Choosing healthier, long-term habits for improved wellbeing
A guest blog from Ciara McKinlay
With national lockdown being announced for another month, many of us are worrying about the impact this new phase of social distancing on our mental and physical health. With the nights drawing in and many continuing to work from home, it’s really important that we all try and adopt practices that influence of health and wellbeing.
Ciara McKinlay is a nutrition and lifestyle coach, personal trainer, and a good friend of the Gender Inclusion Network
That’s why we’re so please to be catching up with Ciara McKinlay, Nutrition and Lifestyle Coach, and Personal Trainer, and friend of GIN. Ciara founded the organisation Fabtrition and she supports individuals and groups in changing behaviours to create lifelong healthy habits.
Ciara held a session for GIN members earlier this year on how to boost our mental and physical energy, so we’re delighted to have her back to share some more top tips on keeping healthy.
So, Ciara, can you give us an intro into how we can make ourselves feel better and more energetic through our lifestyle choices?
“The first point worth noting is that we are all different. We each have our own genetics, metabolisms, and preferences. However, we can all make choices on a daily basis which can help to significantly influence our health and our future.
“Nutrition and lifestyle choices play an integral part in determining long term health. Every day you decide what to fuel your body with – everything you eat, and drink will determine how your body reacts and how you perform both mentally and physically.
“I’ve detailed my top recommendations here which have the potential to positively impact your health and how you feel.”
Establish Blood Sugar Balance
Do you ever wake up feeling drained or get hit by energy lows at certain points of the day? If you wish to boost your mental and physical energy levels naturally then establishing a blood sugar balance is for you.
The Solution: Eat every 3 - 4 hours. Create your own timetable to suit your day.
The Why: If we eat erratically then the body never knows when to expect food and it stores the fat. Creating a routine will teach your body that food is coming. By eating three meals a day and two/three snacks you’ll keep hormones regulated.
The Result: You will get your energy back; your cravings will stop, and your mood will feel more balanced.
2. Start the Day Well
Do you ever feel zapped of energy mid-morning and crave for a pick-me- up? This is likely to lead to either a caffeine intake or a high sugar intake.
The Solution: Start the day well by eating a healthy breakfast. To have an energy supporting healthy breakfast it should contain all 3 macro-nutrients: complex carbohydrates, protein and a little fat (the good fats!), because this combination will hold off hunger for hours.
The Why? After fasting overnight, your brain’s supply of glucose, its main source of energy, is depleted.
The Result: A healthy breakfast will jump-start your brain and power it throughout the morning, providing you with physical energy but also allowing you to think clearly and concentrate on mental tasks.
3. Hydrate
Do you ever feel dizzy or irritable? Do you get headaches or suffer from bloated stomach? You could be dehydrated.
The Solution: Drink 2.5 pints/1.5 litres of water or 6-8 glasses per day. You need to increase your intake if you drink tea, coffee, alcohol or fizzy drinks as these can all dehydrate you. Additional water is also required if exercising, eating salty foods, flying or experiencing warmer weather.
The Why: We lose water daily so it’s important to keep it topped up. Your body is 2/3’s water which provides the means for all the nutrients you digest to travel to organs and for you to eliminate toxins. Water is also crucial for weight management as it assists your body in metabolising fat.
The Result: It will keep you healthy, keep you full and help your skin glow not to mention avoiding joint pain, irritability, headache, tension and a bloated stomach.
4. Go with the grains
Fibre slows down digestion, which helps keep blood sugar balanced
Do you ever feel tired after eating bread? Chances are you're responding to changes in blood sugar levels.
The Solution: Choose wholegrains/whole wheat (Breads, wraps, pittas, pastas, rice or noodles) to prevent you from feeling tired and balance your blood sugar. Look for products that are 100 percent whole grain or have a whole grain, like wholewheat flour listed as the main ingredient.
The Why: Carbohydrates are an important part of your diet as they give you energy but it is the type of carbohydrate you consume that determines the quality of that energy. What is important is whether they are refined or unrefined. When it is refined the goodness is stripped away!
The Result: Prevent tiredness related to swings in blood sugar by choosing high-fibre breads and pastas. Fibre slows down digestion, which helps keep blood sugar balanced.
5. Avoid Trans Fats
Do you ever feel lethargic? Do you ever have trouble digesting certain foods or feel bloated?
The Solution: Avoid trans fats which are found in take-aways, fried foods, baked goods and frozen foods.Watch out for ‘trans fats’ or ‘partially hydrogenated fats’ on the food label. Instead, focus on good quality healthy fats which can be found in grass fed animals, oily fish, nuts and seeds, olives and avocados for instance.
The Why: Trans fats might taste good, but they are not good for you. It is an unnatural man-made process which and hence stores as fat which can lead to many health issues.
The Result: Eating natural healthy fats will support your immunity, heart, energy and nervous systems.
6. Eat Mindfully
When you eat slowly, you give your brain a chance to communicate with your body that you are full
Do you find it difficult to recognise when you are actually hungry? When was the last time you really paid attention to what you are eating?
The Solution: Eat mindfully, eat slowly, avoid distractions (technology), and employ your senses when eating (taste, touch, and smell). Begin to appreciate the role of food in your body.
The Why: When you eat slowly, you give your brain a chance to communicate with your body that you are full.
The Result: Transform your relationship with food. You will begin to distinguish between emotional and physical hunger. Food does not have to be seen as a reward or punishment, it is much more than that - it nourishes you to keep you healthy and strong.
For more information you can contact Ciara McKinlay at ciara@fabtrition.ie