A common complaint I have been hearing from patients is weight gain. We lovingly call it the COVID-19… or 20 pounds. Have you been experiencing that too? I have! Even with all I know and read, I too, have let myself gain some unwanted weight due to poor eating. It’s almost like we’ve been on a year’s diet vacation due to the COVID pandemic and restrictions. Most of us, however, are starting to wake up and realize that it’s time (or past time) to get back on track.
Fine-tuning our metabolic health is KEY to improving overall health, but it can be hard to get your weight under control. An article in MBGhealth reports that only 12% of Americans are in good metabolic health.
Here are two simple tips to help improve your metabolic health and your weight:
- Eliminate Processed Carbs- white bread, boxed cereals- especially sugary cereals, pasta, sugary drinks (that includes diet drinks.) These are called “fast-carbs” and they dump glucose into the upper GI tract causing a metabolic roller-coaster in your system. Complex carbs or “slow-carbs” are what I label “real food” veggies, fruit in its whole form, grains with the fiber still intact- like brown rice vs white rice. These are digested in the lower GI tract and help you feel full and satisfied.
- Eat a Plant-Based Diet- this will help your cholesterol! Unfortunately, we have been trained to think that eggs, meats, and other animal products cause an increase in cholesterol. That is not really true! Sugary foods and refined carbs are the bigger culprits. Eating a plant-based diet is one of the best ways to lower LDL cholesterol or as we call it, lousy cholesterol.
To read the whole article along with links to plant-based diet recipes go to: https://www.mindbodygreen.com/articles
Written by: Catherine Kipp, APRN
Sources:
https://www.mindbodygreen.com/articles/plant-based-diet-supports-metabolism