Sugar is known as one of the worst things we can put in our bodies. Almost every fad diet recommends you cut it out completely! If you do a quick google search on sugar, the top posts will be articles about the dangers of sugar. While these articles aren’t all wrong, they aren’t all right either. Our bodies need a chemical called glucose to function. It is our main energy source. Your body creates glucose from the carbohydrates in the food you eat. Carbohydrates are the sugars, starches and fibers found in fruits, grains, vegetables and dairy products.

The truth is the correct sugar is really important for your body! Knowing the difference will help you up your fitness game. Heavily processed (added) sugars can set your body up for failure, leading to weight gain, depression, brain health degeneration, and diabetes. What most people don’t talk about is the benefits of natural sugar! Sugar can provide you with energy, help you store energy, carry extra nutrients around your body and boost your mood! Not to mention your brain consumes about 20% of your glucose-derived energy! Our brains use up 400 calories of glucose (¼ of that from sugar) every day. We need sugar to function properly.

When we consume natural sugar, a couple things happen that are worth noting. First they break down much slower compared to their processed counterparts, this helps you to feel full longer and gives you lasting energy. Foods with natural sugars also carry other nutrients that keep you healthy and prevent disease. When the sugar reaches your small intestine it is broken down into glucose. The glucose is then released into our bloodstream where it is transported into our cells to be made into energy. Our pancreas monitors the amount of glucose in the bloodstream and releases insulin to help transport it to our cells. If we have too much sugar in our blood, the insulin supply is unable to keep up and this can cause diabetes. However, if you consume foods that break down slower, your body can handle the transportation of glucose to the cells much more efficiently.

One way to make sure you're making good sugar choices is using a Glycemic Index chart to make informed decisions on sugar consumption. The glycemic index is a system of assigning a number to carbohydrate-containing foods according to how much each food increases blood sugar. The glycemic index itself is not a diet plan but one of various tools — such as calorie counting or carbohydrate counting — for guiding food choices. When foods have a high glycemic index they are more likely to spike your blood sugar. When that occurs, your body goes into fat storage mode. If you choose foods with a lower glycemic index, say between 1-55, you are going to digest the food slower, and therefore receive the sugar at a slower pace. Foods such as bananas and kale are foods with low glycemic indexes, so they release energy slowly and won’t spike your insulin levels. This will be more beneficial for helping you feel full, giving you energy, and forcing your body to utilize the sugar now rather than store it for later as fat.

Foods with natural sugar are very important in our diet. Fruit (fructose) includes vitamins, antioxidants, and fiber that help reduce your risk of cancer, extra fiber in your diet can help you feel full which prevents overeating. Grapefruit is one of the most nutrient dense fruits. It’s packed with vitamin C and A, fiber, potassium and lots of antioxidants! Cherries are another great fruit choice, they are a great source of vitamin A, fiber, potassium, and folic acid. 

Dairy products and dairy alternatives also have natural sugar in them, in the form of lactose that is paired with both protein and vitamins! One cup of white milk contains 12 grams of naturally occurring sugar. One cup of unsweetened soy milk contains only a gram, but has a lower glycemic index (~34) compared to a cup of skim milk(~37). Good dairy choices, such as whole milk, and cottage cheese give you more than calcium. Whole milk and cottage cheese also have phosphorus, vitamin A, vitamin D, Riboflavin, vitamin B12, protein, potassium, zinc and magnesium. 

It’s important to stress that sugar, like most food choices, is best in moderation. Having a meal that contains some fruit or plain yogurt could be really beneficial to boosting your mood and energy. Too much sugar and you could be feeling sluggish, nauseated, or mentally fuzzy. At snack time if you have to choose between a piece of fruit or a cupcake, genuinely consider which choice will make your body feel better. Which will continue to benefit you throughout the day, and which will have you potentially feeling tired, bloated, or sick. 

written by: Jessica Bergman

Eat less sugar, eat more whole foods, and consume fats in moderation and mostly liquid form. The American population is inundated with good, useful information about how to eat healthy. So why is it that the American diet is still so heavy in saturated fats, added sugars and processed foods? Unfortunately, for every one good piece of nutrition information there are likely three or four bad, or just misleading pieces competing for Google’s top search response. Add in the fact that the Vitamin Mineral and Supplement industry is a 36 billion dollar a year industry that is growing by over a billion dollars each year, and suddenly it becomes much more lucrative to sell American’s on the next great quick fix pill/diet fad. Now the question first becomes ‘How do I find reliable information about nutrition that is right for me,’ and second, ‘How do I make the choices necessary to apply what I learn about my nutrition.’ Because i’m sure you have heard and understand the three pieces of advice I stated in the beginning of this post, but how often do you apply those simple tenants of healthy eating? How often do you settle for a burger, fries and a coke or four street tacos, two tamales and a Jarritos? The answer to why you make these choices over and over may be tied less to your knowledge about eating and more to your cultural upbringing.

Let’s first uncover the mystery of how to find credible sources for information on food and nutrition. The reason we are often confused by contradicting information in this field is because nutrition is just as dynamic and changing as any other science. That’s right, nutrition is considered a science; those who put to practice and further the field of nutrition are called Dieticians. That leads me to my first point to help you find the information that is right for you - please visit with a registered dietician. These healthcare professionals have bachelors and sometimes masters degrees in the field of dietetics and can help you navigate all aspects of nutrition as they apply to your specific body - this kind of assistance is invaluable and has no substitute.

Other than committing to working with a dietician to find out what will work for you specifically, there are plenty of resources out there bosting heaps of general health information that you can use to greatly improve your health and wellbeing. Understanding that nutrition is a science will help you to understand my next point about looking for secondary sources that site actual scientific studies (primary sources). Chemists, dieticians and kinesiologists who do research on foods and our bodies utilization of those foods, go through the scientific process in finding their answers to society's great questions of our time, “How do I lose weight while gaining muscle?,” “How can I maintain lean muscle mass on a low carb diet?” “Is a low carb diet right for me?” “Should I be eating more protein/less fat?” All of these questions and many more just like them are the reason we need actual scientific studies conducted. However, not all scientific studies are considered equal. Just as is the case with any scientific field, studies range from Epidemiological, Animal, Cell Culture, and Case Control studies as well as Clinical trials. If you are going straight for the hard facts of what works and what does not work, look for Double Blind Case Control Studies. This means neither the subject being studied, nor the researcher conducting the study knows which group of participants are receiving a placebo treatment and which are receiving the nutritional treatment in question. Here are a few resources you can look to as secondary source that utilize sound scientific research: Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, USDA National Agricultural Library, Food and Nutrition Information Center, US Department of Health and Human Services. And on the note of sources, please only use primary and secondary sources for actual guidance. Third and fourth party sources (generalist magazines and newspapers with ‘science writers’, and nbc nightly news), should be utilized more as ideas you can look into further with actual scientific research findings. BuzzFeed and any other facebook viral posting should be taken with the smallest grain of salt.

*A note from the writer: Media Misleads their Leads.

As someone who has a degree in broadcast journalism, and has worked for local television stations producing news stories and other media, I can vouch for the fact that ratings rule. If I were to bring a nutrition study to my news producers and say I wanted to tell a story that day about the findings of the study, they would look through the abstract, find the most appetizing piece of information (the bit that tells people what they want to hear, or sometimes exactly the opposite of what common knowledge would have you believe), and they would give me 30 seconds to tell that information. This leaves little time for facts and findings. It’s just enough time to mislead the viewers and cause drama or excitement. That is how you get ratings, and ratings rule the news.

Okay, so you have consulted with your dietician and spent hours, maybe weeks researching topics about nutrition that align most closely with your personal needs. Why is it so damn hard to make the right choices in the face of so much good information, and with a real desire to want to be healthier? That answer is threefold - Environmental, Personal and Health factors play into every choice we make about food. This part comes down to Willpower. By definition willpower is just an energetic determination. In this case, the amount of energy or ‘power’ you give your determination comes to play. Let’s say you have a finite amount of power in each decision you make, you can give all of the power to your determination to make the healthy choice you know to be right, or you can give it just a fraction of that energy. Those three factors I mentioned above will also be fighting for some of that power in every decision we make. Our environment can be anything from our economic status and Geographic availability of foods to Cultural and Religious influences. You can see how the affordability of fresh produce and influences from our peers at social gatherings could dictate our eating habits. Personal Preferences  have more to do with learned habits of Comfort and Discomfort eating, Food marketing and diet trends, Taste smell or texture preferences and even beliefs about nutrition. While it may seem crazy to one person to drink a sugary beverage and a salt saturated hot broth when sick, it is completely commonplace for most Americans to turn to the cold staples of Sprite and Campbells Chicken Noodle Soup thanks to learned comfort habits and predatory marketing/advertising campaigns. Lastly our Health Status, which includes Medical Conditions, Physical Fitness level, Genetics, Age, and Gender may also cause contention in our food choices. Someone who is diabetic, and has been encouraged to modify sugar intake to optimize insulin levels will make far different choices than someone who suffers from epilepsy and may have been encouraged to observe a Ketogenic Dietary lifestyle. If you can become aware of every factor that pulls some of your energy in each food decision, you can begin to take your willpower back and give all of your energy to becoming the fullest, happiest and healthiest version of yourself.

Take a moment for yourself. Try this quick and easy brainstorming activity to sort through your own food-choice hangups. Divide a sheet of paper into three columns and write "Environment" "Personal Preference" and "Health" at the top. Under each column category, list out any and all factors related to those categories that have an influence on your food choices. Then check out some of the links I posted above to look deeper into what healthy choices you should be making in order to reach your personal goals. I bet you will make better choices this time around. Above all else, be kind to yourself. We all make mistakes and slip up on our fitness journeys. The trick is to not let it send you tumbling down the hill. Just grab onto the next good decision and continue the climb.

SOUTHWESTERN KALE AND QUINOA POWER SALAD

Since going vegetarian in July of ‘17, my main struggle with food has been balancing my macro-nutrients at a level similar to what I was getting when I was an omnivore. Mainly, the concern has been with protein. I am well aware of the many ways we can get protein from non-meat sources (whole and ancient grains, legumes, nuts, seeds, vegetables, leafy greens and etc…), but making that shift in the kitchen has proven to be much more difficult than I could have imagined. Thankfully we live in an age where recipes of all kinds are plentiful online, so I didn’t have to go out and stock up on every new brilliant vegetarian and vegan cookbook. I love sharing my findings with my clients in hopes of them making healthier decisions every day. Let me be clear, I don’t think everybody should - or even needs to be - vegan or vegetarian. I do, however, think making these choices regularly will lead to a more moderate consumption of animal products, and therefore alleviate some of the side effects our society faces due to over consumption of these types of foods (clogged arteries, hormone imbalances, and inflammation to name just a few). Bellow I will list for you some of my favorite online resources for health conscious recipes, and one of my favorite finds on the internet to date. This particular recipe comes from CookieandKate.com . Enjoy!

- Trainer Kevin

1. Cookie and Kate - https://cookieandkate.com/

2. The Minimalist Baker - https://minimalistbaker.com/

3. Simply Quinoa - https://www.simplyquinoa.com/recipes/

4. Detoxinista - https://detoxinista.com

5. Mom Noms - http://www.momnoms.net/

Southwestern Kale and Quinoa Power Salad.

Recipe Borrowed From Cookie and Kate

Ingredients

Quinoa & Kale

• 1 Cup Quinoa
• 1 Bunch Kale (Ribs Removed and shredded into bite size pieces)
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 1 Medium Lime, juiced
• ½ Teaspoon Salt

Sweet Potatoes

• 2 Medium Sweet Potatoes (1.5lbs diced into quarter inch cubes)
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 2 Teaspoons Cumin
• 1 Teaspoon Smoked Paprika
• ½ Teaspoon Salt

Avocado Sauce

• 2 Medium ripe Avocados
• 2 Limes Juiced
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 1 Medium Jalapeno (cored and diced)
• 1 Handful of Cilantro Leaves
• ½ Teaspoon Ground Coriander
• Salt to Taste

Additional Protein

• 1 ½ Cups Cooked Black Beans
• ¼ Cup Roasted Pepitas
  • *(vegetarian, instead of vegan?) This recipe goes great with crumbled Feta

Pro Tip: I recommend making the quinoa well ahead of time so it has time to cool down before you add it to the prepared kale salad. In fact, cooked quinoa is a great staple to have in any vegan or vegetarian refrigerator since it is a great source of complete proteins.Try making 2-4 cups of it at the beginning of the week and playing around with different “power bowl” recipes similar to this one - you can mix and match your veggies depending on how you feel that day.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. To cook the quinoa: First, rinse the quinoa in a fine mesh colander under running water for a minute or two. In a medium-sized pot, combine the rinsed quinoa and 2 cups water. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil, then cover the pot, reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes. Remove the quinoa from heat and let it rest, still covered, for 5 minutes. Uncover the pot, drain off any excess water and fluff the quinoa with a fork. Set it aside to cool.
2. To cook the sweet potatoes: In a large skillet, warm the olive oil over medium heat. Add the chopped sweet potatoes and toss to coat, then add the cumin, smoked paprika and salt. Stir to combine. Once the pan is sizzling, add a scant ¼ cup water, then cover the pan and reduce heat to low to avoid burning the contents. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the sweet potato is tender and cooked through, about 10 minutes.
3. Uncover the pan, raise the heat back to medium and cook until the excess moisture has evaporated and the sweet potatoes are caramelizing on the edges, about 3 to 7 minutes (add another little splash of olive oil if the potatoes start sticking to the pan). Set aside to cool.
4. To prepare the kale: Transfer the kale to a large mixing bowl. Sprinkle the chopped kale with salt and use your hands to “massage” it, which improves the flavor. Just grab handfuls of kale in your hands and scrunch it up in your palms. Repeat until the kale is darker green in color and more fragrant. Whisk together 2 tablespoons olive oil, the juice of 1 lime and ½ teaspoon salt. Drizzle over the kale and toss to coat.
5. To make the avocado sauce: Simply combine the ingredients as listed in a food processor or blender. Blend well and season with salt, to taste.
6. To toast the pepitas: In a small skillet over medium-low heat, toast the pepitas, stirring frequently, until they are turning lightly golden on the edges and starting to make little popping noises, about 3 to 5 minutes.
7. Once the quinoa has cooled down a bit, pour it into the bowl of kale and toss to combine. Divide the kale and quinoa mixture into four large salad bowls. Top with sweet potatoes, black beans, a big dollop of avocado sauce, and a sprinkle of feta and pepitas.

Nutrition Facts

Servings = 4 / Calories = 636 / Cabs = 64.8g / Fat = 35g / Protein = 20.2g