Nutrition what I have learned over the years.
I will try to keep this short as to much information is draining on the brain. I would appreciate if you dedicated a few minutes to read it as it might give you a better scope of how I am combining everything I have learned during my college years studying health science and nutrition. More importantly what I now know since learning about the yogic lifestyle and completing 1000 hrs of training.
Here is a little background about my health journey. Between the ages of 11-14 I started putting on some serious weight and that resulted in respiratory problems and gut problems. These health concerns and my exploding weight meant I was sent to a teenage obesity clinic. I had developed a very bad relationship with food and this led to eating disorders such as bulimia and binge eating episodes. The doctors in the clinic had to relay these messages to my mother and between her efforts and the advice form the doctors I started going to the gym at 13 years old.
My progress in the gym was not straight forward. There were many years of yo-yo dieting, trying new fads, quick fixes, losing weight, gaining weight, injuries along with so many years spent partying as I grew to become an adult. However, I was always conscious of my health so I decided to go and study about human health when I was 24. 10 years on I feel like I have cemented the habits I fell in and out of for years.
I am now 35 and I am in the best shape physically, mentally and spiritually compared to any other stage of my life. Combining a good resistance programme, healthy lifestyle and yoga has been a perfect pyramid of health for me and many clients I work with. In that pyramid there is room for other leisurely and sporting activities like field sports, combat sports, running, swimming etc.
My advice on nutrition
Numbers do not lie. It is very simple:
Eat less, move more = weight loss.
Eat more, move less= weight gain.
Being in a calorie deficit along with a good exercise regime will result in fat loss while building lean muscle tissue. Being in a calorie surplus and leading a sedentary lifestyle will lead to weight gain and usually that gain Is fat tissue.
In the fitness industry there is a huge push on “macros and calories bro”. As I said the numbers don’t lie and I got caught up in that mindset for years. Hit your protein and calories and you “will be grand”, on a superficial level this is true. What many coaches and nutritionist forget to talk about is how we obtain these nutrients.
When I was in India, I was eating a very clean organic, vegan & sattvic* diet. (The word “sattvic” means “pure essence,” and sattvic foods are thought to be pure and balanced, offering feelings of calmness, happiness, and mental clarity). I didn’t track a single calorie. I had a diet rich in nutrients picked straight from the earth or plucked from the trees. I had breakfast, lunch, dinner and a snack if I needed it and continued to build muscle and lose fat while feeling extremely energised and clear in thoughts.
Now I am not saying for you to completely convert to this lifestyle. As we are in the western world it would be very hard to implement. I also know that a vegan diet can leave us lacking in vital nutrients that we can only obtain from animal sources. I would suggest a more plant-based diet and that’s what I intend to follow for the rest of my days after spending some time in and out of hospital when I returned to Ireland.
After coming home after 3 months studying and living the yogic lifestyle, I had lost a lot of weight and built a very lean physique. However, I felt very weak in terms of strength so I went back to the bro science and bulked for 3 months before returning to India. This bulk involved large portions of food that were not coming from great sources. Mainly fast food and microwave meals pushing “macros bro” this resulted in some gut and digestive problems that meant I spent a few nights in hospital, many doctors’ visits and a couple of thousand euro spent seeing specialist. (They couldn’t understand what was wrong. Money down the drain)
Since returning to India and continuing the organic lifestyle I have never felt better. I have introduced some animal protein mainly chicken and fish but the diet I lead now is plant based. These few trips in India have brought me to the realisation that processed, microwaved, fast and packaged foods are harsh on the systems of the body. These foods are all linked to inflammation in the body which is a precursor to many chronic health disorders.
- Processed meat, such as bologna, bacon, sausage and lunchmeat.
- Commercial baked goods such as snack cakes, pies, cookies and brownies.
- Bread and pasta made with white flour.
- Deep fried items such as French fries, fried chicken etc.
All of these foods listed above can still be enjoyed and can have positive impact on mental and physical health if coming from a good source or made at home or not eating in excess. There is a time for certain foods to be enjoyed. Boxed, packaged and microwave food should be kept to a minimum. The purer our source of nutrients is the purer our body will be.
The only thing I can relate all this advice to is my grandparent’s generation. My grandfather grew all his own vegetables and some fruits. He also went shooting and fishing meaning that 4-5 days out of the week anything my grandmother cooked was never in a pack, box or microwave. Anything else came direct from the local butchers. My grandfather was a very healthy man until his untimely death. Walking the dogs for hours through miles of fields, cycling for miles to nearby towns to fish and hunt. This kind of diet and lifestyle meant my grandfather was very strong in body and mind until the day he died.
When I contrast that to my grandmother who was the typical Irish granny. She made sure everybody was fed well and the house ran as smooth as a whistle. She rarely stopped pottering around the house and when she did take time to sit and eat something it was usually something filled with sugar. i.e. biscuits, cakes, bread, tarts etc. this diet I believe and with growing evidence in the scientific world resulted in her developing Alzheimer’s and Dementia. Both of these disorders are now being coined as type 3 diabetes. Diabetes of the brain. A scary outcome and food for thought.
So, to wrap all what I learned in a final paragraph.
The numbers are important i.e. macros and calories. But what trumps them all is the source of these nutrients. Good sources of food while controlling our portions combined with an active lifestyle is what will improve our health physically, mentally and spiritually.
I hope this helps and if there are any questions please reach out.
Mind yourself.