Hi friends!
Here is your weekly Tri-Tip Tuesday, sharing our current thoughts on food, fitness, & travel. Please forward this to others if you think they may be inspired.
Food: eat enough fiber
The main building block of every single meal should be quality protein. Protein will drive muscle preservation, muscle building, satiety, curb cravings, and provide the amino acids necessary for a healthy brain and body.
Next up, the second focus should be fiber. Fiber is a powerful ally alongside protein. Fiber is found in minimally processed plant foods such as vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts, seeds, and whole grains. Getting enough fiber helps us feel full, feeds the good gut bacteria, and helps digestion. It can also help regulate hormone levels as it binds to hormones and excretes them. Fibrous fruits and veggies are also packed with vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals.
When choosing fibrous veggies and carbs as your main carbohydrate source, fiber helps regulate blood sugar levels by slowing the absorption of carbohydrates. The key factor separating "good and bad" carbs is fiber!
Women should target roughly 30 grams of fiber daily, while men should target 40 grams.
Fitness: muscles for glucose disposal
If regulating blood sugar levels peaked your interest above, you're in luck because our fitness tip is all about that.
The more muscle you have, the more glucose you can store in your body. Think of your muscles as a suitcase for the glucose that you consume. This is one of the reasons why building healthy skeletal muscle helps repair metabolism, makes you more of a metabolic machine, and allows you to eat more food.
Another way to dispose of glucose after eating and manage spikes is to move your body for ten minutes after eating. Stimulate your muscles by going for a brisk walk outside. This is also a great tip to sneak more steps into your day and get valuable microdoses of exercise, fresh air, and sunshine. If getting outside for ten minutes isn't an option, stand up and do bodyweight squats and pushups at your desk.
The answer to "getting in shape" and "getting healthy" isn't simply eating less and moving more. It's building muscle, training smarter, and eating more REAL food.
Travel: weather and its effect on mood
We are out of Florida, the Sunshine State, and moving north. While we are still barely holding onto our Florida tans, we are getting less and less sunshine since leaving the state.
April is a shoulder season for spring/summer and the weather is reminding us of that. We are up into the Carolinas now, where one day it's 70 and sunny, and the next day it's 50 and rainy.
My body is just as confused as my closet as I change from shorts and tank tops to puffy coats, a hat, and mittens! It's crazy how much the weather affects our mood.
We had two days of cold rain in the 50's, and I didn't want to leave the RV. We fired up the propane heater for the first time in a long time and had to scrape every ounce of courage to go out and explore. Once we did, we were glad we left the house. But it sure was a big reminder of how we really do depend on the sun, mentally and physically.
Make it a great week!
Christine Irene
NASM-CPT, Precision Nutrition Pn2 Certified, & Avid Traveler
"Life isn’t always about doing the things we like to do. It’s about doing things we have to do." - DAVID GOGGINS
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