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How to create an energy deficit
If you have a weight loss goal for health or athletic reasons, you might need to eat less. While eating smaller portions is an option, this post will show you how to create an energy deficit without sacrificing satiety and nutrition. How to create an energy deficit 1. Cook most of your food (or buy low energy pre-made meals) Foods from restaurants and takeaway shops are usually higher in energy than home-cooked meals because they rely on large amounts of energy-dense ingredients mainly for taste purposes. Many of these ingredients are cooking fats and oils, which are very energy dense. Cooking most of your food allows you to control how…
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Low calorie flavour boosters
If you are currently in lockdown, chances are you are not as physically active as usual. If you are concerned about gaining unnecessary weight but find healthy eating “bland”, the solution is to use low calorie flavour boosters. As discussed in a previous article, one way of lowering your energy intake is to cook your meals at home instead of buying takeaway. We have also seen that homemade salad dressings are likely healthier than store-bought ones, however they are not necessarily lower in energy. Balancing flavour and energy density is not difficult to achieve if you are familiar with certain ingredients and willing to experiment. Low calorie flavour boosters for…
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Pre-workout supplements
Pre-workout supplements are among the most heavily-marketed products targeted to recreational and elite athletes. In this article we will discuss if they work and if they are safe. What are pre-workout supplements? Also known as multi-ingredient pre-workout supplements, these are products designed to be taken before exercise to enhance performance. They typically contain several ingredients in various quantities which are sometimes undisclosed and marked as “proprietary blends” (1, 2, 3). Common ingredients Common ingredients in pre-workout supplements include caffeine, creatine and beta-alanine (2, 3), branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), nitrates (2), citrulline, taurine, tyrosine and B vitamins (3). Jagim et al. analysed 100 pre-workout products and found that, in average, they…
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How to eat less when you move less
The most basic reason we eat food is too meet our energy requirements. During this time of self-isolation and social distancing, most of us are moving a lot less than what we are used to. The question becomes: how to eat less when you move less (and when you have 24/7 access to a fridge and a pantry)? Important note! Keep reading only if you want to control your energy intake while you are spending less energy. Some people have too much to worry about at the moment to care about energy intake, and that’s ok. Estimated energy requirements The amount of energy (i.e. kilojoules or kilocalories) you need to…
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To snack or not to snack?
To snack or not to snack? That is the question! Snacks, or mid meals, are not good or evil. When used correctly, they can help you meet your health and performance goals. What is a snack? As a noun, a snack is “a light meal: food eaten between regular meals”. To snack (surprise, surprise) means “to eat a snack” (1). In the nutrition world, we use the term “mid meals” to differentiate snacks from main meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner). More specifically, in the Commonwealth world we talk about morning tea (the mid meal between breakfast and lunch), afternoon tea (between lunch and dinner) and supper (between dinner and bedtime). The…
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Sugary drinks
One of the simplest things you can do to change your health and waistline is avoiding sugary drinks. Liquid calories in general are a bad idea if you are trying to lose weight because they are easy to consume in large quantities. In addition, most drinks sweetened with sugar provide zero to little nutrition. What are sugary drinks? In general, any beverages that contain sweeteners with calories are considered sugary drinks. I like to go one step further and include all drinks that contain a significant amount of sugar, whether it’s naturally occurring or added. This is because, as said before, liquid calories are easy to over-consume and can become…
