How many calories should you be consuming each day?

How many grams of protein, carbohydrate and fat should you be eating at each day?

What’s the next step after achieving your ideal weight?

This guide is for my FREE weight loss calculator that provides a starting point for both men and women when dieting and also the important next step after achieving your ideal weight.

The idea of calculating calories, protein, carbohydrates, and fat is often the most confusing element when starting a weight loss program.  However, in order to keep the weight off for good it is also the most important.

It is not uncommon for someone to believe their diet is healthy, and yet be baffled as to why they can’t lose weight. You may be highly motivated but haven’t yet made the connection between every bite of food you are putting in your mouth and weight loss. It’s no surprise when calories are monitored and portion sizes are fine tuned, body weight changes occur.

For a short period of time, most diets that restrict calories create success. Being able to personalise your diet and implement food education, behavior and lifestyle changes are the characteristics of people who successfully keep the weight off for good!

There are also a few basic theories you will need to understand. These will allow you to see beyond magic pills, abdominal crunch machines or meal replacement powders, no matter how enticing the marketing or promises may seem. People often spend time focusing on the minor details and forget the fundamental principles of dieting.

This is why you could be eating the best organic food, exercising regularly, drinking filtered water, getting plenty of sleep, taking the best supplements and still not getting results.

If you have already read my book, in particular the ‘Diet Plan’ and ‘Carbohydrate Challenge’ chapters, the formulas used in the calculator will make more sense.

Although there have been thousands of diets books and weight loss approaches over the years they really aren’t all that different or unique. While the dieting tactics may differ, they basically fall under three main categories.

- Low Carb / High Fat
- Moderate Carb / Moderate Fat
- High Carb / Low Fat

Which one is the best? Marketing and dietary dogma has an amazing ability to convince people of some interesting beliefs. However, research suggests that the results of any particular diet category being superior is minuscule, but the effect of individual behavior is enormous. There are many biological, psychological or social factors that influence whether a person can stick to a particular diet.

Consider the table below as a basic reference.

You will notice that I haven’t mentioned protein in the three diet plan categories.  The word protein comes from a Greek word meaning ‘of the first importance’.

Protein is also the most filling nutrient, it helps to blunt hunger and stabilise blood sugar. This helps with energy levels and appetite. Numerous research studies also outline the benefits of consistent protein intake when dieting.

No matter which of these three categories you fall under, it is of first importance that your protein intake is adequate and constant when dieting. This calculator takes the guesswork out of dieting and will help you discover the quickest, easiest and scientifically proven natural way to lose weight!

Your Diet Plan Revealed!

To get started all you need to do is enter your current weight in kilograms, select your nutrition goal from the drop down menu, and then your diet plan category. Next, click on submit to reveal your personal calorie, protein, carbohydrate and fat requirements. An example has been provided for you below.

The definitive feature that makes this weight loss solution so effective is a focus on your macronutrients (macros): Protein, Carbohydrates and Fat. This goes beyond simple calorie restriction to improve metabolic rate, fat burning, insulin sensitivity, and hunger hormones.

If you would like to discover more about food education and setting up a personal menu plan you can find everything you need in my book: Fast, Effective Fat Loss.

Don’t have the book yet? Grab yourself a copy here.

There is a commonly held belief that we become a certain way because of the steps we created to get there, or the specific criteria we must meet to get there. When we are focused on achieving something, we take the time to go through all the steps, meet all the criteria and finally arrive at our destination or goal.

A common example of this is being ‘on’ your diet. It is often believed that if you eat all the foods that are ‘on’ your diet you will lose the 7 kilos in 7 weeks you set out to do. But what happens if you are not 100% perfect and give in to temptation? These extremes can make you feel as though you have switched your diet ‘off’ and from this belief, based on your emotions and thoughts, you take action. Quite often with food.

In the beginning of my book I mentioned that there are a few situations you are going to find yourself in. One of them is going to be that you’re hungry, you’re in a hurry, and you need something convenient. You will be thinking about tasty foods that aren’t great for your waistline. Let’s say you decide to eat a Tim Tam (98 calories).

Does this mean you are now ‘off’ your diet?

No.

Although you may now have some feelings of guilt, this does not mean you have blown the entire diet and you might as well polish off the entire tray. If you look at it over the course of a day based on a fat loss diet with the goal of a moderate 500 calorie deficit, you still have a 402 calorie deficit. You are still on track to achieving your goal. It is important that you are accepting of these ‘accidents‘. Things are going to happen while you are implementing new lifestyle changes.

What should you do in these situations?

Firstly, there is no ‘built in meaning‘ to eating that one Tim Tam other than the significance you assign to it. Many of us are on a double diet of food and beliefs. These beliefs are often projected so quickly that we are not aware we are doing it. If you assign a negative meaning to a situation, this will produce a negative experience for you. Likewise, if you assign a positive meaning to a situation, this will produce a positive experience for you.

It is easy to go from an old belief to a new belief and make the new belief stick. Especially when you can see the logic and common sense.

One of the best ways to deal with this dietary dogma is to back-track and ask yourself:

What would I have to believe in order to not feel guilt?

In this case it might be that ‘If I am meeting my daily calorie goal, one Tim Tam is not the end of the world’.

Beliefs —> Emotions —> Thoughts —> Actions

When you identify the belief that is creating the undesired outcome, you can then choose your preferred belief you would like to replace it with.

‘It’s okay for me to enjoy a Tim Tam’.

You will then need to accept it and trust that it is going to help you on your path to achieving your goals. Your belief is your blueprint. It’s also not uncommon to slip back into old belief patterns as they are well programmed into our way of thinking. Your actions are a clean indicator of your strongest belief.

You will need some time to get used to new ideas in order make them stick. Maintaining behavior change is one of the major challenges in long-term weight loss. I have included a chapter ‘Nutritional Myths’ on page 82 to help with removing the dietary dogma that is often a brick wall to success.

How long should you stay ‘on’ your diet?

For many, the balance between structured eating, weekly free meals, and scheduled diet breaks is enough to help them maintain healthy weight management and enjoy a social life without spending hours in the gym. Initially, periods of 8 – 12 weeks would be a good starting point before considering a full diet break. Ideally these should be scheduled around vacations, seasonal holidays and social activities. The reality is these situations are all going to happen. You do not want to become a social hermit because of your diet.

I always make sure I enjoy tasty food as part of a cyclical approach to my diet.

Taking a week off should be a planned part of your program, as should your weekly free meals. In fact, you will be happy to know that not being so rigid and ‘on’ all the time helps maintain better long-term weight management. Your daily calorie goal during these breaks should be to eat at maintenance. More of this is discussed on pages 56 – 59 of my book.

Living a healthy, happy and rewarding life is definitely something I am passionate about.  In consultation with clients and even every day conversations I am often asked about my diet and my thoughts on everything related to the latest diet fads, protein, carbohydrates, fat, organic food, gluten, sugar, fasting, detoxification, supplements and all things in between.

I thought rather than give you a boring run down of my macro-nutrients and food plan, the easiest way to answer this would be to take a few pictures of my meals.

These photos were taken over a week during a Melbourne winter!

Here is a brief run down:

- I eat to suit my personality.  The best diet is the one you can stick to in the long run.  If I don’t like something, I don’t eat it.  Even if it is supposed to be healthy or have mystical powers. For me, this is one of the best ways to control calories and improve body composition.  Don’t try and starve yourself in the name of health, or eat boring, unsatisfying, bland food.  I guarantee the first thing you’ll be looking for is the McDonald’s drive thru.

- I eat 2-3 larger meals each day.  I find eating this way to be more satisfying.  I enjoy meats, fibrous veggies as well as roasted veggies like potato, sweet potato and pumpkin.  I also like to include rice, and gluten free cereals on workout days to help with performance and recovery.

- I eat gluten free.

- Yes! I eat carbohydrates, and after 6pm too.  This study shows greater weight loss and hormonal changes after a 6 month diet with carbohydrates eaten mostly at dinner.  There is nothing fattening about carbs at night, unless they are contributing to a surplus of calories.

- I don’t eat a lot of fruit.  This is not for any particular reason, I have just never really been a fruit eater (except when I’m on holidays for some reason).  I might have an apple or some berries every now and then.  However, I do think fruit is an important part of successful dieting.  I also wrote about the benefits of fruit in 9 tips for Fast, Effective Fat Loss.

- I support organic, free range and sustainable farming when possible as I like high quality, nutritious food.  The research work of Shanna Swan also suggests possible reproductive benefits of chemical free foods.

- I love making a freshly brewed espresso or short macchiato every morning.

- I enjoy a take away meal from my local Thai restaurant every Friday night.

- I eat diet friendly desserts such as protein pudding, protein fluff or cottage cheese with berries.

- I follow the principles outlined in my book. It has also been the cornerstone in overcoming my own obsession with food and physique challenges.

- My goal is to stay ~ 10% body fat year round, 3 x 45min workouts per week.

Like to find out more?

Fast, Effective Fat Loss provides solutions to shed the inches, kilos and fat!

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There are a few times each year when it seems almost impossible to ‘go easy’ on food and alcohol.  When you are in control of your weekly shopping, what you choose to eat, and how you prepare your foods, you feel pretty good about maintaining your healthy lifestyle.  Throw in a few weeks vacation, along with specific holidays such as Christmas and Easter and getting back on track seems a little more difficult.

Fresh back from an overseas holiday, today seemed like the perfect time to write about how you can avoid holiday weight gain and still enjoy yourself.  Before I left for Fiji I was told the food on Malolo Island was that good I would put on a mandatory 5kg.  Don’t even bother thinking I could avoid it!  I found this quite amusing and wasn’t sure how I would tackle the challenge.

Firstly, they were right.  The food on Malolo was absolutely amazing.  Combined with an island that had no TV’s, roads, cars, gym or commercialism it was going to be 10 days of eating, lazing around in a bure on the beach and a hammock between the coconut palms. My exercise (if you could call it that) was some snorkeling, paddling and walking.  My goal was to keep my heart rate to that of a crocodile.

Back to avoiding holiday weight gain….

When we are on holidays it is quite common to overeat at every meal.  However, a temporary break in your daily habits isn’t necessarily all doom and gloom. It is possible to maintain your weight or even keep up your fat-loss diet when on holidays. There are also many positive psychological benefits to a full break from dieting.  However, the reality is that over feeding still has it’s physiological consequences, so being mindful of your food selection and having some sort of structure always helps.

Something I would like to address early is that if you have eaten a little bit of junk food, this isn’t such a bad thing. Often when this occurs, especially on holidays, many people have the belief they have ruined their weight loss efforts and they might as well keep eating. This is also often accompanied by feelings of guilt and more eating. The truth is that one piece of cake or a bowl of ice cream might contain around 500 calories. In the context of a balanced diet, combined with a weekly exercise program this is not panic stations. However, if you continue to eat and turn that into 5000 calories then things start to change. Don’t be your own worst enemy.

My favourite strategy to help combat this is to reduce the number of meals you eat each day.  This allows you to still enjoy all the foods you love without breaking the calorie bank.  The digestion of a regular meal takes around 5 – 6 hours, so you don’t need to be eating 6 times a day.  If you would like to keep the weight off while on holidays consider eating 2 larger meals a day, and if needed a small snack in between to tide you over.

The two most common methods my clients use when reducing their main meals are:

- Breakfast and Dinner

- Lunch and Dinner

My preferred method is to eat lunch and dinner.  This also starts to move into the realms of intermittent fasting (IF) that has some scientific research to support the benefits and improved health markers of this recent dietary approach.  To really simplify it, I start and stop eating at different intervals of time. I find that a feeding window of 12 – 8pm (8 hours) works best for me.  Instead of eating breakfast, I enjoy a freshly brewed espresso, drink some water and start my days food at lunch time.

However, for all the breakfast lovers, I have seen clients maintain successful healthy weight management while on holidays using both approaches.  A study published in the Journal of Nutrition looked at 1o women who lost weight on a ‘not too strict’ diet eating 2 meals a day (Breakfast and Dinner).  The results suggest that if weight loss alone was the main goal, a good breakfast and a light dinner is worth considering while on holidays. However, if you want to lose weight but not too much muscle mass, you are better off with a light breakfast and consuming most of your calories in the evening or possibly consider trying the lunch and dinner meal pattern.

What did I eat?

-Most meals were 2-3 courses.

-This included different days of both a buffet eating and a set menu.

-I always start with protein and vegetables.  Mainly because I like them, and also because they help send a signal of fullness before hitting the desserts.

-An all you can eat buffet doesn’t mean you have to overeat in order to get your money’s worth.  Having multiple food choices seems to increase the desire to eat and experience more food than a set menu. Having said that, some of the themed buffet nights were pretty amazing!

-Carbohydrate intake often increases when eating out.  My choices though weren’t too far off what I would usually enjoy at home.  Rice, potatoes, fruit and some small desserts.

-Still consider better ‘bad’ choices.  Just because most of the food choices are deep fried, loaded with fat and come with a serving of refined carbs doesn’t mean you have to order them!

-Finishing off your kids pizza, chocolate brownie or ice cream also counts!

-I pretty much drank the islands supply of Fiji water.  I also enjoyed a double shot espresso each morning.

-Don’t be afraid to try some cultural cuisine.  If your in Fiji, you cant go past lovo cooked meats, raw mahi mahi, taro, spinach cooked in coconut milk, and some kava.

I didn’t count calories while on holidays.  However, I did still follow the foundation principles of my book.

The results

After a 2 course lunch on day 10, I think I’d survived the 5kg hoodoo.  No exercise, just total enjoyment of my food and a psychological break from structured eating.  I didn’t weigh myself before or after the holiday (mainly because I had just moved house and everything was still boxed), however because of an increase in carbohydrate and sodium intake I have no doubt that there would have been a natural spike in scale weight as well as some bloating.  But it is mostly water and returns to normal after a few days (unless you completely let loose and go OTT on your holiday).

It is often believed that eating 6 meals each day will boost your metabolism, keep your blood sugar in check, improve appetite control, and turn you into a fat burning machine! For many, eating 6 meals each day is not a problem. In fact, there are plenty of opportunities that schedule this into our daily routine without the need to think about it.

- Breakfast
- Morning Tea
- Lunch
- Afternoon Tea
- Dinner
- Supper

How often do you eat?

By this I mean an accurate account of everything that goes into your mouth. There are a number of physiological and psychological reasons we choose to eat. In many social situations it is often expected that we eat. Things such as boredom influences hunger, as well as the mouth watering commercial that was just on television.

There is also an adaptive component to hunger that aligns with your habitual meal patterns.  Ghrelin is a hormone that controls the hunger and satiety cells. It is produced by the stomach and tells the brain when it’s time to eat.  Your established eating patterns will regulate the stomach’s release of ghrelin.  According to new research, ‘If you eat all the time, ghrelin secretion will not be well controlled’.

Quite often when working with clients I get a two part answer when asked about their food. The first part being the ‘school assignment‘ that ticks all the right boxes and gets a pass. It sounds good and looks good on paper. However, the client is still baffled as to why they are not losing weight. When we start to drill down a little deeper a more accurate picture emerges.

Here’s a snippet of a recent conversation…

Damian: So tell me about your diet. What does a typical day look like?
Client: My diet is really good actually. We eat pretty healthy.

Damian: That sounds good. What about breakfast, lunch and dinner. What would a typical day look like?
Client: Breakfast is usually some muesli and yoghurt, or maybe an egg on toast. Lunch is often salad. Dinner is usually a stir fry, maybe some pasta.

Damian: Have you ever monitored how many calories you are eating, or the protein, carb and fat breakdowns of your meals.
Client: Not really. I eat low carb though.

Damian: Why do you believe you are not losing weight?
Client: I think it’s my hormones. A friend mentioned you helped her lose weight.

Damian: What about snacks? Do you eat between meals?
Client: I don’t really snack. When I’m at work is the biggest problem. There is always cakes for morning tea or stuff left over. I know when I’m at home I’ll often eat if I’m bored. That might be a biscuit or something with a cup of coffee. I do like chocolate.

Damian: Can you tell me a little bit about what you drink? Things like coffee, tea, soft drink, alcohol, water.
Client: I probably don’t drink enough water. I have a couple of skinny lattes, sometimes a diet coke when I’m at work. Alcohol, well I know that probably isn’t helping.

Over the years I have seen some very interesting food diaries. As you can see in just a few minutes we start to see a few differences in what the client believes they are eating and what’s really going on. Unfortunately, we are really bad at estimating food intake and exercise. Studies show that people often underestimate how much food they eat and overestimate how much exercise they do.

Do you really need to eat 6 times a day?

Firstly, there have been many success stories of people eating 6 meals each days to create amazing transformations. This is something fitness enthusiasts and physique competitors have done for many years. However, this mainstream advice may not be suited to everyone. Especially for those who enjoy their food and eating larger meals. Quite often when dieting, spreading your daily calories over six meals can feel like you are constantly grazing and never satisfied.

A 65kg female may have a daily food intake goal of 1700 calories/day. Divided over 6 meals gives her around 280 calories per meal. For many this would feel more like a snack than a meal, leading to problems with appetite control and hunger.

Another potential problem with this approach is that it is much easier to over consume calories when eating 6 times a day. If your meal frequency is resulting in excess calories this will impact on your fat loss efforts. Even if you believe your diet is healthy. Current research also suggests this approach results in higher blood glucose levels compared with eating 3 meals per day. There are many benefits to maintaining your blood glucose within a healthy range, especially as preventative measures against diseases such as Metabolic Syndrome and Type 2 Diabetes.

Structured eating every 2 – 3 hours for many can be inconvenient, it is also not necessary when you consider that the digestion of a regular meal takes around 5 – 6 hours. For most people, eating 3 meals a day, including a couple of snacks would be a recommended starting point.

In summary:

- The best eating pattern is one that allows you to enjoy your food without overeating. How much you eat is more important than how often.

- If eating 6 smaller meals each day makes it easier for you to control calories, this will help you lose weight.

- If eating 3 larger meals each day makes it easier for you to control calories, this will help you lose weight.

- There are many psychological benefits to eating larger meals, especially when dieting. No one likes to be told to cut back or restrict something. With 3 meals a day, you can eat larger portions while still meeting your fat loss goals.

- Make sure you chew your food thoroughly. Take the time to sit down and eat. Don’t stuff yourself in front of the television. Relax and enjoy the flavour. It takes around 20 minutes to get the message that your stomach is full.

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Solutions to shed the inches, kilos and fat!

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1. Eat less

Weight loss happens when people eat less. For many, this seems too simple. The modern world makes it very easy to overeat, and nearly impossible to out-exercise a bad diet. However, this is often overlooked in the hope that food can be re-arranged in some special way to suit your metabolism, or that magic pill will provide the results you have been looking for.

It is not uncommon for someone to believe their diet is healthy, and yet be baffled as to why they can’t lose weight. You may be highly motivated but haven’t yet made the connection between every bite of food you are putting in your mouth and weight loss.  It’s no suprise when calories are monitored and portion sizes are fine tuned, bodyweight changes occur.

2. Meet your protein goal

Protein is the most filling nutrient, it helps to blunt hunger and stabilise blood sugar. This helps with energy levels and appetite control.  Research also supports the benefits of increased protein when dieting.  Too often the intake of dietary protein is reduced in favor of carbohydrates.

Setting your protein requirements correctly will help prevent excess calories and overeating. Think about how difficult it is to overeat steak and green vegetables compared to a meal of take away food, chocolate, soft drink or ice cream.

3. Eat more fiber

Fiber is a key ingredient when dieting.  It slows gastric emptying, which is the rate food leaves the stomach.  This helps provide a feeling of fullness.  Fiber also physically stretches your stomach, which sends a signal to your brain that you’re full.

4. Eat fruit

Fruit can also be of great benefit when dieting. It has phytonutrients, fiber, low calories, and promotes satiety. The fructose in fruit works to refill liver glycogen. When your liver glycogen is emptied, a signal is sent to your brain that may stimulate hunger. Replenishing your liver glycogen can help provide a feeling of fullness, this is especially helpful when dieting.

5. Eat good fats

FAT! The mere mention of the word scares most people. For a long time fat was blamed for just about everything. In recent times we have changed our views on the importance of fat and come up with the category of ‘essential fats‘ to make them sound more appealing.  Good fats are those found in foods such as fish, nuts, seeds, olive and coconut oil.

The type of fat you don’t want is McDonald’s, KFC, chocolate and ice cream.

6. Exercise

Exercise, in particular weight training is an essential and vital part of keeping you healthy, and for long term weight management. However, the fastest way to get rid of unwanted body fat is through diet.

While working out in the gym may not be for everyone, there are many benefits beyond fat loss that are well worth mentioning. These include increased energy, strength, elevated mood, improved blood glucose management, prevention of osteoporosis, improved posture, gastrointestinal transit time, cholesterol profile, heart health, immune system, as well as balance and coordination.

7. Consider food allergies, sensitivities and intolerance’s

Food sensitivity is often given a low priority in the investigation of health and well-being. Food allergies are immune reactions to specific antigens that may occur within minutes (anaphylactic shock) to a few hours after exposure. True food allergies can be fatal and are not as common as the sensitivities and intolerance’s most people experience. Sensitivities are manifestations (gastrointestinal or skin) that may be delayed for several hours or days. The most common antigens are dairy, wheat, egg, soy, nuts, peanuts, fish and shellfish. Food-sensitive people may also benefit from removing other antigens such as oranges, tea, coffee, chocolate, corn and sugar.

8. Enjoy free meals and flexibility

A free meal provides a psychological break from structured eating. The reality is we all have social functions, eat out at restaurants and sometimes just need to satisfy a craving. We are also surrounded and tempted with sugar filled foods everywhere we look.  If you are eating well and losing weight then a planned free meal can do wonders for your weight loss advancements and emotional well-being.

Something else worth mentioning us that if you have eaten a little bit of junk food, this isn’t such a bad thing. Often when this occurs, especially on holidays, many people have the belief they have ruined their weight loss efforts and they might as well keep eating. This is also often accompanied by feelings of guilt and more eating. The truth is that one piece of cake or a bowl of ice cream might contain around 500 calories. In the context of a balanced diet, combined with a weekly exercise program this is not panic stations. However, if you continue to eat and turn that into 5000 calories then things start to change. Don’t be your own worst enemy.

9. Consider weight loss as a ‘challenge’ rather than a problem.

Why? Because a problem by definition is difficult to resolve. The energy and motivation you feel towards a challenge is more likely to have a desirable outcome, than that surrounding a problem. From here you can visualize the ideal version of you – the ‘you’ you would most like to be. Get excited and enthusiastic about what you are creating, be passionate! Select the best materials to help you achieve this, including positive thoughts and actions that are aligned with your goals.

Fast, Effective Fat Loss

Solutions to shed the inches, kilos and fat!

My goal is to help you get the body that you want, and to keep it. Gone are the days of restrictive dieting and exhaustive workouts to get the body of your dreams. Discover how you can achieve fast and permanent weight loss without re-arranging your life.

I can help you tailor a solution to achieving your weight loss goals in 3 simple steps.

1. WHAT to eat
2. WHEN to eat
3. and WHY

Find out more…

How many hours did you sleep last night?

Even if you have a healthy diet and exercise regularly, a lack of sleep may be contributing to your weight problems. Unfortunately, every time you miss out on a full night’s sleep you accrue a ‘sleep debt’. Whether you are a party animal or the mother of a new born it all adds up. Even losing half an hour each night adds up over the year and then you have yourself a pretty hefty sleep debt.

Accruing a sleep debt sends a message to your hormonal system to make some adjustments. When sleep and eating are not aligned with the body’s internal clock, it can lead to changes in appetite and metabolism.  Your circadian rhythm governs the release of your hormones that wake you up in the morning and wind you down at night. When this sleep-wake cycle changes from its normal balance your hormonal profile also changes, in particular, cortisol. Without a balanced cortisol rhythm it is much harder to get going in the morning. This is a sign your body is stressed and tired which also affects your immune function. Your hormonal system will respond by trying to output more cortisol to create balance. Because you feel tired, you often look for a ‘pick me up’ through coffee or a sugar fix. From here, the roller coaster ride begins and it’s not even 7am yet!

But doesn’t stress make you skinny?

When our sympathetic nervous system becomes overloaded by metabolic stressors such as lack of sleep, low grade inflammation and high insulin levels, so does your appetite for high fat, high carbohydrate foods. Cortisol has a similar effect in that it suppresses serotonin production, resulting in a craving for simple carbohydrates or binge eating to elevate your mood.

5 Steps to a good night’s sleep

1. Establish a healthy sleeping pattern. It is important that you have 7 – 8 hours of quality sleep each night. You should aim to be in bed around 10pm. It has been shown that physical repair of your body takes place between 10pm and 2am, and psychological repair between 2am and 6am.

2. Wind down for at least an hour before bed to help restore your natural sleep-wake cycle. Taking a bath 1 – 2 hours before bed can help relax your body before bed. Avoid TV and computers. Don’t drink yourself to sleep with alcohol.

3. It is also best that you avoid stimulants such as coffee later in the day as they can be sleep disrupters.

4. Herbal teas such as passion flower and chamomile are better options to promote a good night’s sleep.

5. Sleep quality can also be improved with calming nutrients such as magnesium, taurine and glutamine.

When adopting a holistic approach to health, the removal of wheat is often suggested as part of diet and lifestyle modifications.  In a world where there is as many dietary scapegoats as there are magic bullets, it is sometimes important to take a step back and ask the question:

Is this always necessary for everyone?

When considering dietary modifications relating to grains, the main concern is gluten which is a protein found in most grains. These include common foods such as wheat, rye and barley. Gluten is often a topic of controversy, and has been associated with many diseases.  The most serious form of allergy to gluten is coeliac disease which is a chronic disease of the digestive tract that interferes with the digestion and absorption of food nutrients.   However, research also indicates you do not need to have coeliac disease for gluten to negatively impact your health.  This is known as a gluten sensitivity.  Food sensitivities are often given a low priority in the investigation of health and well-being.

A review paper in The New England Journal of Medicine listed 55 diseases that can be caused by eating gluten.  Some of these included inflammatory bowel disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and osteoporosis.  It has also been linked to Autism.  Gluten sensitivity can create inflammation throughout the body.  The effects are wide ranging across all organ systems including the brain, joints, digestive tract and heart.

Many natural health practitioners would agree that there are positive health benefits to be gained from the complete removal of gluten from your diet.  One of these beliefs relates to our lack of genetic adaption to grains. Around 10,000 years ago we started growing crops and domesticating cows, sheep and goats. From this point we have experienced great changes in farming, agriculture and our food supply. These dietary, farming and food technology ‘advancements’ represent the fastest changes in our evolutionary history. Although 10,000 years may seem like a considerable period of time, research suggests this only represents 1% (300 – 500 generations) on our evolutionary scale. This is quite a small time frame for substantial adaption to take place on a genetic level.

Around 30 percent of people of European descent carry the gene for coeliac disease (HLA DQ2 or HLA DQ8). This increases susceptibility to health problems from eating gluten.

A process of elimination

The easiest way of identifying a gluten sensitivity is with an elimination diet.  In my clinical practice I have seen some fantastic results using this really simple method.

You will need to remove all gluten for at least 21 days to allow antigens to clear from the body and for any food related symptoms to improve.  These include wheat, barley, rye, spelt, kamut, triticale as well as gluten hidden in soup mixes, salad dressings, and sauces.  You need to eliminate 100% of the gluten from your diet, including all hidden gluten that may be in your medication, supplements or even children’s Play-Doh.

When you are re-introducing foods make sure you only introduce one at a time in order to monitor any symptoms over the following days. Any new or returning symptoms experienced are likely to be related to that food. Remove the food from your diet to see if symptoms improve again.

You may also consider blood work, or alternative therapies such as Kinesiology and muscle testing to help identify allergies, sensitivities or intolerance’s.

By nature oats are gluten free, however, farming methods and transportation have resulted in cross contamination.  This can be avoided by purchasing certified gluten free oats.

Gluten and weight problems

It is quite easy to link gluten to increased weight problems.  However, the reasons may be a little different than you think.  If you eat a modernised diet, the complete avoidance of gluten can be difficult as it is in pizza, pasta, bread, wraps, rolls, and most processed foods. It is also hidden in soup mixes, salad dressings, and sauces.  When it comes to weight loss the biggest problem with many of these foods is that they are easily overeaten, resulting in excess calories.  When these foods are removed from the diet, they are often replaced with whole foods such as red meat, fish, chicken, vegetables and fruit.  There is also often a reduction in calories and body weight.  However, discovering a love for gluten free cookies can still get you into trouble.  While the reactive substance may have been removed from the diet, they are still tasty and easy to break the calorie bank.

Personal Experience

A few years ago we made the decision to create a gluten free environment (as much as humanly possible) for our kids.  The primary reason for this was research indicating the inflammatory response not only in the digestive system but also on the brain.  Digestive and cognitive improvements are the most common changes I see in my clients who have difficulties with gluten.

For my own children here are some of the positive benefits we have noticed since removing gluten from their diet.

• Improved behavior
• Improved problem solving skills
• Longer sleep
• Cleaner nappies
• Better skin

For most this isn’t a difficult transition as there are now plenty of solutions available.  The first being bread.  We have made our own bread, as well as purchased some. The only negative I will say for gluten free bread is the lack of elasticity that you get from gluten.  Often the fresher the bread, the more ‘kid friendly’ it will be.

Here is a pic of our son’s lunch with homemade gluten free bread, smoked salmon and avocado.  My own gluten free diet is also pretty tasty.  Here is my favorite post-workout cereal (Cocoa Bombs) and a dinner of Roast Pork with gluten free gravy!

Many food allergies, sensitivities and intolerance’s are often outgrown as children get older.  In particular, milk, eggs, wheat and soy. Allergies to peanuts, tree nuts, fish and shellfish are not typically outgrown.

Summing Up

While I do not consider gluten to be ‘unhealthy’, it can be unpleasant for many, and cause real troubles for coeliacs.  However, in many cases where gluten may be the culprit, an elimination diet can create many positive benefits for weight loss, digestive discomfort, inflammation, and mental clarity.  When a food allergy develops as an adult they are often very persistent.  For children on restrictive diets consider periodic weight checks, as well as re-evaluation on a regular basis as many food allergies are outgrown.

If you have a story or feedback you’d like to share with others please feel free to post your comments below.

In my previous article, I mentioned that it is often believed desserts are off the menu when dieting.  While protein fluff may a delight to the taste buds when dieting, protein pudding would have to be one of the easiest ways to meet your protein goal, lose weight and enjoy what you are eating.  This recipe is often preferred by my clients because of it’s simplicity.  It’ also a great alternative for all the ice cream lovers!

The recipe I use is really easy:

30g Micellar Casein
150ml water

I like to use Syntrax Micellar Creme for this recipe.  My favourite is chocolate milkshake, although their strawberry and vanilla flavours aren’t too bad either.  While Optimum Nutrition’s 100% Casein may be king of the protein fluff, Syntrax Micellar Creme takes 1st prize for protein pudding.

Making this pudding couldn’t be easier.  Add your water and stir!  The amount of water you use will determine the texture of the pudding.  I like to create a consistency that is a bit like a thick yoghurt.  I then put it in the freezer for around 30 minutes to set.

This serving will have around:

100 calories
20g protein
6g carbs
0g fat

Depending on your nutrition and body composition goals you could also add additional ingredients such sliced fruit, shredded coconut or slivered almonds.

Please feel free to share your own success stories with protein pudding.

It is often thought that desserts are off the menu when dieting.  However, there is a solution.  That solution is protein fluff! If you have never heard of protein fluff before, it is basically a tasty recipe made from protein powder that resembles a fluffy moose or sorbet.  Casein is often used as the main ingredient as it gets a better fluff over other powders.  The great thing about protein fluff is that it is something you can easily do with your protein powder that actually tastes good!  It does not have that after taste or dryness you often get with recipes made from whey such as cookies, pancakes or crisps.

The recipe I use is really easy:

30g Optimum Nutrition 100% Casein
100g semi-frozen strawberries
50 – 100ml skim milk

I like to use a vanilla casein for this recipe.  Optimum Nutrition have other flavors such as Blueberries and Cream, Chocolate Peanut Butter, Banana Cream and Chocolate Supreme that all taste great.  Water can be substituted to replace the skim milk if required.  However you will create a better fluff using skim milk.  I find frozen strawberries or raspberries give me the best fluff.  I have also seen it made with banana, cherries, blackberries and blueberries.

Mix everything in a large bowl.  I just use the bowl that is part of the mixer.

To create the fluff you need to aerate using the mixer.  This will take some time and should double in size after around 5 – 10 minutes depending on your mixer and ingredients.

You can eat it straight away or chill it in the fridge or freezer to resemble more of a sorbet.  It is extremely tasty and very filling.  This serving will have around:

160 calories
27g protein
8g carbs
1g fat

Depending on your nutrition and body composition goals you could also add additional ingredients such sliced fruit, shredded coconut or cacao. There are many other variations circulating on forums and blogs.  You can also check out www.leangains.com which is where I first got the idea from.

Please feel free to share your own success stories with protein fluff.