Cutting Out the Nonsense – A Path Towards Weight Loss

June 27, 2016 By Laura

As a society we talk a lot about eating, weight loss, and healthy guidelines.

But are we really listening?

Believe it or not, eating is an addiction. There are meetings, Overeaters Anonymous, where people who have a tendency to overeat can share their experiences and support each other. While some people might think that it’s comical for anyone to look at eating as an addiction, it’s a difficult vice for people to overcome. Saying that these people should just get off the couch or start eating better is like telling a person suffering from depression “Hey, cheer up!”

There’s a lot more to it than that.

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Work It Out: FAQ

August 13, 2013 By Laura

Does anyone ever look at the Fitness tab?

(Look up. There. On the menu bar.)

Recently I’ve had a few questions that I’ve addressed at one point or another. While I would loooove to think everyone has my Fitness page memorized ~~(I don’t even know what’s there)~~, I realize that’s a lot to look at.

Today for Work It Out I thought I’d highlight a few of the posts that answer some frequently asked questions, and some of my favorites.

Click each title below to link to the detailed post…

1. The Ab Edition

So how do you get abs? I hate to say it… it’s true what they say – abs are made in the kitchen. This post has some specific diet tips to get your abs poppin’.

2. Top 5 Core Exercises

While abs ARE made in the kitchen, a strong core can make daily activities easier, reduces risk of injury, helps your posture, and protects your back. This post has my top 5 favorite moves.

3. No Excuses NOT to Work It out

Think you don’t have time to workout? Think again! No one has time… you have to make time to workout. This post includes ways around barriers, and a few workouts you can squeeze in quickly at home.

4. Tips for Improving Workout Focus

Eliminating wandering thoughts, gym distractions, and general rushing is important to getting the most out of your workout. My tips for purposeful lifting.

5. Work It Out with Supplements

Supplements are an area of mystery for many people. This post details the 5 supplements I take to help keep up my energy, reach fitness goals (i.e. build muscle), and maintain a healthier lifestyle.

6. Healthy Eating on the Road

I travel a lot for my job. This post is how I survived on the road 3 weeks out from my competition, eating 7 meals per day while navigating airport security, conference rooms, and clients. It’s my Top 10 Survival Tips.

7. Attack of the Killer Sodium

This is a soap box for me. Before I needed to start tracking my sodium pre-competition, I had NO idea how much sodium is added to foods – breads, protein powders… even spice blends! A little education, and some idea for making your own spice blends for use on protein, veggies, and beans.

8. Vegan Protein Sources

If you are new-ish to this blog, you may not know that I went vegetarian and then vegan for a hot minute. It made me a lot more creative in the kitchen, and allowed me to answer the common question: “How do vegans get protein?” (Click through for an awesome pin-able grocery guide.)

9. 15 Detox Foods

Many detox “diets” focus on elimination. Rather cutting out foods, I decided to focus on what I needed to ADD to my diet to boost energy and help my body get back on track. This post includes the foods I make sure to add to in when I need a reset.

10. The “No Shit” Diet

This is my favorite post ever. My take on diet (hint: it’s about common sense), Diet 101, my weekly food buys (the most FAQ), flavors adds, and where I shop (you know you wan that peanut flour 😉 ).

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This is one of those posts where I wonder if anyone will read it… those always feel like a little leap of faith. Seems to be a common theme lately…

Do you have a Fitness question/area of interest? I need post ideas!

What is your #1 fitness tip? It can be about food, workouts, motivation… anything!

Work It Out: Is Fruit Bad?

August 6, 2013 By Laura

Why do people become scared of certain foods?

Butter. Carbs. Egg yolks. Milk. Meat.

If you remember my No Shit Diet, you know I think these fads are… well, a load of shit. 😉

There are so many schools of thought, you really have to find something that works for you and your body. Don’t be afraid to experiment. Play with your food! Create your own nutrition philosophy; one that makes you feel good. And don’t ban foods for no reason.

Today’s Work It Out is about fruit. One of the most asked questions I get about my figure competition prep is “why are you still eating fruit?!”

I’m still eating fruit because I like fruit. Fruit is good for you. Love your fruit.

Is fruit bad? NO! Fruit does have sugar. This is why it often gets slammed by the fitness community. Not all sugars are created equally! Eating a piece of fruit is NOT the same as eating a bowl if ice cream. ~~Mmmm… ice cream..~~.

This doesn’t mean it’s a free-for-all. It does have fructose, a type of sugar that cannot be directly utilized by the muscles. The liver must convert fructose into glycogen (carbs). When the liver glycogen levels are full fructose gets converted to fat and that helps to increase the size of the fat cells. Which is why fruit gets a bad rap.

You can’t know when the liver is full, but you can be smarter about your fruit.

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1. Eat fruit in the morning

Because you’re fasting while you sleep, the liver burns all that glycogen. When liver glycogen levels get low, your body begins breaking down muscle protein to convert amino acids into glucose for the brain. All that means is that first thing in the morning your body is straight up burning muscle and you NEED to replenish some of that fructose. At this point the fructose is used for good – restocking the liver glycogen levels and switching off the signal to burn muscle protein.

One of my favorites is this Blueberry-Basil Egg Bake. Lots of protein a fruit to fuel your morning!

2. Fuel your workout with fruit

Eaten before a workout, the fructose helps to prevent muscle fatigue that usually comes on strong as muscle glycogen levels begin to fall. Eaten after workout, fruit is used to replenish glycogen levels in your muscles and your liver.

3. Use fruit to your advantage

Fruits offer many health benefits beyond fuel. Here are a few of my favorites:

Grapefruit – High in enzymes that burn fats and has high water, a combination that makes it a perfect food for increasing metabolism. It also contains a dietary fiber called pectin, which is good for digestion.

Oranges – High in Vitamin C, oranges are a great pre- and post-workout snack because the vitamin C helps protect nitric oxide (NO) from being broken down by free radicals.

Apples – Polyphenols have been proven to increase strength and fat loss.

Cherries – Perfect for post-workout, as it reduces inflammation and enhances recovery (which is why I concocted this Cherry Ginger Protein Smoothie).

4. Know the GI score

The glycemic index (GI) ranks carbs based on their effect on blood sugar levels. Those with a lower GI score, the more steadily its burned throughout the day giving you lasting energy. Higher GI foods are more quickly transported to fat cells if you don’t burn them right away (these are the ones you may want to eat surrounding a workout).

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I’m happy to see cherries are low GI and good for recovery. They are my favorite!

Have you ever gotten “scared” of a certain food?

What is your favorite fruit?

125 Reasons Why Clean Eating Isn’t Boring

July 2, 2013 By Laura

No Shit.

I’m going to start calling this blog the “No Shit Zone”

Today’s Work It Out is a guest post from Amanda the Amazing. She is a great runner with an inspiring story about coming to healthy living. It has led her to a healthy, balanced lifestyle – the kind we all aspire to!

Her post is about keeping clean eating interesting. I think it play right into my two favorite topics: Strange But Good foods and the No Shit Diet. When many people first approach a lifestyle change they have this idea that they need to follow some sort of diet trend or that being healthy means boring foods. Not so!

A diet isn’t a lifestyle change. That’s why they don’t work. You have to experiment with food and find the path that is right for YOU. For me, that has boiled down to a lot of strange (but good) concoctions to keep food interesting, and to sticking to a basic idea: keep it balanced and include variety. Seems obvious, right? Did you just read that and think “No shit, Sherlock”?

Amanda has started a clean eating project that incorporate this mindset. It’s a brilliant way to clean up your eating without getting bored or feeling deprived… and she’s even offering support!

Read on for her fabulous perspective, and a great list of foods to get you started!

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125 Reasons Why Clean Eating Isn’t Boring

I love reading magazines…actually I might have a bit of an over subscription issue (Editor’s note: Same. We need 12 steps…).

They provide me with new workout ideas, meals and general motivation to stay focused on enjoying my active life. But sometimes it’s abundantly clear that even though they focus on health, they have bills to pay and maybe their info is a little skewed. Have you seen any of the covers that rave about “125 Power Foods” then you flip it open to find the list doesn’t contain a single vegetable and only one fruit called the “grapple” (Editor’s note: I hate to admit I sampled one… it’s tastes as creepy as it sounds) which I think we can probably agree is not local or non-modified.

Just because a label says fortified or enriched or whole grain or even natural, doesn’t mean it is actually natural and good for you. Can you remember ever seeing maldexitrin for sale? Do you realize how much salt they add to keep products “shelf stable”? That sodium bloats us and causes all kinds of other health problems that I will leave to doctors to tell you about. (Editor’s note: So true. Salt hangovers exist. More on sodium here.)

The Clean and Lean Project (along with super studs like Laura) have gotten me refocused on choosing foods that are going to serve not only my physical goals, but my performance, my health, my skin…my life! I think this kind of diligence for the most part is a really great thing, as long as it’s also tempered with not becoming overly worried about every morsel we eat, sometimes chocolate is exactly what the body needs (Editor’s note: AMEN!)!

That being said, one of the biggest questions I get after mentioning clean eating is “WHAT WILL I EAT?!” or clean eating is so BORING. To anyone who says clean eating is boring or bland, I first say have you seen any of Laura’s posts on strange, but good?

After that I think it’s time to bust out my list of 125 power foods…tell me you can’t find delicious, exciting and filling on this list!

HAHA!! 125 foods that are non-processed and I didn’t even need to include bland icky iceberg lettuce. (Editor’s note: Cheers to THAT!)

Amanda of RunToTheFinish.com is a Certified Personal Trainer and Fitness Nutrition Specialist with a true passion for running. If you are looking for more tools to help you make Clean Eating a lifestyle, checkout the Clean and Lean Project, which teaches participants how to create new habits and kick the sugar cravings.

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Don’t forget to click here to enter and win one of 6 canisters of Designer Whey Sustained Energy! Staying satisfied is a great way to keep the munchies at bay. ~~And it’s fun to rhyme.~~

What is your favorite clean food/dish? Feel free to link up recipes!

Does anyone legit love iceberg lettuce? Aside from when it’s covered in blue cheese and bacon. 😉

Work It Out: Intuitive Eating

May 21, 2013 By Laura

Sometimes I forget to be sensitive.

Or – more accurately – I don’t think.

I over-simplify. Or do I? Today’s Work It Out will continue last week’s discussion on diet with a guest post from my friend Calee. (Calee also designed my logo, which I loooove!)

Calee has been on a journey with Intuitive Eating. ~~My insensitive self~~ I emailed her to ask more about this concept. To me, it seems like overkill. I mean… isn’t all eating intuitive? Eat when you’re hungry. Don’t eat when you’re not. Prepare tasty, clean foods.

This conversation sparked my “No Shit Diet” post from last week. It’s simple. All you need to know is this:

So, without further adieu, my sensitive-self will let Calee explain where she’s coming from in regard to Intuitive Eating…. all joking aside, I have learned a lot and hope it will provoke some thoughts for you, too.

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Laura and I have been chatting about Intuitive Eating (IE). She thinks it’s stupid because it seems silly that people need to follow a program to know how to feel hungry and eat until satiated (Editor’s note: I don’t think I said stupid… I just think it’s over-complicating the glory of eating). So she ended up writing that (amazing) No Shit Diet post last week in response to our conversation.

Editor’s pic/note: Manhattans… they count as protein drinks, right?

Laura is a fortunate soul: she’s never had body image or food issues. (Editor’s note: That would be a bit generous… I DID go to high school, after all… and after bartending in college I was a chunky monkey.) I pretty much idolize Laura because she can turn on and off her competition training/eating and not get caught up in dieting.

I went out to eat with her on Saturday — after a few drinks, might I add (Editor’s note: Lies! I never drink. Hahaha!) — and not once did she fret about anything on the menu, aside from how it might taste. She’s not competing soon, and it was vacation. She ate what she wanted, which wasn’t junk, but wasn’t eating asparagus for every meal either (though surprisingly she yelled at me for taking all the asparagus off the plate we shared!). Laura eats intuitively, intuitively. We all would, except most of us have been caught in the diet trap.

**So what exactly is IE?**

I can tell you what IE isn’t: “I ordered that Fried Reese’s Peanut Butter Cheesecake Brownie Ice Cream Bar … and then ate two. And now I’m going to run 12 miles because I need to — er, I mean I love running.” (Editor’s note: is it wrong that I’m now craving Reese’s?)

*Eating this chemical shit-bomb of sugar = not eating intuitively

IE is learning to love and trust your body, get past the guilt learned from dieting, and feed yourself a healthy way when you’re hungry, but eat only until satiated, not stuffed. IE is NOT an excuse to eat crap.*

I came to IE after years of dieting, specifically, after one huge failed attempt to lose 5 lbs that made me gain 15 instead. I couldn’t eat any less or workout any more than I was already. And I could (and still can) name calories and macros in just about every food (and non-food). I lived in the gym. The scale kept going up. I saw IE on the shelf, and thought, “why the hell not?” I never thought it would be life changing, but it was.

I’d heard of IE, but it looked to me (and Laura) like “intuitive eaters” were just eating crap under the guise of “eating intuitively,” and that’s not what I wanted. (Editor’s note: To clarify – I never thought it was an excuse to eat crap. Again, it just seemed like slapping a name on common sense to make a millions on a book deal/movement.)

I wanted to be able to eat an avocado or a piece of meat and not have to have celery for dinner or run 10 miles to make up for the calories later. Oh, and alcohol, sweet, sweet alcohol, had I missed you … But I definitely didn’t want to be one of those “you only live once — pass the chocolate cake” goons who blatantly ignore the point of IE: eat food, get past the guilt, and love yourself. You are definitely NOT loving your body if you’re shoving it full of crap all the time. (Editor’s note: Can I get an Amen?!)

There is an IE book, and I think Laura should write a book on the “No Shit Diet” (or I will, and she can put her stamp of approval on it for some royalties). The IE book outlines a plan, which I haven’t really followed, but I’ve been practicing the…

Principles that make the most sense to me:

1. Learn (or re-learn) your hunger signals, trust them, and eat when you’re hungry.

2. Figure out what satiated vs. full feels like. Try to eat to satiation, not fullness. Don’t feel like you always have to clean your plate. My dog likes me eating intuitively for this reason.

Slightly embarrassed at how much I left on my plate at this meal. Sorry Chobani!

3. Let go of all (non-allergy-related) restrictions. Everything is on the table.

4. Trust yourself around food. You are in control. Food isn’t.

That means you, ice cream. I own you now. And I can have you for lunch if I really want (and I did in this photo because that’s how I roll now).

5. There are no more “bad” or “good” days based on food, your weight, or your workout.

6. Stop. Weighing. Yourself. (And counting calories/macros/etc.) Unless you are seriously over- or under-weight, then get to a healthy weight before you stop. Truly eating intuitively and exercising intuitively will lead you to your body’s natural weight, and towards health.

7. Health is your main goal. Pick whole, nutrient-dense (or clean — but I prefer “nutrient-dense” because everybody has a different opinion on what “clean” is), and non-processed foods.

8. Use your dieting knowledge for good instead of evil. Aim for variety in food groups and nutrients to get what your body needs. (Editor’s note: I think this is my FAVORITE idea. You’re smart – make it a positive!)

I jazzed up last night’s pizza with a pile of broccoli. Yeah, there’s pizza under there somewhere.

9. Eat slowly to enjoy your food and really decide if you like something. I don’t like chicken, come to find out. And I also don’t really like all my “banned” foods from my dieting years. Donuts are a sugar-coated crusty fried ring of gross.

(Editor’s note: I don’t like Twinkies, candies like Starburst, or… POP-TARTS! Except for the vanilla-filled ones)

Cereal, on the other hand (one of my previously banned foods) is still really flipping awesome.

10. Don’t judge: yourself, others, or what you’re eating/what activities you do based on what you’ve already eaten. Yes, nutrition should be in the back of your mind, but don’t eat something “good” because you’ve eaten something “bad.”

Don’t ever feel like you don’t “deserve” something because you didn’t work out.

Me enjoying my dessert at Blend last weekend on a – gasp – rest day. That’s right. I had dessert and didn’t work out.

11. Because I like to turn things up to 11. Don’t. Eat. (only). Crap. Have some crap from time to time (if you like crap), but if you eat only crap, you’ll feel like crap, perform like crap, and you’ll probably look like crap too. But if that’s your choice, that’s cool with me as long as you are HAPPY. (Editor’s note: Suddenly I have the urge to take a crap…)

I’ve been practicing these principles since January. I jokingly tweeted Laura that our butts met in the middle (mine got smaller and hers got bigger), and she asked for pictures. So I took some. And some more here.

January to late April

And after she (and others) said that I looked a lot smaller / more toned, curiosity got the best of me and I stepped on the scale. I’ve lost 7 pounds, but I put the scale back, because I know putting it away really let me succeed in finding a healthy relationship with my body and food, and it’s really freaking empowering to be in control of yourself and in control of your body again.

Spending time with all my fabulous Blends this weekend cemented my decision to continue my IE journey. If I have to hear one more person talk about eating a bigger snack or breakfast because we kicked ass at boot camp twice this weekend, I will slap a bitch. My body and I are starting to find a happy place, and seeing others where I used to be just reminds me how much I don’t ever want to be there again.

Where do I go from here? I keep working on it. And I love Laura’s No Shit Diet (anti-)rules — they’re a super-simplified version of what I’ve been working on with IE.

There’s another piece to the IE puzzle: intuitive exercising, which I’m just beginning to figure out for myself. But that’s a completely different post for a different day.

*I wholeheartedly agree with Laura: diet is personal. If you know you have to count calories, watch carbs, or whatever to maintain a HEALTHY weight (not to be supremely hot and skinny!), then IE might not be for you. But I urge everybody to give it a try, if even for a week or two. Or even just read the book because there are principles that everybody can use in the book.

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I would love to have more conversation about this – I know several of my friends have been on the IE train… please check out Calee’s conversation questions below. Your thoughts on this would be really interesting to us!

Do you follow a specific diet?

Have you ever tried eating intuitively or dieting? How have you fared?

Who else thinks Laura should write the “No Shit Diet” book? (Editor’s note: Noooooo! That over-complicates it!)

The “No Shit” Diet

May 14, 2013 By Laura

But what do I eat?!

The eternal question.

I get this question almost daily. Today’s Work It Out addresses the questions. I won’t share my exact diet. I’m still learning what is best for me, and – like I ALWAYS say – diet is personal. Paleo, vegan, vegetarian, “intuitive” eating, carb-heavy, protein whores (guilty)… the list goes on forever.

What I WILL share are some of my staples for keeping (mostly) healthy.

There is a lot of talk about special diets. I don’t buy into any of them for one reason – I think diet is about common sense. It’s a lifestyle. A diet, as we most often refer to it, is a finite thing usually aimed at weight loss or some quick fix. I was just on a pretty strict competition diet. That is NOT sustainable. Your life-diet should be balanced and include a variety of foods. No shit, right?

Therefore, I’m starting a new movement:

Diet 101

Eat 5-6 meals per day – every 2-3 hours, with the last meal being fairly close to bed time (your body needs to fuel to heal overnight)
Don’t be afraid of carbs or fruit – they provide valuable nutrients. Everything in moderation!
Eat your veggies! They fill you up without adding ton of calories or fat, and are vitamin and nutrient rich
Avoid large amounts of processed foods, sugar, and sodium. In excess, they are bad for your health and you just won’t feel good the next day
If you want a “cheat” or “treat,” HAVE IT. Just don’t have it all day, every day. I like wine and dessert, so I have both

Weekly Buys

Veggies – asparagus, broccoli, broccoli slaw, brussels, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celery, cucumbers, eggplant, green beans, dark leafy greens (like spinach and kale), mushrooms, onions, parsnips, red peppers
Fruits – apples, bananas (no more than 1x day), berries of any kind, cherries, grapefruit, pineapple, watermelon
Complex Carbs – barley, beans, Ezekiel bread, oatmeal, millet, multi-grain cereal (watch the sugar and sodium), sweet potato, quinoa, wild or brown rice, winter squash
Protein – bison, chicken, eggs (yolks in moderation), lean beef, salmon, tempeh, tofu, turkey, TVP, white fish (I love cod, sea bass, swordfish, tilapia, and trout)
Fats – avocados, chia seeds, coconut (oil and whole), flax, nuts/nut butters (almonds and walnuts are the best), olive oil, seeds (pumpkin, sesame, and sunflower)
Dairy – almond milk (unsweetened), cottage cheese (no salt added), plain non-fat greek yogurt

Cheese-less Cauliflower Crust Pizza

Flavor Adds

Extracts – almond, butter, butterscotch, coconut, coffee, maple, peppermint, vanilla
Spices – black pepper, cardamom, cayenne, cinnamon, cocoa powder, coriander, cumin, curry powder, garam masala, garlic, ginger, nutmeg, red pepper flakes
Acids – apple cider vinegar, lemon, lime, rice vinegar, white balsamic
Herbs – basil, cilantro, dill, mint, rosemary, sage, thyme
Sauces/Toppings – BBQ sauce,hot sauce (I love Cholula and Sriracha), hummus, mustard, salsa, tomato sauce (note: make your own when possible – read the labels and you’ll be shocked at the sodium and sugars added!)

Healthy BBQ Sauce on Tempeh

Stuff Most People Think is Foreign

Liquid Smoke (the Colgin brand I buy is all-natural and vegan)
Nutritional Yeast (high in B-12 and protein, has a cheesy/nutty flavor)
Peanut Flour (defatted peanuts; I like this better than PB2 because it has no added sodium or sugar. I order mine here; use discount code USO924 for $5-10 off)
Stevia (the NuNatruals vanilla and chocolate liquid drops are my favorite)

Blueberry Protein Tart (with peanut flour cream)

Shopping

Most of my shopping is done at to following places:

The local farmer’s market,
Whole Foods
Fresh Market
Publix (big box grocer)
iHerb.com (use discount code USO924 for $5-10 off)
Tip: ask your grocer if they can order items for you – Whole Foods is especially good about this!

PLEASE do not take the this as the be-all, end-all list of foods to eat. This is a sampling of my staples. I eat a massive variety of food – it helps me not get bored, which make it easier to keep it clean. I definitely indulge as well. Like tonight – I know I’m going to have an awesome dinner out. Rather than worry about salty, fatty, yummy food, I make more of an effort to keep it clean throughout the day today!

This is life, not heaven. You don’t have to be perfect. Live life, eat good food, and share it with those you love.

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I don’t mean to poo-poo people’s belief systems. In the name of balance, next week there will be a guest post from Calee with a different perspective. I don’t say vegan, for example, as a bad thing. If it’s tied to a belief or you know that’s the way your body functions, more power to you! What I am against are people jumping of whatever is popular at the moment in hopes of finding the magic fountain for youth and weight-loss. There is no magic, y’all.

What is the craziest diet you’ve ever tried? In college I ate nothing but grapefruit. It lasted 2 days.

Have you found a lifestyle that works for you?