Rejecting Resolutions!

Happy 2015! 

I wanted to completely avoid the whole New Years thing. No talk of dieting, or even being healthier. Our obsession with health has made us one of the least healthy nations in the world. I also avoided reading posts on tips for a healthy new year, anything about weight loss, any of the "swap this for that" type articles. I didn't even make a list and usually I love listing goals. For some reason it all really saddened me this year. Why do we need organized closets or to lose the last five pounds? Will we really be happier?

If you haven't made any resolutions yet, here's my advice. Stop worrying about your weight or being "healthy". Fall in love with cooking. Learn where your food comes from. Be active because it feels good, not because it is exercise. Stop calling food "carbs" or "protein". 

Find something that makes you happy, every day. But don't feel the need to post your status or tweet it. Just be happy, in that moment.

#Molkosanberry

I recently took part in a bloggers challenge for the product Molkosan Berry from A.Vogel.

Molkosanberry is a probiotic made from fermented whey with aronia and pomegranate added. It is a good source of calcium and potassium and it is a probiotic. Ongoing research is telling us again and again how great probiotics are. Research is linking healthy gut flora to better weights, better digestion, and better immunity. There appears to be a link between the unhealthy bacteria and increased allergies, autoimmune diseases, gluten sensitivity and even psychological and behavioural conditions.

I am blessed with great digestion. I feel well 99.9% of the time, and when things aren't great in my stomach, it's because of something obvious I did, like eating too much of the wrong foods. So I decided to approach the challenge differently. Being a dietitian, I thought I'd help out a client of mine and see how the product helped her. She is the perfect candidate for probiotics. She has been on several rounds of antibiotics in the past year, has ongoing digestive problems and struggles to loose weight. She also struggles with depression. For two weeks now she has been taking the Molkosan Berry.

Initially my client found she had increased stomach upset and discomfort. However, that seems to be subsiding now. In addition to adding the probiotic, we are adding foods that will feed her healthy bacteria and help it flourish. We are gradually increasing the fibre in her diet and adding other fermented foods, such as miso and sauerkraut. I want her to continue taking the product and I'll continue to report back.

Falling in love with Sandwiches

Even Dietitian's get caught up in trends. We aren't immune to what the media reports, what those around us are doing, and what the trends in nutrition are. Some are great. I eat kale several times a week and love it. Others maybe not so great, like worrying about eating bread even in the absence of celiac's disease. It seems I had forgotten about bread, just with what I hear around me and what I recommend to client's who are bread-phobic because of the trend and media.

I think it is important to diversify your grains and carbohydrate sources. If bread and wheat are your only sources, then it is time to branch out. Eat a sweet potato, or some rice, oatmeal or quinoa. But if you have no issue in digesting wheat, then nothing beats the simplicity and convenience of a sandwich.

Lunches for me are often in my vehicle. I know this is not ideal, but I sit at a table for my other meals. My car is my office, and during the travel time between appointments, it is wonderful to have a well made sandwich. Well planned, paired with veggie sticks, it is easy to pack a clean, easy to eat while driving, meal.

We found a bread maker for $10 at a garage sale. So between my sourdough baking and the new machine, we don't ever have to buy bread with suspect ingredients anymore. I'm packing different grains into the bread as well. Add some protein and veggies and you're good to go.

It is so satisfying, I find I'm much more full than I am following a salad, and this leads to less picking throughout the afternoon. My favourite combo: tofu salad, hummus, roasted red pepper and tomato. Try different spreads- kalamata olives and garlic whirred together in a food processor adds loads of flavor. Don't forget how great pickles are.

Enjoy!!

Back in the swing

School finally started and the last few weeks have been a blur of getting back into routine. My little one is slowly adjusting to kindergarten, although has had a hard time leaving me the last couple of days. Just in time for a long Thanksgiving weekend! The kids are staying with my parents while Greg and I head to Seattle. Hopefully the time apart doesn't make it harder on my kindie next week!

Fall is the most wonderful time for food. We have been enjoying squash and kale, lots of apples, and I just roasted up my first pumpkin of the season.

On these chilly fall mornings, baked oatmeal has been our go to breakfast. Today will start with baked pumpkin pie oatmeal. I like this one, which I double and bake in a 9-inch round cake pan.

http://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2010/11/10/baked-pumpkin-oatmeal-for-one/

Updates

The last week has really been a whirlwind.

The half marathon was great. My "untrained" friend ended up being super fast after a summer of cycling. She ran a personal best beating her last half marathon time by 8 minutes! At 8 km I begged her to carry on without me! I was happy with my run. I had forgotten my watch, but even without the speed training was only 2 minutes slower than last year. If I'd had my watch, I may have been able to break two hours again, but the run was fun and I felt good the entire time, so I'm not disappointed at all.

With school still not starting here in BC, I decided to head to Edmonton to see my sister in her new home. The drive is 10 hours long, and unfortunately it had snowed in the mountains the day before I left, so the drive there was long and tiring. But we had a great time, and the drive back was beautiful!

Now there is talk that school is starting soon. It is really time for me to get organized! I like to have several lunch options in the freezer, and a few things for snack, especially when they first start and they are starved at 2:30.

Also time to start advertising. I'll be offering a fall special for new and returning clients, so watch for it.

Wine Country Half Marathon- what I'm eating the day before

Only two days to go until the Wine Country Half here in Kelowna! Training hasn't been totally on track, but I eat really well and I got all my long runs in, so I'll be okay. A friend of mine is now running it and is staying here the night before the event too, so my whole focus has changed to having a great run, in a great setting, with one of my best friends!

Recommendations for intake for an event lasting longer than 90 minutes (and it will definitely be that!) are to take in 7-14 grams of carbohydrate per kg of body weight in the 24 hours prior. On the lower end for less elite athletes, and higher for those who are really well trained. In order to eat all those carbs, it is recommended that protein and fat are eaten in slightly smaller amounts.

However, I find it is really hard to achieve the 7 grams per kg. So I just kind of concentrate on carbohydrates and eat what I can. Recommendations are also to eat less fibre, but when I do this I feel bloated and exhausted, and my body is so used to fibre it doesn't hurt me. So here's my plan:

Breakfast- (24 hours before)- baked oats with chia, pumpkin seeds, chocolate chips :) and peanut butter
Snack- peaches, because they are so good right now. Probably 2 of the small ones.
Lunch- Salad and an open faced hummus sandwich
Snack- a smoothie, if I'm hungry
Supper- Tofu alfredo pasta with zuchinni and 2 homemade chocolate chip and oatmeal cookies

Pre-event breakfast- super cereal- chia seeds, oats, pumpkin seeds, agave, chocolate chips, hemp seeds, soy milk. And maybe a peach. All at around 4:30 am.
And 20 minutes before- the Vega pre-workout energizer. Placebo effect or not, this stuff makes me feel very energized!

During any event longer than 75 minutes, it is recommended to take in 30-60 grams of carbohydrate. I'll have 2x30 gram gels during the half marathon- one at 45 minutes, one at 1.5 hours. And drink water with gels. There is also PowerAde or something on course if I feel my energy lagging, but I'm guessing I'll be fine.

I'll report back when the day is done!

Scientific Nutrition

During the race expo at the Vancouver Marathon back in May, I noticed a disturbing trend. The increase in nutritional products is no real surprise, but the claims being made seem to be changing.

Not knowing who I was, or whether I was running the marathon or not, I could tell the demo reps selling different products had been instructed to stroke my "athlete's" ego. Then, they would go on to explain how I needed their product. Because of how athletic I am...

Here was one conversation:

"It's greens powder. It is the equivalent of (however many) servings of vegetables. You should drink it first thing because as an athlete you are very acidic in the morning. So this will alkalize you."

Hmmm. The alkaline-acid diet hasn't got a lot of scientific research behind it. (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3195546/)That isn't to say that the so-called alkaline diet isn't good for you. It recommends a lot of leafy greens, which definitely seem to be good for you. And perhaps because your pH balancing systems don't need to work as hard to keep you in balance, there will be long term benefits. But at no point are you "acidic"- your blood pH is tightly regulated. So you don't die.

Another rep selling coconut water/juice blends described how coconut oils fat is used for energy, not as fat. Again, sort of... Coconut is about 60% medium chain triglycerides, which can be used as energy more quickly than other fats. If you aren't consuming too many calories. And that leaves another 40% as fat that isn't quickly used as energy.

But I find myself falling for it all too. We want to believe that we need a special diet, whether it is for exercise or to lose weight. It is tempting to believe that with the right combination of nutrients, in the exact right amounts, will help us accomplish whatever our dreams are. Unfortunately, nutrition is extremely complex. Nutrients interact with each other and within our bodies they react differently depending on many factors, including how active we've been, how much sleep we've had, how much we ate, etc. With so many factors, we may never know exactly what each person needs and when.

With all the claims out there, and websites and articles and "experts" telling you specific formulas for your unique situation, I think the industry will always be there. But if you want sound advice based on real science, there are places you can turn. Registered Dietitians are bound by a code of ethics and governed by a regulating body, so the information they give to you will be sound. The Centre for Science in the Public Interest, and their health letter ( Nutrition Action ) is another wonderful source of info. Another great article: (Nutrition Misinformation).

There are days I want to become someone who claims my product will save you. I'd make a lot more money and work a lot less. But then I sit down to whatever real food I've made for supper and I know I need to keep spreading the word. Real food is better, it tastes better and it satisfies more than just a need for calories and our need for the nutrients we think we understand. Real food energizes, it bonds families, it builds communities and it protects the environment. So I'll keep on choosing it and I hope you will too.