself up for failure.

The Best all natural appetite suppressants

1) Pure Water - drinking 1-2 cups 15-20 minutes before each meal can help hydrate the digestive system and also decrease the appetite going into a meal.


2) Low carb vegetables especially leafy greens - These are extremely low in calories, but are very high in micro nutrients & fiber.  As a result they are the most nutrient dense food.  These do not have to be counted (carbohydrate or calorie wise) but obviously contribute to your 10 fists of fruits & vegetables daily.




3) Soluble fiber - this can be either in the form of a fiber supplement (Benefiber, etc...) or a specific supplement like PGX (soluble-fiber like). Guar gum, Xanthan gum or Pectin could all work individually or combined together (and mixed with liquid).  These will essentially swell up in the stomach and hold the food in the antrum (lower part of the stomach) longer before emptying. This ensure that your satiety (fullness felling) lasts longer.  Again, doing this 15-20 minutes before a meal can significantly reduce your appetite at meal times.

4) Fresh apples or pears - these fruits contain a high amount of soluble fiber (pectin) and water.  So eat one of these 15-20 minutes before a meal and combine with 1) to see maximal results.  Remember to count the carb and calorie content of this choice.







5) Broth, - this combines number 1) (water) with the flavor of chicken or beef and some of the nutritional content if made from scratch that help decrease appetite.  Choose chicken or beef broth that is lower in sodium (if store bough it will still be relatively high).

6) Green tea or lemon in hot water - these provide an astrigent/sour flavor which override the taste buds and effectively shut down our perception for sweet and salty for a period of time following consumption.  These are great strategies not only to use at meal times but also for times when you might be struck with cravings for sweet or salty foods (i.e. junk foods), for example in the evening.


 I hope you find these strategies useful!  Try them and see what they do for you!

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Have a great day!

Dietitian Dan T

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Limit your Exposure to Food Processing for a Longer & Leaner Life

Limit your Exposure to Food Processing for a Longer & Leaner Life.

Food processing includes any additives or technique that extends shelf life, therefore increasing profit margins for food companies.  Unfortunately, not much research is done into the long term effects on human health of these techniques.  Examples of the worst offenders include: sugar, refined flour and Trans fatty acids, which have all been implicated in several long term health challenges. Therefore, to optimize our health we must do our best to limit our exposure to them.

Food processing techniques are so widely used now that it is next to impossible to avoid them!  Many of these put us at risk for long term heath complications including overweight/obesity, cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome, diabetes, cancer, depression, cognitive decline, etc…)

Most of our genes have been theorized to have evolved during the hunter-gatherer time frame. Therefore, let’s structure our diet as we did back then. Let’s look at a simplified breakdown.

1)      Vegetables & Fruits

-          One consistent finding over the years has been that people who eat adequate vegetables & fruits per day live longer and healthier than those who don’t.

-          Aim for 10 (of your) fists of vegetables & fruits daily!!! Remember if you are attempting to lose fat, then be sure that about 6-8 of those fists are low carb vegetables and the other 2-4 are fruits and/or cooked starchy vegetables.

-          As Canadians we have a few choices for the best quality vegetables and fruits.
o   1) Fresh vegetables and fruits - You can enjoy locally grown fresh produce, so TAKE ADVANTAGE.  You can even join a local CSA program (http://csafarms.ca/index.html).
o   2) Frozen vegetables and fruits – a good second option, most of the nutrition is still present.

2)      Meats, Poultry, Fish and Eggs

-          The best choices are grass fed meats and free range poultry and eggs as these provide good levels of omega 3 fats, which are essential and are anti-inflammatory in nature.

-          A good second choice is to choose the leanest cuts of regular farmed/mass-produced meats and poultry that you can.  Also omega 3 eggs are a good second option to free range eggs.

-          Wild caught fish and seafood are the best options.

3)      Nuts & Seeds

-          Use raw nuts & seeds whenever possible.

-          If you experience digestive upset with raw nuts, soak in water for 1-3 hours before eating.

-          If you are attempting to lose weight, limit your portions of nuts & seeds as these can easily lead to high calorie intakes.

-          Grinding nuts & seeds yourself can create very tasty & healthy nut butters that are excellent for spreading or dipping.

4)      Grain products

-          Technically, all grain products are processed.  Therefore, if you can’t live without these, then be sure to choose the least processed forms of grains that you can.

-          Choose “whole grain” whenever possible (legally only “whole grain” in the ingredients list means anything).

-          If you are getting your 10 fists of vegetables & fruits then you don’t need grain products, despite what you might read/hear.

5)      Dairy products

-          We don’t really need these products either, if we are getting enough quality animal proteins, oils & dark green vegetables.

-          If you consume dairy, choose certified organic or <2% products.

6)      Water

-          Drink 2 cups before each meal & in between.

-          Remove chlorine from water before drinking – using a filter system (e.g. Brita) is usually good enough.

7)      Supplements

-          The only two supplements that we most likely need are:

    • A) Vitamin D – if we don’t get access to adequate sunlight.
      •  Ideally we get 10-15 minutes of unprotected (no sunscreen) sun exposure a few times per week.
      •  Discuss supplementation with your health care provider (often doses of 2000 IU are used).

    •  B) Omega 3 (DHA + EPA) – on days when we don’t consume high omega 3 fish or other animal products.
      • Usually 1-4 g per day of DHA+EPA total are prescribed to optimize liver metabolism.


8)      Physical Activity

-          Daily activity and consistency is key.  There’s no better time to start than right now!

-          Once to twice per week – lift heavy things!

-          Once per week – move really fast!

-          The rest of the time move slower but move & very often!!!

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Refresher on SMART goal setting.



I realized that I never re-posted this session on SMART goal setting, so here it is!  This is absolutely critical in order to set yourself up for success, whatever your goals are.

Do NOT sell yourself short! You can achieve what you set out to achieve, just be sure to create the right road map (i.e. behaviors to reach the goal).  I will cover this in another blog (again) later.

Be sure to subscribe to our complete at home fitness & nutrition program.

https://www.youtube.com/chizlefuel = My nutrition channel.
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Subscribe today & check back daily for the WOD & the nutrition tip/concept of the day!
We are here to help you succeed!

Sincerely,

Dan Tisi aka Dietitian Dan T

SMART GOAL SETTING

Happy New Year Everyone!
I hope you all had a great holiday!  My wife and I are still eagerly awaiting the birth of our child.  Any day now!

In the spirit of the New Year, please enjoy my segment on how to set SMART goals.  Adopting this effective strategy should help to optimize your chances of successfully setting and reaching a goal rather than the business as usual New Year’s Resolutions, as you will see.  ENJOY!
Every New Years we do it...  Take a look at our lives and decided to change… something! January has the highest number of people starting lifestyle change plans, etc… However, it also has the highest percentage of these individuals who drop out, or quit!  Therefore, we examine how to set goals in a way that maximizes our chances of following through! 

SMART Acronym:
1)     Specific – Must answer the six “W” questions:
a.      Who – is involved?
b.     What – do I want to accomplish?
c.     Where – Identify a location.
d.     When – Establish a time frame.
e.      Which – Identify requirements and constraints.
f.       Why – Specific reasons, purpose or benefits of accomplishing the goal.
Example: SMART Goal regarding health = Do cardio training for 45 minutes 3 days / wk and resistance training for 45 minutes 3 days/wk at XYZ fitness club VS. Get in shape.

2)     Measurable – Concrete criteria for measuring progress towards the attainment of each goal you set & regularly scheduled progress checks.

3)     Attainable – You begin to figure out ways to achieve your goals.  Develop attitudes, abilities and the skills to reach them.  This “development” occurs only when you see goal achievement as possible for you.  Stair steps/Stage wise – over time what was once inconceivable to you becomes well within your achievement.

4)     Realistic – A goal must represent an objective toward which you are both WILLING and ABLE to work.  TEST of Realistic = DO you BELIEVE that the goal is attainable?

5)     Timely – A goal should be grounded with a time frame.  This increases your sense of urgency and can help you tap more of your resources to achieve the goal.

Other tips for Lifestyle Change Goals: 

A) Include adhering to your lifestyle habits as an outcome (i.e. I will consume 8 servings of fruits and vegetables per day; or 5 vegetables and 3 fruits per day; or I will do 3 cardio and 3 resistance training workouts this week (for 30 – 45 min each)).
B) Research your desired outcomes and be sure to discuss them with a health professional who can help you set a realistic target and timeframe, as well as help you overcome obstacles and use effective, proven strategies. 
C) Share your goals with peers who can support you and hold you accountable to your standards.

References:

1) Adapted from: Psycho-education.  2006.  Dr. I. Patelis-Siotis, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario.
2) Wikipedia entry on SMART/ER - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMART_criteria.

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Best portion tool for Health & Fat Management

Hi Everyone,

I've been away from blogging for a while.  We've been shooting for both my Youtube channel (Chizle Fuel & for a new reality Youtube series on which I'm the lead Dietitian (Transformation King). Links are in my Google+ profile below so you can check those out and subscribe today!

I wanted to take a minute to quickly share some insights that I have gained over my 8 years as a Dietitian on the topic of portion tools for optimal fat loss!  Having worked in the Weight management and Obesity fields for 8 years, I have noticed trends in which portion tools tend to do better for most clients.


There are tonnes of portioning guides out there and honestly in my experience some do work well with some clients, depending on that person.  Some people are numbers people and they love to have calorie and grams of carbs, proteins and fats targets and work well with those.  Others, hate numbers and just want to use their fists and add those up to approximate targets each day!  Interestingly though, one of the most effective methods of portion control don't really control portions (within reason) but do limit exposure to the high risk offenders of the eating world... namely they reduce exposure to refined carbohydrates.  As you will see below, this is my take on what I consider the best portion tool for managing your health & fat loss!  Give it a try for 3 months and see how it works for you!

As always please leave comments & please send me your questions for nutrition issues/concepts that you would like to know more about and I will address them in the future.



Sample Plate for most of your meals


Animals = Quality Protein & Healthy Fats
Plants = Low carbohydrate vegetables


Sample Plate for most of your meals
Add in Starchy vegetables or Fruit for your post workout meal.

1)      PROTEIN & HEALTHY FATS
-          Choose naturally raised (exercised & no drugs given) animals that are fed their natural diet.
-          Choose animals fed leaves (i.e. grasses) whenever possible.
-          If you have to choose conventionally farmed meats, choose the leanest you can.

2)      The optimal targets for fat intake are as follows:
A)    Trans fats – None – check the label and be sure it states truly zero.
B)     Saturated fats – limit to < 25 g / day.  Eliminate those from conventional animal products because often toxins are stored here and sick animals would have higher levels of bad fats.  Whenever possible try to choose exercised, naturally fed animals and even certified organic if you can.
C)     Omega 3 and Omega 6 fats.  Choose somewhere between 1:4 or 1:1 ratio between these respectively.  Decide where you will fall in that range based on your inflammation levels.  If you have more inflammation in your body then target closer to 1:1 ratio vs. 1:4.

Optimally we need the follow for each:
Omega 3- minimum of 2-3 g/day, with 2-4 servings/week coming from animal sources (i.e. oily fish (above) or seafood).  The rest of the week, choose them from plant sources (i.e. ground flax seed or walnuts).
Omega 6 – If you are taking in 1:4 ratio relative to omega 3, then shoot for 8-12 g/day of these (otherwise increase omega 3 and meet in the middle somewhere).

D)    Monounsaturated fats – these will be the primary focus of your fat intake after you know that you’ve eliminated trans fats, are limiting your saturated and are getting your appropriate target for omega 3 and omega 6 fats.  Most people require between 50 and 100 g of fat/day, depending on your calorie target.  So these will make up the difference in your fat intake goal.

3)      Fruits
-          Contain loads of beneficial fibers and other compounds.
-          Significant source of natural fruit sugars.
-          Flavorful and can be ++ beneficial to creating fruit smoothies – caution with amounts.
-          If you are managing your weight, remember to use a) whole fruits, b) smoothies c) dried fruit.

4)      Vegetables
-          Contain loads of beneficial fibers and other compounds.
-          Some are significant sources of natural starches.
-          Some tend to be bland, others with bitter flavors.
-          If you are managing your weight, remember to use a) fibrous vegetables, then b) starchy vegetables,

Five things you can do tonight to get more Vegetables into your daily diet
1)      Fill your plate at lunch and supper as above with Vegetables.  If you are trying to manage weight, eat these first with your healthy protein to maximize your satiety.
2)      Keep pre-cut and pre-washed vegetables in your fridge as snacks.  You can pair with healthy dips (i.e. hummus, peanut butter, etc…).
3)      Steam vegetables for 5-10 mins (maximum) when preparing.
4)      Use vegetables in smoothies with fruit and water in order to get more in your diet.
5)      Aim for 5 or more servings of vegetables as part of your 7-10 servings of fruits and vegetables daily.  Remember to focus on the non-starchy vegetables which are fibrous and very low calorie.

5)      Hydration
-          Consume between 3-5 L of fluid per day unless on restriction.
-          This amount is from all sources.
-          If you are hitting your target for vegetables & fruits (10 fists/day), you can aim for the 3 L target.
-          Best way to judge your hydration is to look at your urine color (light yellow is best).
Citations
http://www.myhealthblog.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/MyPlate-green1300x273-1.jpg
The Paleo diet revised edition. Dr. Loren Cordain. 2011.
8 years of my own clinical experience.

I hope you have enjoyed my take on things!  Please click the link below and subscribe to my Youtube channel (https://www.youtube.com/chizlefuel).
 
Have a great week!

Dan