Nutrition Challenge Week 1: Some First Steps
Guidelines to Follow:
One issue with fad diets is that they often prescribe a one-size-fits-all to the daily allotted calories and nutrients or they don’t take into consideration life events and circumstances. While we will build each week to determine how much you should be eating, while you are initially tracking your food try to stay within the following general recommendations for your daily intake (unless instructed otherwise by a physician):
|
Males |
Females |
|
| Carbohydrates |
45-65% of your daily caloric intake |
|
| Fat |
20-35% of your daily caloric intake |
|
| Protein |
10-25% of your daily caloric intake |
|
| Sugar |
<36 grams |
<25 grams |
| Sodium |
<2300 mg |
|
| Fiber |
≥30 grams |
≥25 grams |
| Cholesterol |
<300 mg |
|
Let’s Talk Macros:
Macronutrients are nutrients needed in quantities measured in grams, cups, and ounces. They are called macros because we need them in larger amounts. There are three: Carbohydrates, Fats, and Proteins. Carbs give us energy, fats provide flavor and satiety, and proteins are the building blocks of our muscle tissue. Each is just as important as the other and we encourage you to include all in your diet.
Below is a list of more nutritious choices for each macronutrient. It is not an all-inclusive list- if you have questions on a certain food not listed, just let us know! Note: All fruits and vegetables are a good choice! Diets that tell you not to eat certain ones are missing out on the many vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals the rainbow of these foods offer. Canned and frozen are fine too! Just try to get low salt or no salt added vegetables and fruit without syrup or in their own juices.
| Carbohydrates | Fats | Protein |
| Air-popped popcorn | Avocado | Canned tuna/salmon |
| Beans (black, cannellini, garbanzo, kidney) | Nut butters (almond, cashew, peanut) | Chicken breasts |
| Cereals with at least 4 g of fiber and < 8 g of sugar per serving, and preferably whole grain | Nuts (almonds, cashews, pecans, walnuts) | Cottage cheese |
| Couscous | Olive oil | Eggs |
| Lentils | Seeds (chia, flax, pumpkin, sesame) | Greek yogurt |
| Oatmeal | Ground turkey breast | |
| Potatoes | Lean ground beef (at least 85/15) | |
| Pretzels | Lean steak (filet, flank, sirloin) | |
| Quinoa | Pork tenderloin | |
| Rice (brown, wild, jasmine, basmati) | Salmon | |
| Rice cakes | Shrimp | |
| Sweet potatoes | Tofu | |
| Whole grain pasta | Tuna | |
| Whole wheat breads/wraps/bagels/muffins | Turkey breast | |
| Baked chips | Veggie burgers | |
| White fish |
Week 1 Recipe
Weekly Challenge:
Starting the Day Off Right: Breakfast Challenge
Why It’s Important: Often when trying to watch our caloric intake, the first place people cut out is breakfast. Though it seems to make sense (fewer calories = more weight loss), the though process is flawed. There is a reason it is call break-fast. It is the time of day that we have been ‘fasting’ since dinner. For some, that could be as long as 12-14 hours. Our glucose stores are now depleted, so our body has nothing to use to ‘start the fire’ so to speak. By introducing some nutrient-heavy calories in the morning, we are revving up our metabolism for the day, evening out our glucose levels so that we aren’t starving ourselves, and setting ourselves up for success for the remainder of the day. So even if you are one of those that aren’t hungry in the morning, eating even a small something can go a long way.
Your Challenge: Aim to eat a nutritious breakfast every day this week. Make sure it includes some protein, fiber, and healthy fats to get us through until lunch or your mid-morning snack and try to aim for around 250-400 calories (depending on how often you eat throughout the day). Be sure to log it in your food diary. If you already eat breakfast each day, take a look at its nutritional make-up and see if there are improvements needed. Talk to your health coach if you need help- we are here for you!
