Simple Fixes to the Top 5 Biggest Nutrition Mistakes

The five common nutritional missteps that almost every individual makes have a massive bearing on our health, fitness, physique, and mental well-being. They are easy to make but also simple to sort out. Read on to learn what those mistakes are, and how they can be fixed. 

1. Eating too many pseudo-healthy foods
2. Not consuming enough protein
3. Skipping vegetables
4. Living in a state of constant dehydration
5. Forgetting that the gut needs a rest

 

PSEUDO-HEALTHY FOODS

The market is flooded with pseudo-healthy foods such as protein bars, protein balls, protein ice-cream and other ‘healthy snacks’, which are often not healthy at all as they are ultra-processed, full of gut-damaging ingredients and lack micronutrients. Don’t believe what’s on the front of the packaging; it’s advertising. Become a pack flipper, read the ingredients list, and avoid these:

• Numbered ingredients
• Ultra-processed vegetable and seed oils
• Cosmetic’ additives (used only in the manufacture of ultra-processed foods)- flavours, flavour enhancers, colours, emulsifiers, emulsifying salts, artificial sweeteners and sugar alcohols, thickeners, and anti-foaming, bulking, carbonating, foaming, gelling and glazing agents
• Ultra-processed soy

You can download our free How to Read Food Labels e-Book.

PROTEIN

Protein is essential for muscle growth and repair, immune system, hormones and enzyme production, and cellular function, to name a few.  Although the general guidelines recommend 0.8g of protein per kilogram of body weight, most experts in the field recommend 1.2- 2g.

The best protein to have pre-workout is COLLAGEN to strengthen ligaments and tendons. The recommendation is 10-15g, 30-60min before workout. 

The best protein to have post-workout is BEEF or WHEY protein due to its full amino-acid profile and high content of LEUCINE, which is crucial for muscle-building and recovery.

KNOW WHERE YOUR PROTEIN COMES FROM

Not all protein sources are created equal. The market is flooded with protein bars and powders often laden with additives, sugars, and artificial ingredients. These ultra-processed options can undermine the nutritional benefits of protein. When buying any protein powder, always go for grass-fed and finished (especially when purchasing beef or whey protein). While it’s quite difficult to cover collagen requirements in a diet, it’s easy to get your essential amino acids by eating meat (especially beef), eggs and dairy. No powders are needed.

VEGETABLES

We need the right amount and variety of vegetables from a good source. Based on research to date, we recommend 600g of organic non-starchy vegetables a day. Variety is very important, as different vegetables contain different nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, and polyphenols. The benefits of eating vegetables lie in the micronutrients, fibre, and water content. Non-organic vegetables are sprayed with toxic hormone-disrupting herbicides and pesticides that are impossible to wash off. Buy seasonal organic vegetables at your local farmer’s markets. If you don’t have access to markets, get non-organic fruits and veg that are in a ‘shell’ or have thick skin you can peel off such as bananas, avocados, pumpkin, and cucumbers. Buy the rest of the produce organic, especially leafy greens and berries.

Include fermented vegetables every day! They are more effective in improving your gut microbiome than probiotics.

If you get bloated and have stomach aches after eating vegetables, you will need to heal your gut first. You can book a free nutrition tune-up here.

HYDRATION

Most of us forget to drink enough water and live in a state of constant dehydration as a result. Water plays a key role in every function in the human body, and dehydration affects our physical and mental health and performance. Did you know that the most common cause of constipation and fatigue is simply dehydration? Furthermore, just 2% dehydration (losing 2% of your body weight via sweat) will reduce running performance by 10-20%!!! Heat, humidity, altitude and intensity will increase your hydration demands.

We recommend drinking 2-3 L of filtered water or 30 to 60 millilitres per kilogram of body weight per day. Get a big water bottle (1-1.5L) and aim to finish 2-3 of them every day by SIPPING throughout the day. It’s easy to track. Who has time to count glasses?

Add some pink salt to your water bottle to keep the water in the cells instead of having to pee every 30 minutes.

FASTING

Daily fasting is essential to keep your gut healthy and to sleep well, which affects everything! You don’t have to go starving; just have at least a 12-hour break between dinner and breakfast. In the break, you can have a black coffee, water, or herbal tea but no milk or other calorific drinks or food. Rather than fasting, we call this circadian eating (eating in tune with your body clock).

Our circadian eating recommendations are simple:

• Eat dinner no later than 3 hours before bedtime.
• Have at least a 12-hour break between the last and first meal.
• Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper.

 

If you are interested in prolonged fasting and its benefits, read our blog post here.