Is exercise making you fat and sick?

Hey friends! You probably guessed that uni has resumed given my utter neglect for this blog. Apologies!! I will endeavour to get a couple out over the next few weeks. But in the meantime, my fantastic other half has once again come through with the goods for you. Woo hoo! Nothing like a good guest post to mix things up a little. 

Note: images, videos, emphasis and (probably useless) comments in purple added by Kate! 

OK so you’ve been eating well, training hard and yet you’re just not losing any weight. In fact that layer of belly fat seems to be getting bigger! What’s worse is you can’t shake this!

In desperation you decide to up the training…

Sound familiar?

As hot as this chick is, this is NOT the right attitude to have with training! She's a model people! That bar probably doesn't even have any weight on it! (Image courtesy of Jan Hutnan who keeps tagging me in photos such as this on FB. Thanks??? Jan). 

The "Calories In vs Calories" Out Fallacy
Many of our training beliefs have been built around this concept of calories in vs calories out i.e. "If I eat a chocolate that is 200 calories I need to do X amount of time on the rower, bike etc to burn it off". Unfortunately the numbers just aren’t that clean and can be heavily influenced my many biological and environmental factors, such as:

• Gut flora health
• Genetic tolerance 
• Foods' individual influence on endocrine (hormone) system
• Sleep quality and quantity of the individual
• How balanced your endocrine system is
• How much environmental toxins you’ve been exposed to
• How much fat you’re currently carrying

All of these factors (and probably more) have a significant influence over how your body will deal with that 200 calories you just ate. 


Why Do We Exercise?
Well, if we’re not worried about how many calories we’re burning per session, what are we trying to do with exercise? Easy:

Feel, Look and Perform Better

As you know the benefits of exercise are many:


• Increase immune system function
• Maintain body composition
• Slow aging process
• Stress management
• Decrease risk of diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis
• Decrease risk of depression and anxiety
• Increase feel good hormone serotonin
• Slow aging process down in the brain (i.e. dementia)

As fantastic as this magic bullet is we need to remember just because some is good doesn’t mean more is necessarily better.


The reality is that at the end of every workout, you’re in worse shape than when you started. (Oh great!) But with adequate rest, hydration and of course fresh, whole foods your body will adapt to cope with these specific stresses which you place on it.


Back To The Belly Fat
The body is such a fantastically put together machine. If you’re aware and prepared to listen and look it will give you clues on how it is feeling, functioning and how efficiently it is performing.
It’s a very common pattern to see someone with a very lean upper and lower body but with a soft midsection.

This soft midsection is often an indicator that there is too much cortisol in the blood. Cortisol is the stress hormone. Again - some is good and in fact vital for survival, but too much can affect where you store your fat. A rise in cortisol can be driven by many factors.



• Food intolerances
• Environmental toxins
• Sleep quality and quantity
• Excessive training
• Emotional stress
• Being chased by a lion

Today we’re going to consider how we can manipulate our exercise routine to minimise the stress on the system when needed, which will in turn accelerate your results.

Great! Less work for better results. Sounds good to me!

“But I Use Exercise To Control My Stress”
I agree exercise can be one of the best tools you can have for dealing with this modern world and all the stress it throws at you from all angles. The key is realising that if some is good, more is not always better. 

At the end of the day training is just another stress on your system. The key to getting the most out of your training is to understand where you are on the stress continuum. What days do you turn up the heat? What days to you chill out?


How hard should I train today?
A big step towards optimising your training and health is to perform a quick daily assessment.
Ask yourself these quick questions to get a better understanding of where you are on the stress continuum:


• How did I sleep? How long for and how was the quality?
• When did I last train? (e.g. if you trained this morning, you probably don't need to train again this afternoon - get outside and enjoy life!)
• How is my motivation to train today?
• How are my energy levels?
• When did I last eat? (this is very individual - some people train better in a fasted state, others need a little somethin' somethin' in their belly...yes, I meant to write it twice)
• What sort of day/week have I got ahead?
• Am I feeling tight or injured at the moment? (pushing through injury will quite literally floor you! I'm working through this at the moment....although I have managed to get off the floor)


This is by no means a complete list and please feel free to add specific questions that are relevant to your lifestyle. Give yourself a score out of 10 (clearly there are not 10 questions - it's more of an overall rating). If you get a 9 or 10/10 then you’re good to go. Game on…it’s hammer time.....

(Surely you saw that one coming!!)

If you’re only a 5/10 then you do your planned session but reduce the volume (i.e. less sets and/or less reps).

If your score comes out at a 2/10 then maybe it’s time for a rest day or a light walk outside to help your body regenerate, then you can hit it hard again when your energy levels come up.


Callaghan, You’re Getting Soft In Your Old Age! (clearly referring to A.Callaghan, not K.Callaghan)
So this all sounds good in theory but isn’t just another example of taking the soft option.
A great example of what can be achieved when these concepts are utilised is to take a look at the athletes competing in the Olympics. Many of these athletes have worked for four years+ to arrive at the Olympics in peak physical condition. This is achieved by constantly listening to their body, tweaking the volume and intensity, and maintaining the belief that each part of the puzzle is taking them a step closer to their goal or dream.


Enjoy the Journey
The advantage an athlete has is that they have a very defined goal and time line i.e. compete at the Olympics 2012. We need to remember that for peak performance and optimal health one workout has very little impact. But consistent positive habits over a period of time have the potential to create massive change on how you look, feel and perform now and over the last 30-40 years of your life. If in doubt you’re better to under-train and then come back another day to take on the battle.

Every session doesn’t have to be a fight to the death.

Conclusion

There is nothing tougher than watching someone work incredibly hard and not get the results they deserve. The truth of the matter is your training should be as individualised as your eating.

The idea behind this article was to give you a deeper understanding of the positive and negative effects exercise can have on your body and how you can tweak your program to get maximum results.No need to worry about how many calories you’re burning but instead be aware of where you are on the stress continuum.

The next instalment will be on how to train to spike your anabolic hormones and slow the aging process.  

Aaron Callaghan

Director, Primal Fitness

http://www.primal-fitness.com.au/ 

Recipe for a perfect Sunday lunch

Ingredients:

• ·         A small handful of friends (and a gorgeous puppy for good measure)
• ·         Some good quality red wine (and a couple of cheeky glasses of Bolly)
• ·         Delicious whole food cooked to perfection

Instructions:

Combine all ingredients together around a dining table and enjoy!

This was our day yesterday. It was perfection in every way, shape and form – the company, the food and the wine.  And the best part? It was all “primal”. That’s right! No grains, legumes or sugar (bar the Bolly)! Rach and Robbo, the hosts with the most set to task early in the week to create a menu that was both delicious and nutritious (and suitable for us special snowflakes) and the result was above and beyond our expectations!

So what did we have?

Appetiser:

• Platters of prosciutto and smoked salmon

Main:

• Slow-cooked lamb shoulder, along with the juices (I may post the recipe for this one if I can coax it out of Robbo)
• Sweet potato puree
• Roasted carrots, parsnips and eschallots
• Steamed broccoli
• Fresh peas with fetta and mint
• Cabbage slaw with olive oil and parmesan

Dessert:

• Grain-free, sugar-free cherry tart

Now Robbo is quite the cook. This lunch was fancy-pants gourmet. And seriously – all “primal”-friendly!

Robbo carving up his delicious "experimental" Cherry tart in my dream kitchen

Close-up of said Cherry Tart

OK, so the purpose of this post was not to gloat about how fabulous my Sunday was. The purpose was to show you that eating paleo or primal does not have to equal lack of flavour or pizazz (haven’t used that word in a while!). In fact, when you take out the flours, the sugars and all of the other processed junk, you are able to really experience all the flavours that the food has to offer. You see, flour is simply a dodgy filler with no nutritional value (quite the opposite – it has anti-nutrient properties….dodgy!) – take it out of baked goods and you are left with something more nutritious and more dense (i.e. richer in flavour).

What about for gravy? Use arrowroot powder to thicken or none at all. We simply drizzled some juices over the meat. Alternatively you could serve the juices as a consommé beforehand – it tastes fantastic and is incredibly nutritious, containing minerals, collagen and glycosaminoglycans (great for joint health) that have seeped out of the bones during the cooking process (an acidic medium, such as wine or vinegar, helps to draw the minerals out of bones when slow-cooking).

And sugar? Well the sugar that we add to foods is there to “enhance” flavours, but in reality, what it is doing is dulling our taste-buds to the point where we will need more and more over time to continue to enjoy the foods. Take sugar out of your diet for 30 days and I can guarantee your sense of taste will increase, enabling you to appreciate a greater spectrum of flavours and textures.

Despite the deliciousness (that’s actually a word! Microsoft didn’t try to correct me!), the best part for me was the joy that Robbo got out of taking on the “primal challenge” and creating something new and different that turned out to be a huge success with all attendees, even 13 year old Darcy, who is apparently quite the food critic!

Now, it's no secret that I don’t like the word “diet”. To me, it suggests deprivation. Using symbols:

Diet = Deprivation ≠ Long-term success/happiness

Unfortunately, my future job title is going to contain this very word. And I don’t really want to be known as a “deprivationist” (dietitian/nutritionist). Healthy eating should be something that can be maintained and enjoyed for all people throughout their entire life. Don’t get me wrong, I love seeing clients’ body composition change after adopting the paleo/primal lifestyle, but nothing pleases me more than being able to add to, rather than take away, elements of people’s life and then hear these types of statements:

“It’s actually quite easy!”

“I am loving the food!”

“… and I don’t even feel hungry!”

"Are you sure it's OK for me? It tastes SO good!"

To me, THAT is success!

And finally what I would like you to take out of this post is to RELAX! Take time to enjoy the company of good friends over a long lunch and maybe a couple of glasses of good quality wine. All too often we are so busy with being busy that we forget to live. So this weekend (or sometime in the near future), stop being so busy, get a group of friends together and ENJOY LIFE!! Just like Tommy:

Paleo-ish No-bake Mixed Berry "Cheese"cake

Just the other night I discovered that my husband’s favourite dessert is (or was) cheesecake! It has only taken me 6 years to discover this (bad wife, I know)! The finding came about after he was speaking with a client who was expressing her difficulty in following the “paleo” diet. He decided to ask her what the worst thing she has recently eaten was. The answer? Cheesecake!! 


So naturally, there was only one thing for me to do…..make a paleo-style cheesecake that was in line with our nutritional philosophy (free of grains, dairy and processed junk; made with whole foods and a touch of love) and at the same time incredibly delicious. After searching, tweaking and creating I can happily say I created a dessert that ticked all the boxes. This little baby was approved not only by my husband (who was not too happy about having to share it), but also my fellow personal trainers and all of our clients that we trained the following morning at Primal Fitness! Not only that, but it was up against some pretty tough competition as Lachy, our Primal Fitness Masterchef, had also whipped up an insanely delicious pecan pie (also Primal-approved). Yes, it was (and has been for the past few weeks) a Primal Fitness bake-off. 


Another layer of challenge was added on with the 3rd member of the bake-off team, Tracey-Anne, following a FODMAPs diet at the moment to help with some digestive issues she has experienced throughout her life. If you currently suffer from digestive problems (i.e. irritable bowel syndrome), and a general paleo-ish diet hasn’t helped, perhaps FODMAPs would be worth a shot!


Anywho – this whole FODMAPs business limited what could be added to the baked goods. 
While not 100% FODMAPs, the cheesecake is mostly there and could be tweaked to get it over the line if necessary. 


I also decided to make quite an occasion of it and made my husband’s favourite dinner – Slow Cooked Beef Ribs (amazing recipe from Civilised Caveman), serving the broth as an entrée (kind of like a consommé – fancy, right?) and dishing up some mashed sweet potato and roasted cauliflower to accompany the main. Yes, I was definitely in the good-books that night!


OK, enough blabbering on. Here it is:


Paleo-ish No-bake Mixed Berry “Cheese”cake


Grain-free crust:

• 1 ½ cups raw macadamias
• ½ cup medjool dates, pitted and roughly chopped
• ¼ cup shredded dried coconut

Dairy-free filling:

• 3 cups cashews, soaked for 1-2hrs
• ¾ cup fresh lemon juice (around 3 juicy lemons – buy extra just in case)
• ¾ cup organic maple syrup (the real stuff, not the imitation kind – yes, the real stuff is expensive)
• ¾ cup extra virgin coconut oil, melted
• ½ - 1tsp vanilla bean powder (add a small amount and taste test before adding more; can use 1tbp pure vanilla extract instead if desired)

Fruit topping:

• 1 cup each frozen blueberries and raspberries, allow to thaw slightly
• ½ cup medjool dates, pitted and chopped roughly

Instructions:
Crust: 

• Blend nuts and dates in a food processor until well-processed. 
• Sprinkle coconut on base of cheesecake pan (or whatever you are going to “cook” it in) – this will prevent the mix from sticking to the base and will also add texture and flavour
• Press the nut/date mixture down into the pan to form a crust

Filling:

• Blend all ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Spoon mixture evenly over the crust. Place in freezer for around 1hr

Topping:

• Blend all ingredients in food processor until smooth. Take cake out of freezer and spoon berry mixture evenly over the top. Return to freezer.
• This can be kept in the freezer until around an hour before you would like to eat it. It’s also nice frozen – whatever floats your boat! 

Now remember, while this is a much healthier version of a traditional cheesecake, and also a great option for us special snowflakes who can’t handle (or just choose to avoid) dairy and/or gluten, it is still a dessert and should be treated as such, enjoyed on special occasions only. It is not a breakfast alternative, although to be completely honest it is probably more nutritious than 99% of the breakfast cereals available, so if you are currently eating some form of packaged, sugar-coated cardboard for breakfast and want to improve your diet, then sure – go ahead and have this cheesecake for brekkie! But for all of you who have your diet pretty dialled in, here are just a few reasons to keep this as a special treat:

• It is jam-packed full of nuts which, while nutritious in small doses, in large quantities they can cause problems with digestion due to a high amount of phytic acid/phytates. For more on nuts and phytates, check out my post here. 
• Maple syrup, while also beneficial in small doses (only if it is the real deal), is still essentially glucose, which causes spikes in insulin (though not as much as sugar, agave or high-fructose corn syrup) and can disturb overall health and wellness.
• It jam-packed full of nuts and organic maple syrup…..so it is one VERY expensive (yet insanely delicious) cheesecake!!

Why have I called it “paleo-ish” and not simply “paleo”?? Well the paleo lifestyle is based on how our hunter-gatherer ancestors lived and ate and I just haven’t come across any evidence that shows paleo-man whipping up a storm in his high speed food processor. Go figure! I’m also pretty sure that they would never have bothered to shell 1.5 cups of macadamias just to blend them up, given that they come like this in nature and would be hard as hell to crack open:

But, here we are in the modern world, with pre-shelled nuts and very handy kitchen tools, so let’s just enjoy the goods in moderation….and preferably in good company!

Growing Healthy Babies....Naturally pt.2

OK, so part 2 of the “Growing Healthy Babies” workshop with Soulla was extremely eye-opening for me. While part 1 was reinforcing a lot of the information I already know, this session sufficiently filled my brain with new concepts. It was also a longer session, so there is no way I will be able to fill you in on everything, but I will give you a little food for thought and some places to look for further info.

I also want to say right off the bat that some of you may not agree with the concepts discussed. That is fine – everyone is entitled to their own views and opinions. The important thing, I believe, is in understanding why you feel a certain way. If it is simply because the alternative “just isn’t normal”, then perhaps you might consider opening up to new ideas and possibilities….just sayin’.

First off, something non-controversial (hopefully)…..BREASTFEEDING!!

Image source: www.news.com.au

That’s right – if you breastfeed, you too can look as hot as Miranda! 

Not sold? Fine. Let’s go through some other reasons why breastfeeding is the bees’ knees.

Soulla describes breast milk as “nature’s perfect food”, and I couldn’t agree more. What’s in it that makes it so special (1)? This calls for a list:

• Protein to provide essential amino acids for growth, protective factors (immune health), vitamin carriers (folate, vit.D, vit.B12), hormones (thyroid and stress hormones), enzymes such as amylase and lipase (to break down carbohydrates and fats also found in the milk).
• NOTE: maternal nutrition affects the protein composition of breast milk. Read: what you eat is what your baby eats – get it right! If you are vegan/vegetarian, chances are you are not getting adequate protein in your diet. I know what you’re thinking “that’s why I have soy!”. To that I say, for the love of God, please put the tofu down!! While it may provide protein, it has other components which can disrupt the hormonal balance of both mum and bub. Please don’t.
• Fat! Majority of breast milk is fat (around 50%), mostly triglycerides (holy moly my baby is going to get heart disease!!). This is a perfect example of how important fat is. Fat is essential for growth and energy, but most importantly for retinal (eye) and neuronal (brain) development.
• Carbohydrates, mostly lactose, but also oligosaccharides and bifidus factors which help to build the good bacteria in baby’s gut.
• Vitamins and minerals. Again “when maternal vitamin status is low, human-milk contents are correspondingly low”. I’m not going to go over which vitamins and minerals, because they are all in there….all of them, but only if mum is getting adequate nutrition (which should look like this).
• Natural anti-biotic – apparently breast milk is good for ‘sticky eye’! Who knew?

A baby is born with a completely sterile gut. This highlights the importance of probiotics, which are obtained through breast milk, but also via passage through the vaginal canal. These two factors are so important for life-long immunity and gut health. Studies have shown that babies born via caesarean or who are not breastfed are more susceptible to allergies, asthma and other gut-related conditions (i.e. EVERYTHING!). If you cannot do either of these things, I suggest looking into a good baby probiotic supplement.

So what about formula?

Unfortunately all of the formulas available are pretty dodgy and don’t even come close to the real deal. In fact, they can potentially be quite damaging to the digestive system and can wreak havoc on the hormones. If you can’t breast feed, buy Chris Kresser’s Healthy Baby Code (also see banner at side of page) or Sally Fallon’s “NourishingTraditions”, both of which provide nutrient-dense home-made formulas without the added nasties you would get from a store-bought formula.

Interesting fact:  “It is estimated that an infant exclusively fed soy formula receives the estrogenic equivalent of at least five birth control pills per day” (www.ppnf.org)

Now that’s just wrong! If you must buy formula from the store, please check the labels and avoid soy at all costs!

There are also benefits of breastfeeding to the mum, including bonding, losing baby weight faster, hormonal activity and also protection from osteoporosis and cancer!

Milk production works in a “supply and demand” fashion. Frequent feeding will ensure milk supply is adequate. Also note that it may be quite uncomfortable at first, but try to stick with it – it’s worth it!

How long? 6mths exclusive (i.e. nothing else to supplement) and continue to 2+ years. The world average for breast feeding is 4.7yrs!! I know many of you are turning your noses up in disgust now, but why? Is it due to our perception of what is “normal”? As Soulla points out, this doesn’t mean you are going to pop the boob out for your child to have a drink in the middle of a restaurant. At a later age, feeding may be as infrequent as 1-2 times per day, and this can be done in the privacy and comfort of your own home – no-one needs to know!

Next up – introduction of solids

Again, I cannot recommend highly enough Chris Kresser’s Healthy Baby Code – it covers EVERYTHING you need to know, pre  and post birth and is not just nutrition, providing a very holistic approach to baby-making. It’s a little exxie, but then again if it helps, it’s worth it, right?

Cue cute baby shot:

Yes, she is chewing on a T-bone and no, this photo was not set up! This is Chloe, the gorgeous and robust daughter of Billy and Paula of Plus Fitness in Thornleigh. Chloe is a "primal baby" and is absolutely thriving - living breathing proof that this stuff matters!

Contrary to popular belief, rice cereal is NOT a good first food: 1)it is nutrient poor and 2)it may contain “anti-nutrients” which affect the baby’s nutritional status. Same goes for other grains, especially wheat, which are hard to digest and lacking in nutrients.  Also avoid fruit juices and dried fruits, which are high in sugar and many have preservatives and/or damaging vegetable oils (I’m looking at you Sunbeam Sultanas!).

First foods should be nutrient-dense, yet easy for the baby to digest due to having an immature digestive system. Great foods to start off on at 6mths are egg yolks (cooked, but still soft; NOT egg whites), liver, and cod liver oil (Green Pastures), and banana (if you really want to do the whole mashed fruit thing). Later on, when you start to add vegies, make sure you add some coconut oil or butter to provide some fat, which is needed to absorb all of the vitamins. If you want a full solids schedule, I suggest you get Chris's Baby Code, or pop me an email.

Remember that it can take up to 15 tries to get your child to like a certain food. If he or she doesn’t like carrot this week, it doesn’t mean they never will. Leave it and come back to it next week. Be persistent! 

What about later on? I can’t deprive them of cake and chocolate and [insert other crap here]….

I’m sorry, but this gives me the shits. I know, I’m not a mother so I don’t know what it is like, but as I mentioned before, Soulla is a mother and holds the same views. Think of it this way, while you may be depriving them of cakes, sweets and lollies and all that "fun stuff", you are also “depriving” them of long term health and behavioural complications, such as diabetes, ADHD, obesity, auto-immune conditions. The eating habits you instil in them at a young age are carried through with them for the rest of their lives. So again – get it right. And remember, you are their parent first, not their friend. 

Easier said than done? Yes, there will be times when your kids go to parties or play dates and they are exposed to less-than-optimal foods and beverages. So what do you do? Well you could go with them, be a helicopter parent and smack the fairy bread out of their hands as soon as they touch it and scream “POISON”, then hose them down, bundle them up and take them home right away yelling “WITCH” at the host as you pass her.

OR…..you could make healthy alternatives (yes, these can still be tasty – go to www.chowstalker.com or www.dessertstalker.com for ideas) and present them as a gift to the host. When Soulla first mentioned this to me a while back, I asked her if the parents hosting the party/play date were offended. On the contrary, she said most were very grateful and she is constantly asked for recipes by other mums! Give it a try! If you feel like you are being judged, just tell other mums that your kids have allergies – can’t argue with that!

In terms of what they eat at other times – that is entirely on you, the parent. Especially when they are young – it’s not like they are going to go down to the shops and buy themselves a pack of Allen’s lollies. If you don’t have it in the house, if you don’t give it to them, they won’t eat it. Soulla also recommends explaining to your kids why they should and should not eat certain foods – have a conversation with them, rather than just telling them they can’t have something.

Some great blogs to check out for tips and recipes on raising healthy kids are:

• Everyday Paleo
• My Star Anise
• Growing Up Paleo
• Paleo Parents

Other excellent resources for topics we have covered today:

• Price Pottenger Foundation
• Chris Kresser

OK, I think I am going to have to make this a 3-part series. I feel that this is enough info this week (and my hands are too cold to type any more!). As always, I would love to hear your thoughts and questions!

What to do next week

What? 

The Real Food Summit!! A.K.A massive FREE nerd-a-thon with some of the best minds in food and nutrition that should not be missed!

If you are sold already, go HERE to register now

Who? 

The fabulous Sean Croxton of Underground Wellness has once again put his heart and soul into creating a stellar line up of professionals for the benefit of us., the people! And it’s FREE!!

If you haven’t heard of Sean before, you really need to come out from under your rock and get listening to his podcasts – pop them on your iPod and make use of your travel time! This guy is quite possibly the most well-connected man in the business, and he’s not just paleo – his deal is this:

J.E.R.F – Just Eat Real Food!

Simple. Or is it???? Not so much these days….which is why he has created this awesome FREE event.

Who else? 

Everyone who’s anyone. Here’s a little sample of who you can learn from:

• Real farmer Joel Salatin leads off the summit, as he defines what real cows, real chickens, and real pigs really are
• My nerd-crush Chris Kresser (yes, my husband is aware) talks about the importance of fish and seafood in the Real Food diet
• Paul Chek discusses how eating whole foods impacts your mind, body, and soul
• Jeffrey Smith dishes the real dirt on genetically modified foods
• Mark McAfee shows you how raw milk can heal a broken immune system
• The always brilliant Chris Masterjohn shares the nutritional wisdom of Weston A. Price

And those are just a handful of the 27 -- yes, TWENTY-SEVEN! -- video presentations that you will be able to watch for FREE during this 9-day event.

Why?

• Because we have become so disconnected from our food supply it’s not even funny!
• Our kids think yoghurt comes from plants. Need I say more??
• Education is key in enabling us to make informed decisions about what to eat and why
• Knowledge is power – build a more sustainable food supply for now and for the future by voting with your dollar – this is something I am becoming more and more passionate about as I realise how much we are f#@king things up. Sorry for the implied language, but as I said – I’m getting pretty passionate (and hence, worked up) about this issue, and you should too!
• Did I mention it is FREE?? For now! After the 9 days it will be packaged up into a nice little dealio that you can purchase.

When?

The summit kicks off Sunday, July 8th...BUT you don’t have to wait until then for the goods.

When you register today, you get to jump start your summit experience with Joel Salatin’s presentation entitled Real Food Defined. I listened to it today and it was fabulous!


What are you waiting for?? Click here to register now!


Enjoy!! 

Growing Healthy Babies....Naturally pt.1

Currently, I am in the process of getting my body baby-ready. Hold the party poppers. We are not actively trying to conceive just yet and nor will we be trying until around mid-2013. Organised much?? You may think that this is an absurd amount of time to “prepare” for pregnancy. You may feel that preparing at all is unnecessary. I beg to differ. In a big way. The way I see it, failing to prepare your body for pregnancy is like failing to prepare a nursery for the baby to come home to –you just wouldn’t (or shouldn’t) do it.  Or, as my dad always told me:

“Failing to prepare is preparing to fail”

Thanks Daddyo! So wise! He also taught me how to fish, but that’s beside the point. Or is it……??


Traditional cultures, such as the beautiful Maasai of Tanzania ensured women were consuming an optimal diet to nourish their body at least 6 months prior to conception. 

The Maasai are extremely resilient, not to mention stunning (and can jump like you wouldn’t believe), and still to this day give birth to healthy babies….in the “wild”….not in a hospital….not booking an elective caesarean the moment they find out they are pregnant. This point is relevant, I swear, as when we talk about preparing our bodies for pregnancy and birth, it’s not just about nutrition. 


My interest in this area is both personal, as I mentioned above, and professional. All too often I encounter couples who experience difficulties in falling pregnant. It’s heart-breaking. Interesting facts on fertility:

• One in six couples is infertile, with an equal likelihood that the issue lies with either sex  (That’s right, this info does not just apply to women. I’m pretty sure you are all aware of how babies are formed and the chances are slim, so you had better hope you have been priming those swimmers for the big race, fellas)
• Fertility problems strike one in three women over 35

So what’s this got to do with nutrition? Surely what we put in our mouths can’t play a role in these statistics. Again, I beg to differ. While I recognise that there are many causes of infertility, including genetics, environment, age etc, diet and physical activity are the easiest factors for us to manipulate, thereby giving us the best chance possible in any given circumstance. At the very least, it will improve your health, and that’s not such a bad thing is it?

OK, getting back to it. So with all of my recent interest in improving fertility, when my friend Soulla Chamberlain mentioned she would be holding a workshop “Growing Healthy Babies Naturally”, I jumped at the opportunity! The first of this 2 part series was last Saturday and provided a wealth of information that I would like to give you an overview on here. 

Also, before you get all “what would she know about babies??” which you could probably say about me as I am yet to be a mother, Soulla is the proud mother of 2 gorgeous children, whom she raises wholly on a nutrient-dense traditional wholefoods diet. No, they are not deprived children, far from it in fact. You can read more about what they eat over on her blog. But for now, just be happy with the knowledge that Soulla speaks from the perspective of both a nutrition expert and a mother. 

The 2 hour session covered a lot of extremely valuable information, which I will not cover completely here. This will be more of a checklist of “Things you really should do to make the healthiest baby possible”. I encourage you to check out the book/website recommendations if you would like to learn more. So, let’s get to it:

Things you really should do to make the healthiest baby possible

1. Buy a slow-cooker

Kidding. I’m kidding! But if you want to make healthy, delicious, time-saving meals, then you really should get one. However, if you are happy slaving away for hours or if you don’t really give a crap, then carry on as you were.

1. The real #1 – eat nutrient dense foods

Why? 

Consider for a moment that you are making a cake (grain-free, of course). You are really excited about this cake and you want it to be the best tasting, best looking cake in the world. So obviously, you need the best ingredients possible – none of this shake and bake crap – you want the good stuff. You also need a pretty good oven in order for it to be cooked to perfection.

Can you see where I’m going with this? 

Now….substitute “baby” for “cake” and “womb” for oven”. Yeah, I’ll admit I’m not the most creative with analogies, but hopefully you get the point. Your baby is 100% made from the nutrients your body supplies to it (by way of the nutrients you ingest, through foods). You are growing a human. This is no sponge cake. This is one of those crazy dessert challenges they put on Masterchef. This is the “snow egg” at Quay:

Now THAT is a masterpiece! And I can tell you, it is the business! Taste sensation! (not very “paleo” though - don't eat it when pregnant!)

So to put it simply, if you are eating good quality, nutrient dense foods then that is what your baby’s structures will be made out of. If you are eating poor quality foods, then same deal applies. What you eat before and during pregnancy determines your child’s long-term health, so best we get it right, don’t you think?

When we look at traditional societies, such as the Maasai of Africa, in the lead up to conception, the women will consume secret fertility foods – foods that are known to be rich sources of vitamins and minerals for optimal health, both for the mother and the baby. These foods are all real, unprocessed foods found in nature and included all, or some of the following:

• Liver from grass-fed animals – if there is one fertility super-food, it would be this. Liver is crucial for reproductive health, being a rich source of iron (consider a mother’s blood volume doubles in pregnancy), folate (especially important for proper development and prevention of neural tube defects, such as spina bifida), vitamin B12 (for central nervous system and red blood cell development), vitamin A (eyesight and prevention of birth defects). Whip up a tasty pate and enjoy with vegetable crudités each week. 
• Wild-caught oily fish – such as salmon and tuna, which are the best sources of omega 3 fatty acids EPA and DHA. These long chain fatty acids are absolutely essential to the brain development of the foetus and may also play a role in the prevention of behavioural disorders and post-natal depression. Low levels of omega 3 are also implicated with male infertility. Also, don’t be fooled into thinking that consuming flaxseed oil will be enough to get you through. Flaxseed oil is an omega 3 fatty acid which can be converted in the body to the longer chain EPA and DHA, however our capacity to do so is limited, and I would strongly advise consuming pre-formed EPA and DHA in the form of oily fish. 

**Unfortunately in Australia, most of our salmon is farmed, which leaves it pretty devoid of all omega 3 (not to mention the other issues with it). If you are in Sydney, the only source I know of is The Canadian Way. It is expensive, but so delicious!! Otherwise, perhaps consider a fish oil supplement, such as the Green Pasture’s Fermented Cod Liver Oil/Butter Oil Blend., which is also rich in vitamins A and D. Please do not buy a cheap fish oil from the supermarket – it will potentially do you more harm than good.

• Grass-fed meat, bones and marrow – if you don’t consume oily fish, meat from grass-fed ruminants is the next best thing in terms of omega 3 fatty acids. They also provide an abundance of other nutrients, such as iron, vitamin B12 and B6, to name a few
• Organic egg yolks from pasture-raised chickens (or ducks, for that matter) – Soulla described egg yolks as “nature’s multi-vitamin”, and I would have to agree. These little babies are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins A and E, and choline. Choline is important for the developing nervous system and is critical in tooth and brain development, and possibly memory and cognitive function later in life. 
• Full-fat, unprocessed dairy from grass-fed cows/goat/sheep – unprocessed butter, cream and even milk from good sources are rich in vitamins A, D and K2 (all important for bone health)

2. Avoid nutrient-poor foods

These are foods that either provide little to no nutritional quality and, in some cases, can even “steal” the nutrition from other foods that are eaten with them, preventing you from reaping the benefits.

• Processed crap – as Soulla so eloquently stated: “If something needs to be advertised, it’s probably not real food”. My general rule is “if it needs an ingredients list, then it is probably not your best bet for nutritional quality”. So what comes under the banner of “processed crap”? Anything with sugar or artificial sweeteners (including agave syrup) – think confectionery, store-bought sauces, soft drinks, fruit juice, tinned fruit and vegetables. Read the label – if sugar is in the top 3 ingredients, don’t buy it. Other processed crap includes takeaway foods, bars of any sort (including most protein bars and “healthy” bars – just eat the real food, people), and most dairy products (yep – they are highly processed and become “dead-food”). 
• Grains and legumes – generally in the paleo/primal community we tend to avoid grains and legumes due to the anti-nutrients contained within them. These include things like phytates/phytic acid, which bind to minerals in the gut and prevent their absorption. A good example of when this might occur is if you consume milk and cereal together. While we may think we are getting a good dose of calcium in our brekkie, the amount we actually absorb is inhibited by the phytates in the cereal grains which wrap up the calcium and cause it to be excreted instead. 
• Grains also apparently cause the uterus to swell and can prolong labour and should therefore be avoided, especially in trimester 3. 
• Another reason to avoid grains is gluten, which is extremely inflammatory on the whole body and can cause many problems, ranging from leaky gut to immune and thyroid problems, which will ultimately have repercussions for your developing baby, and is possibly linked to polycystic ovarian syndrome - a common cause of infertility!
• However, perhaps the best reason to avoid grains and legumes is that they just aren’t as nutritious as other whole food sources (especially those mentioned above). The way I see it, we can only eat so much in one day, so why not make sure we are getting the most bang for our buck?
• Soy – this is a biggy for reproductive health prior to and during pregnancy. Soy contains phytoestrogens which can mimic our own oestrogen (female sex hormone). In a nutshell, soy is damaging to the reproductive health of all involved – mother, father and baby. Consuming soy during pregnancy is more likely to result in genital issues (both function and form), especially for male babies, and could potentially cause early onset puberty for females (I’m talking before the age of 8 – not right!). I could write a whole book on why you shouldn’t have soy EVER, but I won’t because I don’t have space here, and because it has been done fabulously already by Kaayla T Daniel – The Whole Soy Story. Read it!!
• Vegetable oils – these really should go under the “processed crap” heading. Oils such as sunflower, safflower, canola, corn, rice bran and soybean are not, in any way, shape or form, good for our health. They are highly susceptible to damage from heat and light (thanks manufacturers for packaging them in clear plastic and telling us to cook with them!!) which turns them into rancid oils which are extremely detrimental to our health. Instead, cook with coconut oil, lard or tallow and enjoy butter, olive oil, avocado and nut oils cold. And if you are avoiding all of these dodgy foods, don’t worry about cholesterol – it is important for so many functions in the body AND it is the main component of breast milk!

3. Manage stress

Stress causes a myriad of problems, including those related to infertility. My next blog post is going to be on stress, so I won’t elaborate too much here, but what I will say is stress management should definitely be a priority prior to and during pregnancy (and post-birth, if possible??). 

4. Avoid environmental toxins, as much as possible

Unfortunately we are exposed to a huge amount of toxins and it is near impossible to avoid them all. However, you could start with the following:

• Get off the oral contraceptive pill. Yes, it’s a toxin – it’s synthetic hormones being pumped into your body. Learn how to use other methods (such as the symptom-thermal method). If you are planning to have a baby, you should start detoxing from the pill at least 4-6 months prior to conception. I would recommend seeing a naturopath to help you out – Anthia Koullouros from Ovvio Organics in Paddington is amazing. 
• Try not to use plastics – water bottles, plastic containers etc – get them out of your life and use glass/stainless steel instead. 
• Try to use natural skincare products – check out the labels and avoid products with sulphates, parabens, artificial colours, petro-chemicals (propylene glycol) and synthetic fragrances, to name a few. 

5. Try to keep at least 3yrs between babies

Pregnancy and breastfeeding is very taxing on the mother. The baby can and will suck out all of the mother’s nutrient stores, which can take time to be replenished substantially enough to provide for baby #2. If you cannot or will not wait that period of time, then you really need to be quite strict with all of the above-mentioned advice. A great book to read about the importance of child spacing is “Deep Nutrition” by Catherine and Luke Shanahan. 

Phew!! Soulla and her fabulous guest speakers covered more than this, but I think that will do for now, don’t you agree? Especially considering part 2 of the workshop is this weekend so I will have more to blog about next week!

Great books and websites for more info:

• www.chriskresser.com – Chris Kresser is THE guru on all things health, but especially baby-making
• www.ppnf.com – the Price Pottenger Foundation provides great resources on traditional whole-foods for optimal health
• Deep Nutrition by Catherine & Luke Shanahan
• The Whole Soy Story by Kaayla T. Daniel

I hope this information has given you some food for thought and I would love to hear your thoughts/questions! It’s good to be back! x

Winter-warming brekkie: grain-free, dairy-free, delicious and nutritious!

Although I really love my Berries & Coconut Extraordinaire for breakfast, as we head into the depths of winter, the cool and refreshing nature of the recipe that I enjoy in the warmer months just isn’t cutting it. While I would love to do a big fry up every morning with eggs, bacon and tomato (that's right - I said I would have bacon and eggs every day - what are you going to do about it?), waking up at 5am for a 5:50am start doesn't really allow for it.

So, this morning, I decided to adapt, only slightly, the summer recipe to make it more of a winter warmer, and I can confidently say it was delicious! So delicious that by the time I realised I should have taken a photo I had already gobbled everything up! Sorry! And to be honest, it wouldn't really have made for good food porn. So instead, you can have a random photo of my local bay that I took on my walk the other morning, and picture yourself snuggled up inside in your jammies enjoying this tasty brekkie, thankful that you are not outside in this cold, foggy spookiness....

Have you got the picture in your mind? Are you snuggled up and ready to warm your belly with a nutritious meal to start the day? Here you go:

**RECIPE: Winter Berries & Coconut Extraordinaire – serves 1

• 1 tbspn extra virgin coconut oil
• 1-2 handfuls mixed berries (I used a handful each of frozen blueberries and raspberries)
• 1 tsp cinnamon powder
• ¼ tsp ground cloves
• ¼ tsp ground ginger
• 1 small handful nuts, chopped
• Full fat coconut milk – I think I used about a cup, but feel free to add more or less (taste as you go and adjust to your liking)
• 1 egg, whisked separately
• 1 tsp raw organic honey (optional)
• 1 small handful coconut flakes (optional)

This will take about 5-10mins to prepare. Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add berries and powders, stirring to mix. Then add coconut milk, nuts and egg, stirring frequently. As the mixture gets warm, add honey and coconut flakes, if using. Keep stirring the mixture until it is quite warm-hot*.  Serve and enjoy!

*Note: It is important to ensure the mix is well heated as raw egg whites contain a protein  called avidin, which can bind with biotin (a B vitamin which plays an essential role in many metabolic processes) and prevent our absorption, potentially leading to biotin deficiency (which looks a little like depression, skin rashes and hair loss – not ideal!). Cooking the egg whites will denature this protein and prevent the binding from occurring. If you don’t want to heat the mix that much, just add the egg yolk and leave the white out.

I hope you all enjoy this one! Keep warm and stay healthy!

Do you have any yummy grain-free brekkie recipes on the go for winter? Please share!