Balanced Nutrition

Part 1: Know your sources, and trust your intuition

Otherwise known as healthy eating, it’s not at all complicated and makes logical sense.

Over decades there have been millions of fad diets, websites claiming to know what will make you lose 20 kg in 1 week, not to mention the great effect of social media on the matter. Every 3rd person is either a fitness influencer, and an expert of everything health related.

I don’t know about you, but this has honestly left me being more confused than anything else. With my brief studying in the field of Dietetics, you are taught about Calorie calculations and energy expenditures being equal to energy intake. This is how dietitians calculate nutritional intake, using the Diabetic food exchanges and other exchanges to determine distributions of Macronutrients. Now this was my initial dilemma, why is it now a myth to calorie count. I mean isn’t this the way dietitians are taught, at least in South Africa from my knowledge.

It makes scientific and logical sense that what you put into your body should be matched with your daily activity and how you balance your eating with your physical activity. With this being said, not only is this effective when mental well-being is catered for too, it is crucial.

This is where health coaches come in, and the intervention strategy could not be more sound. When qualified Health Coaches and Dietitians and Nutritionists work together, there is not only a scope for effective weight-loss strategies that are biologically and scientifically sound, but you have the Holistic Health Component in the mix too. Even if the patient adopts the eating plan, they may still be left with anxieties surrounding their weight -loss, constant emotional turmoil, lack of sleep, lack of a proper movement pattern, all of these things have an effect on people.

We need to normalise multi-disciplinary approaches to holistic health, and preventative therapies for people at risk of developing metabolic diseases. I have seen many Doctors now adopting the holistic approach, one example is, Dr. Michael Greger, who wrote the book, “How not to die”, he discusses how a healthy eating plan, aids in a healthier body and mind and may even reverse disease conditions.

Back to balanced eating. Every single person on this planet has a different body composition, genetic makeup, environment, situation and living circumstances. So a cookie cutter plan will not necessarily be the answer, although, for some it may be. The key is to keep an eye out for those foods that make you feel lethargic, heavy, gives you heart burn, gives you allergic reactions and replace them with foods that don’t do that to you.

See a Dietitian and make sure that you are receiving the correct information, make sure of their Credentials, read product labels, avoid processed foods (like those products that have unreadable or weird ingredients) Please look out for scammers, there are so many diet pills, fad diets and bad advocates out there. Check your sources and so not be afraid to question! Then in the process do yourself a favour and try out this Multi-disciplinary approach to see a Health Coach too, and see yourself transform. There is a space and scope for health coaching and I cannot wait for the day that this is implemented as an effective and proved strategy.

I hope this is a good start for you to look out for the right kind of balanced nutrition. Remember that a balanced outlook on things will give you much better, more effective results.

Xoxo Dan the Wooman