Empty calories are a product of modern life but what do I mean by EMPTY?
A calorie is of course a unit of energy and essentially all are equal, whether they come from a can of Coke or a can of Tuna.
It doesn’t though take a genius to figure out that the tuna has benefits, other than just pure energy. In the Tunas case there is protein and good fats, which amongst other things will improve are hormonal function and hence aid body composition.
The Coke is obviously just sugar and will do the complete opposite to the tuna with regard hormonal activity and body composition goals.
I would then class an empty calorie as one which offers up nothing other than energy – a lot of sports drinks and gels would count here.
The only time that type of energy is acceptable in my opinion, is to get you out of trouble in a race or long training session – most of the time we can do without them.
I see a lot of triathletes consuming gels and energy drinks on a daily basis and I think this is generally down to a laziness, or lack of knowledge with regards their nutrition.
Please don’t be offended by that, I have been that person and quite simply I now have far more knowledge.
You see, nutrition is NOT just about energy, if it was we would all be surviving on liquid diets now for convenience.
Whilst there are companies who promote liquid diets like herbalife, it is without question that you can NOT get the same quality of nutrients from such supplements, as you can real foods.
Despite what these huge companies tell you!
Liquid diets are just a shortcut – Again for the lazy or for those without the correct knowledge.
My point here is that we should aim to not only consume calories but also nutrients.
Nutrients which will improve our health, which in turn will improve our body composition, which in turn will improve our performance.
Performance not just in triathlon but in life.
At work.
Better sleep.
Increased libido.
Better skin.
More energy.
Better mental clarity.
We all have times when the above will suffer and unfortunately, it is at these times the we reach for the empty calories rather than the nutrient dense real food, which will get us back on the straight and narrow.
If you are lazy, I can’t help you, it is as simple as that.
If though you just lack knowledge, I can.
It’s why I created my private coaching group – The Total Triathlete:
On sign up you receive a FREE copy of my E book.
You get access to my private facebook page where you can post your days nutrition and have me critique it.
You get a monthly E Magazine with training advice and Strength & Conditioning routines.
It’s £10 a month ($14 ish) and you can unsubscribe easily at any time.
It really is a no brainer, sign up below:
Jamie “Ditch the Coke” Leighton