As a gym owner in Maynooth I am always surprised at folks avoiding the bigger picture when it comes to fat loss.
I opened the paper there the other day to see Gwyneth Paltrow sprawling over the paper saying that organic foods should be available for everyone because they are tasty and good for you.
It was great to see. For years the organic food movement has coughed and spluttered its way into our supermarkets. I am pleased to say that it is growing and growing to the extent that it now covers 1% of the aisles of the your local supermarket, up 1% from 5 years ago.
If there is one habit you can get into it is ensuring that 90% of your food is fresh, seasonal, organic and whole (meaning that it is from its source and not 5 stages of processing later). It is probably the easiest habit to get to grips with in the quest for a leaner, healthier and overall Ferrari-like you.
The benefits are subtle yet enormous. It is enjoyable too. Simply cleaning up your diet by focusing the quality of your food will make huge inroads into your goals. It will remove the toxic load on your body. Organic produce for example has a remarkable difference in the number of herbicides and pesticides that it is exposed to. And, according to several studies, are making you fat.
After all, where do these toxins go in the body considering that the majority of them are FAT soluble.
That’s right your fat is actually doing you a favor by parking all that rubbish you put in your mouth on your hips and love handles rather than let them wreak havoc around your organs and in your blood stream.
When you switch to predominantly cleaner diet then you are literally cleaning out your stores.
Genetically modified foods are also creeping into our food chains. We are simply not designed to handle these foods. How does our body respond? With subtle alterations in our body chemistry – normally in a negative way. So instead of thriving and flourishing as we used to we are riddled with nasty ‘bite you on the backside’ type diseases such as diabetes and heart disease.
It is not soemthing you are likely to feel overnight (like being bitten by a bug containing malaria for example – you will feel pretty stink very quickly if that happens). No, these creep up on you. Overtime you feel progressively worse.
Your mood begins to deteriorate, suddenly life is sooooooo tough, you eat more of the stuff that has directed you down this dark road and all of a sudden you are sitting across from your Doctor who is equally scratching his head with the 4th pill he has prescribed because the other 3 have give you headaches, tummy complaints and sore joints.
Take a step back from this scenario. Think – where did it all begin? You will see very clearly that it is equally easy to fix. Clean up your diet and stop treating your body like a dustbin.
Eating clean is actually easy. Source your local farmers markets and get in the habit of visiting them. You will come away with a smile. Why? Because it is cheaper for a start. The colours, textures and connection with the foods for another. Suddenly a tomato begins to taste like one. An orange is bursting with all its natural sugars. Fruits in season actually give you a ‘kick’.
Moreover, Where else can you pick up homemade organic treats conjured up by someone who has an equal passion and zest for life injected into their foods?
What about meats, fish and poultry? Your local butcher is a godsend. I always recommend organic chickens though due to the high levels of estrogen hormones found in them. We don’t want our fellas wearing bras or enjoying re-runs of Dallas do we?
All organic or grass fed meat is higher in natural fats that give our hormones timely injection of naturally produced testosterone. Testosterone is not only a ‘drive’ like hormone it is also fundamental to the functioning of the heart leaving you susceptible to heart attacks if your testosterone levels are in the gutter. Male AND females take note.
What good old Gwyneth is also missing though is the bigger picture as no doubt her personal shopper and chef remove the connection with the actual local suppliers.
With organic foods and famers markets, butchers you are doing your bit to sustain local communal produce. Where would you like your food from? Brazil or Ireland? Which do you think will have better consequences when it reaches your plate.
Staying close to home may a secret tool in your tool box.
John Lark is a personal trainer in maynooth and owner of the Sphere Health and Fitness Centre
