Better Body Composition Principles Vs The Calories Counting Paradigm
“No! Calorie counting is for the birds. There should be no sensation of hunger in proper weight reduction. You weren’t hungry at any time during the last twenty-one weeks were you?
“No” he admitted.” (p49 Donaldson, Strong Medicine)
Intro
Historical Trends
Principle 1 - Avoid/Limit Most Man-Made Stuff
Principle 2 - Thumb The Ingredient List
Principle 3 - Shop On The Outer Edges
Principle 4 - Focus On Nutrient Density
Principle 5 - Walk
Wrap Up
Intro
The simpler things are the better they can be followed. What one eats these days I believe can be overcomplicated. Part of it is due to the overabundance of food choices which in a way is a good thing. However, the more choices you have the more likely you could run into decision fatigue. Heck, I was in the grocery store the other day and getting groceries for a friend. Despite the list he gave me, I was still lost in the sauce.
It took me much longer than I thought to complete that errand. There is too much crap in the store that we don’t need.
In addition to this, we have folks with credentials telling us to eat and avoid certain things. However, the more you dig into the literature(research) you realize that what they say is the exact opposite of what’s been demonstrated. It kind of makes you think. Are the roots of the institutions these people get their credentials from based on truth, or something else?
Historical Trends
I grew up reading history due to the leadership/influence of my parents and grew to love it. Do it long enough and read the right stuff you’ll start noticing patterns and trends. One of the trends I find most telling in the past century is the change in what humans consume. For example most of what humans have eaten since the dawn of time has either come
Straight from a tree or bush
Straight from the field
Straight from the plain/prairie
But not straight outta Compton.
It was only recently that we started eating stuff that was manmade and made in a factory with chemicals that would be hard for the best scientist/linguist to pronounce. With some of this stuff like seed oils, research has demonstrated that it creates a plethora of problems including an increase in weight, and not the good kind.
Many of the food additives and ingredients here in the US are banned in other countries which should say something about the society we live in. I think there is more than enough evidence to show that most of the institutions we depend on or trust are there just to collect money.
I bring all this up to say that although the calories in/out approach to our health can yield results, a better more simplified perspective can be adhered to in the long term.
Principle 1 - Avoid/Limit Most Man-Made Stuff
If you’re busy and don’t have the time to read the rest of this just keep this one principle in mind. One of the many things I’ve come to realize is that the further we stray from nature the more messed up we become. I love going out to a nature park once in a while and I avoid large urban areas if I can help it. We do have the technology to make living easier but there is benefit and beauty in the struggle of a more simplified life.
With the growth of technology, we have in a way thrown out the baby with the bathwater and forgot that we humans do receive benefits from living a certain way. For example, being barefoot on grass or at the beach has a host of benefits. But with the coming of rubber sole shoes, we are mostly separated from these benefits.
Food is the same way. We assume with our technology we are making everything better but in some ways, we are making it worse.
No hard feelings to any of yall vegans reading this I just thought it was a funny meme. But omnivores can fall into this trap as well and the ingredients in some of the processed meats we eat can wreak havoc. There is an order to things. The author of the book I quoted above often refers to eating, “Primitive foods” which some might find helpful in narrowing their focus and thinking of all this in more positive terms. Aim towards getting more of your food straight from the
Field
Farm
Or Farmer
Now notice that I included the word, “Limit.” I still go out to restaurants with family and friends. Avoiding all this manmade stuff can be a job in and of itself. And if you choose to go this route it might make things more difficult for you if you’re a social butterfly.
Do what you can.
It's all in the dosage.
I don’t believe a candy bar will kill me once every few weeks. But one every day for a month might do something…
In addition to this, some of the ingredients in our, “Food” are designed to taste great and make you want to eat more.
Principle 2 - Thumb The Ingredient List
If you are going to buy something processed using the size of your thumb will help you to gauge how loaded with processed ingredients that item is. Generally, if I put my thumb on the ingredient list and the list starts at my nail and goes past the first joint I put it back. In most cases, the longer the ingredient list is the more likely you’ll find weird ingredients that will most likely be labeled as carcinogens.
Principle 3 - Shop On The Outer Edges
This is something I told all my clients when I was working at a gym. Stick to the edges of the grocery store as that’s where the least processed stuff will be.
Vegetables
Fruit
Dairy
Meat
This is pretty much all you need but I do go into some of the inside aisles to get water, beans, and rice. This approach can also save you some time if you’re in a hurry.
Principle 4 - Focus on Nutrient Density
There are ways to improve one’s body composition without going hungry and that is to eat food that is nutrient-dense. This means that the items you’re eating have a higher concentration of vitamins and the macronutrients you need more than other food items. In addition to this, they will keep you feeling satisfied for longer. My go-to nutrient-dense foods are…
Eggs
Beans
Fish
Avocados
Eggs(hey wait a minute?)
And Shrimp
The battle for better body composition lies in eating the right food that keeps you more satisfied while your body improves while simultaneously avoiding that which will add unnecessary pounds or inflammation.
Principle 5 - Walk
Walking, especially before your first meal of the day can yield good results. It’s part of the method the Author/Doctor above used to help some of his patients back in the 50s. We stay too much inside these days and we need to go out, get some fresh air and get some rays from the sun.
The less walking we do the more we stray from our nature.
I walk anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour a day. Not much but the walking needs to be continuous for a period of more than 20 minutes at a time. This will get some sweat going and trigger adaptions for your body to improve its composition as long as you are consistent with this every day.
Wrap Up
Improved body composition doesn’t have to be hard.
Stick with nature
Limit Man-Made stuff
And you’ll be fine.
Thank you for making it to the end and let me know your thoughts below.
Until next time.
