More Clean Eating Benefits

In a previous post, I gave an example of a typical day of eating. That included eggs, bacon, mushrooms, asparagus, spinach and tomato for breakfast. Some full cream milk, banana and some nuts after training. A large salad with chicken drumstick meat in the afternoon and sardines with a serve of stir-fried vegetables for dinner.

But, of course, it isn’t like this every day. So, here are some other things that I enjoy as part of my high fat/high protein/low carbohydrate lifestyle:-

Ø  Salmon – Another excellent source of omega 3 fats and protein. I will have salmon sometimes for breakfast and sometimes for lunch with salad or vegetables. It’s important to try and find wild caught salmon because it has greater nutrients. The salmon which is farmed has a different diet than it would in the wild and this affects its nutritional value.

Ø  Lamb – I really love roasting lamb. Particularly, a lamb shoulder. It is beautifully tender and is terrific for adding to a salad the next day or with some left over roasted sweet potatoes and pumpkin which I normally do when roasting meat. It is usually quite fatty which is nice.

Ø  Chicken thigh – These cuts go great in a stir-fry. They even help with providing moisture to coat the other ingredients because of their fat content. 

Ø  Coconut oil – I love using this in the pan for many things including stir-fries, bacon, mushrooms and even steak. It’s a wonderful flavor and it has a high heat tolerance so it doesn’t go rancid which olive oil sometimes can. You can use it for roasting too.

Ø  Avocado oil – I have just been introduced to this and it is sensational. Perfect salad dressing and goes nicely on a roast.

Ø  Bone broth – This is a superfood. Over the course of two or three weeks I will stockpile my chicken drumstick bones. When I have a good batch, about 30 or so, I will break them up and boil/simmer in a couple of litres of water for several hours. I will use herbs in the water for flavour and when it is done I strain it and divide into portions to freeze. I will then have a serve about every second day for a couple of weeks. The benefits of bone broth are amazing. It aids digestion, helps with leaky gut issues, aids joint and muscle health and a great deal else. Google it and find out some more.

Ø  I tend to use the same 10 – 12 different types of vegetables each day. It gives me a lot of variety in taste and nutrients and is easy to know what to do which saves time.

I’d like to tell you about some of the benefits I have seen in myself since beginning a low carbohydrate diet and focusing on consumption of many good fats, protein and a lot of vegetables.

My digestive system is working better than I could have imagined. Previously, when I consumed a large amount of carbohydrates in the form of bread, oats, rice, fruit, as well as some cakes and muffins almost on a daily basis, believing this was what was necessary to fuel my body for training and racing long distance triathlon, I often had digestive issues. This included bloating, constipation, diarrhea and flatulence.

Bloating was an often occurrence with a general heavy feeling in my gut. I was always looking to be as lean as possible to help my performance but never felt close to what I wanted because it seemed my gut was holding its size. Every couple of weeks, I would go through a period where I would feel excessively full, despite not eating anything particularly different. I would then be constipated, have bad flatulence which didn’t provide any relief and I would be constipated for three or four days before I would finally have a less than satisfying bowel movement that may only provide some relief. It may even be very difficult or painful to have a movement. This would be accompanied by a bout of lethargy which would sometimes affect training too.

Occasionally I would have diarrhea for a few days at a time that would come with a general queasiness in my stomach. This would affect my energy and training too but, more so, cause some anxiety about needing to use the toilet at short notice. Now, I have satisfying bowel movements almost every day. Even if I don’t go for 2 or 3 days, I don’t feel constipated, ‘gassy’ or bloated, I just don’t need to go and when my body needs to go again, it’s easy to do. It shouldn’t take a long time to use the toilet, it should be simple and pain free. If you’re sitting there for 10 or 15 minutes or more, then there’s a need to improve this.

All of these issues seem to have disappeared. The last time I can recall having these types of problems was shortly after Christmas where I didn’t take as much care over what I was eating for a few days. However, since at least mid-January, I have been functioning amazingly well. The most noticeable positives are my energy levels and appetite.

Energy and appetite are daily issues for everyone. We all get hungry every day and we all require energy to power our daily activities. For me, I don’t get crazy dips in energy or cravings every 2 – 3 hours anymore. I used to get these dips and take it as I sign to eat again, so I would, and the cycle would continue. But, as I will explain why in a future post, I can easily go for 5 or 6 hours between meals without these dips. Instead, I have a constant flow of energy for long periods and my training is not negatively affected in any way. I can easily perform 90 minutes of exercise, no matter if it is high intensity intervals or endurance based training, 3 or 4 hours after eating, without any thought of needing to consume food and I will only drink water to satisfy my thirst.

My water consumption is well down. I used to drink water based on what I thought I needed. As Professor Tim Noakes explains in his book Waterlogged and Challenging Beliefs: Memoirs of a Career, drinking water to satisfy thirst is the best way to provide your body’s fluid needs. Don’t base it on a pre-conceived idea of what amount your body needs or recommendations from sports drink/sports nutrition companies and their ‘experts’. Remember, vegetables contain a lot of water which does make a big difference to fluid intake. When you allow your body to function correctly, it will tell you when you need to eat and drink. For example, you will be thirsty when your body needs water.

Don’t put up with poor digestion or any of the problems I have mentioned above anymore. Eat clean and fell clean for life.

The sooner you make the change, the sooner your body will thank you.

Cheers,

Lincoln.