10 Nutrition Tips from Nourished with Emily

10 Nutrition Tips from Nourished with Emily
1. Do you start your day with water first or coffee? If it's coffee, let's change things up.
Did you know that when you start your day with coffee, you're more likely to have a hard
time getting in enough water throughout the day, thus causing dehydration and altered
digestion. There's nothing wrong with your morning coffee, as long as you're measuring
the creamer you add to it, but making sure we drink water first can reduce reflux risk,
aid in better hydration status and encourage normal hunger cues. Leading with coffee
can give you a false feeling of satiety, causing us to put off eating and ultimately end up
with increased hunger throughout the rest of the day. Lead with water in the morning
and have your coffee with breakfast!

2. Why do we want PCC on our plates? Setting up your plate to have protein, carbs and
color not only aids in ensuring you're getting in all that you need for optimal health but it
can help you reach your goals. Protein helps to preserve and build lean muscle mass
on the body, it also aids in long term fullness between meals as protein is complex and
takes the body longer to process it. Carbohydrates are excellent for keeping our energy
levels up. Our brain and spine need a minimum of 130g a day PLUS all the extra energy
needed to help you exercise. Carbs, when paired with protein, have a slower energy
release helping you to stay energized for hours. PLUS carbs are great sources of the B
vitamins which aid in energy metabolism and health. Color is KEY for digestion,
vitamins and minerals plus volume. Having color on your plate from fruit and vegetables
provides fiber for fullness and digestion support, and they can increase the portion size
of your meal without added large amounts of calories and they help to strengthen our
immune system. Build your PCC plate this week!

3. Want to feel MOST energized and strong in your next workout? Have 20-30g of carbs
about 30 minutes to an hour before your next workout. Grab a simple granola bar, dried
fruit, regular fruit, a bowl of cereal or a simple yogurt to help your body fuel up with
carbs for your workout. Carbohydrates are easy to digest and can help you feel better
from the first exercise to the last, plus aid in recovery! We don't want high amounts of
protein or fat as they can take longer for the body to digest and when they are sitting in
your stomach during exercise, they can cause GI upset, nausea and reflux. 

4. Water is one of the most underrated things you could have more of for your health.
Water is needed in every reaction that happens within the body, from digestion to
energy metabolism and more. We need a minimum of half your weight in ounces every
day, if not more! If that seems like a lot more than what you're having right now, don't
worry. We can start small! Add 10 ounces a week to slowly work up to the goal. Maybe
aim for at least 30 ounces by lunch time each day and it'll be easier to get there!

5. Have a hard time with mindless snacking throughout the afternoon and evening? Try
portioning out your meals and checking in with yourself. So much of our life is on auto-
pilot, we grab snacks because we usually have a snack at this time or grab dessert
because something is out on our counter. Pause next time you go to grab a snack or
treat and ask yourself, am I hungry? Bored? Avoiding something? If you're hungry, we want you to eat!                                                                                                     If you're just grabbing something because you're wanting a distraction,let's try changing up where we are and what we are doing to see if that helps. You might
find that a lot of the added things, beyond meals, are just because they are there and in
front of you!

6. It's so easy to get overwhelmed with all things you should be doing, goals you're
setting and habits you want to put in place but something we say to our clients often is,
take it slow and slowly layer in changes. With our nutrition, maybe you aren't eating
breakfast regularly  and want to start with that, plus exercising more AND drinking more
water and then add in meal planning. Ask yourself, what is going to be the easiest thing
to do right now? Start there, dedicate a few weeks to it and get really good at it before
adding in something new. This can help prevent the falling off the wagon feeling and
help you easily add in healthy habits. 

7. Did you know that sleep and rest are two of the most essential pieces of recovery that
aids in overall health? A recent study shows that spending at least 8 hours in bed each
night, you don't even have to be asleep, promotes weight management as well as
weight loss when compared to those who are up later with less sleep. This
decompression time is essential for recovery for our brains and muscles, but the less
stimulation from screens and ads also can help us regulate appetite and hunger cues.
Spending 8 hours in bed CAN help you be healthier!

8. Are you setting the right goals? So often do we become fixated on the end goal with
our health and nutrition, like lowering our blood pressure, managing our blood sugar
numbers, losing weight that we lose sight of what we can actually control and change.
Instead of focusing on the outcome goals only each week, try focusing on the processes
that can get you there. Like, swapping out a soda for a sparkling water to reduce added
sugar, pairing your carbs with protein to reduce blood sugar spikes or going on three 1
miles walks each week to increase exercise. We know that these steps can help bring
us to our goals and are more accountable than hoping something will change each
week. 

9. Struggle with getting enough fruits and vegetables? You're not alone. Most
Americans AREN'T eating enough fruits and veggies in their diets and many people say
they don't like fruits and vegetables very much. But, you can FLAVOR them so that they
taste good! Put parmesan cheese on your green beans, add marinade to the vegetables
before roasting them, dip the carrots in yogurt ranch or add new fruits into smoothies to
help you get in the 5 recommended servings a day. 

10. Added sugar, what's the deal? Added sugar is different from the naturally occurring
simple carbs that are found in fruits, grains and vegetables. The naturally occurring
sugars are often accompanied by fiber which slows down digestion as well as vitamins
and minerals that aid in overall health. Added sugar does not come with those benefits
to our health and usually will cause blood sugar spikes. Hidden sources of added
sugars can be in tomato sauces, juices from concentrate, sodas and sweets, some

dipping sauces, prepared fruit in syrup and energy drinks. Try to limit your added sugar
to less than 40g a day, that's 10 teaspoons!

Want to get more out of your health and nutrition without sacrificing flavor and your favorite
foods? Check out Nourishedwithemily.com or @nourishedwithemily on Instagram for more tips
and info!