This week the ADOFitness trainers will be addressing some of the most common things we get asked about. Coach Joey explains how fat intake is vital for hormonal health, brain function and more.

Fats are one of our primary energy sources and an essential nutrient for our bodies. Fats do a lot for us in terms of our overall heath. They help aid in weight management, absorbing nutrients, supporting our immune function, regulating body temperature, as well as brain function and hormonal balance.

I am going to touch base on a few thing that healthy fats provide us and that I am often asked a lot by clients. First and foremost is hormonal balance. Clients will often tell me that they haven’t had their cycle in months or sometimes years. Due to being on extreme diets from either their own judgment of thinking fat is something that needs to be avoided to see results or someone coming off of a prep from a coach that had them eating very minimal to almost no fat at all in their diet.

Eating enough fats is one of the MOST important things you can do to balance out your hormones naturally. Many don’t know or realize that certain fats, including cholesterol act as antioxidants and precursors to brain molecules and transmitters, which is very important for our overall health. When you are on a low fat diet you risk missed cycles that can lead to infertility. Some hormones that get affected the most by a low fat intake is testosterone, estrogen and Vitamin D. Yes vitamin D is a vitamin but our bodies utilize it more like a hormone then actually a vitamin.

The next thing I want to discuss is our brain function. I have had clients tell me during their preps with former coaches or diets that they have experimented with that they feel “off” or can’t really think clearly. Almost like their brain is “foggy”. This doesn’t surprise me if you are eating a very low fat diet when the brain is made up of fat and requires a steady stream of fatty acids to perform optimally. Believe it or not, cholesterol levels being very low can be often worse at times then having high cholesterol due to the role of it helping the brains function of neurons and neurotransmitters. In laymen terms that is basically saying fat is needed for your brain to have help you think more clearly, have abstract reasoning, attention/concentration, executive functioning along with word fluency.

Their are many more areas of concern when someone’s diet is lacking in fat. Some include heart health, having a higher risk of insulin resistance which can lead to diabetes, gut related problems and even can cause you to have a higher risk of anxiety and depression.

Some healthy saturated fats to consider including into your diet are plant based vegetable oils like sunflower oil, salmon, nuts, walnuts, sunflower seeds and avocado. Unhealthy saturated fats that should not be consumed in excess include french fries, fatty meats and foods that are packaged like chips or cookies.

As you can see fat isn’t such a bad thing after all. Everyone is different in terms of what their fat intake should be. Which is why you should do your research and also consider hiring a coach to help you reach your goals and get to a fat intake that is going to work for your body.

This week the ADOFitness trainers will be addressing topics we get asked a lot of questions about. This week coach Tara discusses why keeping your sugar intake down is important for fat loss.

This is a question I get asked a lot about, especially with clients wanting to start a flexible dieting plan. They see these people on IG chowing down on donuts and ice cream, and even ice cream filled donuts! They think, “Wow, now this is a plan I could stick too!” But flexible dieting isn’t all about how many donuts you can fit into your week, and keeping track of your sugar intake is still very important to not only fat loss but your overall health in general!
Research has shown that people with a higher sugar intake are more susceptible to obesity, heart disease, diabetes, fatigue, high blood pressure, and cancer. So by eliminating a lot of processed sugars you are also lowering your risk for developing these conditions. If you are trying to keep your body in tip top shape and be the healthiest you can, eliminating more processed sugar is going to be important.
Sugar is basically an empty calorie, as Im sure you all have heard before. It has also been known to have very little effect on satiety (how full you feel from the calories you eat) which in turn can make it very difficult to keep your intake down while working towards a fat loss goal. If you are in your off season, that is another story. You have more wiggle room with your macros being higher, which will allow you to fit in treats so much easier.
If your macros are already getting low though the last thing you want to do is eat foods that won’t make you feel full and cause you to become ravenous (we’ve all been there). The best thing to do is to eat foods that are going to fill you up when your hunger is high. The best foods to chose would be low glycemic carbs, carbs that are packed full of fiber and will help keep you from feeling energy deprived.
Sugar intake is all about balance. Having some sugar is definitely not going to kill you, but to much of anything can have negative affects. So try and keep in mind what your goal is and plan your day accordingly.

Can you burn more calories by eating more frequently through your day? If you’ve been in the diet/fitness world for a little while, you probably will have heard about the Thermic Effect of Food (or TEF). Basically this means eating food burns calories because your body has to “work” to break the food down. You may have heard “10% of the calories you eat get burned” and “high protein diets are the best for fat loss”. But is that true for everyone/all the time? There’s more to the story. Especially if you’re relying on bars and shakes for your protein!

TEF is the measurement of energy above your resting metabolic rate associated with the digestion and absorption of the food you eat. There are going to be important factors influencing how high this measurement rises overall. Because it’s not just in the first hour or so after you eat that your body is impacted by TEF, it’s over the next 5+ hours. TEF is even positively influenced by exercise, both resistance training and cardio. Higher protein meals ARE going to result in higher TEF, and in relation to exercise. 30% higher than a low protein meal in relation to exercise. And a low protein meal is going to have nearly 100% greater impact on your metabolic rate in relation to exercise verses not eating at all.

Now, one important factor for TEF is your body composition. And I would also argue, gut health. Though the research studies don’t always agree across the board, common understanding of late is that the leaner a person is, the higher their TEF will be. But the favor is comparing a lean individual vs an obese individual. It’s not a specific to say, a competitor on-season vs off. Though many people find that anecdotally, they perceive a greater TEF and higher metabolism closer to show or their leaner state. One important factor to recognize than in MOST (not all) cases, a leaner individual will have healthier gut bacteria and digestive process as compared to an obese individual. See our previous @ado_fitness article on fiber for more Information on how digestion impacts body fat.

I would argue the biggest factor in your TEF is going to be the amount of WHOLE FOOD in the meal. It’s been shown that the TEF for a whole food meal is close to 47% higher than a processed food meal. And that’s not even comparing eating a whole food meal like say, chicken and vegetables vs a protein shake. That’s comparing a whole food healthy sandwich vs a processed junk sandwich of similar macro structure. If you think logically here, your body must work a lot harder to break down whole foods than it would to absorb already broken down/processed sources. It’s fantastic to be able to work in “junk” or “treat” foods into your macros, you are sacrificing a certain amount of net calorie burn by opting for that meal vs a “clean” or “bro diet” meal. Not to mention, nutrient profile!
If you are struggling to burn body fat, the take aways for TEF to get the edge on fat loss is as follows:
– Your biggest factor is going to be total calories per meal. As the higher the total calorie intake of the meal, the higher the TEF. This may stand for an argument in favor of intermittent fasting for those who need to be on VERY low calorie diets for health reasons.
– Next is going to be whole food vs processed food
– And finally, higher protein meals vs low protein meals.
– Whole food, high protein meals are going to be the most satiating. So for those on calorie restriction, limit your liquid and processed meals. For those who struggle to be hungry enough to consume your protein intake requirements, use more liquid meals.

This week the ADOFitness trainers will be addressing topics we get asked a lot of questions about. This week coach Joey discusses sodium.

First of all let me start off by saying sodium is not a bad thing to have in your diet daily. In fact, not getting enough sodium can be just as harmful for you as eating too much. Your body needs sodium in order to function – it plays a vital role in regulating blood sugar, maintaining blood pressure, proper blood circulation, and plays a role in your bone density.

With all of these positive benefits, it’s hard to believe that salt can actually be dangerous for you. Most people use common table salt to add flavor to their meals, but this is not true salt. Table salt is manufactured and processed; in order to make it, naturally occurring salt is heated to over 1200 degrees Fahrenheit which causes over 800 of the naturally occurring minerals to be lost. Many synthetic chemicals are also added to table salt, which in some instances can actually cause the salt to be toxic. Ingesting too much salt will cause a rapid spike in your blood pressure, can cause you to retain fluid, and can exacerbate chronic illnesses such as diabetes and gout.

So how can you get your body’s daily requirement of sodium while avoiding all of the negative consequences? Instead of using table salt, use naturally occurring salt like Himalayan or Sea Salt. These kinds of salt are harvested and allowed to dry naturally in the sun, without adding any chemicals to them. It’s also important to track your intake of sodium. You can do this using a macro-tracking app, like MyFitnessPal or MyMacros. Every food you eat contains some sodium, especially processed foods, so adding even more may cause you to have too much in your diet. The American Heart Association recommends keeping your daily sodium intake under 2300 mg. However, everyone responds differently to different amounts of sodium ingested. If you think your sodium intake needs to be adjusted or have questions it is always helpful to have a coach to guide you along with a proper nutrition plan.

This week the ADOFitness trainers will be addressing some of the most common things we get asked about. Coach Jennifer talks about what a keto diet is and the harmful effects that can be caused by it.

What is a “keto diet”? It’s any extremely low carb diet that forces the body into ketosis. Ketosis occurs when people eat little to no carbohydrates and the ketones build up in their bloodstream. No carbs, cause sugar levels to drop and fat is broken down into energy. Ketosis is a mild form of ketoacidosis which is the leading cause of death with people with type 1 diabetes.

There are many problems that can be caused with low-carb diets. With diets such as this, your veggie/grains/legumes/fruit count is really low ( on avg. 30-40 grams ) and without eating carbs you run the risk of getting too little of fiber. Without fiber you can get “backed up” because fiber allows more water in your stool which makes it easier for food to pass through and eliminate waste. Fiber also slows down the process of digestion keeping you fuller longer. Without fiber you’re most likely not getting enough nutrients since fiber foods like whole grains, legumes , fruit, and veggies provide you with healthy micronutrients.

High fat/low carb diets can also cause chronic fatigue. Since carbohydrates are our main energy source, without them it’s not unlikely you will feel tired. Along with this, you are overloading your digestive system with foods that can be hard to digest. At the same time you’re not eating enough plants and micronutrients to help push it through. Plants and fruits detox the body and provide it with more energy. Because of this, high fat diet can also cause acne and dull looking skin. Vegetables and fruit Heal your skin, and provide vitamins A, C, E. Vitamin C is necessary for collagen production with which helps with wrinkles. These vitamin sources are only found in plants and fruit which you would not be getting sufficient enough amounts while implementing a “keto diet”. So if you want to glow, you need to eat a wide range of fruit and veggies. ? ????????????????

Besides those issues, Keto diets are not easy to sustain for long periods of time. Some studies have shown that one of the long term side effects is death! What may work for one person ( short term) can be extremely dangerous for another. Keto diets are basically implemented to lose weight fast but you need to keep in mind the logistics behind this initial weight loss. You’re depleting your glycogen stores when you’re not eating starchy carbs, causing less full muscle tissue and scale weight loss. And yes you most likely will lose some fat in the process of cutting calories through carbs but you can also become very carb sensitive. Then when you begin to add carbs back, your body will blow up and possibly gain all the weight you lost back- plus some. That’s why @ado_fitness believes in a well balanced diet being better for long term results and sustainability?? Think about it, are you really not going to eat carbs the rest of your life?

This week the ADOFitness trainers will be addressing some of the most common things we get asked about. Coach Tara explains why macro calculators aren’t a great resource and why having specific macros for the individual is crucial.

It is so common for people to tell me they are following their macros perfectly but they just aren’t getting any results. They figured set these macros by using an online calculator and no matter how hard they try nothing is happening. The problem with online calculators is that they are generic. They do not take into account how your metabolism was affected with previous diets or your current intake. These programs also do not know about your current lifestyle or your over/under eating habits.

All of these things need to be taken into account if (A) you do not want to initially gain a bunch of unwanted weight and (B) if your intentions are to increase your metabolic capabilities and overall health. Now if you have never dieted before and have a killer metabolism then one of these calculators might be a good resource for you, but if you are like most of the population this is just not the case. For majority of people, past diets play a HUGE role in where your macros should be initially set and how they should be adjusted weekly. Not only for your specific goals but also for what your body is going to respond better to in relation to carbs or fats.

For example if your intake is already extremely low you will need a proper reverse diet in order increase your overall intake to a sustainable spot before trying to “cut”. If you trying to cut from an extremely low intake the weight is just not going to come off if you are just slowing your metabolism down even more. So if you want to see the results you have been working so hard for you will have to take your health into consideration or you can seriously damage your metabolism and gain even more weight than your originally started with. Throw a ton of cardio on top of that and your body is not going to be very happy. This is why having an educated coach is so vital!

Online calculators like MFP (MyFitnessPal) for example will also assign a generic micronutrient goal for fiber keeping everyone the same no matter where your carb intake is set at. It doesn’t matter if your carbs are at 100G or 400G it will set your fiber goal at 25G. For many people this is not enough especially is you are having digestive issues and have a high carb intake. Again, this is why having a coach set your fiber goal to an appropriate spot according to your overall carbs is so important.

Now Im not trying to tell you online calculators never work, and they can be a great reference for some. But if you are struggling to see the results you want or think you could have suffered any sort of metabolic damage than having an educated coach is always going to be the best route in my personal option. Even coaches need coaches, for accountability and also a fresh set of eyes. You see yourself everyday and our views of ourselves can get clouded, so if you are serious about your goals hire a coach that will put your health first and make appropriate weekly adjustments for you! Your future self will thank you!