Objectives of Week 4

• Introduce and IMPLEMENT MORE habits and awareness that when combined with whole foods/anti-inflammatory eating will make significiant change in your wellness, body, and health. 
• Continue being intuitive with your food selection, needs, and timing. Notice any responses to new and different foods that you add in. A journal can help a lot.
• Introduce “healthier” packaged foods to add in. This will help you expand your repertoire and give you more flexibility with meals. 

MORE Realistic and Sustainable Habits/Empowerment to Keep you Lean and Healthy Beyond The 5 Week Reset

 

• 80ish%/20ish% Rule: 

The majority of your daily intake should be whole foods. Your plate  should look close to what they have been looking like during this reset. To make sure you do not feel deprivation and as if you are missing out on what you love, social occasions, etc. You CAN allow for 20% (give or take) of your daily intake to be FUN/ENJOYMENT. This could mean that drink at dinner, the slice of birthday cake, the cheese sprinked on your eggs, the ranch salad dressing, and so on. One day you may not feel like you want any “fun” foods, the next you may feel like you want all the fun foods, let yourself ride and flow. If you implement all of the other stategies that we have covered you should have no problem with this. 

 

• ALCOHOL INFLUENCE

ALCOHOL IS DEHYDRATING IN ANY QUANTITY. OUR BODIES ARE MADE OF MOSTLY WATER.

Dehydration can and will negatively impact how well your muscles move. Which can cause strain or injury.

Dehydration also causes low energy. Be aware and make sure to hydrate if you have any drinks. A good “B complex” vitamin is helpful too as alcohol depletes B and may lead to headaches and depression. B vitamins in our systems help us stay happy! Dehydration signals and cues can show up in our bodies as hunger. When you are dehydrated, you may eat more because of this confusion. 

Alcohol can interrupt sleep. Lack of sleep / restless or disruptive sleep will disrupt hormones dramatically. The leptin hormone helps regulate energy expenditure and hunger.  The hormone grehlin controls appetite.  Disruption in sleep by alcohol will disregulate the production of these hormones. This may be why we sometimes want to eat everything after a night of drinks. Alcohol also increases cortisol which is our stress hormone. It can raise insulin which raises blood sugar and messes with your energy and metabolism. All important to know when you are on a path of well-being. Knowledge is power.  Awareness is everything. Know to moderate drinking, how your body responds to certain alcohols, and what to be mindful for if and when you decide to indulge.

 

• Additional Foods to add in to increase your repetiore.

It is best to FOCUS your intake on whole foods: foods with 1 ingredient, ITSELF. These are the foods that will have a beneficial impact on your health and keep you from cravings, mood disturbances, and digestive intolerances. That being said, let no food have power over you or create guilt. You CAN have whatever you wish, but use your empowerment and awareness to choose if you REALLY want it. If you do, have it!

Do not fall into a shame cycle.

Eventually you will start choosing the foods that make you feel your best the majority of the time as you are not experiencing deprivation and food loses its power. For variety, here are some ideas for foods that you can add back in when you choose. 

 

Protein Bars with little to no sugar. 

Power Crunch

LaraBar

GoMacro Bar

Perfect Bar

RXBar

Dairy

Ideally Farm Fresh Grass Fed Dairy is the healthy option (refer to week 1)

Add dairy in slowly and see how you react. Look for bloating, skin disruptions, and phlegm

Greek Yogurt no sugar

Cheeses Etc..

These days there are so many great dairy alternatives. I would start by trying some to see if you like them.

 

Non Dairy Alternatives 

Unsweetened Coconut or Almond Milk Yogurts

Cashew  and Almond Cheeses 

Almond, Soy, or Coconut Milk Coffee Creamers 

Snack Foods (sparingly)

Non GMO popcorn

Rice Cakes

Non GMO Corn Chips

Potato Chips with Avocado Oil

Home made or healthier store bought energy balls

Grass fed meat sticks (like slim jim but not, Trader Joes carries) or EPIC Bars

Healthy Salad Dressings

Drew’s, Annie’s, and Braggs brands are good

 

• Not an extensive list, Use this week to ask about foods that come to mind.