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Why I Started Pro-Metabolic Eating
I have been on the path to healing my metabolism with pro-metabolic eating for over two years. When I first learned from a blood test ordered by my doctor, she confirmed what i already knew, that my metabolism was struggling. I didn’t know where to turn. I tried to do some research to find a solution and eventually was lead to what is known as pro-metabolic eating. Pro-metabolic eating simply means eating in a way that supports your metabolism. It is not a traditional diet that requires you to restrict calories. In the beginning I found the concepts rather confusing which is why I have put together this simple guide to pro-metabolic eating.
My Disclaimer: This information is for educational purposes only. It is not meant to treat, cure or diagnose. Please speak with your qualified medical professional about dietary changes.
What is Metabolism?
Metabolism is the process within the body that converts food into energy. Our bodies need energy for everything like breathing, moving, thinking, cellular repair, immune system function, even resting requires energy. The calories in carbohydrates, fats and proteins are used to make energy. The higher your metabolic rate the more food you need. The lower your metabolic rate, the less food you need resulting in a slower metabolism. A slower metabolism means processes in the body like digestion, detoxification, immunity and sex drive slow down. When these processes slow down the body suffers, eventually leading to disease, accelerated aging and overall displeasure with life experiences.
What is the Role of the Thyroid in Metabolic Health?
Low thyroid function is synonymous with low metabolic rate. The thyroid gland located at the front of your neck is referred to as a master gland since it is the conductor of every metabolic process in the body.
What Are The Signs of Poor Metabolic Health?
When something within the body is not functioning properly, the body is excellent at letting us know. There are a number of signs to look at:
- Low basal body temperature
- Cold hands, feet, and nose
- Low heart rate
- Weight gain
- Elevated cholesterol
- Fertility issues
- PMS
- Low libido
- Moodiness
- Sleep issues
- Estrogen dominance
How to Start Pro-Metabolic Eating?
Before we get into the how to of it, it’s important to understand that this approach to eating is better done gradually. Trying to implement all these changes at once is not what is best for you or your health. It is best to take it one step at a time to not overwhelm yourself. Slow and steady will yield the best results!
What are the Guidelines to Pro-Metabolic Eating?
Eat Upon Waking:
- Eating within 30-40 minutes of waking up is so important for the health of our hormones. Waiting too long to eat is stressful on the body resulting in a release of cortisol. The body uses stress hormones for energy when not given proper energy from food sources. This is a survival adaptation but a necessary one. Its is important for survival, however, it not meant to sustain the body long term thus having long term consequences. I personally think this is the best place to start with pro-metabolic eating.
Coffee AFTER Breakfast:
- Drinking coffee does in fact support the metabolism. However, it is important to sip it slowly and after eating breakfast or at least with your breakfast. Coffee ideally should be consumed with lots of calories like cream and sugar. This is how to offset the adrenaline response.
Eat Enough and Often:
- Eating 3 solid meals a day as well as snacking between meals is pivotal for increasing metabolic rate. Eating every 3-4 hours takes a lot of stress off of the body but some may need to eat every 2-3 hours. Although this part of pro-metabolic eating needs to happen gradually. If you are someone who never eats 3 meals and rarely snacks then take it one week at a time, slowly increasing caloric intake.
Bedtime Snack:
- The liver both stores and makes glucose in order to provide energy to the body’s cells. This happens even while we sleep. If the liver does not have enough stored glucose to survive the night, a stress response occurs and adrenaline and cortisol are released resulting in a middle of the night wake up. Therefore, having a bedtime snack like fruit and cheese or sourdough bread with butter and honey will help give your body what it needs to make it through the night.
Never Eat a Carb Alone:
- Pairing carbs with a protein and a fat is important because proteins and fat take longer to digest than carbs. Since carbs naturally elevate blood sugar pairing allows for the elevation to occur more gradually since the fat and protein slow the digestion of the carbs.
What foods are best for Pro-metabolic Eating?
High integrity and nutrient dense foods are so important for our health. Always choose foods that have high nutritional content. Foods like animal fats, grass-fed beef and lamb, pasture raised chickens, pasture raised eggs, organ meats, sour dough bread, organic fruits and vegetables, high quality dairy and raw honey. And of course bone broth is an incredibly nourishing food that should be consumed regularly. Check out my Beef Bone Broth Recipe.
Snacks for Pro-Metabolic Eating
Having a well balanced snack is really important for a healthy metabolism. I recommend the following snacking combos:
Meat stick and fruit
Smoked Oysters and a piece of sourdough bread
Raw honey and cheese
Organic Apple Sauce and Beef Jerky
Carrot Sticks and herbed goat cheese.
Where to Find Out More About Pro-metabolic Eating?
One of my favorite resources on all things pro-metabolic is The Freely Rooted Podcast. Every episode is full of information on having a healthy metabolism. In addition to the podcast, there is also a Freely Rooted Course that dives deep into all things Pro-Metabolic. I took the course myself last year and it had a profound influence on how I approach pro-metabolic eating. Signing up for the course also grants you access to the facebook group where you can ask questions and learn a lot from others who took the course.
To learn more about high integrity nutrient dense foods check out The Weston A. Price Foundation.
Why does any of this matter to me?
For me, choosing pro-metabolic eating has had many benefits. I knew way before that blood test, that I needed to make a change with how I felt. Mainly the way I was showing up as a wife and mother wasn’t enough. Having a trashed metabolism, consistently running on stress hormones because I simply did not nourish myself with enough food regularly. My poor diet was impacting the most important people in my life. I used to tell myself a lie that I just didn’t have time to eat. I was operating from victims consciousness and feeling sorry for myself way too often. It wasn’t easy but I made the decision to step out of that thought pattern and do something about it. One thing that changed almost instantly was the way I was speaking to my husband and children. My words and tone were nourishing and loving. Food is life giving and when you take in good food you become alive!
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