Episode #92 Understanding the Impact of the Foods We Eat
You’re Listening to the Nourish and Nurture Podcast, Episode #92, Understanding the Impact of the Foods We Eat
Introduction
Did you know that you don't have to spend money on a diet program or even weigh, measure and track your food unless you want to? What if you could learn to have success by learning how to change your mindset so that you can believe in yourself, which is the cornerstone to weight loss success? What if you could learn about what foods work best in your body for weight loss and why they work? Join me, Miriam Hatoum, health coach, course creator and author, as I give you actionable coaching advice that is sure to empower you so that you will finally find peace with food and learn to trust your body’s signals. You’ve got this, girl.
I am celebrating Season 4 with a brand-new party dress, Nourish and Nurture. The title has changed but not the insightful advice and tips that you enjoy and look forward to. And now, you can get all my free guides that are designed to help you in your journey, in one place, at Miriamhatoum.com/resources.
Oh, and before we start, I want to let you know that the primary purpose of this podcast is to educate and does not constitute medical advice or services. And please know that I’m keeping up with the science as fast as I can so I can share with you the latest breaking research in this area to help you achieve your dreams!
Before I go on to the episode, I want to mention that there is a whole new look and feel to miriamhatoum.com, and I would love you to go over and take a look. If you go to freebies, you will get all 9-bonus guides that I have given out over the course of this podcast, and now they are all in one place. Sign up for the newsletter and get an instant link!
Now on to the Episode…
What follows is a little bit of a repeat of what I talked about last week with regard to how I had to come up with new ways of looking at things once my life changed that March of 2018.
This is a short episode today so I hope you indulge me few minutes to repeat myself because it is so important for my listeners to understand that you can’t go forward looking in the rearview mirror. You are going forward in your lives even if you do not have the sudden changes I talk about in my own life. Look to new information and new strategies to get you to where you want to go in this new year. I am also repeating some of the story because not everyone listens to each episode, and I want you to hear this so you get to know a little bit more about me and what inspires my work.
Here is the story (again) in a nutshell: The new season in my life happened in a split second with my husband’s sudden aortic aneurism in 2018. He miraculously survived, throwing us both into immediate and unplanned retirement.
- It turned out it was the best thing that ever happened to us (after the shock wore off). We sold our home and moved to within a mile of my daughter, which, lucky for us, was also a mile’s walk to the beach. (Hence all my references to “navigating the waters”!)
- It was mostly a happy time because my husband survived without complications, we were living near my daughter and by the beach, I didn’t have 3 hours of commuting every day, and well, it was nice.
But I knew for myself, as a life-long dieter, the usual diets and same-old same-old
approaches would no longer work.
- I no longer had a work schedule where my meals were on time and planned. I didn’t know on Sunday what I would eat on Friday. I had loads of candy and cookies in the house (because well, you know, grandchildren). My chef husband had nothing to do all day but grocery shop and cook, so my fridge, freezer and pantry were loaded with food I couldn’t finish in a month. My mother had just passed away at the age of 104, and I was left with that grief, and sorting through all her things.
- BUT, I had to scramble and find a whole new strategy for eating and not gaining weight. I also had to continue with the weight loss journey I was already on. I had to do it without frenzy, craziness, or unsustainable diets.
And that is how this particular course
came about…
- I started learning about finding sustainable eating styles - instead of a strict diet. I tried all the programs that dealt mostly with mindset, but offered no guidance with nutrition. What does it even mean to “eat what you love and love what you eat?” I needed some education to have an eating style be sustainable. Going with feelings, or weighing and measuring, or even the hunger scale like I teach you, wasn’t enough.
- And so, that’s how Understanding the Impact of the Foods We Eat, came about. I learned about things that regular diets don’t teach you, like how no amount of exercise will get rid of belly fat, or how carbohydrates are hidden in practically all foods we eat, and what does this have to do with anything anyway? It became my mission to share that with other women who felt “broken” because they were doing everything they were supposed to be doing but still never lost weight.
In my travels as a Keto coach which is where this all started, I realized that not everyone needs to eat Keto or Low Carb. But, the information that you need to learn to make any eating style a success, is held in those basics and what I call, bones of the program.
The five modules in this course that I am going to tell you about here will teach you what you need in order to have a new respect and understanding for the food you eat. Once you incorporate some of what you will learn, you will start to break free from the diet prison of always weighing and measuring your food because you will be free from the shackles of “slippery slope foods” - those containing large amounts of sugars and grains. As I have been promising you, you can lose weight without losing your mind. Learn to be good to yourself and find the results you have been dreaming of!
When I explore each topic, I will also give you the most recent podcast on the individual subject so you can go and listen to find more about it.
1. Carb Clarity: Revealing Hidden Carbohydrates
- This module shows you where carbs are hiding and how they add up, which is important no matter what plan you are following.
- Learn the categories of carbs, the difference between simple and complex carbs, and how they are used for energy, but that you don’t need as many as you think.
- Even if you are not eating in a low-carb style, learn that it is important to make informed and careful decisions.
- I find that this is where most commercial diets, like Weight Watchers drop the ball. They don’t teach you that those 100-calorie snack bags of this and that they sell might fit into your Points, but that they are not the best choice for using your allowance because they crowd out more nutritious food.
- But it’s more than that. Even with a calorie-counting program you might miss that point that your hormones recognize and use 100 calories of broccoli or olive oil in a very different way than 100 calories of pretzels.
The most recent podcast on this topic is #88.
2. Cracking the Code: Conquering Stubborn Belly Fat
- This lesson doesn’t just deal with the problem of belly fat.
- It helps you understand the role insulin plays in how you feel. Are you tired or hungry all the time even though you feel you are eating enough?
- Learn how this fatigue and exhaustion – and also cravings – are related to the problem of insulin resistance.
- Identify risk factors for insulin resistance and whether you might have it.
- Explore why you can’t seem to lose stubborn belly fat no matter how much exercise you do. The problem all has to do with your master hormone, insulin.
- Not all fat is created equal and your goal is not to have zero body fat, and it is important to understand its purpose.
- Also learn about the SAD way of eating – the Standard American Diet, and how it plays a part in why we eat what we eat and why we have to stop blaming ourselves for loving salty and sweet foods.
The most recent podcast on this topic is #51.
3. But I LOVE Sugar: Demystifying Sugar and Baked Goods Dependency
- Learn about the brain’s response to sugar and understand the body’s reward system and cycle of sugar dependency.
- Explore the reasons why you want sugar, beyond the feel-good hit.
- There are habit and emotional components as well, to wanting sugar and baked goods. This lesson will help you discover why sugar is your kryptonite.
- You are doing exactly what your brain has been designed to do. You are working perfectly! You just need a little help bringing awareness into your patterns and love of all things sugar.
The most recent podcast on this topic is #27.
4. Grains and Legumes Decoded for Balanced Nutrition
- Learn about grain and legumes in this module. Yes, there are many benefits to eating whole grains and legumes, but there is another side to the story.
- There is a place for grains and legumes in a well-rounded diet but learn what to do if you have to eat a specialized diet, such as if you have gluten intolerance.
- Learn about the role grains and legumes play in heart health, weight management, and inflammatory and autoimmune conditions.
The most recent podcast on this topic is #36.
5. BONUS MODULE
Family-Friendly Cooking and Eating Out
without Grains and Legumes
- If your family is from a culture that relies heavily on grains and legumes, do not despair. Get ideas for meals and how to search websites for what you need.
- There is no need for you to cook two meals. Build a foundation of nutritional knowledge with the family about food choices and encourage support and respect for the way you are choosing to eat for yourself.
The most recent podcast on this topic is #14.
Although this episode, Understanding the Impact of the Foods We Eat, is not intended to steer you to Low Carb eating, there is more information on all of this in episodes 60 through 63. Episode 60 is about Keto and Low Carb Baked Goods and Treats, which deals with slippery slope foods and bingeing. Episode 61 is Why Do Low Carb Diets Work, Episode 62 is Foods for Low Carb, and Episode 63 is Cooking and Shopping for Low Carb.
The reason I would like you to listen to these whether or not you are following a Low Carb eating plan is that there are so many nuggets of information that you will pick up to find success with any style.
HERE IS YOUR ACTIONABLE COACHING ADVICE FOR THIS WEEK:
As I said, I am not specifically steering you into eating Low Carb – but keeping in mind that your level carbohydrate consumption and the types of carbohydrates you eat do have an impact on your weight loss success, this week, I would like you to track at least three days of eating. You don’t have to weigh or measure anything. Just write down what you are eating for the day.
Stay away from the judgment zone. This is just an awareness exercise.
Once you have your list for three days, take a look and see what might have been your high-carb choices. This could be, for instance, bread, pasta, starchy vegetables, dessert or any sweet.
Ask yourself whether these choices could be limited in a way that would not substantially take the enjoyment out of your meals. Think of pizza night with the family. Hey, you want the pizza. That’s okay. What can you do to minimize the impact that day?
· Could you take 2 slices instead of 3 or 4?
· Could you have a salad on the side so that you will still feel full after the meal?
· Can you reduce your carbohydrates elsewhere in the day, like not having a sandwich at lunch or cereal at breakfast?
In order to work with the impact of the food you are eating, you must learn to identify where you are eating your carbs, asking yourself if you really want them at a meal, and if you do, how can you reduce their impact either by eating less or having fewer carbohydrates at other meals.
Also pay attention to how you feel, whether the food choices hold you meal to meal, whether you are fatigued for no reason, and especially not whether you are having cravings and urges.
Notice what might not be a safe food for you because you will tend to overeat it, or perhaps even find yourself in the middle of a binge with it. For instance, you might have a lovely sugar-free, frozen yogurt that you love, but find you will finish the full carton rather than stopping at one portion.
This awareness of the impact of the food you eat is the first step in making changes. You won’t make changes in your eating because a diet tells you to. You will be motivated to make your own decisions once you know how a food impacts your hunger, energy levels, and cravings.
Please go to my website, miriamhatoum.com/course, and you will find all the information on this course. And, while you are there, if you are not already on my email list, sign up for my brand new newsletter, Nourish and Nurture so you don’t miss any new blogs, podcasts, or recipes.
Coming up next week
Next week I am going to explore fasting, which is a topic I have never covered before. I have stayed away from it, both on my own journey, and as a coach helping other people on theirs. However, it has come up recently for me, and so it is time to open that box and look inside. I actually have been talking about it on my Facebook lives as I try it out for myself and invite you to take a look at my posts, beginning February 17th. The Facebook page where you can see these is lives is Breaking Free From Diet Prison, and I invite you to join it.
Please share the new Nourish and Nurture Podcast with your friends, and invite them to tune in with you and learn how to become free from diet prison. Please leave a review wherever you listen to your podcast. It helps other people find it by bringing it up in the various directories. Don’t be a stranger.
Until then, go live free from diet worry — I’ll see you back here next time.
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