nutrition

A FLEXIBLE APPROACH TO DIETING

What goes in your body will determine your body composition, to put it simply; calorie surplus = weight gain, calorie deficit = weight loss. So no matter what goals you set yourself, achieving it will rely on energy consumption vs expenditure.

Your diet will not only determine your body weight, but will also play a huge part in your performance, energy levels and general wellbeing.

Any diet you choose should be maintainable. If you can’t see yourself adhering long term, then perhaps it isn’t the best choice for you right now.

The FITT Life is about creating a healthy lifestyle with a flexible approach to dieting, you should be able to enjoy all the foods you love and still hit your health & fitness goals. As part of the FITT Life Team you’ll have access to recipe books and a PT on hand for all your nutritional advice!

You can find more healthy & easy recipe videos on YouTube here > The FITT Foodie

Calories are king

If your goal is fat loss, or muscle gain, you will need to create either a deficit or surplus. To do this you first need to know your BMR, but bear in mind this is an estimate and may need to be amended as you progress.

A good general rule for fat loss would be to create a daily deficit of around 500 calories

WHOLE FOODS

Once you determine a calorie target, the next step would be working out what to eat!

It is no surprise that ‘whole’ foods, are going to have a higher nutritional value than processed foods, so these should be prioritised most of the time. When we talk about ‘whole’, think anything that could be grown, picked or killed e.g. meats, grains, fruits, vegetables.

Dieting and nutrition doesn’t need to be complicated or restrictive, there is plenty of room for your favourite ‘naughty’ foods along the way, I find a 80/20 approach works well for most. 80% of the time stick to whole nutritious foods, and allow 20% for less optimal foods; takeaway’s, chocolate, sweets etc. Obviously if you don’t enjoy these foods, then that’s cool too, but you won’t see me missing out on pizza and ice cream regardless of my goals!

Whole foods will be more satiating, and provide you with more energy - thus making it easier to stick to your calorie target. And if calorie counting isn’t for you, then the whole foods approach could still be a step in the right direction.

Top tip - If you are able to eat free range and local meats, even better, not necessarily ‘healthier’ but much more sustainable and environmentally friendly. The same goes for local & seasonal fruit and veggies (do you really need strawberries in January, I mean they don’t even taste of anything!)