As much as I feel the tips included below on how to battle your bulge are important, given what's going on in the US (and beyond), I debated whether to send this.

It seems decadent, especially because when it comes to food, so many of those protesting right now are from marginalized communities where food insecurity is rampant (food insecurity is defined as the state of being without reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food). More than 800 million people live every day with hunger or food insecurity as their constant companion.

It's an insidious, systemic situation that simply isn't acceptable.

So if you would like to save the Battle of the COVID-19 Bulge tips for future reading, and instead learn about how you can help out with this more pressing situation, I invite you to read the latest newsletter from The Stop. It includes a number of links which will direct you to some interesting articles as well as links to organizations that need support.

The Stop’s mission is to increase access to healthy food in a manner that maintains dignity, builds health and community, and challenges inequality; that nutritious food is a human right for all. The Stop serves these marginalized communities day in and day out, even now, during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is because of The Stop that I am a nutritionist. Having volunteered there for five years made me realize that I could help change people's lives through food, and I continue to serve these communities on a weekly basis.

I have never known hunger or racism or what it feels like to be scared to go running every time I put on my running shoes, so I can't begin to comprehend the emotions involved in what is going on south of the border right now (and to a lesser extent, here in Canada and the rest of the world). But I can be compassionate and kind; I can listen and I can learn. We all can.

______________________

Battle of the COVID-19 Bulge

After bumping into two people this past weekend who were lamenting weight gain around their middle, even though they felt they had been doing “everything right” (lots of exercise, eating the “right” foods, etc), and then reading an article in Monday’s Globe and Mail on the same subject, I felt it was time to do a refresh on tips to avoid the dreaded COVID-19 bulge.

Sadly, that bulge becomes harder to get rid of the older we get, especially when combined with hormones associated with menopause.

So, in no particular order...

DO: Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper
This old adage has science to back it up when it comes to weight mgt.  Studies have shown that calories are treated differently depending on when you eat them. Those who ate the exact same food early in the day vs late in the day (ie – flipped their meals) gained more weight when eating the larger amount later in the day.

DO: Change your mindset
Eating one or three cookies doesn’t mean you’ve “wrecked everything” and now need to eat the whole bag.   This is called the “what the hell” effect. Or being excited about losing weight on your first week of trying, so excited, in fact, that you celebrate by eating more. This is called the “because I deserve it” effect.

Both effects are very real!

DON’T: Overeat good fats
We keep hearing “Fat doesn’t make you fat!” Well, yes, it does, if you eat too much of it. As Leslie Beck alluded to in her Globe and Mail article on Monday, just because they are good for us doesn’t mean we won’t gain weight if we eat too many. No food is a free-for-all (except vegetables ;-)

DO: Have a carb, protein and fat at every meal and snack
Aka balance your blood sugar. This is key. Note when I say carbohydrates, I mean vegetables, fruit and/or whole grains. Carbohydrates raise our blood sugar more than protein and fat.   By pairing them together, it keeps us fuller longer and avoids cravings.

Starting the day with juice, toast and jam, or bagel or cereal can start us on a day-long blood sugar roller coaster, leading to constant cravings, low energy and brain fog.

DO: Feed your good gut bacteria
Our gut flora has a huge impact on our cravings, and ultimately our weight (when we give into cravings and eat more). If we keep our good bacteria fed properly, our cravings for sugar, refined carbohydrates and processed foods will eventually go down.   And as an added bonus, our brain health will go up.

Our good bacteria love:

All vegetables
Prebiotics – includes onions, garlic, leeks, asparagus, dandelion and Jerusalem artichokes (slightly undercook them)
Resistant starches - includes plantains and green bananas; beans, peas and lentils (white beans and lentils are the best); whole grains including oats and barley, and cooked and cooled white rice

DO: Get junk food out of the house
If it’s not there you won’t eat it. I can promise that ;-) Just make sure you have other food to grab if you let your blood sugar drop too low and you become ravenous. But if you are eating a carb, protein and fat at every meal, and you eat at 3 hour intervals, you shouldn't hit that ravenous stage.

If you are craving a sweet after a meal, slice up half a banana and add almond butter to every slice. Or, if you can swing having dark chocolate in your house without eating it all in one sitting, then have a square after lunch and/or after dinner.

DO: Have “go to” snacks
Have handy, easy accessible snacks that you know will benefit your body so you can avoid grabbing the slice of cake, the muffin, chips, ice cream or a piece of toast.

Think: apple (or celery or carrot or any vege) with nut butter. My latest is tahini from bulk barn… full of vitamin C but more importantly, I love it and there is no prep. Or greek yogurt with berries and shredded coconut on top. Or the sliced 1/2 banana and nut butter I mentioned above.

DO: Pause
So often we go to reach for food but we aren’t really hungry. Put a note on the fridge, “Am I really hungry, or am I … " (fill in the blank here: bored, angry, sad, scared, etc). And then pause for 5 seconds. If you aren’t hungry, go get a glass of water instead and while sipping, start to address the real issue. Or go for a walk :)

DON’T: Think of exercise as a weight loss tool
Exercise (although I much prefer the words movement or activity), is critical for us on so many levels. And we need some form movement/activity daily.

BUT, it really doesn’t contribute much to weight loss. In fact, it can sometimes lead to weight gain because people feel it gives them a license to eat more. And it’s pretty much a given they will eat more than the calories burned.

DO: Remember that alcohol is sugar
Remember to count alcohol as part of your daily “food” intake. If you need/want that gin and tonic or glass of wine at the end of the day, then think twice about that piece of dark chocolate you were going to reach for after dinner.

Also, be aware that alcohol has a negative impact on our sleep. See next point.

DO: Take your sleep seriously
Poor sleep disrupts our hunger hormones and because of that, significantly contributes to cravings, weight gain, and can set us on a path towards Type 2 Diabetes. Recall the last time you had a poor sleep and what foods you reached for during the day. And then multiply that by all the times you have slept poorly.

See my blog on sleep for sleep hygiene tips.

DO: Practice de-stressing techniques
Sadly, stress is one of the biggest contributors to our mid section bulge, partially due to the role of cortisol. For more details, see my blog on Stress and Weight Gain.
Other suggestions include:

Sleep – take your sleep issues seriously and start incorporating key sleep hygiene practices
Get outside!
Move more
Meditate – Sam Harris’ Waking Up App is my go to at the moment
Breathing exercises, such as Dr. Weil's 4-7-8

Hopefully one or more of these will resonate with you as we head into summer and the too often dreaded swimsuit season.

... and yet, if putting on a bathing suit is our biggest fear at the moment, then life is good. Very good.

Thanks for reading.

gillian xx

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Food Insecurity / Battle the COVID-19 Bulge

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