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Believe it or not, your body’s favorite energy source is none other than carbs! Carbohydrates, or carbs for short, break down in your body to something called glucose, which gives you energy. If you look at any recommended daily food intake breakdown, you’ll see that it’s actually supposed to be the BIGGEST part of your diet, with 45-65% of your calories coming from carbs!
Again, carbs are your body’s preferred choice of energy that drives our metabolism, energy, and digestion among other things. So why the bad rep? To put it simply, our society has equated health to weight loss for far too long. And since 1 gram of carbs needs 3 grams of water to be stored in your body as back up energy, storing carbs increases your weight by default. The average person stores around 600 grams of glycogen (what carbs break down into) in your body; roughly 500g in your muscles and an extra 100g in your liver. This means, for 600g of glyocen to be stored, you need about 1800g of water, or just about 4lbs of water!
Now, don’t get me wrong, protein is literally the building block of life. It grows and repairs cells by breaking down into amino acids to become our hair, fingernails, muscles cells… you name it! Protein is there for you.
Lately, the fitness world has gone a little protein-crazy, highlighting its importance to muscle recovery and repair. Yes, if you don’t eat enough protein, your body will have a tough time recovering from your workouts… BUT the main issue here is the people pushing for you to eat high levels of protein are either:
-elite-level athletes
-professional bodybuilders
Why does it matter who’s talking? People that train their bodies rigorously for competition or performance will have higher demand for protein than those who just want to stay healthy or lose a few extra pounds. I will even go as far to say that if you are only working out 3 days a week or less, you really don’t need protein powder, pre-workout, or fat-burner drugs. Instead, focus on ingesting high-quality whole foods which absorb better in your body than protein powders, especially when the focus is lifestyle change or weight loss.
The average human need about .36g of protein per pound of body weight, per day. Athletes do have a higher need for protein, due to the increased stress on their bodies from exercise, which is around .7-1.1g per pound, per day.
For example, the average 150 lb person would only need around 54 g of protein per day. Comparatively, an average 150 lb athlete would need a whopping 105-165g protein per day!
Signs You Aren’t Eating Enough Protein
- swelling, called edema, in hands, feet, and legs, since protein is involved in circulating your blood
- mood changes, since protein is involved in making neurotransmitters to relay information to cells
- hair, skin and nail will be brittle, dry and flaky, as well as deep ridges in your fingernails since you dont have enough protein to rebuild these cells
- weakness and fatigue, that affects SPECIFICALLY your posture and movement, makes it hard to balance
- slow metabolism
- anemia because proteins help your cells get oxygen, so you feel tired
- hungry all the time
- slow healing injuries such as cuts and sprains
- getting sick often
Signs Your Aren’t Eating Enough Carbs (also a reference if you are in ketosis)
- always tired – “keto flu” – 2 days to 4 weeks to switch over to fat as a fuel source depending on activity level
- bloating and constipation- eating less carbs means eating less fiber which is found in carbs like fruits, veggies and whole grains
- brain fog & grouchiness
- bad breath (ketosis)
- insomnia
For more information on nutrition, sign up for a Nutrition Guidance session here! With our Nutrition Guidance Program, you will get:
-An experienced nutrition coach
-Full meal planning with hundreds of healthy recipes
-30 minute nutrition consult 1x / month
-Specific tailored meals reflective of allergies, food sensitivities, culture foods, and tracking specifically for your body type and goals!
**Fun Fact** All of Untamed Fitness personal training programs include nutrition guidance for FREE! Book a fitness consult here and receive free nutrition meal planning, tracking and advice!
