I get a lot of questions about nuts. Everything from, “Are nuts healthy?” to “How can I stop overeating nuts?”
Let’s tackle these questions and everything in between!
There is no black & white answer on the nut issue. In today’s episode, as we explore the question, “Are nuts healthy?”, I want to show you how to find the right answer for you & adjust your strategy based on your needs, not on universal all-or-nothing statements about nuts.
I will show the types of things you need to consider such as:
What is your goal?
How often are you consuming nuts and in what quantity?
What type of nuts are you consuming?
Is inflammation a problem for you?
Is nutrient deficiency a problem for you?
How many omega-3 fatty acids do you consume on a regular basis?
What other regular sources of omega-6 fatty acids do you consume?
Are nuts a trigger for you or are you able to moderate your consumption?
Don’t miss the whole episode for the facts about nuts and their impact on your health & fat loss.
In today’s episode we look at the pros and cons of nut consumption as well as the differences between different types of nuts in nutrient profile, omega 6 fatty acids and anti-nutrients like phytates & lectins.
Calorie & Macro Breakdown of Nuts
Nuts are a significant source of phytic acid which binds to minerals and can reduce or prevent their absorption. The amount of phytic acid varies significant based on the type of nut. One of the strategies to reduce the impact of phytic acid on nutrient absorption is to not consume nuts along with mineral-rich foods like vegetables. You can also soak the nuts to neutralize many of these anti-nutrients.
Mg of Phytic Acid per 100 grams
Cashews: 1866
Hazelnuts: 1620
Almonds: 1280
Walnuts: 760
Chestnuts: 47
Nuts are a rich source of dietary fat & much of that fat is in the form of omega-6 fatty acids. When we consume more omega-6 fatty acids than omega-3 fatty acids, it initiates inflammation in the body. Each type of nut contains a different amount of these omega-6 fatty acids and we also need to consider our consumption of omega-6s from other sources as well as our overall consumption of anti-inflammatory omega 3s and whether or not inflammation is a challenge for us.
I have changed a lot in the last couple of years. Like, a ton. Well, maybe a few hundred pounds less than a ton, but still an awful lot.
I lost over 100 pounds after a lifelong weight struggle.
I quit my corporate job and started a business.
I’ve moved multiple times and gone through some overwhelming personal challenges.
I’ve learned so much about myself and want to talk about one of the most significant things these changes have taught me: I can do hard things. Change requires that I do hard things.
That doesn’t mean I love doing hard things. In fact, I kinda don’t like it very much at all.
When I was obese, I feared hard things. I feared failure, discomfort, self-discipline and the unknown.
Almost every choice I made was so I didn’t have to be uncomfortable or uncertain.
You know what that resulted in?
I hated my body, I hated shopping, I hated traveling. I hated my job. I was depressed, miserable, obese, isolated and terribly uncomfortable.
All because I chose to avoid doing hard things.
In an attempt to stay “comfortable”, I created a life in which I was terribly uncomfortable & unfulfilled.
I chose a discomfort that was familiar to me to avoid the risk of a discomfort that wasn’t.
Thank God I changed my mind. Thank God I reached such lows that I was willing to do hard things in order to live a happier, easier life.
But how? How do you face fear and discomfort? How do you break the chains of habit?
By making one, small hard choice.
For me, that began by reducing my Chick-fil-A breakfast order. Seriously. I used to stop at Chick-fil-A every morning and order chicken minis, a chicken biscuit, hash browns and a large Diet Coke (no ice).
I started by skipping the chicken biscuit.
I wasn’t ready to change my whole world at once. I had tried that. But, I knew I could make on small, hard choice.
(It’s cool if you’re laughing about what represented a hard choice to me at the time. “Hard” is a relative word and you might be ready to do something bigger or you might need to do something smaller. We’re all correct in our choices.)
I didn’t know if I could lose all the weight (actually, I didn’t think I could) and I didn’t know if I could change my eating habits over the long term, but I knew I could make one hard choice one time.
I decided to make one hard choice every day.
I haven’t stopped and I don’t believe I ever will.
These days, my hard choice looks kinda different. Sometimes my hard choice is getting out of bed when I want to hit snooze. Sometimes it’s saying no to the bakery cupcakes or the glass of wine. Sometimes it’s how I handle a workout.
Recently, I was working out with my trainer & pushing a heavy, metal sled across the pavement (while running as fast as I could). I looked at him, breathless, shouted some colorful language and groaned, “I’m dying.”
His facial expression didn’t change when he calmly responded, “You’re working hard, but you’re not dying”.
I wanted to stop. It sucked. I was so beat and the idea of 3 more sprints with sled (at the end of a full workout) was beyond uncomfortable.
I reminded myself, “Elizabeth, you do hard things.”
I finished the workout with my best effort.
It happened again just the other day. Another hard workout.
Heavy front squats. Running. High rep thrusters. Hanging knee raises. I tore my hand (I do not handle even the most minor flesh wounds well). More running.
As I set off for the last run, I thought, “God, I don’t want to do this.”
I told myself, “I do hard things”.
If you want your body to change, you have to do things that will change your body.
If you want your eating habits to change, you have to make food choices that will change your eating habits.
You can do one hard thing. I know you can. Anyone can do one hard thing.
So do it every day.
Make it a goal to get uncomfortable once each day.
Maybe that means telling yourself, “Not this time” when you want to go for dessert. Maybe it means passing on the wine tonight. Maybe it’s keeping the television turned off or doing a few more reps in the gym when you want to quit.
You can do one hard thing today.
I would LOVE to know what your hard thing is. Leave me a comment or find me on Facebook or Instagram & tell me what one hard thing you did today!
This is definitely an “Elizabeth uncensored” episode! When it comes to weight loss, the most important thing you need to lose is your negative attitude. Seriously.
When you argue for your limitations you get to keep them and the majority of people spend more time arguing for why they can’t change than for why they can & will. They’ll be right every single time.
There’s not much in the way of show notes for this one because the truth is: you need to listen.
The single most high-impact change you can make in your life is to change your attitude & your perspective and it’s time to change both. In the episode I talk about Breaking Barriers and believe this is a powerful tool to help you in this quest.
Of course, if you have questions after listening to the episode, send me an email.
If you are a regular listener to the podcast, you know I am a huge coffee fan. It’s true. I drink a lot of coffee and I drink it every single day. But here’s the reality: coffee might be holding you back. Less coffee might actually help you lose weight.
It’s true – and what I want to do in today’s episode is help you find what is true for you:
does coffee make you gain weight?
is coffee helping your weight loss efforts?
would you be better off with less coffee?
are you ok right where you’re at?
how can you minimize the negative effects of caffeine?
We’ll talk about the impacts of coffee & caffeine on your hormones, how to know if you’re having too much and simple changes you can make to enjoy your coffee without compromising your weight loss goals. I’ve also linked to some super helpful resources below including one of my favorite coffees, a high-quality water filter and some books about understanding the impact of things like coffee on your hormones.
Let me first say that there is no one set answer for everyone. The goal of this podcast episode is to help you find YOUR answer because I am certain your body is telling you!
Caffeine from coffee, tea, sodas or any source drives your body’s stress response by increasing the stress hormone cortisol.
Your answer is going to depend on your body’s unique ability to metabolize caffeine, your sensitivity to stress and your baseline cortisol level.
Here are some signs that your stress response system might be on overdrive and you could benefit from dialing back your caffeine (coffee):
Feeling “wired but tired” – exhausted but unable to turn off your mind or slow down your thoughts enough to sleep
Trouble falling asleep or staying asleep
Anxiety
Heightened emotional responses
Cravings for sugar, starch or sweets, especially after a meal
Irritability
Overeating in response to stress
Caffeine consumption triggers the production of cortisol by your adrenal glands. It also suppresses the production of adenosine, which helps you stay calm and depletes your “feel good” chemicals like serotonin.
When we chronically elevate cortisol, we can see the following impacts:
Reduced metabolic rate
Increased carbohydrate cravings
Increased belly fat storage
Blood sugar instability
Increased hunger
There are also important considerations regarding the quality of the coffee you drink. When the water in our coffee or the coffee itself contains toxins, that impairs fat loss. Here are some recommendations to improve the quality of your coffee:
Use a water filter (my recommendation is below under “Resources”)
I hope you enjoyed this Fat to Fit miniseries as much as I did! Today I’ll be tackling a few of the most common questions I’ve received about these nutrition, mindset and fitness episodes.
Before you dive into today’s episode, please check out parts 1, 2 and 3. The listener Q&A won’t make too much sense if you haven’t heard these episodes.
In today’s episode I’m tacking some hugely important questions. Listen to the entire episode to hear me answer:
If eating puts me in storage mode, does that mean that I’m automatically in fat storage mode after eating?
What about the opposite? If I’m in a fasted state, does that mean I’m in fat burning mode?
What is your take on fat loss nutrition strategies like ketosis, intermittent fasting or carb cycling? How do I know if these are effective strategies for me?
I understand that fat loss is a mindset thing, but I keep stopping and starting. Can you help me stop stopping?
Are spin classes or other group exercise classes good ways to burn fat?
