Building Better Basics

Welcome to the program!

These ten weeks will lead you through lessons on some of the ins and outs of nutrition and will provide you with guidance on how to build sustainable habits for your long term goals.  

Our Schedule
1 - Setting Goals & Expectations
2 - Nutrition Snapshot And Progress Markers
3 - Macronutrients & Reading Nutrition Labels 
4 - Portion Sizes, Measuring, & Meal Prepping + Q&A Meeting 
5 - Meal Prepping Part 2 
6 - Budgeting Time, Energy & Finances for Your Meal Prep 
7 - Rest Week - Over Half Way There
8 - Sleep, Hydration, & Stress 
9 - Mindful Eating + Q&A Meeting 
10 - Mindful Eating Part 2 - Building Better Habits 

Week 1: Setting Goals & Expectations

The best place to start is where you are right now. 

This week is all about learning about different strategies for goal setting, brainstorming our own goals, and creating action items. First, we are going to discuss process vs progress-oriented goals and then move into breaking down our goals into specific action items.

So, what is a realistic and actionable goal?

Simply put, this is a goal that is within our current means, is relatively timely, and has some clear starting actions.

Where do I begin?

First, we can identify if our goal is process-oriented or progress-oriented.

A progress-oriented goal typically has objective markers or a concrete yes or no, pass or fail, met or unmet conclusion. There is only one finish line. While specific and motivating, these goals don’t account for changes in perspectives, don’t acknowledge the process that it takes to get to these goals, and don’t consider the “after” part of the goal. Now, especially in the fitness world where so many objective measurements are taken- whether its weight on the bar or weight on the scale, these progress-oriented goals are very common and not inherently detrimental.

However, I typically encourage my clients to pair a progress-oriented goal with a process-oriented one, particularly because life circumstances, goals, and perspectives can change. Process-oriented goals consider the contexts around objective goals. Are my behaviors sustainable in the long term? Am I creating habits that work within my schedule? Am I finding happiness and gratitude in my other successes AND the numbers that I am measuring? Am I acquiring tools that will help me with my other goals in the future?

By setting complementary process and progress-oriented goals, you can consider the process as a whole, as well as the direction that you would like to go in.

A few examples:
Goal: I would like to lose weight
Process: I would like to learn more about foods that will support my health and how to prepare them
Progress: I would like to lose 10-15lbs
 
Goal: I would like to be stronger
Process: I would like to learn more about training programs and how to progress my movements both in the short term and the long term
Progress: I would like to add 25lbs to my best deadlift

Once your goals are established you can start looking into action items that will help support you and your goals.

What is an action item?
Big or small, this is a concrete and specific action that you can take to start your process. It can be as small as filling your water bottle for the day or as large as signing the lease to your new business.

It helps to start by brainstorming the different steps that our goal requires and prioritizing them based on when they need to be completed and how in-depth they are. While we always want to be doing the hard things, sometimes the only thing we have time for is a 5-minute task and that’s okay.

I break my actions down into a few different categories. You don’t have to do yours this way, but I would recommend prioritizing them in some manner, otherwise, it may feel very overwhelming at first. And, remember, this is a process. By completing action items, more are likely to arise as you continue on your journey towards your goal.

• Highest priority long term action items - these are the main part of the plan AND take time

• Lower priority long term action items - these are the additions to the plan that are going to take more time but are not crucial at this time 

• Highest priority short term action items  - crucial elements that take between 5 - 20 minutes 

• Lower priority short term items - the bonuses, extra actions that help the plan succeed

• 5 Minute Check Boxes - these tasks are neither urgent nor time intensive but assist in the goal

What this would look like in practice:
Overall Goal: Lose 10lbs and create healthy eating habits

Why do I think I have not been successful?
- I don’t know how much to eat
- I don’t know how to cook
- I don’t have any progress markers in place
- I have some habits that don’t support my goal
- I think I need to incorporate my fruits and veggies in my diet

Highest priority long term action items
- Learn how to prepare food that fuels my workouts and helps me towards my goals
- Learn how to track my food consistently
- Focus on one long term habit that I would like to change, like late night snacking

Lower priority long term action items
- Brainstorm a long term action plan after losing the 10lbs, what do I want my life to look like afterwards?

Highest priority short term action items
- Take progress pictures
- Donate or remove food that doesn’t support my goals from the house
- Purchase a scale to track weight
- Check-in with my coach

Lower priority short term items
- Try cooking something new that includes a new vegetable
- Incorporate a piece of fruit every day 

5 Minute Check Boxes
- Download myfitnesspal to track food
- Set alarms to make sure you get to sleep on time
- Filling a bottle of water before the day starts 

In Conclusion

• We set realistic goals that are both progress and process-oriented

• We brainstorm action items and then prioritize them

• We ask for help when we need it

• We start. It doesn’t have to be pretty or perfect.

Week 1 Action Items

Additional Resources

Recommended Podcast

Recommended Article

Week 2: Nutrition Snapshot & Progress Markers

How we can track progress objectively? Finding our foundation.

So, after week one, we have a better idea about what direction we want to head in, have started to embrace the process, and are getting ready to dive right in. But, first, it’s always nice to have some baseline data to get a full picture of what we are working with.

What is baseline data?

These are the initial measurements and reflections that give you a perspective of your true starting point. For many this can be taking measurements, writing an initial reflection on how you are feeling, weight on the scale, or any other measurement that you will be able to refer back to later on.

Examples of data points:
- Weight on the scale
- Calories per/day
- Training sessions/week
- Amount of a specific nutrient/day
- A mood journal
- Body measurements
- Progress pictures
- Initial grocery bills
- Spreadsheet or checklist to mark when you completed a certain habit
- Habit tracker apps

I suggest that clients pick 2-3 data points to track their overall progress and typically at least one objective measurement and one subjective measurement (building off of last week’s lesson). We will take these data points at each phase of these 12 weeks ( about every 4 weeks or so).

I also recommend that my clients try their hand at tracking their food during their first initial weeks to give them perspective on how much or how little they are eating, whether they are lacking any nutrients, and also to give them some additional tracking practice within their chosen app or method.

Tracking food intake comes in a variety of forms. Here are a few examples below. I recommend clients choose those with the least amount of friction - meaning the ones that are feasible with your schedule and one that you can maintain. 

Example Methods:
- Writing a list of food eaten in a journal format day by day 
- Logging food in an app (RP Fitness, MyfitnessPal)
- Taking a picture of each meal 
- Using designated plates and eating utensils designed to show portions

A few quick tips:
- While you can try out a few methods on the first few weeks, eventually you should settle on one method in order to keep consistent tracking.
- Tracking all food based on memory at the end of the day can sometimes lead to memory lapses and missed meals. It is better to do so before a meal or directly after a meal
- Shorthand shortcuts or saved recipes - Use your own journal language to denote certain meals or recipes in order to save time. You can also save certain recipes and meals into apps and simply add that recipe to a mealtime instead of having to re-input the meal

In Conclusion

• We take baseline measurements so that we can look back at our initial round of progress markers and plot out our data markers throughout the different phases of our journey

• We choose the progress markers that are the best for us and our schedules - including our mental and physical health in this decision

• Tracking food is one of the best ways to learn more about what we are eating, how much food we are eating, and how our nutrition is bringing us either closer to our goals, or is making them harder to accomplish - but, there are quite a few ways to accomplish this. There is no perfect answer for everyone.

Week 2 Action Items

Additional Resources

Recommended Video
Begin at 2:43

Recommended Article

Week 3: Calories, Macronutrients & Reading Nutrition Labels

This is a doozy this week. Take your time to read through the passages this week and if you have any questions you can post in the facebook group or email me at clare@resilienttraininglab.com

What is a calorie: 
A calorie is a unit of energy. The food that we eat contains these units of energy that fuel our day to day body processes (heartbeat, breathing, digestion, all the things that happen automatically in our body), our daily activities like walking to our car, and our workouts.

How do calories affect our body composition?
Our bodies are smart, they try to keep us alive. When we eat food with more calories than our body needs to function, our body can store them away until they are needed. This is what we would call eating in a caloric surplus because it is MORE calories than are expended during the day. Caloric surpluses can be amazing in phases where you want to build muscle because those extra calories help our bodies create more lean body mass as well as fat. However, eating in a caloric surplus for an extended period of time also means that our bodies will store more energy than we need and puts us at a greater risk of diseases caused by an excess of body fat. 

The opposite is true for those eating in a caloric deficit. This means that you are eating fewer calories than you are expending on a day to day basis. Your body will tap into these fat stores and some lean tissue stores, in order to keep your body up and running. Caloric deficits are ideal if your goal is to lose body fat. However, like too much of a surplus, there can also be too much of a deficit. Eating in a caloric deficit for too long can cause a loss of lean body mass, fatigue, decreased recovery, and in some extremes, can cause some bodily processes to stop functioning as they should. 

Regardless of your goal, manipulating your calories is key to body change. However, we want this change to be gradual with keeping most surpluses and deficits between 100 - 500 calories over your baseline. For those who are not tracking their calories directly, this means gradually increasing or decreasing their portion sizes or quantity of meals in a controlled manner. 

What are Macros?
If you have ever heard the term "Macros" in conversation, it is short for macronutrients. Macronutrients are the larger nutrients that our food is comprised of - they are carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. Each macronutrient has its own purposes and benefits. Many athletes and clients track them in order to reach certain body composition or performance goals. 

However, macronutrient tracking is not for everyone. It can be a time-intensive process and can cause some athletes and clients to develop unhealthy relationships with food. If you are interested to learn more about macronutrients and macronutrient tracking, read below. If you don't think macros or tracking macros are part of your strategy, that's okay too! 

Macronutrient Summary:

Carbohydrates: - 4 calories/gram

Carbohydrates are the preferred energy sources for the body.  Once consumed, carbohydrates are eventually broken down into glucose. This glucose is used in processes throughout the body. 

Beyond being your main energy source, there are carbohydrates that help synthesize specific amino acids (protein building blocks) and some that allow for consistent bowel movements. Fiber is a type of carbohydrate that cannot be broken down by your GI tract. Therefore, this nutrient does not give you energy, but it does help rid your body of waste and keeps your intestinal tract healthy.

Carbohydrates are not all created equally. Some are considered simple carbohydrates and others are complex.

• Simple carbohydrates are easy for your body to breakdown for energy or glucose. They have 1-2 sugar molecules and are found in items that are usually sweet such as honey, table sugar, syrup, agave nectar, molasses, milk/yogurt, and fruit. Fruit does contain a natural sugar called fructose, however, fruit also has vitamins and minerals (these are your micronutrients: nutrients needed in small amounts), phytochemicals (not a needed nutrient, but can have positive effects on health), and fiber. Fiber is not digested and therefore, increases the amount of time needed to break down the food item.

• Complex carbohydrates take more time for your body to breakdown. They are long strands of sugar molecules strung together. They are found in foods such as starches and grains: rice, pasta, bread, and starchy vegetables (potatoes, peas, corn). Other plant-based foods such as non-starchy vegetables (beans, nuts, and seeds) contain carbohydrates, but in lower amounts. Complex carbs normally contain fiber unless they have been processed, where the grain has been stripped of its bran (outer coating), which gives us white bread, white pasta, white rice, etc. These types of carbs become easier for your body to digest. Even though they are not sweet they will release glucose quickly just like a sweet simple carbohydrate.

Protein - 4 calories/gram

Protein allows your body to grow, build and repair tissues, and protect lean body mass (your muscle mass). Protein is composed of amino acids. Amino acids are the building blocks of protein.

There are 2 types of amino acids: non-essential and essential. Non-essential amino acids are not required to be consumed through the diet as your body can actually make these. Essential amino acids are required through your diet. Essential amino acids can either be used on their own or in some cases they are transformed into a non-essential amino acid.

Protein-rich foods include meat, poultry, fish, egg, milk, cheese, or other types of animal by-product foods. These protein sources contain all of your essential amino acids. This does not mean you have to eat animal foods to be healthy. You can get the proper amino acids from eating a variety of plant protein sources such as beans, lentils, nuts, seeds, and soy as well as lower amounts in grains, vegetables, and fruits. 

Fat - 9 calories/gram

Fat allows you to store energy, cushion organs, make certain hormones, absorb fat-soluble vitamins, and helps with cell membrane integrity. There are three types of fat: trans fat, saturated fat, and unsaturated fat. 

• Trans fat should be avoided if possible. Most trans fat comes from hydrogenating or adding hydrogen molecules to unsaturated fats. This produces a hydrogenated oil. These can be found in margarine, shortening, baked goods, doughs, and fried foods.

• Saturated fat - Saturated fat is found mostly in animal sources with high-fat content such as fatty beef, lamb, pork, poultry with skin, lard, cream, butter, full-fat cheese, and dairy. It is recommended that you decrease saturated fat intake and lean towards more healthy fats, known as unsaturated fats.

• Unsaturated fat - Unsaturated fats are known as the "healthy fat" as they can decrease your risk for heart disease. These healthy fats originate from plant sources such as avocados, nuts and nut butters, seeds, olives, and oils (olive, canola, safflower, etc.) They can also be found in animal sources such as fatty fish including salmon, mackerel, sardines, tuna, and herring.

Fat gets a bad reputation because it is the highest in calories and certain types of fat are not the best source for us, but if you can focus on the type of fat and amount of fat, it is instrumental to a healthy diet. 

The recommended amounts of these different macronutrients are usually referred to as macronutrient split. A good place to start is using the USDA recommendations, however, your ideal split may look differently depending on your goals.

• Carbohydrates: 45-65%

• Protein: 10-35%

• Fat: 20-35%

Overall, these are considered healthy, but different combinations can help you achieve different goals or help manage different disease states. Each individual may thrive at different percentages, so what works for one person may not work for all. 

What do I recommend?
Look where your baseline markers are and see if your percentages are favoring one nutrient more than the others. The most typical nutrient I see lacking is protein. I typically recommend my clients to get 25%-30% of their calories from protein as a good starting point. From there, your carbs and fats can be established based on personal preference and a few other markers that we will explore in later weeks.

Also, as you can see above, all of the macros have a calorie count with them. If we would like our weight to decrease, creating a caloric deficit is going to help us get closer to that goal. If we would like our weight to increase, the opposite is true. The way we can do that is by changing the grams of the macros that we are consuming.

How do I do that?

Remember that baseline data we took last week where we started tracking our food? Whether it was in calories, macros, portions, etc, we simply need to decrease amounts from that. Whether it’s only filling 3/4s of your plate with food or taking 250-500 calories off of your baseline calorie amounts, that will start to put you into a deficit. And the same is true for weight gain, just for the opposite actions.

If we found that our baseline calories were 1500 and we wanted to create a caloric surplus of 250-500 calories, we could do that by adding in 30g of carbs (120 calories) 30g of protein (120 calories) and 10g of fat (90 calories). That would put us in a surplus of 330 calories.

How the heck do I know what is in my food?

This is where nutrition labels come in. Most packaged foods will have calories, macros, and other nutrients clearly labeled on their package. For most fresh foods, you can also look in your calorie trackers for a generic calorie by gram measurement.

The red circles below show you the serving size of the food, the total calories, total fat, total carbohydrates, and total protein. There is typically a “Daily Value" percentage value that is included, however this is based on the “average” American and not individualized to fit your needs. I stress that clients just look at the numbers that are on the label and make them work within their own framework.

In Conclusion

• Macronutrients are the carbohydrates, proteins, and fats that make up our diet. Each of them have important roles in our body. By manipulating these nutrients, we can work towards our nutrient goals.

• Nutrition labels help us figure out the calories and macros in our foods

• Tracking food is one of the best ways to learn more about what we are eating, how much food we are eating, and how our nutrition is bringing us either closer to our goals, or is making them harder to accomplish - but, there are quite a few ways to accomplish this. There is no perfect answer for everyone. Tracking macros is not the end all be all for goal setting, so if this seems to be overwhelming, that is okay, you don’t have to dive in all at once.

• This can be a LOT of content all at once. Change starts with awareness. Whether you want to have one of your action items to be “read all of my nutrition labels” or “get 10g more of protein in my diet every day this week” that is fine by me.

Week 3 Action Items

Additional Resources

Recommended Article

Recommended Article

Did your baseline data not include calorie or macros but now you want to try? This calorie calculator can give you some baseline values that you can incorporate into your strategy

Week 4: Portions, Measuring, Meal Prepping

Now that we have found some ways to track our food we are going to look into putting it all together into portions, into our meal preps, and talk about some measuring tips to ensure some consistency across the board.

Portions: Meals VS Snacks
So what do we do with all of those calories and macros? Typically it can be helpful to organize your day into meals and snacks based on your routine and your hunger cues throughout the day. There’s no right or wrong way to do this - just the right way for you. Some people like to eat frequently and have 5-6 meals a day, some like 1-2. Depending on your schedule and your preferences you can section out your calories accordingly.

For example: Let’s say we have 2000 calories in your day. And you want to eat 3 meals and 2 snacks. A great way to potentially portion this out is to have meals that are around 500 calories - so 3 meals at 500 calories is 1500 calories total, leaving you with 500 calories to split between your two snacks. Based on those rough estimates you can start structuring your meal prep around these ideas.

Macros at Meals:
There’s no right or wrong way to do this task either. Some of your meals may have more carbs, some may have less, and the same is true for the other macronutrients. The typical recommendation is to have a few meals with well-balanced macros throughout your day - meaning meals that have a serving of all 3 macronutrients- but your snacks or other meals can be heavier on other macronutrients than others. As long as you reach your macro goals for the day, it all ends up going into the same place.

Some athletes and clients like to see what different combinations do for them throughout the day, and this is something you can explore as well, but if you want to just get the hang of counting macros in the first place, this is something you can focus on later when you feel ready.

If we aren’t calorie tracking:
So, what if we aren’t tracking our calories, are we out of luck for determining what our meals are made of? Not necessarily.

Portions by Palm: This method is portable, easy to use, and relatively consistent. It does have some drawbacks when you have foods that are highly mixed - however for some meals it may have it's benefits. You can use your hands to judge portion sizes.
- To judge a serving of protein: one palm
- To judge a serving of carbohydrates: one cupped hand
- To judge a serving of vegetables: one fist
- To judge a serving of fats: one thumb

Meal Planning:
Time to bring it all together. Whether you only prep one meal for your day or meals for your full day of eating, you can plan ahead so that you have an idea of how your day will stack up. I call this a game of tetris. Even if it’s just a small part of your day, having a meal prepared can make your routine easier, make your goals more accessible, and can help with your adherence to your calories, macros, or portions.

What this could look like:
This week I want to make one meal that will provide me with a serving of fats, carbs, and protein that I can take on the go with me and eat for lunchtime.

Grocery List:
- 2 Packages Lean Ground Turkey
- 1 Bag Jasmine Rice
- 1 Bag Mixed Frozen Vegetables

Prep:
Cooking the ground turkey, rice, and vegetables together for 4 total meals. This will have a consistent amount of macros that I can plan the rest of my day around and I only have to cook this meal in bulk, once.

Measuring Tips & Tricks
- Keep your measurements consistent - use the same spoons, measuring cups, scales, etc. as much as possible
- Most meats are weighed pre-cooking. Portion out when the meat is uncooked. The same is true for other nutrients like produce and anything else that loses water when cooking.
- I would recommend using the scale for most measurements if you have one, it is typically more accurate, more timely, and requires less clean up.

In Conclusion

• Your meals and mealtimes are totally up to your preference - there is no perfectly right answer. You want to feel satiated throughout your day and well fueled for your workouts.

• Planning your meals can make your day smoother and can help you towards your goals

• You don’t have to prep your whole day, even having one meal prepped is a great start

• Keep your measuring methods consistent and ask questions when you are unsure of how to track or measure something

Week 4 Action Items

Additional Resources

Recommended Article

Recommended Article

Week 5: Meal Prepping and Nutrition Strategies Part II

These past few weeks have been packed with information. We have been introduced to some new tools and strategies that can help us reach our goals.

This week I wanted to provide a few additional strategies, tools, and tricks that may benefit you and your journey towards your goals. Take some breathing room this week, read about some strategies below, and focus on one thing you can do this week to get you closer to your goals.

Strategies & Perspectives

Top-Down Vs Bottom-Up Approaches
Depending on which habits you feel like you need to change, sometimes it can be beneficial to start with a top-down or bottom-up approach. What are those?

Top-Down Approach

This approach focuses on the multiple aspects of your strategy that you are already doing well and hones in on smaller changes and aspects to take away rather than add.

For example: A client has been tracking their macros consistently for a few weeks and realizes that they have a firm grasp on their maintenance calories, are hitting their macro totals, and don’t see any current nutrient holes in their plan. They plan well and have some firmly established routines in place. To continue on their way towards their goals, this client may benefit from seeing what they can eliminate and reduce in their diet while still hitting all of their goals. This may be slightly reducing their portions on their tracked meals, removing some inconsistency in their meals, or trading attention on habits that they already have a great handle on.

Bottom-Up Approach

This approach focuses on building strategy foundations and looks to include and add to current behaviors and techniques.

For example: A client hasn’t tracked their food before and is still trying to get a handle on what “eating well” means for them. Instead of doing a complete overhaul of their diet or habits, it may be more beneficial to start focusing on one habit to build or one nutrient to focus on.

Need more vegetables in your day? Lets build in a habit to have one vegetable snack per day. Have some difficulty with remembering to drink water? Now is the perfect time to work on a system that either reminds you to drink throughout the day or have a water bottle that can track your progress. These habits and skills build into your day.

Whether you are brand new to the nutrition world or a macro tracking pro, it may be beneficial to see which strategy may be best for you - would you benefit from adding to your routine or subtracting from it?

Majoring in the Minors

A few other reminders if you are feeling overwhelmed.

There are so many things that we are hit with on a daily basis in terms of nutrition. There’s names like KETO, intermittent fasting, atkins, meal timing, glycemic indexes, etc.

• At the end of the day, you will have a strategy that works for your own individual goals, routines, and meal preferences

• There is no magic pill. You aren’t missing anything. There is no trendy item or overpriced supplement that will guarantee long-lasting results.

• No diet is “perfect”. You are allowed to try different strategies, meals, ingredients, etc. and they may work well for you, or they might be terrible. It is all part of the process. (I have some fairly burned oven pans to confirm).

• It is the slower way to do things, but focusing on developing tools that you can use over time will do more for your nutrition and your goals than any quick fix.

In Conclusion

• You may benefit from looking at your strategy from a top-down or bottom-up approach. These perspectives can give us a better look at some of our action items and give us a perspective that is more sustainable and manageable.

• There is no one, perfect strategy. You will be shaping and developing your routines and habits over the course of time. Give yourself permission to fail and to try again.

Week 5 Action Items

Additional Resources

Recommended Video

Recommended Article

Week 6: Budgeting Time, Energy & Finances for Your Meal Prep

This week we are going to talk about some strategies to look at some big picture items that will make your meal prep a little smoother.

Budgeting Time & Energy

Meal preps take time, they also require some energy. To prevent feeling overwhelmed it’s a great idea to look into some time management strategies.

Schedule A Time:
Schedule a time every week where you have 1 - 2 hours (or however long you need and can spare) to prep food. It may be helpful to keep this time consistent every week so that you can plan your other errands and tasks around it.

Batches & Bulks:
Batches, one sheet meals, crockpot meals, etc. can be so helpful in terms of saving time and money throughout your week. It is most efficient to cook one thing in bulk once, rather than creating the same meal individually over and over again.

What would this look like?
- Creating a stew with 4-5 servings so that you can reheat and serve throughout the week
- Cooking 5 servings of rice and distributing into containers so that you don’t have to remeasure or recook
- Roasting a large pan of vegetables that can be served throughout the week

Timing
- With only an hour or two to prep (or less in some cases) we want to make the most efficient use of our time. What that may mean is finishing the tasks with longer cook times first, so that you can complete other tasks while the first ingredients are cooking. This takes some finesse and it may take a while to find the perfect routine - don’t be too hard on yourself if you don’t get it “right” the first time.

What would this look like?
I need to prep roasted chicken breast, vegetables, rice, and breakfasts for the week. How do I plan on doing that in only an hour?

- First, I would preheat my oven so that by the time I am finished preparing the chicken and vegetables the oven will be ready.

- Next I will cut my vegetables and lay them on to a baking pan - I will choose vegetables that have a similar cook time to my chicken. Then, once prepared and seasoned, I will do the same thing to my chicken breasts and put everything into the oven - we call this a “one sheet” or a “one pan” meal.

-After cleaning up from my chicken and vegetables I will then put rice in my rice cooker or into a pan so that it can cook at the same time as my chicken and vegetables.

-While my rice is cooking I will prepare some prepackaged containers with oats, chia seeds, and any other little fixings that I want for my oatmeal for the week. This only takes a few minutes.

-By the time I am done pre-portioning my oats for the week, my rice will be finished and I can store that away into separated containers

-Shortly after that my chicken and vegetables will be done. I will let those cool and put into containers as well.

Using this method I have now prepped my lunches and breakfast for the week in about an hour.

Budgeting Your Finances

This will look different for everyone based on their individual spending limits. We can look at our grocery budget in a variety of different ways and use different methods accordingly.

Meal Prepping & Food Waste

The awesome thing about planning your meals for the week is that you have a general idea of what needs to be on your grocery list and you may be less inclined to pick up ingredients randomly and on a whim. This can drastically reduce food waste in your house which is great for your budget, your trash, and even the environment.

Seasonal Foods
Seasonal foods are typically cheaper in the season that they grow in - particularly if they are local around you. This can be so helpful when choosing the fresh produce you buy each week. Also, if it looks like your favorite thing is coming out of season ( If it looks like the prices have risen recently) you can also look to frozen options which tend to last longer and be cheaper than fresh. This also holds true for protein, ie. turkey around the Thanksgiving holiday, fish during the Lent season, etc.

Buying in Bulk
Buying in bulk from big box stores can be helpful for grains, large meats if you have the freezer room, and even for things like spices. If you find yourself having to buy something every week at the store, it may be worth it to see if it comes in bulk. (I just found bulk chia seeds recently and it has been a game changer).

Swaps & Coupons
Couponing in itself can be a very useful tactic to saving money on your groceries but it can also be time intensive. If you have the time and would like the trade off, using coupons on a weekly basis may be the best strategy for you. However, if you don’t have the time to dedicate to it, you can also explore different brands that are cheaper than your typical purchases. Typically stores will offer loyaty cards that have deals on a variety of items in the store. Most stores also have “store brands” which are typically very close to the usual brand that you may buy. Compare semi sweet chips by Nestle and a Stop & Shop brand of chocolate chips - the store brand is typically a few dollars cheaper. If you don’t mind the difference, I would always choose the store brand.

In Conclusion

• You may benefit from picking a certain time every week to meal prep and cooking efficiently during that time. Try a few different strategies to see what works best for your schedule.

• There are a variety of ways to budget according to your own situation and there are a few tips and tricks to try to save money at the grocery store. You don’t have to implement these all at once, or at all if you are not comfortable with them. They are just guidelines and tips to help in your process.

Week 6 Action Items

Additional Resources

Recommended Video

Recommended Article

Week 8: Sleep, Hydration & Stress

This week we are going to briefly talk about some strategies for some things outside of the gym and the kitchen. Taking stock of your sleep, hydration, and stress can streamline your nutrition strategy and help you towards your goals.

Sleep

We all know why it’s important to sleep. We feel better when we get sleep, our moods are better, our training sessions are better, even our hunger cues feel a little better. But what happens if we find ourselves stuck getting 5-6 hours of sleep a night or less?

Schedule A Time
Schedule time before you go to bed to allow yourself some time to decompress. This can be watching a peaceful tv show, listening to your favorite podcast, reading, or just sitting in a cozy spot for a while. This can help your brain relax for the day and work its way into “sleep mode”

Environment:
Room too cold? Sounds too loud? Not enough noise? Finding your ideal sleep environment can take some trial and error, but once you find your ideal combination you can actively try to set up that environment before you go to bed. For me, this is closing the blinds, turning on a fan, and making my environment as cool and dark as possible.

Make It A Priority
It is so easy to sleep into a sleeping routine that isn’t ideal for your schedule. Prioritize this time for yourself as much as possible. You know the saying, you can’t pour from an empty (tired) cup.

Hydration

Myths around hydration have swept the internet. While it is, of course, a valuable part of our day, it shouldn’t be the end all be all, and rules like “8 glasses of water per day” seem to be taken out of context.

Hydration in Your Day To Day

Drink when you are thirsty and as your schedule allows. As much as I would love some of my clients to drink more water, if they have a 12-hour shift with limited bathroom breaks, this just isn’t a viable addition to their nutrition program. If you do find yourself drinking a lot of things that aren’t water and would like to change that, it could be worth it to mix some additional water drinks throughout your day. Plus, you can use your tracking apps to be more aware of your water intake to see when you feel your best and also what drinks stack up well in your nutrition for the day.

Hydration For Your Training
I typically recommend most of my clients drink water before, during, and after their workout especially during summer months when the temperatures rise. This value, again, is individual. You want to be hydrated enough but not so much that you’re running to the bathroom every few minutes. Ideally you will be able to drink something before your workout and prepare to have something with you while you train. Experiment with what feels best.

Stress

We all have it. Stress in our work, in our interactions, in our workouts. It a valuable and necessary part of life, however; it can also drive us to poor eating behaviors (poor appetite or voracious appetite), make our habits harder to stick with (hello fatigue) and can complicate our overall strategies.

Stress in the moment

Working on being less reactive in the moment when a stressful situation comes up can be a valuable skill that will carry over into your other aspects of life too. Some methods for this are disconnecting from the situation, taking a few deep breaths, counting backward from 50, or just taking a few minutes to regroup before addressing the situation. This won’t always be the case, but by not being reactive you can reduce your overall stress level and keep yourself a little bit more level-headed.

Stress long term
Things like tough times at work, grad school, parenting, etc. can be long-term stressors that require a different strategy. You can’t just walk away from your responsibilities, and they happen every day, so it is imperative to find that things within your control that can help you reduce your stress. This can be elements outside of the situation. It can be changing some elements of your preparation so that you are ready to go in the morning and don’t have to stress about your commute, changing the time you allow tasks to take so that you stay focused during the day, and even self-care (yes, including bubble baths, talking with friends, etc), and finding the things that make you happy including reading, music, movies, etc. to help.

In Conclusion

• Sleep, hydration, and stress are all elements outside of the gym and the kitchen that can add to or detract from your overall strategy

• No one has it all together all the time. But if you find that one of the elements above seems to be derailing your progress, it can be worth it to strategize a few action items to see if some additional effort and focus in that area of your life will help you towards your goals.

Week 8 Action Items

Additional Resources

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Week 9: Mindful Eating: An Introduction

This week we are going to introduce the idea of mindful eating and how it can be helpful to your nutrition strategy. This week will also focus on our feelings of satiety.

What is Mindfulness?

Mindfulness is the act of sensing how and what we are feeling and thinking, without immediate interpretation or judgment. “In the moment” is a great term for it. Like most things, it is a skill that can be developed over time and it can be applied to a variety of different things in life.

What is Mindful Eating?
We can apply this “mindfulness” to our eating habits. This keeps us present and aware of the things we are eating, what we feel when we are eating, and any other sensations or feelings that accompany our meals. If we notice that a certain behavior, feeling, or habit is common in our eating patterns we can begin to look at them critically to see if they are helping us towards our goals.

Satiety:
The feeling of hunger and fullness.

Many people rush through their meals, feel a sense of overeating, or find that they are eating out of habit or boredom. This a great first place to start practicing mindfulness.

One way to do this before a meal is to take a few moments to feel that initial craving to eat and then take another few moments to think about the context of that craving. Are we bored? Are we hungry? When was the last time we ate? Is it a certain food that we are craving or is it any food in general?

By answering some of those questions we can begin to look at our eating routine and see if hunger is what we are feeling or if there was another element that was inspiring us to eat.

Also, while eating, we can practice mindfulness with how much or how fast we eat.

Do we rush through a meal, do we taste every bite, are we enjoying our meal, do we feel overly full? Some questions can make you stay present while you eat. This will make you slow down and potentially feel satiety cues earlier than if you had rushed through your meal.

These practices of enjoying our food, slowing down so that we can feel how full we are, and addressing any emotions that come up while we are eating can be helpful with our strategy moving forward and can help us start to learn more about our eating habits.

In Conclusion

• Mindfulness is a whole practice that can be applied to a variety of things in life. For nutrition, this practice can help us learn more about the way we think and feel about food and can help us address any behaviors that are detrimental to our goals before, during, and after our meals.

• Like most things with nutrition, mindfulness is a skill that does require time and practice. There are some days when you have to scarf down oatmeal because you won’t have any time to eat during your 12-hour shift - and that’s okay. But, by actively trying to be more mindful, you will find more information about your habits, thoughts, and overall feeling surrounding food and become more self aware.

Week 9 Action Items

Additional Resources

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Week 10: Mindful Eating: Continued

This week we are going to continue with the idea of mindful eating and some additional ways to put it into practice.

For Satiety

Last week we discussed what mindful eating can look like - taking time with meals, addressing the why’s of our hunger cues, etc. But what actions can we take to help us during our mindful moments?

What does slowing down look like?
There are a variety of ways to eat slower so that you have a better gauge on your hunger and how you are feeling overall while you are eating

• Using a timer to stretch out meals

• Using music or a playlist as a time gauge

• Making a mental note when you hit 70%, 80%, 90%, and 100% fullness - What does that feel like?

Enjoyment

Enjoying your food should still be a main point of your nutrition strategy long term - there may be times during a shorter strategy that will require more precision or specificity, but it can be helpful to identify why

In Conclusion

• Mindfulness is a whole practice that can be applied to a variety of things in life. For nutrition, this practice can help us learn more about the way we think and feel about food and can help us address any behaviors that are detrimental to our goals before, during, and after our meals.

• Like most things with nutrition, mindfulness is a skill that does require time and practice. There are some days when you have to scarf down oatmeal because you won’t have any time to eat during your 12-hour shift - and that’s okay. But, by actively trying to be more mindful, you will find more information about your habits, thoughts, and overall feeling surrounding food and become more self aware.

Week 9 Action Items

Additional Resources

Recommended Article

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