With all the changes and stress of this past year, athletes are adjusting their approach to getting fit. Instead of basing goals on the outward physical process of getting fit (i.e. going to the gym 5 times a week), we are focusing inwardly on the culprit of why we are gaining weight in the first place, and that culprit is lurking in what we are consuming. By locking in our nutrition, it’s easier for us to burn fat and get the body that we want in 2021. 

As athletes, we have a tendency to go all-in and complete very high intensity, shred-worthy, workouts, or eating habits… but is it something that we can commit to in the long term? After a month or two are we just going to gain it all back? Will that be worth it? Many dietitians are quick to point out the downfalls of diet plans noting that they will work in the short term but don’t lead to much long-term success. Natalie Allen, RD, a dietitian and instructor with Missouri State University, says, “because they’re so difficult to maintain people fail more often than they succeed. Most diets help with weight loss in the short term, but when the weight loss tapers off, people go back to their old ways and regain the weight.” So the question becomes is it better to take a long term approach and start by cleaning up our diets over a period of time? Will we see more weight loss that actually stays off? Will we get off the weight gain roller coaster? 

With this in mind, that’s why athletes are taking a different approach to body goals this year by looking at ways they can make healthier choices in their diets. If we make small adjustments over time, our small changes can have a large impact.

Here are some top areas where the Mpowher Athlete team has been shifting our focus for 2021 nutrition goals. One key remains the same: everyone is concentrating on the process.

Centering meals around whole foods

This has been a big goal for many this upcoming year. Not only because many dietitians recommend eating whole, single-ingredient food as much as possible, but also because it can create less restriction than many ways of eating that cut out entire food groups. In addition, eating whole foods will lead to a more nutritious diet, one that is naturally high in fiber, vitamins, and minerals.

Many athletes had noticed that eating processed foods even though they can be extremely enjoyable also coincided with overeating. This could be in part because of how overly palatable processed foods can be from the added sugars to other flavorings added to highly processed foods. Either way, there was a significant increase in consumption when eating more of these foods as compared to whole minimally processed food.

In fact, a study published by NIH.gov found that their test group that only ate minimally processed foods ate 500 fewer calories per day than the test group that ate an ultra-processed diet.

Focus on what you can eat, not what you can’t

We are shifting our attention, and instead of focusing on foods that we can’t eat (i.g. low carb, low fat, etc.), we are concentrating on the foods that we want to add to our menu. Because on a psychological level when we are told that we can’t have something, that’s exactly what we crave.

This coincides really well with the first habit that athletes are adding to 2021. 

For this approach, a goal could be to eat veggies 3 times per day. You could even take this further by telling yourself you can have the sweet you are craving but you have to reach your vegetable goal first. So you are getting to eat everything that you want but you are filling up and fueling your body with nutritious foods first.

Adding more protein to our diets

The last nutrition goal revolves around hitting protein goals. Time and time again, protein has been found to be one of the most important nutrients for fat loss, because of the satiety it brings.

In this study, they found that women who increased their protein intake by 30% ate 441 fewer calories per day and lost 11 pounds, just by adding more protein to their diet.

Finding out how much protein one should have in their diet is very individualized but the DRI (Dietary Reference Intake) is 0.8 grams per kg at the minimum. Depending on your performance goals studies show that could range from 1.2-2 grams per kg.

Keep in mind that everyone is different so it is vital to play around and find out what works best for your body.

A good way to find out how much protein you are getting each meal is by using your palm as a source of measurement. The size of your palm will measure out about 3-5 oz of lean meat which equals about 21-35 gm of protein. 

Some great go-to protein examples are chicken, turkey, eggs, dairy, fish. Plant-based proteins: black beans, quinoa, lentils, edamame, and tofu.

If 2020 taught us something it should be to not sweat the small stuff, give yourself some slack and focus on improvement, not perfection, it doesn’t need to be all or nothing, just looking to make your habits better than they were is a great place to start. 

Taking on 2021 doesn’t need to be a solo act if you want to add some more structure, nutrition tips, a teammate, and don’t want to create a plan yourself check out the Forever Fit program. We are feeling some good things coming this year!