With Thanksgiving this Thursday, I figured it would be an appropriate time to address the next part of
my “core” series, core nutrition.

Now, I am not a nutritionist, nor do I play one on TV, however, I do know lot about it having experimented on myself, seen what has worked for the elite athletes, read numerous books, articles, research studies, as well as a fare share of fad diet books, and worked with several professional nutritionists. Most of these sources narrowly focus on a different, specific food or nutrient while demonizing another whether it be low-carb/high fat, low fat/high carb, all protein, Hollywood cookie, Zone, South Beach,
North Beach, or Long Beach. The problem is every diet seems to go against the other! Everyone seems to know what is best and what is worst and has “scientific” evidence to back it up too. Moreover his/her way is the only way to perfect health, longevity, elite performance, and abundant energy. So whom should we trust?

With all these opinions we may just want to throw our hands up and head to Dunkin’ Donuts, so I have come up with a list of what I like to call the “Core Diet”—a few general rules that the majority of elite nutritionists, athletes, and health practitioners can agree upon.

1. Eat your veggies: Regardless of what diet you follow (even in programs such as Nutrisystem), vegetables are usually the fundamental corner stone and they should be. Vegetables provide you with the essential vitamin and nutrients that you need to keep you healthy and functioning properly throughout the in and off season. Moreover they fill you up with fiber to keep you satisfied without adding inches to your waste line. Which vegetables you choose is your choice but go for variety and color as much as possible. “Paint a rainbow on your plate,” as my nutritionist used to say Moreover try to incorporate them into each meal—even breakfast (think pumpkin in oatmeal, mushrooms and spinach in eggs, etc.). While juices like V8 and Naked are easy to grab, eating the real thing is always better. My personal favorites are kale,red pepper, spinach, carrots, broccoli, mushrooms, and cauliflower. One caveat to this rule is
starchy vegetables like potatoes and corn. Try to limit these to hard training days and before
hard workouts.

2. Go pure: With the exception of diets like the Hollywood cookie diet, the majority of diets espouse going pure when it comes to food. The shorter the ingredients list the better. Moreover, keep the list to stuff that you know and can pronounce. Even if you prefer a higher carb diet, try to stick to breads, cereals, and grains that are home prepared or “fresh” such as sprouted bread, plain steel cut oats, sweet potatoes, quinoa, and millet. Unlike Lucky Charms and Wheaties, these do not have the long list of coloring agents and preservatives that can reek havoc on your gut, diet, and training. All of these ingredients can increase inflammation,
preventing recovery, and making you feel and perform just like the food that they are in: junk.

3. Go Long: A diet should not be a one week or two week endeavor after which you can go back to your old ways of eating. Regardless of which diet you chose, a core value of any good diet is that it should be a maintainable, overall life style change. If your diet is only designed to last you two weeks during which you are in a permanent state of discomfort, hunger, or lethargy,
it may not be your best choice and needs to be modified slightly to ensure that you reach your weight loss and/or health goals for the long term.

Keep in mind that when it comes to diet and nutrition, everyone has his/her own individual needs; you are a case study of one. What works for Andy Potts or Michael Phelps may not work for you, so keep experimenting until you find the winning formula of calories, food, and nutrients. Incorporating these core principles into your diet will help you shed or keep off those few extra pounds and reveal your core.

Chris Hague is the assistant coach for triswimcoach.com and competitive triathlete in both the half and full Ironman distances. For more, check out http://triswimcoachonline.com/tri/about/

References:

Mark’s website: http://swimcyclerunonline.com

Cure injuries at http://curemyinjuries.com

Sign up for the Tri Swim Coach 5-day Mini Course at: http://triswimlessons.com

Email me with your comments: kevin at triswimcoach.com

Please comment on this podcast!

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References:

Nell’s blog & Website: http://nellstephenson.com
The Paleo Diet Cookbook

Sign up for the Tri Swim Coach newsletter at: www.triswimlessons.com
or http://triswimcoachonline.com

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Music:

Nickelback- “Breathe”

References:

Tri Swim Secrets training program & to get the FULL interview: http://triswimsecrets.com

Sign up for the Tri Swim Coach newsletter at: www.triswimlessons.com
or http://triswimcoachonline.com

Please comment on this podcast!

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Music:

Van Halen- “Humans Being”

I’m bracing for the nutrition plan our coach is going to recommend during this phase. Last time around, it was carbs galore, and when you think you’ve eaten enough carbs, eat more! Bagels, cereal, bread, and pasta are all recommended as good foods that your muscles need to start storing fuel for your race. This would be bad enough when we are running 10-12 miles in training, but as we are resting, our bodies are even more likely to hold onto these calories and store them as fat! Not exactly the result of training for a race that most people are shooting for.

In the old days, when I used to compete in swimming, I followed the “common wisdom” of pumping in the carbs in the week leading up to my big meet. I distinctly remember one year going out to breakfast with the team the morning of our sectionals meet, and ordering up a big stack of pancakes with extra maple syrup. I was absolutely shocked that I felt sluggish later than day in the water! I actually FELT like the pancake breakfast screwed me up, but thought that would be impossible since carbs were the best source of energy possible!

Instead of listening to “common wisdom”, this year leading up to my race, I plan to eat a balanced diet and continue my fat intake of about 35-40% of my total calories. I will not go on a carb binge nor will I gain or lose weight, and I should be good to go for my race.

Jonas is a 36 year old champion triathlete in his prime, eating a low carbohydrate diet and clearly thriving. This supports much of what I discuss on the Healthy Mind Fit Body podcast about the superiority of low carb diets to the traditional low fat diet, for overall health and for training- even for long distance triathlons.

Jonas points out the fallacy of listening to what government agencies and mainstream outlets tell people about nutrition. Although this seems to be an inflammatory topic in the triathlon and running worlds, as so many people love their carbs, the facts overwhelmingly point to cutting down on carbohydrates and adding healthy fats and protein to one’s diet being a good thing to do to maximize one’s health.

I like that Jonas pointed out that he has not only been able to extend his career in triathlon, but also rarely gets sick, because he is not flooding his body with insulin-spiking carbs.

This is not saying that we should cut out carbs from our diet. In fact, he also said his motto is “train low, race high”. In other words, eat low on carbohydrates while training, but add in carbs before and during races.

I flipped through a few of the really trendy ones like “Skinny Bitch”, and found a few tidbits of helpful information, but for the most part, authors are relying on flawed studies and the many times debunked, caloric theory of weight loss (burn more calories than you consume to lose weight).

One book that caught my eye was The Paleo Diet for Athletes. The Paleo Diet looks at what our Stone Age ancestors ate and adapts that to what we humans should likely be eating today. This book particularly focuses on athletes, who they claim, do in fact need slightly more carbohydrates than non-athletes- but no where near the carbo-loading crazed status quo indicates! The key is what specific carbohydrates should athletes be eating, and when?

I can’t wait to read the entire book, since I work with triathletes and swimmers as well at peak performance, and do the occasional half marathon myself. I have eaten a fairly low carb diet for about a decade now, but when I get around other athletes, most are still obsessed with carbs. I think it’s time we finally moved beyond these old ways of thinking and relied on new scientific discoveries instead of remaining in our comfort zones!