The Importance of Muscle and Water

Date: 1/5/2012

Workout: 2 mile morning run (time: 20:05), cardio and strength in the evening (just not sure what yet!)

Food:

Breakfast: Strawberry Protein Shake (blended frozen strawberries, ½ c. milk, 1 scoop protein powder, and a splash of OJ): 255 Calories, 21g carbs, 36g protein, 3g fiber, 3.5g fat, 97.5mg sodium, 16g sugar

Morning Snack: Light Yoplait Strawberry Yogurt and Apple: 165 calories, 36g carbs, 5g protein, 3g fiber, 0g fat, 86mg Sodium, 27g sugar

Lunch: Tuna Sandwich (no mayo or dressing-just 50z can chunk light tuna, chopped green peppers, tomoatoes, and onions) served on 2 slices whole wheat bread with mixed greens and a Clementine: 260 calories, 37g carbs, 16g protein, 9g fiber, 4g fat, 358mg sodium, 16g sugar

Afternoon Snack: Luna Nutrition Bar (Chocolate Peppermint Stick): 180 calories, 28g carbs, 8g protein, 4g fiber, 5g fat, 120mg sodium, 12g sugar

Dinner: Tilapia (with squeezed lemon and a pinch of spices), 1 c. cooked egg noodles (no butter but maybe a little salt and pepper for taste—this isn’t a great choice but I happened to have leftovers and needed to use them), steamed mixed veggies: 381 calories, 50g carbs, 29g protein, 4g fiber, g fat, 123mg sodium, 4g sugar

Total nutritional and calorie intake:

1,241 Calories
172g Carbs
94g Protein
23g Fiber
19g Fat
785mg Sodium
75g Sugar

 So I need to reflect on this nutritional info and think about what it is telling me and maybe certain areas I need to improve on/change. I wasn’t able to meet with a trainer or nutritionist yesterday at the gym so I still haven’t gotten direct advice from them yet on any specifics. Therefore, what I am eating and doing is according to what I think for now. After I do meet with someone, they may tell me differently. One of my friends from college, who is very knowledgeable in the area of nutrition and fitness, did give me some good advice yesterday. She told me I may want to consider doing early morning cardio before breakfast to help mobilize fat. I typically workout in the mornings at few times a week anyways so this shouldn’t be too hard for me. She also suggested taking in half of my calories in protein, keeping my carbs under 120g/day, and eating about 50% of my daily carb intake in the morning so that I can burn it off throughout the day. It would also be smart to keep a high fiber level (the more fiber you take in, the less fat is absorbed from the food you eat). This all makes perfect sense to me and something I am going to keep in mind with my nutrition.

As for my workouts, I intend on getting in good sessions of cardio while also incorporating weights and strength to build muscle. I’m not looking to get jacked and become a body builder!! However, I am looking to burn fat and build muscle tone. Most people don’t realize that the main instrument in burning fat in your body is your muscle. This is especially a hard concept for many females to realize. A lot of girls think, “I don’t want to look like I have a lot of muscle so I’m not going near any weights or doing any pushups”. This is a huge mistake. If you build your muscles and take care of them, they will be key in burning your fat for you. Also, muscle helps to speed up your metabolism. So you can’t just stick to the treadmill and cardio if you are looking to lose pounds and inches. You have to hit the weights too!

Yesterday, the nutritionist from the gym emailed us an article on the benefits of staying hydrated. I thought I would share some of the facts and advice from it:

Water

·        Dehydration causes reduction in the blood volume, which means less oxygen gets to your working muscles. This negatively affects your heart rate and it compromises energy systems in your muscles. Therefore, there’s a drop in your energy level during your workouts so you won’t get as much from them.

·        If you become dehydrated, your metabolism slows down, meaning that you won’t burn as many calories as normal while at rest.

·        Ample water may reduce appetite and control food intake by making you feel full. When your body is dehydrated it tends to give off the feeling of being hungry which can cause you to eat more when you really need to drink water!

·        Everyone’s intake of water is different. Your daily intake should be to drink at least half your body weight in ounces. I am 132 pounds so I would need to drink at least 66 ounces of water. Since I am pretty active (and if you are active too), you should drink more like 75% of your weight in ounces. For me, that would be 99 ounces.

·        Your body tends to be dehydrated in the morning when you wake up, so it’s a good idea drink water as soon as you get up.

·        Before, during, and after workouts: you should always drink 8 ounces before working out, 6-8 ounces ever 15-20 minutes while engaging in hard core exercising routines, and 16 ounces of water after exercise to restore fluid.

·        You should limit caffeinated soda, tea, and coffee as much as possible. All of these have a diuretic effect, causing fluid loss from your body. If you do have any of these, try and follow up with the same amount of water to stay balanced.

·        Try flavoring your water with slices of citrus fruits. Beware of flavored bottled waters (they have added calories and sugar).

·        Common problems with increasing your water intake: very few stick with it. During the first few days of drinking more water than your body is used to, you will be running to the bathroom constantly. This is because your body is flushing itself of the water it has been storing throughout all those years of “survival mode” from not getting enough. As you continue to give your body the water it needs, your body will get rid of what it doesn’t need. Your body will figure that it doesn’t need to store all that extra water anymore; trusting that the water will keep coming. Eventually, your bladder will go back to normal.