Every day you may find that nutrition information seems to be changing and what was thought was true a few years ago is now generally accepted as false. It’s hard to keep up, but we’ve taken it upon ourselves to give you the facts about a few of the main myths in 2018.
You Get Hungrier When It’s Cold
This is a commonly held belief that when it is colder you get hungrier and eat more, but there’s little truth to it. There are more possibilities that could cause this correlation and they are to do with:
· Holding onto the belief and then telling yourself that you’re hungrier
· Lowered amount of activity and more time spent at home, leading to eating
· Winter months falling over festive periods such as Christmas where you eat more
· A response to the idea that food is scarce during winter months
As a general rule, the weather doesn’t determine how hungry you are going to be and if you continue to be as active throughout the year then you will find that you will not gain more weight. Read our blog on the topic here.
Eat Protein and Gain Muscles
Although protein is essential for any person’s nutrition, gaining muscle doesn’t only hinge on how much protein you consume. Rather, you should focus on eating a balanced diet after you train that is nutrient-rich and combines protein, fats and carbs that are healthy for you.
Your body will use all of these nutrients to repair itself following itself bouts of training, all of which are crucial for muscle gain.
Eating After 6pm Makes You Fat
There has been a lot of buzz surrounding the benefits of having your last meal at 6pm until breakfast the next morning, but it is slightly flawed. A lot of what weight loss is about is based on how many calories you consume throughout the day vs how many calories you burn.
Therefore, doing enough exercise and being mindful of the foods that you eat throughout the day is more than enough guidance to ensure that you will lose weight (if this is your goal). Stopping to eat after 6pm is difficult for a lot of us for various reasons and is highly restrictive, so it may not work as well for some people as it does for others.
Read the blog here.
Fat-Free Food is the Healthiest
It appears that many foods that are marketed as “fat-free” are also associated with being healthier than other foods, but this is not the case. Yes, some “fat-free” foods are healthy, but a lot of the time other food products such as sweets are also said to be “fat-free” but are definitely not healthy.
Another thing is that it should be clear now that fats are not your enemy, it’s the type of fat that you are consuming that counts. Nuts, olive oil, salmon and avocado all contain the “good” fats that should be a part of everyone’s diet.
Organic Foods are Healthier than Non-Organic
More often than not it is thought that because foods are organic, they must be healthier than regular foods found in the supermarket, but you’d be mistaken. Yes, some foods have shown varying nutrient-levels depending on how they are produced but essentially all food is the same.
We recently covered this topic and derived the conclusion that in terms of sustainability, being more mindful of how your food is produced and on an emotional level organic foods are preferable to others, but that doesn’t mean they’re more nutritious.
Low-Carb Diets are Essential for Weight Loss
Your ideal diet type can be discovered from a genetic test like the one we at DNAFit offer. Everyone is different and your unique, personalized profile that is based on your DNA can determine how you should eat going forward. However, there is no use in restricting foods for the sake of restricting them in your quest to lose weight.
We covered everything about what a low carb diet entails to outline what you would need to do to achieve this. Also, this doesn’t mean cutting out carbohydrates like vegetables that are crucial for a healthy diet.
Meal Prep is Too Hard
The thought of meal prep is harder to get your head around than the actual preparation. It actually saves you time once you get the hang of it and allows you to have more control over what you eat and when you’re eating it to ensure that you’re reaching your diet goals.
Take a look at our Pro Tips for Meal Prep here.
And there you have it. Nutrition myths are being debunked daily but the key is also to do your own research in advance so that you can decide for yourself what sounds right and what sounds wrong. Sure, there’s no harm in trying something out if it sounds interesting, but many fads and myths can be found out on your own once you access more information about where it comes from and why it’s being touted as effective.
Stay healthy out there!
