Glycemic Index and Load

When eating a healthy diet it is important to know what exactly your body is doing with the food you eat. So back to biology 101...


Your body gets energy to function by the food that we eat. Most of the food we eat is broken down into glucose at digestion, however some of it must first be converted in the liver before glucose is released into the bloodstream. Once in the blood stream the glucose goes into cells where its further broken down by glycolysis, the Krebs cycle, and the electron transport chain and turned into ATP, the body's usable energy. However there is a "maximum capacity" for ATP. The body only makes as much as it needs for whatever task you are doing at the moment. The rest is stored in muscles as glycogen or as fat. Because the body can store much more fat than glycogen, fat is about 80% of stored energy.

Obviously we would like to try to avoid fat storage, that is where knowing what your body needs is so important. First you need to know how many calories your body needs (check out my previous post about caloric needs here). Second you need to maintain a sustained source of energy that keeps blood sugar levels stable. This is where the glycemic index and glycemic load come in.

The glcemic index is a measure of how fast a particular food will raise blood sugars. As carbohydrates are the main factor contributing to blood glucose levels another measurement is important to look at. The glycemic load measures the carbohydrate content of a food along with the glycemic index to predict the blood sugar raising potential.  Simple carbs like candy have a high glycemic index and glycemic load because it is broken down into glucose very quickly and causes spikes in blood sugar levels. Complex carbs like vegetables take much longer to digest, therefore have a sustained release of glucose into the blood stream and no spike. The slow release allows your body time to use existing ATP and then convert the available glucose into more ATP, thus avoiding fat storage. So in conclusion, it is wise to avoid foods with a high glycemic index or load and to consume foods with lower levels. Check out this chart with a list of foods and their levels and the graph below to learn which foods are which.

Faux Fried Chicken and Okra

Many of you might know my husband. For those of you who do not, I've been married to a wonderful man named Joel for about 2 1/2 years. He is from a small town in west Tennessee, therefore he was raised loving all the country fixin's.  He is in the middle of changing positions at work and had a long hard day.  So I thought I would whip up something extra special for him...

Faux Fried Chicken and Okra

Ingredients

1 package chicken breast cutlets or tenderloins

1 bowl (approx 1 cup) egg whites for dipping

1 bowl (approx 1 cup) almond flour for dipping

salt, pepper, and seasoning to taste (I used "Chef Paul Poultry Magic") 

2 cups fresh sliced okra

1 T coconut oil

Okra Directions

Slice okra into 1/4 inch pieces discarding tops and tips. Heat 1 T coconut oil in frying pan on med heat. Mix almond flour with salt and pepper to taste. Dip handful okra into egg whites, then into flour mixture, roll them around until complete covered, then place in frying pan. Repeat until all okra is breaded and frying. Turn okra in frying pan until all sides are golden brown. 

Chicken Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Use same dipping bowls as okra. Add chicken seasoning to flour mixture.  Dip raw chicken in egg whites, then into flour mixture until completely covered. Place chicken pieces in pan and bake for 20 minutes or until completely cooked through. Remove chicken from pan and place on baking sheet, set oven to broil or 500 degrees, return chicken to oven for crisping about 5 minutes.

That's it, just a few modifications to the otherwise sweet country cooked comfort food. Enjoy!

Fish Tacos

Some people think that cooking a healthy meal has to be difficult, time consuming, and expensive. Well here is a recipe that proves all of that wrong. It's extremely easy, can be made in 15-20 mins, and is cheap but delicious and nutritious. Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients
1 package (approximately 1lb) grouper
1/4 cup lime juice
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
1 can black beans
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can mexican corn
plain nonfat greek yogurt
salsa of choice
ezekiel tortillas

Directions
Placed thawed grouper in pan with lime juice and cilantro and cook on medium heat until fish is white and easy to flake, about 10min. Rinse and drain black beans, drain tomatoes and corn, add all to the pan with the fish and turn heat to med/low. As you mix this concoction the fish will begin to fall apart, that is what you want. Once entire dish is warmed through you are ready to serve, easy peasy! Place tortillas in the microwave with a moist paper towel. Load tortilla and top with a dallop of greek yogurt (tastes just like sour cream) and salsa of your choice!

It's a lifestyle!

So I don't know about you, but I have a tendency for extremes. What I mean is when I am committed, I'm super committed. If I've started a new Beachbody program I follow it to the T, not a grain of sugar touches my lips, not a day goes by without 110% given to my workout.
However on the contrary, if I've finished a program and waiting to start the next one the excuses come flying. "This brownie is a treat for finishing" (not a problem until I eat the entire pan of brownies), "my body needs the rest today" (a day yes, a week no).  Then comes the week long binge on pizza, chicken wings, ice-cream, laying on the couch, etc. Of course I feel absolutely horrible this week, stomach problems, muscle fatigue and aches, head aches, emotional guilt and temporary depression. All around terrible, and the sad thing is I know I will feel this way, and I do it anyway. Then comes the incredible difficulty of getting out of that slump. My body has become addicted to sugar again, the muscle not used to being used as thoroughly, and getting the mind refocused.

So today I encourage you and myself, to remember this is not a diet, not about finishing one challenge program, not about getting ready for a beach vacation. It is a lifestyle. It's about what is good for your body, what will continue to keep you healthy as you age, about being a good steward of the body the Lord has given to you. You can do it, never give up!

Warm up and Cool down; it's not a waste of time.

We are all pressed for time and sometimes are trying to squeeze workouts into a small window. The one thing you don't want to do, however is take short-cuts on your warm-up or cool down. Usually we are exercising because we want to improve our bodies, it makes us feel better, healthier. Well nothing can discouraged you more or set you back further than getting an injury.
Your body is an amazing thing, but there are limits to it. When muscles are cold they are stiff, non-pliable, think cold taffy. Cold taffy is hard and just breaks apart. Muscles similarly can pull, tear, or strain. But given time to properly warm up they, like taffy, will more easily bend and stretch to the work you are doing.


So what's proper? Start out with slow movements, i.e. jogging in place,  and increase in intensity for about 5 minutes. Your heart rate should increase with the intensity, pumping needed nutrients to your muscles. Ballistic stretching is best at this point, meaning active stretching, like a boxer jumping around, a swimmer shaking his arms out, etc. Short superficial stretches. Then you are ready to go, hit that workout with intensity and stay safe from injury.
After your workout, assuming you worked really hard, your muscles tend to stay in a state of contraction. This leads to muscle soreness and makes it difficult to begin the healing and rebuilding. The cool down gives your muscles time to relax and stretch back out. A proper cool down is however long it might take for your heart rate to come under 100, and then stretch out whatever muscle group you have been working. Stretching can range from the minimum 10-15 seconds per muscle of normal extension to an extended stretch that will improve flexibility.  If the later is intended make sure to do at least 20 minutes of warm up/ workout. Well that's it, stay safe people!

Bison Burgers

Bison meat is a delicious alternative to your regular hamburger. While still a red meat and sparing no flavor, is much lower in fat and cholesterol than other meats. Also it tends to be more environmental and sustainable as it is not as mass produced as beef. Try these bison burgers for a guilt free meal that makes your taste buds think your cheating.


Ingredients
1lb ground bison
4 Tbsp BBQ seasoning (not sauce)
4 Tbsp diced pickled jalapenos
4-6 Ezekiel English Muffins
Toppings as desired (avoid ketchup, mayo and high fat/ processed cheeses)

Instructions
Mix with hands and separate into patties. Grill, bake, or pan-fry your patty until cooked through.

Toast an Ezekiel english muffin for your bun. Top with lettuce, tomato, pickle, onion, salsa,  mustard, hot sauce, raw low fat cheeses such as mozzarella, mushrooms, avocado, egg, really the possibilities are endless.

Serve with black or pinto beans.

Persevere

Sleep, might be the reason you're not losing weight.

So you are busy, I get that. On top of work, overtime, school, taking care of the kids, getting your workout in, maybe you actually want to have a life, go on a date, hang with friends, or just have some time to yourself. There's just not enough hours in the day. Well we can discuss the top of prioritization later, right now I want to stress the importance of sleep, which because of the above mention none of us are getting enough.

It's amazing what your body does while you are sleeping. First it gets to rest. All the extra energy burning  processes we do during the day like thinking, digesting, moving all slow down to a minimum at night. This frees up the body to do maintenance work, repair damaged cells, rebuild muscles, increase immune support, log our memories for the day (called memory consolidation), and more. If you are skipping out on sleep, then your body doesn't get to reset for the next day, which leads to a continual running down without the building back up. Not good. This can actually cause weight gain, increase in blood pressure, mood instability, hormone imbalances, increase in acute and chronic illness, and more. 

We actually acquire what is called sleep debt. Which means every hour you lose goes into a bank, but you can't just pay it off all in one weekend. It takes consistent payments for a healthy financial plan, of course just like those payments on a credit card, if it's an extra large bill this month a bonus payment here and there can help. 

So how much sleep should you get? The rule of thumb is 8 hours, but if I say it once, I'll say it a 100 times, listen to your body! Some people may feel recharged after 6 or 7 hours, some maybe not until after 10 hours. Your body may be trying to pay off some sleep debt. Set a reasonable bedtime that will give you 8 hours, do not use snooze on your alarm clock, and eventually try not to use an alarm clock at all. Never do less than 6 hours and make sure that it is restful uninterrupted sleep. 

In conclusion, don't take sleep for granted. I hope you see how important and vital a component it is to reach those health and fitness goals. If you find yourself in a fitness plateau, check your sleep. You could be eating right and killing your workouts, but still running down your body leading to storing of fats/carbs. This weekend might be a good time to get in some extra sleep. 

Happy Zzzz's everyone!