Consuming simple sugars elicits a burst of sugars released in your body. This burst causes many stresses to the body. Sugar will promote a sharp spike in insulin levels in the body resulting in accelerating the aging process, increased risk of heart disease, every form of cancer, memory loss, and mental deterioration and is function in accelerating aging skin and wrinkles.

 If you do choose to eat your refined sugars you should combine with good fats, fiber, and protein to slow absorption. Many times I hear people state they are addicted to sugar. Realize that eating sugar causes your body to crave more sugar. That may be the addiction you think you have. Read the contents on your labels. Don’t concentrate on the carbohydrate number; look at the grams of sugar listed on the label.

These meal planning suggestions are intended for an exercise routine that will last for approximately an hour of relatively intense cardiovascular and/ or weight training workouts. Proper nutrition is important and essential for weight loss and for energy during and after a workout.

Here are a few suggestions for meal planning before during and after a workout.

You should never exercise on an empty stomach. The pre workout meal is important in regards to the foods you choose and timing of your meals.  Without any or enough carbohydrates, blood sugar levels cannot be sustained. Sustaining blood sugar levels is essential in burning body fat most efficiently and sustaining energy levels during exercise.

If you are planning to eat 4 hours before a workout, your meal should consist of carbohydrates, protein and fats. This combination will help to stabilize blood sugar levels during your work out. Here is a simple list to choose from: fresh fruit, or vegetable juices, bread, bagels, baked potatoes, and sandwiches with a small amount of peanut butter, lean meat, or low fat cheese.
3 hours before a work out your meal/snack should comprise carbohydrates only. If you choose to add protein before you exercise up to 3 hour before you work out, these foods can result in delayed emptying of the stomach and you could potentially experience uncomfortable gastrointestinal side effects during your workout. Consider these snack ideas: A half of a bagel with jam, a banana and 20 mini-pretzels or an energy bar.
2 hours and up until your work out should consist of simple carbohydrates only. Approximately 200 calories is the suggested amount of calories you should consume. The majority of these calories should come from simple carbohydrates. Here are a few suggestions: fruit or vegetable juice and/or a sport drink.
During Exercise, listen to your body. If you start to feel light headed or tired during your workouts, you may want to add some simple sugars to your workouts. A suggestion is a sports drink of some kind. Feeling hungry is not an indication that you are burning fat. It is an indication that your blood sugar level is dropping and you should adjust your nutritional needs for your workouts.
Post Workout meals depend on the time and intensity of your workout. No snacks or meals need to be eaten if your workout is less than a half hour and mild intensity. If your routine is intense and last more than 45 minutes, a proper light snack or meal is suggested. A recovery meal of both carbohydrates and protein is important in a four to one ratio of carbohydrates to protein consumption.
Carbohydrates need to be consumed to replenish the glycogen stores that have been depleted during exercise. Eating within one hour after a work out will aid in the bodies ability to utilize the nutrition most efficiently. Waiting longer than an hour results in 50 percent less glycogen stored in the muscle.
Protein provides the amino acids that will aid in rebuilding muscle tissue that is damaged during intense, prolonged exercise. Too much protein can inhibit re-hydration. The amount of protein in a recovery snack/meal will depend on your age, weight, medical conditions, not  the intensity or duration of your workout.  You may want to consult USDA guidelines for more information on protein intake.

These are general guidelines for nutrition and exercise. Each person may find that slight variations may work better for each individual. This advice should be modified or approved by a consulting a qualified health professional for your particular needs or medical modifications.

Carolyn Phillips- Founder/CEO

Menu of Life- Carolynsmenuoflife.com

Fit Behavior- Fitbehavior.com

Consuming smaller portions of foods at each meal is one of the easiest ways to cut back on calories and loose weight. Not knowing how much food you eat could result in eating hundreds of extra calories every day. Knowing what is a proper portion size could be challenging with the challenges of super-sizing, over sized portions, all-you-can-eat-buffets, 32 oz sodas, jumbo candy bars, and other snack foods all contributing to excess calories your body cannot do anything with except store as fat.
It can be difficult to know what the proper amounts of food to eat looks like. Here are suggested servings sizes and some tips to get you started in reducing your serving sizes.
 3 oz. meat: size of a deck of cards is the recommended portion for a meal
 Medium potato: size of a computer mouse
 2 Tbs.: size of a ping pong ball
 Average bagel: size of a hockey puck(even bagels are super sized now)
 A 1/2 cup serving of potatoes, rice or pasta looks like a tennis ball.
 A kitchen scale may help to identify how much something should look like.
Try the following ideas to eat smaller portions when dining out.
 A small soda is about 150 fewer calories than the large one.
 Choose a regular hamburger at a fast food restaurant instead of the larger burger, and save about 150 calories.
 Small fries instead of the super-sized will save you save about 300 calories.
 Start thinking about how you can cut down serving sizes to cut out calories.
At home
 Be careful with your plate size. If you have a smaller size plate you will generally eat less.
 When snacking, place a few chips or crackers in a bowl to help prevent overeating. Don’t eat from the bag.
 Buy single portions of snack foods so you’re don’t eat the whole bag or box.
 Be careful with butter, sour cream, mayonnaise, and cream cheese. Use half the amount you usually do and save lots of calories.

Back in 1950, one out of ten people were considered overweight. Fast forward to 2009 and eight out of ten people over the age of 25 are overweight. According to a study by researchers at the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, by the year 2030 nine out of ten people will be overweight. Clearly diets alone are not working and in some cases promote the yo-yo effect of weight gain over the years.

 
Americans spent $58 billion spent on weight-loss products and services in 2006. Weight Watchers collected $1.2 billion yearly in revenues, and second is Nutri-System at $568 million yearly. Yet America is in the top ten most obese countries.

 
Americans live in an environment that promotes obesity. Food is abundant and portion sizes have increased, while opportunities for physical activity have diminished and labor saving technology are all are part of the problem for expanding waist lines. There have been many nutritional changes that have impacted wait gain and obesity since 1950. Below are a few that might start you wondering where your extra calories are coming from.

Nutritional changes
• Serving sizes have increased over the years. In the 1950’s and 60’s McDonald’s french fries only came in one size. By 2000 the large serving of french fries had become a medium and a new seven ounce size topped the charts at 610 calories.
• Soft drinks sizes have also grown. In 1955 a 6.5-ounce Coca-Cola was the only size available. Today 20 ounces is standard.
• Children drink more soft drinks than milk, which is the exact opposite situation of 30 years ago.
• In 1987, 18 percent of our calories came from foods eaten in restaurants. Today, eating out contributes almost 36 percent of our calories. Studies show people underestimate the caloric and fat content of the food that is ordered in restaurants by more than have. When people are given nutritional information, this affects the food choices that they make.

Next week, I will list lifestyle changes that Americas have adapted that are making us fatter instead of fitter.