MyPlate: the VivFit Way

I’m sure you’ve heard of the food guide pyramid or it's replacement, MyPlate, which came out a few years ago. Well, based on my own preferences, education,  and coaching guidelines...I like to do things a little differently.

Why? Two reasons.
 

Reason #1:  My Plate totally left out fats! And fats are essential for a healthy body. They are so important for optimum brain function and hormone health, plus they keep you full and are DELISH (avocado and peanut butter are a few of my favorite things…). I really don't think you can have a balanced diet while leaving out a whole macronutrient!! 

Reason #2: MyPlate recommends includes dairy as a suggestion for every meal. I don’t have anything against dairy, but I don't think it's necessary for every meal. 

So here’s the VivFit version of MyPlate…

What does this mean?? Here's a brief introduction to macronutrients (or carbs, fats, and proteins):

Carbohydrates/ Starches

benefits: carbohydrates provide your body with energy. Choosing whole grain carbs like quinoa, popcorn, or brown rice in addition to fruits can give your body fiber to aid in digestion, and provide you with long lasting energy (versus simpler sugars like in a candy bar that won't keep you full for long at all). 

how to enjoy them in your diet: fruit, potato, brown rice, or quinoa are excellent sources of carbohydrates. Be sure to eat them in combination with protein or fats (or all three) to keep you full! Add peanut butter to fruit, or eat your rice with salmon, etc. 

Fats

benefits: Without going into the science of the different types of fats (bond structures between saturated or unsaturated fats), the short story is fats are amazing for the body. They keep you full for longer, aid in digestion of important vitamins, and aid in hormonal balance (to name a few...fats are seriously amazing. click here for an in depth article if you're curious). 

how to enjoy them in your diet: avocado, olive oil, peanut butter,  nuts, avocado oil, or coconut oil are excellent ways to get healthy fats into your meal (and if you want to know my take on the recent coconut oil controversy, click here. long story short: in moderation it's perfectly fine!) 

Protein

benefits: The body uses protein to make and repair tissues. Amino acids are the building blocks of protein. They aid in creating muscle tissue, make enzymes and hormones, as well as provide the building blocks for hair and nails.  

how to enjoy them in your diet: beans, eggs, chicken, steak, fish, legumes, or greek yogurt are examples of healthy proteins

More vs Less Mentality

I like to tell clients to focus on adding more of the good stuff instead of worrying too much about cutting out all the bad stuff. For example, more water (and then hopefully you'll be drinking less soda and juice, which spike your blood sugar and mess with hunger cues), more fruits and veggies, more healthy fats like avocado and eggs, more protein to keep you feeling full.

This is a guideline to get you thinking about how you are filling your plate. Sometimes your food will be in a sandwich or mixed in a blender or even a casserole. It probably won’t look just like the example--I personally like my food mixed in one big bowl lol-- but the purpose is to get you thinking about how to improve your nutrition, and what is going on your plate (or bowl or in your blender, etc). 

If this seems like a foreign language, don't worry! I get it. If nutrition was easy to understand there wouldn't be a million diet books for sale. 

Pop your info in below and I'll send you a sample healthy menu + grocery list to take the guess work out of meal planning this week. 

 

A nutrition Coach's Guide to mindful eating

One of the first habits I discuss with my coaching clients is intuitive or mindful eating. What is mindful eating? It’s the process of taking time and paying attention to what you are eating and why you are eating it.

Have you ever sat down for lunch or a snack in front of the tv and the next thing you know your food is all gone? That is not eating mindfully- that is mindless eating. 

Eating mindfully involves sitting down, chewing your food, breathing, enjoying, and stopping before you are 100% full.

You might be wondering, do you really need to use your intuition to eat?

Isn't eating something that should come naturally? Yes, however due to being told various food "rules", yo-yo dieting, eating while distracted, using food as a tool for dealing with emotional issues, and having access to gigantic portion sizes, most people forget how to eat intuitively. 

Because of our go-go-go lifestyle, most people inhale food. Combine that with emotional eating and the insane body standards our culture has placed on us,  and it’s no wonder we don’t trust ourselves to just eat and are always looking for the next meal plan or diet.

Eating mindfully helps you to feel connected to your hunger cues and stop emotional eating. Here’s how to do it.

(p.s. Don’t try all 5 steps at once. Try one or two at each meal and think about how they work for you, then combine them!)

5 steps to eating mindfully:

1. Next time you open the pantry or fridge, or head to the vending machine or snack bar, or buy a muffin in line at Starbucks...ask yourself “am I hungry?” This might seem like an obvious question...duh I’m hungry...but often times we confuse thirst or boredom for hunger. Truly ask yourself and think about how you are feeling. Is your stomach growling? How long since your last meal? Are you just feeling tired? How long til your next meal? If you are truly hungry, grab a drink of water and your snack and enjoy! (also important to note: sometimes we simply eat because it’s “time” aka it’s noon, so time for lunch. Pay attention to how you feel more than the time!)

2. What am I feeling? If you aren’t necessarily hungry but are feeling sad, stressed, or anxious...consider this. Do you tend to eat when you are feeling this way? What could you do instead? Are you eating for comfort? Our emotions are SO tied to our food habits. Sometimes this comes from how we are raised (you did a good job, so you got an ice cream so now you reward yourself with food or maybe if you were sad  your mom would make your favorite dinner or dessert)... consider how you usually react to these emotions, and consider an action you could replace it with. Even saying to yourself, I’ll wait 10 minutes and see how I feel can be very effective.

3. Breathe. When it is time for your next meal stop and BREATHE. I am SO guilty of sitting down and inhaling my food. Sometimes it’s because my daughter needs me, sometimes it’s just out of habit. In between each bite put down your fork and take a breath and slow down.

4. The 80% rule. This step takes a little more focus. You have to be in tune with your body AND eating slowly to really understand your fullness cues. As you are eating, focus on how you are feeling versus how much food is left on your plate. Stope when you are 80% full NOT when the plate is empty. Why? It takes your brain a while to catch up with your gut. By stopping when you are 80% full, you give your mind and stomach a chance to connect and chances are good about 15 minutes later you will feel 100% satisfied. If you usually go till 100% full or even 110% full, just slow down and scale back little by little.

5. Enjoy! When it comes time to eat, take the time to enjoy! Feel the food as you chew. Taste it. Pay attention to the texture and the smell. Regardless of if you are eating a healthy snack or a decadent dessert- enjoy without guilt or judgement.

If you need help eating mindfully or could use some guidance or accountability, check out my coaching packages here. I'm also currently offering 20 minute free sessions to work through a specific problem! To schedule a free call, click here. 

Year one of motherhood: what I know now and what I wish I knew before I became a Mama

In honor of my precious girl’s first bday, I’m talking year one of motherhood. I’m sure every mom has the same feeling, but holy crap the time has gone so fast. I look back and while, in the moment some months seemed to drag on (I’m looking at you, 4 month sleep regression), it really is a huge whirlwind of ALL THE FEELINGS. So today I will share a few things I’ve learned ...because really, there are too many to count... and a few things I wish I knew before my precious Elle was born.

Lessons Learned

• Things don’t go as planned. I remember specifically when Elle was about a month old and I was taking a trip with she and my mom back to my family’s house in San Diego...I was trying to make a plan in my head of where we could stop on the way and how often we should stop so I could nurse, and I realized WTF am I thinking. She’s going to tell me when she needs to stop to eat or needs a diaper change. It doesn’t matter when I “think we should”. SO JUST STOP WORRYING ABOUT IT. Yes, I’m a huge planner, but the best thing I’ve done is realized that sometimes I just need to let it go. Elle is in charge now lol.
   
•  Sleep Deprivation is real and it’s ugly. OMG. We went through phases where Elle would sleep great, and then she would be up and down allll night. And omg I did not anticipate the gnarly effect sleep deprivation would have on my body. I feel like I aged a good 5 years, plus lack of sleep totally contributed to more headaches along with all the other things like feeling like I’m stuck in a fog and need to sleep for a week straight. One year later, and she’s sleeping much better now (knock on wood) but seriously. It was rough there for a while. Even though I read many books and articles about sleep training, I somehow failed to account for the fact that this little babe is a HUMAN who won't just sleep because I give her the right environment, etc. She has needs, and feelings, and sometimes just doesn't know what she wants. Just like me. 
   
• Babies make marriage complicated. My husband and I were married for 5 years before Elle was born. When I was pregnant I kept reading that pregnancy made marriage hard, and I honestly felt closer and more connected than ever to my husband. But after the baby was born. Wow. It was hard. My husband was on crutches the first month of Elle’s life (long story), he helped as much as he could, but because of that combined with me breastfeeding Elle 24/7 (not really, but it felt like it), he just didn’t have the opportunity to get used to everything as quickly. I think it’s normal that mom’s just figure it out out of necessity, but sometimes it’s just harder at first for dads. They don’t necessarily have that immediate bond that mamas and their babies do. It’s complicated for sure, and it took us months to find our groove as a family. My husband absolutely loves being a dad and helping me as much as possible, and I finally realized that more communication is ESSENTIAL when caring for a new member of the family in addition to juggling the same old responsibilities. 

What I wish I knew before she was born….

• Trust yourself. Yes it is all new and it’s a complete shock, but trust in your mama instincts. You will have them and they will be strong. There are a million parenting books, not because you need to be told what to do, but because everyone has their unique approach depending on their own personality and what meets the needs of their family.

• Do what it takes to feel like yourself. I truly felt so connected and in love with my pregnant body, but man the postpartum time is rough. I had to learn that it’s all part of the beautiful journey of motherhood, and while my clothes didn’t fit for a while (months), I  had to do things to make me feel like my old self. Even just showering and blowing out my hair while the baby napped worked wonders. Do what works for YOU and your family! If you love quiet time or girl's night out, or jogging alone.... carve out a little bit of time each week to recharge. 

• Ask for help. The best thing I did for myself as a new mom was admit that the anxiety I was feeling wasn’t normal, and ask for some medical help. Read all about that here. If you need help, ask. If you need a babysitter or a therapist or depression medication or just 30 minute of ALONE time, ask. Because you are a better mama when you take time for yourself.

I could go on and on. It’s only been 12 months. 52 short weeks. My journey has just begun and I feel so blessed and lucky to be a mama. Please share your best lessons in motherhood with me! Comment below, or connect with me on social media. While each journey is different, I feel like I’ve learned so much from other amazing women. We can all use a little support. 

Happy birthday my beautiful Elle.

10 ways to show love to your postpartum body

I posted this article over at www.emmadawn.com! Be sure to check it out by clicking here!

 

8 Tips for a Balanced Diet

Today I am sharing a few of the most important (in my opinion) habits you can have when trying to achieve a balanced diet.  Eating a balanced diet doesn't have to be insanely hard, but sometimes finding balance feels like looking for a mystical creature. Don't complicate things! What do I mean by balance? I mean feeling good, eating mostly high nutrient foods, and enjoying treats you love on occasion. No dieting and no cutting out whole food groups! 
 

Here are 8 simple tips.  In order to not get overwhelmed, adopt one at a time!

1. Listen to your body. This is number one for a reason! Eating mindfully is SO important when it comes to having a healthy relationship with food. Don’t eat just because it’s a certain time of day or because you’re bored or sad or whatever else. Intuitive eating helps you to not overeat. Before you hit the pantry ask yourself… am I hungry? Do I really want this? How will I feel after I eat this? You never want to associate feelings of guilt or sadness with food! If you do, then just let it go. Beating yourself up over having something tasty will get you nowhere! As you are eating, breathe and listen to when your body is feeling full. 

2. Stay hydrated. If you’ve ever heard that your brain can confuse thirst for hunger, it’s true! Make sure you are drinking lots of water so your body stays hydrated and you can rely on your hunger cues. 

3. No extremes. I never recommend that my clients cut out whole food groups. If you are allergic, that is one thing, but otherwise- in my opinion- nothing should be “off limits”. Yes there are things that you’ll eat very sparingly if you’re trying to improve your health, but I think saying you “can’t have” something makes it more tempting and messes with your head!

4. Plan ahead. Healthy food won’t magically appear in your fridge. Trust me, I’ve tried. It takes planning in advance to have a kitchen stocked with healthy and delicious food. Figure out what you like/want to make, then hit the grocery store with a LIST! (check out the link at the bottom of this page if you need some tips, or you just want my simple menu + grocery list).

5. Healthy snacks. You know the time will come that you’re in a pinch and need something quick! Make sure you have a healthy snack on hand that you can throw in your bag when you are on the go.

6. Have a back-up plan. If you do end up being out and about and need to stop for food at the last minute, have a few places in mind that you can go for a healthy-ish meal. I love a deli sandwich from Sprouts, a burrito bowl from Chipotle, or even Chick-Fil-A if a drive thru is necessary.

7. Protein + Fats= full for hours. I hate the feeling of eating and being hungry an hour later. To avoid this, I make sure I have a high fat/protein breakfast. I like protein pancakes with peanut butter and chia seeds or eggs with avocado, and for an on the go option I’ll do a protein shake with PB…. I definitely don’t follow a “low carb” diet per se, but I always make sure to get plenty of fats and protein.

8. Just say no to meal plans. I know it's tempting to say "JUST TELL ME WHAT TO EAT", but you are an adult and you deserve to make your own choices when it comes to your food! Just like above, being told you can't have something if it's not on your meal plan makes you want it more!! Yes, I offer a healthy menu on my site (get it here), but I make it very clear that you can substitute and mix and match for your lifestyle. I will never tell anyone what to eat and when to eat it. You are the expert on your own body and your own life. 

It is possible to enjoy balance and moderation with your eating. If you need help learning to listen to your body, check out my programs here! I'm also offering free 20 minute calls, and I'd love to chat with you! You can sign up by clicking here.

Click below to get my sample healthy eating menu + grocery list and meal prepping tips!