Detoxes

 

The liver creates bile and cholesterol to carry away waste and break down fats while clearing the blood of drugs and toxic substances.

The kidneys are responsible for removing waste and balancing your fluids through the excretion of urine.

Your large intestine helps to move your bowels and excrete solid excrement.

Lungs purify the air we breathe by taking in oxygen and dispelling carbon dioxide.

Your skin protects you from germs and the elements, while sweat regulates bodily temperature through the release of fluids (not toxins).

Regardless of all these filtration and barrier systems, the wellness industry continues to promote cleanses and detoxes to make a billion dollar diet industry richer. Whether it’s fasting, juicing, colon cleanses, dietary supplements, or infrared saunas, your body is perfectly capable of ridding itself of toxins, provided you don’t have kidney or liver disease.

Any weight loss that occurs through cleanses are strictly that: weight loss, not fat loss. Typically bodies put through detoxes are dehydrated, carb deprived (remember every gram of carbs holds 4g of water), and there is less food volume in the GI tract. Any weight loss will be temporary until the cleanse ends.

Those that do report feeling healthier from a detox are likely feeling better from the reduction of less healthy foods in their usual diet, and if anything cleanses usually leave people lethargic, dizzy, malnourished, and at risk of GI complications, such as constipation, diarrhea, and/or the removal of healthy gut bacteria.

If you want to help your body detoxify, that simplest advice is usually the truest: drink lots of water, limit alcohol, don’t smoke, eat a variety of colourful foods, and get plenty of fiber.

Eating to Build Muscle

When it comes to building muscle mass or “bulking”, nutrition is going to play a vital role not only in providing your body with adequate energy to push hard in your workouts, but to recover properly afterwards. After all, muscle is built by effectively damaging and tearing down the muscles, and rebuilding them again. As you can well imagine, this process alone is going to require a lot of fuel, so it’s going to require a caloric surplus – typically around 200-500 calories above your maintenance intake. The division of your macronutrients becomes a little more important here to make sure this phase of your diet is as effective as it can be.

Protein

First and foremost, protein is the most important macronutrient for building muscle due to the essential amino acids content, therefore it should be the highest priority of your macronutrients. These amino acids facilitate the building of new muscle (muscle protein synthesis) and prevent the body from using any existing muscle as fuel during workouts. For most people, hitting your daily protein requirements from whole foods is doable. However, when trying to build muscle or participating in sports, supplements including protein powders, and bars are a convenient way to increase the amount of quality protein you’re taking in each day.

 

Carbohydrates

Second, carbohydrates (carbs) are equally as important as protein during a muscle building phase for three reasons. Energy, recovery, and protein synthesis (protein absorbed and utilized by the body for muscle growth and repair). Carbs are going to be your main source of energy for your tough workouts, because to build muscle you’re going to have to train hard. After training hard, carbs are going to replenish your energy stores and work alongside protein to facilitate a higher amount of protein synthesis. 

 

Fats

Lastly, fats. Fats are typically not going to make up a large portion of your diet, but they remain important for maintaining hormonal function and a healthy immune system. With that being said, if you are someone who struggles to eat in a caloric surplus due to time constraints or even a lack of appetite, fats are going to be your best friend when it comes to hitting your daily caloric requirements. Why? Because they are very calorically dense, packing 9 calories per gram unlike protein and carbs each containing only 4 calories per gram.

 

Muscle building, for the most part, is relatively straightforward. It’s going to take time, consistency, patience, and effort; both in the kitchen and in the gym, and we haven’t even covered sleep yet! With that being said, there are multiple ways to approach your muscle building phase. Keep an eye out for our blog post on a clean bulk vs a dirty bulk for an in depth look at how these approaches differ!

Meals Under 30 Minutes

It’s hot outside, you’re working late, you hate cooking, you’re watching the kids—whatever the reason, we all need meals we can prepare in 30 minutes or less. Here are the go-to recipes of our coaches:

 

Kate:

Egg Roll in a Bowl (https://www.theseasonedmom.com/egg-roll-in-a-bowl/#recipe)

I’ll usually swap the grated carrots for beansprouts since most coleslaw bags already contain carrots. I’ll also halve the soy sauce and double the hoisin for more flavor and less salt. Option to serve with rice if you need carbs.

 

Michal:

Banana Pancakes

1 medium or large banana

2 large eggs

1 scoop of chocolate protein powder

A little bit butter for the pan

1 tbsp of peanut butter on top

Smash the banana then mix it with 2 eggs and protein powder. Add butter to the pan and fry both sides until brown.

 

Donny:

Steak and Asparagus

Sear steak in a frying pan in butter or olive oil for 2 minutes per side, then put in in oven at 400F for 8-10 minutes. Boil water while searing steak, add asparagus, and cook until desired tenderness.

 

Alejandra:

Sweet Kale Salad

Buy a bag of Sweet Kale Salad and add a can of tuna or grilled chicken breast. Option to add in cooked rice for more carbs.

Calum:

Smokey Quinoa and Black Bean Salad (https://www.budgetbytes.com/smoky-quinoa-black-bean-salad/)

Option to add extra protein of any kind.

 

Mitchell:

Oreo Pudding

175g Greek Yogurt

1 tbsp E.D. Smith Sugar Free Syrup

1 tsp Vanilla extract

10g Jell-O Chocolate Pudding Mix

Mix together then add 4 Oreo Things or 9 Oreo Minis for a snack or dessert.

 

Nathan

Omelettes

Mix together 4 eggs and some milk and pour into a skillet heated to medium. Cook until the eggs have set then add tomatoes, mushrooms, and cheese in the middle before folding in half.

Surviving a Social Summer – Sticking to Your Goals

Summer is a favourite time of year for most people; the perfect season for vacations, barbecues, social gatherings and all manner of outdoor activities. For some people, this may feel like an impossible time of year to stick to their nutrition goals, so the tendency can be to “throw the baby out with the bath water” and abandon their goals until the summer is over. Fast forward to Fall, and you find yourself 3 steps behind where you could be. But it doesn’t need to be that way! Here are some ways to navigate through your Summer, and stick to your goals while still enjoying yourself:

1. Take advantage of the great weather and use any opportunity to get outside and move a little more! Hikes, volleyball, bike rides, leisurely strolls on the seawall – Whether your goal is to lose weight, improve your fitness, or even complete a fitness/sporting event, being more active goes a long way!
2. Plan ahead – Lunches and dinners out are a big part of the Summer season. Where possible, scope out the menu ahead of time and figure out which are the most nutritious items on the menu so you won’t be surprised or swayed when you get there. Balance your plate with a protein source, vegetables and a carbohydrate. For trips and vacations, keep nutritious snacks on hand: fruits & veggies, beef/turkey jerky, protein powder/bars.
3. Avoid over-restricting to mitigate over-indulging. Map out your week ahead of time to account for social events – put provisions in place to make room for a couple of dinners/drinks/parties and enjoy them!
4. Stay hydrated with water, flavored water and diet soda. Limit alc
   oholic drinks and do what you can to reduce drinking your calories.
5. Hire a coach to keep you accountable and help you navigate through all of your obstacles.

 

Keep in mind Summer is meant to be a fun time of year, but don’t let a few dinners and gatherings derail your progress and get you off track from your goals. You wouldn’t slash the three remaining tires every time you got a flat, it’s always better to put on the spare and get there a little slower than not get there at all!

More Protein, More Gains?

 

Protein has become more and more prevalent in recent times, especially amongst newcomers to the fitness industry. If you look around online, you’re likely to see a barrage of videos/recipes promoting “high protein” snacks or meals. This may lead you to believe that the more protein you eat, the “healthier”, “bigger” or “better” you’ll be… but is that really the case? 

 

While protein is an important part of any diet, that doesn’t necessarily mean that it is THE most important part of your diet. This includes even the strength athletes among you. You may have heard something along the lines of “1g of protein per pound of body weight to build muscle” – which mostly stems from old information from professional bodybuilders. The reality of the situation is there is a limit to how much protein is actually useful for muscle retention or growth. Some research shows that number sits far below the 1g mark. Consuming more protein than your body needs will just lead to that extra protein being used for energy, which is a much less efficient process than using carbohydrates (the body’s preferred source of energy).

 

So how much should you eat? Some studies and articles have indicated that around 0.73-0.75g/lb of body weight is sufficient for muscle growth, or simply retaining muscle during a cutting phase. Let’s take a look at some of the other reasons why this good news:

 

• This could allow more room in your calorie bank for carbs, which means more energy for better workouts, leading to more gains.
• Protein is expensive – It’s no secret that grocery bills are skyrocketing right now, and protein sources certainly aren’t getting any cheaper.
• Swapping out some of your protein intake for more carbs may in fact be better for recovery.

 

For those of you in a fat loss phase, increasing protein intake may be a good idea simply because it is more satiating and therefore reduces your appetite. If appetite control is a problem for you, vegetables are great for satiety too; so make sure you fill your diet with lots of them! You may also be someone who just prefers a higher protein diet and that’s ok too! There is nothing wrong with consuming 1g/lb or a little more per day, provided you’re not exceeding your daily caloric needs. Rest assured that as long as you make protein even a small priority in your diet, you’ll be just fine. Let the gains begin!

Fitness Trackers and Smartwatches – How Accurate Are They?

Since their introduction in the early 2000’s, fitness trackers and smartwatches like FitBit, Garmin, and Whoop have taken the world of fitness and turned energy output into somewhat of an obsession amongst some gym-goers. They are commonly used to track data such as: steps, heart rate, calorie/energy expenditure and sleep. A lot of people take the data presented on their smartwatches at face value, but how do they work? How accurate are they, really? 

When it comes to fitness trackers, they typically operate on two different functions. Some use accelerometers and others employ heart rate monitors. Some fitness trackers such as WHOOP and FitBit have both. Accelerometers use your body’s acceleration to estimate energy expenditure. Electromagnetic sensors are used to detect motion, and the device will interpret that information using an algorithm to detect “steps”. Trackers that measure heart rate use equations based upon age, height, gender, weight and activity level, to estimate energy expenditure.

 

An evaluation conducted at Stanford University School Of Medicine showed that, of seven different trackers evaluated, none of those devices measured energy expenditure accurately. The device with even the highest accuracy was off by an average of 27 percent, with lowest accuracy being off by roughly 93 percent. As you can tell, overestimating or underestimating energy expenditure by even 27 percent provides a huge margin of error when trying to track your goals, and at 93 percent there really isn’t much point. This evaluation did, however, find that most of the devices monitoring heart rate were pretty accurate. The take home message being that if you are using a tracking device to monitor your heart, chances are it can be fairly accurate. Although, it is advised against consuming more calories based on the “expenditure” being provided by your smartwatch. Another more recent study monitored a total of 44 subjects, and had similar findings, showing that the measurement accuracy of energy consumption was still inadequate. Meanwhile, most fitness trackers do reliably measure steps, heart rate, distance, and sleep duration, which can be encouraging data to motivate individuals to become more active.

Devices are constantly being upgraded and redesigned to new models, suggesting the need for more current reviews and research. Although technology is constantly evolving, available research thus far has shown fairly mixed results for how accurate these devices actually are. So are they even worth it? Who should use one? The answer really depends on your goals and what actionable data you are looking to improve. Suffice to say the one thing these devices should not be used for is any kind of calorie expenditure tracking. With almost a 30 percent margin for error at the very minimum, this could definitely lead you to over-consume calories by giving you an inclination that you have burned more than you really have. Be that as it may, fitness trackers and other devices to date have done an excellent job at bringing more regular activity to the forefront, and encouraging more and more people to be more active day to day, which is where the focus should really be. If your FitBit, WHOOP, Apple or Samsung Smartwatch is getting you away from the desk or off the couch more frequently, more power to you and keep up the work. But don’t obsess over the data, just keep in mind that the “calories burned” are not a measurement to rely on by any means, and certainly not the only thing you should be focussed on.

 

“I’d like to give a massive shoutout to my nutrition coach, Mitch. I’ve had the privilege of knowing him for 4 years, 3 of those working alongside him every day. He’s a consummate professional, with a heart of gold.

Several months ago, I reached out to him to help me prevent my last cut from going off the rails. My original plan was to finish it, then have him help me ‘reverse diet’ my way out of it, and establish my new maintenance.

As it turned out, I ended up enlisting him far sooner, pre cut finish, as the approach I’d taken was far too aggressive, and as a result, was beginning to rebound uncontrollably. He stepped in, gave me a more realistic target, and then scaled back accordingly, relative to the degree at which I was able to sustain that given pace.

Not once did he belittle my goal, and he also ended up being correct in every single one of his predictions. I fully endorse his coaching ability. If nutrition is the missing link in your fitness journey, I highly recommend his services.

Next up for me is competing in bodybuilding, and I plan to step on stage some time next year. Having Mitch in my corner will go a long way in furthering my progress.”

Practicing Body Acceptance

 

Part of having a healthy relationship with food comes with having a healthy relationship with our body image. We can’t eat intuitively and happily if we don’t give our body what it wants, whether that’s a salad or a pizza, and it’s easy to fall into a downward spiral if we consume so-called “bad” food:  have you ever indulged in a treat and told yourself you’re fat? That you failed or cheated on your diet? Did you then restrict the next day to make up for it? It’s okay—it happens—but you have the power to stop the cycle of vilifying food, degrading yourself, and comparing your body to others.

 

Oftentimes we will say negative things to ourselves that we would never dream of uttering to another person, and the first step of body acceptance is stopping your negative self-talk in the moment. If you are putting yourself down, acknowledge the thought and imagine a giant stop sign. If possible, you can even say the word “stop” out loud.

 

This might be all you can manage in the beginning, but over time try to counter the negative dialogue with something neutral or positive about your body. For instance, if you think “I hate my bingo wings” when you look in the mirror, tell yourself “stop” and counter with anything from “my arms are fine” to “I love my arms that give me the ability to hug my children.” If talking positively about your body is too difficult, at least aim for a neutral statement in the beginning.

 

You can also try practicing daily gratitude by writing down three things about your body that you are grateful for; perhaps you are thankful for your legs that carry you around all day, or the muscles you have cultivated from years of hard work. Another good exercise to practice is writing down compliments to yourself and putting them in a jar. When you’re stuck in a negative self-talk rut, pull out a few notes to read out loud. Lastly, social media has a huge impact on how we view ourselves in comparison to others. If you find you follow nothing but perfect, genetically blessed, and/or photoshopped bodies, consider if these influencers and accounts are actually benefiting you in any way, or if they just make you feel worse about yourself. If the latter, unfollow them and subscribe to more realistic and diverse body types that range in age, race, gender, and size.

 

These practices might sound hokey and silly, and if you really struggle with your body image it can be tough to actually pay yourself a compliment. Keep in mind, however, that you may have been reiterating a negative dialogue about your body for years or decades, and it will take effort, action, and practice to change this dialogue into something more positive and accepting.

NEAT

 

Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis, or NEAT or short, is quite simply the amount of calories you burn through all of the unconscious, innate movements and anything outside of planned exercise that your body does in a day. This includes standing, fidgeting, chewing, pacing etc.For people with active or manual labor jobs this number is typically a lot higher, and often much lower for those with an office job. Think about your regular day-to-day, and ask yourself how much time you spend sitting vs standing or moving, not including your regular gym workouts. If you conclude that you spend most of the day sitting, you could benefit from reading on!

 

The more we move, the more calories we burn. The more calories we burn, the more calories we can eat while maintaining our weight, which also means we don’t have to restrict calories as much during a weight loss phase. Pretty… neat, right?! Jokes aside, it’s no mystery that a lot of us have fairly sedentary jobs that have us bound to a desk for hours per day, on top of that we’re supposed to sleep 7-9 hours each night; throw in a whole bunch of family, social, and other life obligations, this doesn’t leave too much time for even more exercise. So what do we do about that? Well here are 5 of our top ways to improve your NEAT without adding hours of running, cycling or other more intense activities.

 

1. Keep a smaller cup/bottle of water at your desk. This one is great because it frees two birds with one key. The more you empty your bottle, the more trips back to the water cooler/tap you have to make to refill it, which also means more trips to the bathroom. See how the steps are racking up already? (Bonus tip: Use a bathroom on a different floor to boost your activity even more!)

 

 

2. Pace back and forth or around the house while you brush your teeth. If you’re doing the requisite 2 minutes of brushing twice per day, that’s a whole 4 minutes you could be moving just a little more while keeping your breath fresh, teeth clean, and gums healthy!

 

3. Who likes TV commercials anyway? Rather than sitting through the ad breaks during your TV time, get up and move around in between. This can be a great time to catch up on small chores around the house too!

 

4. Park an extra couple of blocks away from your office, or consider getting off the train an extra stop early if you work downtown. Especially downtown, there are many parking lots within close proximity, and the majority of train stations are fairly close to each other

 

5. You may have heard that only the strongest take all of the groceries in one trip. Well we’re going to recommend making the extra 2-3 trips back to the car! Extra trips mean more steps, ergo increased activity!

 

These may seem like insignificant changes, or too small to make a difference, but these small adjustments add up over time to make a huge impact.

Calorie Controlled Convenience

You’re a busy person, we hear you. Working 40+ hours a week, juggling responsibilities, family, social obligations, client meetings, workouts etc. Some days life gets ahead of you and grabbing on the go is just non-negotiable. Last week we discussed healthy options Downtown, but sometimes you may find yourself travelling for work, on-the-go with kids, whatever the case may be. In this post, we’re going to “break the rules” and take a look at some of the better options when it comes to convenience and fast foods. Now don’t get us wrong, we don’t encourage people to make a habit of getting fast food, we always encourage people to prepare as best as you can for your busy days and bring food from home as much as possible. With that in mind, here are some calorie and macro friendly options from some of the places you’re most likely to find yourself stuck with in a pinch.

 

• Starbucks:

You’d be hard pressed to find a spot in your area without at least one Starbucks nearby. 

1. Spinach, Feta & Egg White Wrap – Pretty delicious and good for any time of the day. This tasty wrap comes in at a conservative 290kcals, with a solid 20g of protein, 34g of carbohydrates, and only 8g of fats. 
2. Blueberry Greek Yogurt – A small snack to keep you going between meals, you can’t go wrong with this one. Only 120kcals, 11g protein, 18g carbohydrates and 0g fats.
3. Egg White & Red Pepper Egg Bites – If you’re in need of an extra hit of protein, feeling a little peckish, or need to fill out your lunch a little, look no further than these mighty little egg white bites. A fairly lean 170kcals, 12g protein, 11g carbohydrates, and just 8g fats.

 

• McDonald’s:

One of the biggest fast food franchises in the world, there’s always one close if you’re stuck for options.

1. Breakfast Burrito – A more conservative on-the-go breakfast option, this burrito packs only 260kcals, with a reasonable 14g of protein,23g of carbs, and 15g of fats.
2. Chicken & Bacon McWrap with Grilled Chicken –  Coming in at a very well rounded 460kcals, this chicken wrap contains a whopping 35g of protein, 35g of carbs, and 21g of fats. In a pinch, this is sure to fill you up and help you stay within your calories and macros for the day.
3. McDouble – Two patties packing quite the protein punch, and staying fairly light on the calories at only 370kcals, made up of 21g protein, 34g carbs, 12g fats.

 

• A&W

Another reliable spot to find throughout Canada and the US.

1. Beyond Meat Burger – Vegan friendly and certain to keep you full on the go, this burger contains a modest 500kcals, 20g protein, 40g carbs, 29g fats.
2. Beyond Meat Burger (Lettuce Wrapped) – Much lighter on calories, this lettuce wrapped variation contains only 360kcals, 17g protein, 10g carbs, 26g fats.
3. Spicy Chicken Chipotle Wrap – Just 317kcals, this wrap should hit the spot in a quick pinch. 12g protein, 29g carbs, 18g fats.