Saturday, 27 May 2017 / Published in Nutrition

5 Signs Your Scale Is Sabotaging Your Weight-Loss Quest

Is that a conversation you need to have with your scale? That little machine that often feels like it’s judging you can be your best friend in gauging your progress when you’re trying to lose weight. But guess what: Not only is it not the end-all, be-all for weight loss, it might be working against you. Is it time to break up with your scale? Here are five signs you might need to think about alternate ways to track your weight loss.

1. YOU’RE REACTING TOO EMOTIONALLY TO WHAT YOU SEE

If the number on the scale is making you change your behavior in the immediate term, it’s a sign something isn’t working. In my dietitian practice, I’ve seen clients who react to their weigh-ins by over-restricting what they eat if they’ve gained weight, or overindulging if they’ve lost weight. I call this “yo-yo weight gain,” and it can lead to an overly drastic approach to dieting. Having your eating habits dictated by your scale makes it nearly impossible to be mindful of your food choices. Self-sabotage is a slippery slope, and you need to take a hard look at the habits that make you go to the extremes — otherwise it’s it hard to keep the weight off for good.

2. YOU’RE EXPERIENCING DISORDERED EATING BEHAVIORS

Bingeing, purging, restriction, orthorexia or over-exercise: Irregular eating takes many forms, but if you fall into any of these categories, it’s time to step away from the scale and talk to a professional who can help you find a healthier way to live. If you’re concerned about yourself or a loved one, the National Eating Disorders Association has a good screening tool that can help advise whether you need to talk to a pro. We can all live a healthy life in this weight-conscious world, but building a foundation that involves a plan of action for recovery from disordered eating behaviors is the first order of business.

3. YOU HAVE NEGATIVE THOUGHTS ABOUT YOURSELF

Shame gets real deep, real fast. Self-loathing and blaming yourself for your weight affects more than just your progress — it also erodes your feeling of self-worth and your dignity. Shame isn’t a motivator. If stepping onto the scale makes you have negative thoughts about yourself, it’s a sign you need to ditch it. The number on it doesn’t say anything about your worth or value — it’s just a number, literally.

4. YOU’RE WEIGHING YOURSELF TOO MUCH

If you’ve become obsessive about weighing in first thing in the morning or multiple times per day, that’s a sign the scale’s not doing you any good. Instead of tracking weight, take measurements. Often with healthy eating and exercise, your waistline will shrink even if your weight doesn’t move much. In fact, waist circumference may be a better predictor of health than weight.

5. YOU’RE BUILDING MUSCLE, AND THAT’S MAKING YOU GAIN WEIGHT

If you’re training hard but measuring results by the number you see on the scale — which is in turn making you unhappy — maybe it’s time to reevaluate your metric for success. Strength training and HIIT workouts can boost muscle mass, which means your body composition may be improving. But because the number on the scale is a sum of your whole body — including fat and fat-free mass such as muscle, bones, organs, ligaments, tendons and water — your total body weight doesn’t necessarily provide the full picture. Endurance training can create weight fluctuations as well, thanks to fluid retention and inflammation. If this sounds like you, you might want to focus on your training and pay more attention to how you feel, hitting performance goals, how your clothes fit and eating foods that fuel you.

Written by My Fitness Pal

Sunday, 12 February 2017 / Published in Nutrition

What to Eat for a Run (and When)

It’s important to note that everyone is different. Some people have a more sensitive stomach when it comes to running, so what works for one person may not work for another. “Runners should play around with what works best for them,” Lailina Wisoff, RDN. It’s also important to try out any new snacks before a regular run, not before a race. Also, staying hydrated goes a long way, so regardless of what and when you eat, make sure you’re getting enough water throughout the day.

CARBS, YES, CARBS

Especially for runners, carbs are not the enemy. When narrowing down your snack choices, start with carbohydrate-rich foods, says Wisoff. She recommends “fruit, juice, crackers or a bar with a protein-and fat-rich food like peanut butter, string cheese, yogurt or a smoothie.”

It’s important to choose easily digestible carbs and to avoid heavy foods that are high in fiber, or anything too spicy or fatty. “Avoid too much fiber, fat, or calories as they take longer to digest,” Wisoff suggests.

It’s also important to look at a food’s glycemic index value. The higher the GI value, the more that food is going to spike your blood sugar and give you a quick energy boost. If it’s close to your run, you’ll want something higher on the GI. If you have more time, you may want something that’s lower on the GI because your body has more time to absorb it. Some coaches also recommend eating a food with a high GI score as soon as you finish a hard workout because the insulin boost that comes with it can help recovery.

TIMING MATTERS

Choosing the right snack also depends on how far you plan to run and how long before the run you eat. If you are heading out the door immediately, eat 100–150 calories of something that scores  middle-to-high on the glycemic index. Good options include a banana, apple (or unsweetened applesauce), a few orange slices or a piece of toast.

If you have an hour or more for your snack to digest, sports dietitian Jan Dowell, MS, RD, recommends consuming up to 300 calories. You can also add in a little bit of protein to help fuel recovery.

Try foods like oatmeal and fruit, a cup of cereal with milk, two toaster waffles with maple syrup, a rice cake with peanut butter, a couple slices of turkey on a tortilla, or carrots and hummus.

Don’t like those options? Wisoff reiterates the importance of finding what’s best for your body. “It also depends on digestion and how quickly a person can assimilate what they are eating without ending up with stomach cramps or feeling weighed down,” she says.

Written by My Fitness Pal

Tuesday, 01 November 2016 / Published in Nutrition

5 Reasons Why Protein Is Good for Weight Loss

With the continued excitement for eating low-carb and Paleo–two diets known for having higher protein intake– the popularity of protein is reigning high. As you undergo your weight loss journey, you might question why protein is so prized. How does it really help you lose weight? Here are 5 reasons why protein can be your weight loss pal:

1. PROTEIN SATISFIES & SAVES CALORIES  In the beginning of your weight loss journey, protein is important because it helps you feel fuller longer. Having protein around slows down digestion making us more satisfied and less likely to go back for seconds. If this happens over the course of multiple days your calorie savings can help with weight loss.

2. IT CURBS CARB HIGHS AND LOWS  I don’t know about you, but when I come off a sugar high onto a sugar low I can make food decisions I’ll later regret (here’s looking at you, last breakroom donut). Pairing protein with carbohydrate-rich foods slows down the absorption of sugar from your stomach into your bloodstream, which may help keep your blood sugar from skyrocketing and ward off future cravings.

3. PROTEIN REQUIRES MORE OF YOUR ENERGY  The “thermic effect of food” (TEF) is the energy we use to digest food into small, absorbable components. Protein has a higher TEF compared to carbs and fat meaning you’re actually burning more calories to process protein than to process the other two.

4. IT FUELS FAT BURNING  It may be surprising, but it is a scientific fact that your body cannot effectively burn and use fat as energy if it doesn’t have help from either carbohydrate or protein. As you are losing weight, your body loses both muscle and fat (I know, bummer!). During this process it is especially important that you continue to eat enough protein in your diet. Having adequate protein coming in from your food fuels fat burning while preserving calorie-burning lean muscle.

5. PROTEIN PROMOTES MUSCLE REPAIR & GROWTH  Your protein needs increase especially after bouts of intense exercise so increasing your protein intake on days that you exercise is beneficial. Additionally, if you strength train consider having a high protein snack right after a training session when the muscle is sensitive to nutrients that it can use to repair and grow.

One important thing to realize is eating more protein alone won’t necessarily help you shed excess weight in a healthy way. When consumed in excessive amounts it can still lead to weight gain much like eating excess carbs or fat would, and could put unnecessary strain on the kidneys over a long period of time.

But, you can still make protein a pal on your weight loss journey by getting enough protein in your daily diet. MyFitnessPal sets your protein to be 20% of your total calories, which should be enough for the average person.

Want more information about protein and tips on how to choose the healthiest forms? Check out this great infographic, and some of our high-protein recipes.

Written by My Fitness Pal

Wednesday, 14 September 2016 / Published in Nutrition

Ask the Dietitian: Should You Log Supplements?

What are dietary supplements?

The Food and Drug Administration defines a dietary supplement as something taken to add nutritional value on top of the foods you eat on a regular basis. In addition to carbohydrates, protein and fat, our amazing body requires dozens of vitamins and minerals to function properly. Depending on your lifestyle, you may or may not be able to obtain all these nutrients from food. (However, like most experts, I recommend you improve your eating habits before considering supplements.)

It’s not always a clear choice. Some of us voluntarily seek out supplements to enhance our current health, prevent future issues or improve physical appearance. Others take supplements out of medical necessity such as correcting a nutrient deficiency. If you’re unsure of how to make that choice, please consult your health-care professional, so he or she can help navigate your individual case.

The Calorie Counts in Supplements

As a MyFitnessPal user, you understand that calories and macronutrients (Think: carbohydrates, fat and protein) are critical for success. Depending on which dietary supplements you take, the calorie count will vary. Here is a brief summary:

  1. Micronutrient supplements: Once isolated from food, vitamins and minerals don’t contribute calories. However, when they are made into pills, soft chews or gummies, additives such as sugar or oils may be included. Calories from micronutrient supplements are fairly small — most range from 5–30 calories if you take the recommended amount.
  2. Fat-based supplements: This category includes omega-3 or -6 fatty-acid capsules, conjugated linoleic acid, flaxseed and fish and krill oil, to name a few. Fat-based supplements range from 15–45 calories if you take the recommended amount.
  3. Carbohydrate-based supplements: Fiber supplements are common in this category and range from 15–80 calories if you take the recommended amount.
  4. Protein-based supplements: Of all the categories, only protein-based supplements confer a sizable amount of calories. Protein bars and powders range have the most!

*Before mixing with milk.

The Verdict

With the exception of protein powders and bars, dietary supplements don’t provide all that many calories. If you’re taking protein-based supplements, especially multiple times per day, then it’s a good idea to keep track. For the other types of supplements, it’s totally up to you! A perk of tracking is that it helps you remember that you already took a supplement that day.

MyFitnessPal makes it simple to keep track of your dietary supplements. Here’s my suggestion:Create an extra meal, and title it “Supplements.” You can log all your supplements here. The best part is that the app will remember the supplements you regularly log, making it super easy to add your supplements consistently to your food diary. To set this up, follow two steps:

1. Log in to MyFitnessPal. To get started, you’ll need to access your MyFitnessPal account in a web browser. If you predominantly use the web version of MyFitnessPal, you may have already figured out how to rename your meals. For those of you on mobile only, here’s a reason to get cozy with your computer for a few minutes.
2. Add and rename meals. Once you’ve logged in, click “My Home,” then “Settings,” then “Diary Settings.” There you can add another meal and title it “Supplements.” The next time you log in on the web or one of our mobile apps, your diary will reflect the changes.

Written By My Fitness Pal

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