Note: this post is being repurposed. Originally it was drafted for Orangetheory Fitness members embarking on the 2024 transformation challenge. I’ve been an OTF coach for a long time, and I find that my job as a fitness coach and my job as a nutrition coach have so many similarities. That being said, this discussion is relevant without being an OTF member 🙂
One of the best characteristics about the Orangetheory workout is that it’s great for anyone. It’s fun, challenging, customizable, encouraging, balanced and appropriate for all bodies and levels of fitness. The room is packed with people who are all doing the same thing – exercise – but who are all focusing on what’s working best for them.
The same principle applies to nutrition. Everyday we all do the same thing – eat – but we all should be focusing on which approach to eating works best for us. And just like getting used to your abilities in an OTF workout, it takes practice and attention to get our eating right!
Nutrition is wonderfully individualized depending on lots of factors. We tend to discount lots of these factors that are important in the face of trends. An example of this would be knowing that you enjoy eating all different sources of carbohydrates and that they help you stay satisfied and better your athletic performance but choosing to eliminate them because you heard they’re “bad” for you. You’re ignoring your personal cues in the face of a trend.
So to find out what nutritional approach is right for you, seeking out the guidance of a professional, like a registered dietitian, can help you spot holes in your diet or help you better rearrange your diet based on your goals. For the transformation challenge, certainly things like fat loss or muscle gain aren’t passive! These two things take attention and almost always tweaks to diet and other habits in order to achieve the results you are looking for.
However, there are some parts of nutrition that actually do apply to everyone!
- Eat a varied diet.
- If you eat the same things over and over again, even if they’re healthy, you might be missing out on nutrients. The more variety you include in your diet, the better your chances are of hitting all your micronutrient (eg. Vitamins and minerals) targets!
- Eat more color.
- Similar to variety, the more color you can eat the better! Fruits and vegetables have different phytochemicals that contribute to their nutritive properties and do positive things for our bodies! If your meals are looking perpetually beige, add literally any pop of color (preferably in the form of a fruit or vegetable and not a skittle) for a healthy boost.
- Eat what you love.
- I can promise you one thing: a diet void of anything you actually enjoy is not a diet you will “stick to” very long. Do not underestimate the power of enjoying your food and finding ways to enjoy healthy food. Healthy does NOT equal bland! There are also swaps you can make that are more nutritional than traditional foods if that feels right to you. But make sure you’re eating what you like.
- Eat at home.
- Like it or not, if you want to do better with eating you’ll have to eat more food at home – and that means cooking at home, not picking food and bringing it home to eat it! Restaurants have one goal, and that is to make their food taste good so you come back. They do not worry about things like fat, salt, sugar, etc. Even if it doesn’t taste obvious! Learn how to season your food well at home and keep eating out a treat.
- Eat when you need to and stop when you don’t.
- Paying attention to your hunger and satiety cues is an art that needs practice. Most of us, especially if we have a history of dieting, are out of touch with how to address our hunger and how to know when we are appropriately full. Learning how to manage this is a key in portion control as well!
Note, all of my tips start with EAT! 🙂