NOURISH: FUEL FOR STRENGTH

Do you know what and when to eat to be STRONG at midlife and beyond?

Goal = STRENGTH = build muscle, bone health, mobility.

Building these requires FUEL = the right foods, at the right time. 

Scientific research on WOMEN shows that:

Midlife women do NOT maintain healthy weight or lose weight through: 

- Lots of exercise and a bad diet

- Exercise and calorie restriction 

- Fasted workouts ie exercising before breakfast

Midlife women DO maintain healthy weight or lose weight through: 

- Real food, well timed, fuelling smart exercise to build muscle and bone

What real food? 

No surprises here: a balanced diet rich in protein, complex carbs and healthy fats. Include all 3 groups in all meals and snacks. 

When? 

Within a short(ish) eating window = 10-12 hours. 

Eg 10 hour window 10am-8pm, 12 hours 7am-7pm

And CRUCIALLY on days you are exercising: Small fuel before exercise = complex carbs

Why? stabilise blood sugar, support lean muscle mass, improve performance and recovery 

When? 30-60 minutes before exercise. 

Eg banana with nut butter, half a wholemeal seeded bagel, small bowl porridge with banan

Fuel to recover after exercise = protein and carbohydrates.

Why: replenish glycogen, and optimise brain and endocrine health 

When? Within 30-45 minutes after exercise.

Eg greek yogurt with berries and granola, overnight oats, eggs with wholemeal toast etc

Why MUST I eat before training? 

Fasted training has the OPPOSITE results for women than men. 

Our complex endocrine system (hormones) makes our brains more sensitive to a lack of nutrition: female brains see fasting as a threat. 

This causes a decrease in thyroid function and higher baseline cortisol leading to a ‘breakdown state’ which leads to 

1) decrease in lean mass

2) putting on and keeping visceral fat 

= the opposite of what we are trying to achieve.
So when a man tells you to do fasted training for mitochondrial health and to lose weight, remember that recommendation is based on male data. Female data = different story. 

And yes, eating before your workouts might be new, challenging, inconvenient, not what you want to hear. 

You don’t need to eat alot. Start really small, see how it goes and how you feel! 

Find out more here.