Proper nutrition is still the missing piece for most people and why they are not seeing great results after working out consistently every week. Whether you’re looking to just firm up, lose 50 pounds of fat, or build more lean tissue having proper supportive nutrition is a MUST. Over the next six weeks I will be focusing on the top 6 nutritional mistakes people make outside the workout.
1) Mistake: Focusing only on calories and not the ingredients
Over the last 12 years I have talked to and worked with thousands of people on their nutrition and eating habits. Even after so many years of nutrition coaching I still have people coming in asking the same questions and making the same mistakes nutritionally. There seems to be a new diet book or program out every month. Yet almost all diets focus on calories first and ingredients second or not all.
This is a problem and I will explain why:
A calorie is a unit of heat or energy. Every time you move you conduct heat and energy therefore your body actually needs calories to function and yes to burn more calories. Most people when I say the word “calorie” associate this with something negative. Many are wired to believe just by watching how many calories they eat alone is a successful weight loss plan. This is flawed because one would assume and are taught a calorie is a calorie. This is not true. Maybe, a calorie is a calorie outside the body but as soon as it’s put in your mouth and swallowed/digested it changes.
For example a 270 calorie Snickers candy bar compared to a 270 calorie 7 ounce grilled skinless chicken breast are equal in calories but do you think they are digested the same? Do you think they affect your metabolism and blood sugar levels the same? NO!
A candy bar will have a big ingredient list (many unnatural) and it will most likely contain a lot of fat (some trans fat –hydrogenated oils -the number one cause for heart disease) and lots of sugar, this sugar will spike your blood sugar levels and then it will crash it leaving you feeling like you want to take a nap about 15-30 minutes after eating it. After your blood sugar crashes you will eventually crave more sugar or fat to bring blood sugar back to normal…unfortunately blood sugar will never stabilize from this food. The candy bar contains fat and sugar and comes with very little natural ingredients so this will have little or no effect on your metabolism. (0-.5% increase on metabolism during digestion)
Snickers ingredients are: milk chocolate (sugar, cocoa butter, chocolate, skimmed milk, lactose, milkfat, soy lecithin, artificial flavor), peanuts, corn syrup, sugar, skimmed milk, butter, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, lactose (a milk product), salt, egg whites and artificial flavor.
So let’s now take a look at that 270 calorie 7 ounce grilled chicken breast. The chicken breast will contain mostly lean protein; it has only one ingredient CHICKEN. It has little fat and contains almost all protein (the most thermic macro nutrient)so this would literally have a very positive leveling effect on your blood sugar give you stable energy and increase your metabolism by up to 20-40% during digestion. The chicken breast will also fill up you longer than any candy bar would.
Still think a calorie is just a calorie? If your goal is long term fat loss the ingredients are much more important than the just calories. Most fail to realize how many calories they actually need to burn fat it’s probably a lot more than your 800-1200 calorie diet plan, and if this all you are all eating good luck losing fat and keeping it off for the rest of your life.
If you’re buying 100 snack packs of cookies thinking this is a good way to lose fat (not just weight) and keep it off you are severely misinformed. One hundred calorie pack of cookies or a 200 calories serving of natural hummus and carrots which is better for weight loss? The hummus of course! Look at the ingredients first not just the calories!
Avoid anything with a long list of unnatural ingredients no matter what the calories are and what it says about being healthy on the front of the package. You should be looking for and eating real whole natural foods and ingredients.
Look for Mistake #2 next week!
Your Fitness and Nutrition Coach,
~David Modderman
Filed under Nutrition by on Jul 31st, 2011. Comment. 
10 Reasons You’re Not Losing Weight-Part-1
10 Reasons You’re Not Losing Weight-Part-2
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10 Reasons Why You’re Not Losing Weight-Part 3
Reason 5) Eating Too Much
Eating excessive calories is probably the number one reason people are not losing weight. With the rise of fast foods and unhealthy foods everywhere we turn its no wonder that obesity has effected our population so much. It is said that Americans today eat 30% more than they did 20 year ago. Food is sold in bigger containers, and portions in restaurants have increased as well. When you eat more than your body burns these calories will most likely be stored as fat. The most effective way to treat overeating is to focus on eating less food but not starving your self. Focus on eating smaller portions, but also eating fewer calories. An easy way to do this is to eat smaller more frequent meals, and control the size of the portions you are getting. Not to mention getting less fat in your meals (which is higher in calories than protein and carbohydrates), and concentrate on getting leaner proteins, and more fruits and veggies. These natural foods will fill you up and be used efficiently for energy.
6) Not Eating Breakfast
If you want to really lose weight and keep it off you must eat breakfast. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day for many reasons. Studies show that people who skip breakfast are 4.5 times more likely to be overweight.
The average 8 hour of sleep burns 450 calories. You must try to eat within 60-90 minutes after waking. Adding breakfast is what starts your metabolism up and prepares it to burn the rest of the day. If you skip breakfast your metabolism slows down and your blood sugar drops. You will increase hunger, have less energy and most likely store fat. You will crave high sugar, high fat foods, and tend to crave calories late at night. A recent study from the Weight Control Registry out of those who lost at least 30 pounds and maintained it for at least one year ate breakfast every single morning.
Look For Part 4 Tomorrow!
Your Fitness and Nutrition Coach,
~David Modderman
david@davidmodderman.com
Filed under Nutrition, weight loss by on Jun 10th, 2010. 2 Comments.
Have you been doing the same workout for more than a few months?
Are you starting to get bored?
Not seeing results?
Are you following the right program for what you’re trying to achieve?
I see a lot of people and even trainers doing or giving workouts that are not effective for them or their clients goals.
My clients will never do the same workout for more than 2 weeks unless we are following a specific fat loss program then we might go 4 weeks.
But changing up your routine and having the right focus for your program is very important.
Are you looking for real serious results and a program that is changing every 2-4 weeks to shock your body into building muscle, skyrocketing your metabolism, and burning pounds and pounds of fat? Then you need to try my 17 Week Real Results Program! I guarantee you will reach all your goals in 17 Weeks!
~David Modderman
Filed under Training by on Sep 12th, 2008. Comment.
Is any other food or drink reported to have as many health benefits as green tea? The Chinese have known about the health benefits of green tea since ancient times, using it to treat everything from headaches to depression.
Here are just a few health conditions in which drinking green tea is known to be helpful:
- cancer
- rheumatoid arthritis
- high cholesterol levels
- cardiovascular disease
- infection
- preventing tooth decay
-
impaired immune function
What makes green tea so special?
The secret of green tea lies in the fact it is rich in catechin polyphenols, particularly epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). EGCG is a powerful anti-oxidant: besides inhibiting the growth of cancer cells, it kills cancer cells without harming healthy tissue. 
Benefits of Green Tea for fitness and fat Loss:
- Appetite Control.
- Increase in metabolism during and after exercise.
How much green tea should you drink?
I recommend 4-5 cups of freshly brewed green tea a day. Bottled green tea is not recommended. Bottled green tea contains less antioxidants and usually more sugar and additives (if sugar free).
Drinking non calorie beverages like green tea and water will surely aid you in reaching your fat loss goals!
~David Modderman
Filed under Lifestyle, Nutrition, weight loss by on Aug 27th, 2008. Comment.
I recommend supportive eating to all my clients. Which means eating in a way that supports:
1) Metabolism
2) Blood Sugar
3) Muscle Mass
4) Energy Levels
Eating supportively means you are eating every 2-3 hours and eating a lean protein, a non processed carb, and a fruit and vegetable in each and every meal. This can be a tall order for some. So here is a few small steps to make this a little easier. Remember the goal is not perfection it’s progession!
1) Eat at least 3 meals a day. This seems like common sense but the typical American doesn’t even do this anymore. Most will skip breakfast, have a big to moderate lunch, have a big dinner and eat junk the rest of the night. Most try to play catch up with their hunger late at night.
2) Eat something at least every 4 hours. That means if you had breakfast at 8:00AM then you should be eating again by 12:00PM and then again by 4:00PM and so on.
3) Try to get at least one serving of fresh veggies and fruit each day( a fast food salad doesn’t count). I recommend 5-7 servings of vegetables and fruit each day, but this is very hard to do. So start small and work your way up to more.
4) Take a Multivitamin. I hear people say all the time “I don’t take vitamins because I eat healthy.” Everyone can benefit from a multivitamin. Think of it as an insurance policy. I recommend a whole food vitamin like VGF +25.
5) Eat Lean Protein with each meal-this is the one I am not budging on. Protein is crucial for maintaining lean muscle mass, and burning fat not to mention it keeps you full and satisfied and also stabilizes blood sugar. So you must eat it with every meal.
So try these steps one at a time each day and before you know it, you will be improving your nutrition each day.
~David Modderman
Filed under Lifestyle, Nutrition, fitness, weight loss by on Aug 20th, 2008. Comment.
