GTS Reverse Diet
Week 5
Each week we are going to keep building off of the previous weeks.
The Preparation Week material focused on getting ready to start the journey.
Week 1 our focus was on calories and getting the hang of tracking your food.
Week 2 we worked on hitting your target protein numbers.
Week 3 we increased the total servings of vegetables each day.
Week 4 we reviewed additional carbohydrate sources.
Week 5 we'll talk a little bit about fat.
REMINDER - Submit Weekly Check-IN on monday!!!
Each Monday I'd like you to submit your weekly results (high/low body weight, average weekly calories/macros, etc) using the Weekly Check-In Form. On this page, you can also sign up for weekly SMS reminders sent to your phone.
Week 5 Focus
Fat
Fat is the other macronutrient there's been a lot of controversy around. If you lived through the 80’s and 90’s low fat diet culture, then it might be tough to purposely include extra fat in your diet. However, healthy fat is vital for our body’s ability to function optimally and you shouldn't necessarily fear it, you just need to be aware of how much and which kinds you're consuming.
Fat provides energy, absorbs certain nutrients and maintains your core body temperature. You need to consume fat every day to support these functions, but some types of fat are better for you than others. Good fats protect your heart and keep your body healthy, while bad fats increase your risk of disease and damage your heart.
The 3 Main Types of Fat
Saturated Fat
Dominant in animal fats, peanuts and palm oils. Saturated fats were once demonized, but new research tells us that they can be a healthy part of the diet, but in moderation and in the absence of refined carbs. Animal fats high in omega 3 fatty acids are especially healthy such as salmon and other fatty fish.
Monounsaturated Fat
Dominant in plant fats such as olive oil and avocado.
Polyunsaturated Fat
Dominant in plant fats like soybean oil and corn oil. Typically found in processed foods, these oils are very high in omega 6 fatty acid, which throws off your body’s healthy balance of omega 3 and 6 fatty acids leading to inflammation.
Balance
It turns out that we need a healthy balance of all three types of fat in our diets. As a general rule of thumb, fats should be consumed in this order: First consume mostly monounsaturated, then plant & animal saturated, then omega 6 dominant polyunsaturated fat.
Fat and Calories
Fat is one of the trickier macronutrients of the bunch. Where carbs and proteins are 4 calories per gram, most people don't realize fat is 9 calories per gram. So when something has 10g of fat per serving, that means it has 90 calories of fat.
We have already discussed the importance of protein, vegetables and other sources of carbohydrates in your diet, so it's smart to create a healthy balance of each macronutrient. Since fat is higher in calories, a good rule of thumb would be to limit your diet to 20 to 35 percent calories from fat. So for example, if you were on a 1,800-calorie diet, this recommendation amounts to 40 to 70 daily grams of fat.
If you remember back to our discussion on carbohydrates and sugars, if you think about all the things that taste amazing in this world, it's generally a combination of carbohydrates and fat. Examples include pizza, ice cream, baked goods, french fries, etc. Carbs and fats are both fuel sources for the body, and when foods contain high levels of both of these macronutrients they taste delicious... which generally means you'll consume too much of it. Is ice cream bad? Will pizza and french fries make you fat? No, not at all... when consumed at a serving size or two and a few times per month it's perfectly fine to have in your diet! Again, over consumption is where we get ourselves into trouble.
Since there are generally trace amounts of fat in most of the whole and unprocessed foods you've been eating the last several weeks, most of us don't need to go too far out of our way to add additional fats to our diet, but we might need to tweak the types of fats we are consuming.
This week, focus on keeping your fat content a little closer to your target number, and I'd like you to just take a look at the labels and gain a general awareness of the types of fats you're consuming.
If you haven't had a chance to watch the macronutrient breakdown video below, you might find it helpful. This should provide a better high level picture of how all of your calories and macronutrients work together.
STep 1
RESet Custom Calorie and Macros in MyFitnessPal
Set your week 5 calorie and macros in your tracker app on your phone.
Look in your training log for your week 5 calorie and macro targets...
Next, in MyFitnessPal, click...
--> More (bottom right) <--
--> Goals <--
--> Calorie, Carb, Protein, and Fat Goals (Custom) <--
Adjust the calories and percentages to get as close as you can to your prescribed numbers.
At this point you should be pretty familiar with this process, if you have questions make sure to ask your coaching staff.
Step 2
Improve on Fat Measurements and sources
Whether you need to add fat or reduce fat in your day to day, my biggest suggestion this week is to focus on becoming a bit more precise in your measurements on fat. As we said earlier, since fat is 9 calories per gram, it's really easy go overboard.
Example 1 : Almonds
A serving of almonds has 162 calories... 14 grams of fat (126 calories from fat), and 6 grams of protein (24 calories from protein), and the rest carb calories. When snacking on almonds, portion control is key. One serving of almonds is 23 almonds, which equals 1 ounce, ¼ cup or about 1 handful. It's really easy to go over.
Example 2 : Cooking Oil
A serving size (1 Tbsp) of Olive Oil contains 120 calories and 14g of fat... I would make a wager that most people are a little heavy handed when they are using oil. Oil is not free calories.
If you've been over on fat each week, start measuring out your cooking oil, try substitute cooking oil for cooking sprays (zero calories), swap out processed foods for whole foods, choose leaner cuts of protein or mix in leaner cuts with fattier cuts.
If you're low on your target fat, try adding additional through avocado, oil (olive, avocado, coconut, flaxseed), fish oil, nuts, whole eggs, fattier fish, cheese, yogurt, chia seeds, dark chocolate (look for 80% or higher).
What to expect...
Body Weight Reminders
It's not uncommon for your body to hold onto the weight a little more weeks 3-5 and the progress to slow day to day. The body is stubborn sometimes and starting to adjust to the deficit. You may also start seeing a recomposition, meaning while your body weight may be the same, but you'll find your clothes are starting to fit better. This typically means you're building lean muscle tissue while dropping fat. Stay the course, the weight on the scale is less important than how you feel, look and perform day to day. The the body weight will release at some point, sometimes dropping a few pounds randomly.
Just a reminder, focus on building long term, sustainable habits. Instead of just focusing on the low number on the scale, I'd like you to keep a closer eye on your weekly high bodyweight. Each week I'd like to see less fluctuation in your weight on the high end. You can't necessarily control the rate at which your body releases the weight but by staying the course you can typically ensure your weekly high bodyweight is a little bit lower than the previous week.
Training Impact Reminders
Everyone should start seeing strength and endurance pick back up again as the calories and carbohydrates have been increasing.
Continue focusing on perfecting your reps, and rack the weight when you feel your form is degrading at any point during your working sets.
Sync up with your coaching staff if you're having issues and we'll adjust your program accordingly.
Success Tip 1
MEASURE cooking Oils Or Swap with Cooking Sprays
I can't stress this enough when it comes to fat. Don't trust your estimations. Measure as much as you can.
When cooking with oil, read the labels and MEASURE! It's super easy to go overboard when cooking with oils.
If you prepare a lot of your own meals, try using an olive oil spray. It's zero calories.
This is also the hidden calorie in most restaurant food. Preparing the majority of your own food is a great way to ensure you're getting a little closer to your target calories and macros.
Success Tip 2
Powdered Peanut butter
Love peanut butter but can't afford the fat calories? Try PB2 or another powdered peanut butter product.
The product, is made by pressing peanuts to remove their fat and oil content, while maintaining their taste. The process turns the solid peanuts into a kind of peanut dust that, when mixed with liquid (little bit of water), reassembles a butter-like spread.
Two tablespoons of Jif’s natural, creamy peanut butter spread contains 190 calories, 16 grams of fat and 3 grams of sugar. The same amount of Bell Plantation’s PB2 has 45 calories, 1.5 grams of fat and 1 gram of sugar.
As a snack, try adding a serving size or two to a shake, 0% greek yogurt, to a piece of toasted bread, or chop up some strawberries.
End Of Week Check-IN
I'll be sending out a check-In form on Monday to gather data and see how everyone did, but you're free to communicate with us at any time.
Text our training/nutrition text message account @ 424-265-0487
A few reminders...
Make sure you're weighing yourself 3x per week, preferably first thing in the morning. We'll be tracking the high, the low and average for each week.
Take progress photo (selfies) at each weigh-in.
Final Thoughts & Other Helpful Links
Good luck!
Remember go easy on yourself! Try not to stress about being perfect. This will be a journey, let's just aim for small victories and improvements each week.
Next week we'll taking a look at other carb sources...
Quick Links:
GTS Facebook Team Training Page (Meal Prep Tips and Ideas)
GTS Nutrition Video Playlist
GTS Nutrition E-Book
Preparation Week
Week 1 - Calories, Logging/Prepping, Cheat Meals
Week 2 - Protein, Preparing in Bulk, Stir Fry and Stew, Quick Protein Options
Week 3 - Vegetable Prep, Weighing and Measuring Tips, Salads in Mason Jars
Week 4 - Carbs, Overnight Oats, and Easy Prep Carb Sources
Comments, Questions, Feedback?
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