Why Food Choices Matter

Do Food Choices Matter?

April 13th, 2019

Theory: Two identical twins, one uses specific "bodybuilding" foods to get in shape, the other uses different foods to fit his/her macros.

So who gets in better shape?

I personally think twin one who uses specific foods gets in better shape and I'll explain why using a few different points that I find to be the main contributors.  

Disclaimer: I'm not saying macros don't work or that a person can't get shredded using them.  This is just the most extreme end of the spectrum.  

Food and hormone response: Different foods elicit different hormones when they are ingested.  I'll give an example.  When carbs are ingested, the hormone insulin is released from the pancreas to help lower your blood sugar.  Artificial sweeteners have been shown to also create an insulin response similar to when ingesting glucose.  Other foods like processed and or packaged foods can be high in pesticides and glyphosate which can effect how the thyroid works.  These are just a few examples of how food effects the hormones going on in our body.  Certain foods, things like the packages sugary treats you see have actually been shown to increase cravings by stimulating the feel good chemicals in our brain!  This can lead to a downward spiral of over consuming these foods in search for that feel good feeling again.  

Gut Microbiome: Our gut microbiome is basically all of the microorganisms that live inside our gut.  New science is finding our gut and brain are directly linked and few are even going as far as calling the gut the second brain.   Our gut microbiome is what effects our bodies ability to store nutrients.  It also effects our appetite and plays a huge role in weight management.  Since the microbiome is a collection of living organisms that means it can change, and it does!   It changes according to our environment and no I'm not just talking about the weather. That means the foods we ingest has a direct effect on this.  So much so that our body builds up what's called gut flora for specific foods.  Ever eaten something totally new to your body and not felt well afterwards?  This is because we haven't built up the healthy bacteria to handle that food yet.  Sticking to a few of the same food sources for a period of time allows our body to adjust its gut flora to that food so we're better able to digest and use it.  

GI Tract-Motility: The GI tract refers to everything used to consume food and get ride of it.  

Everyones GI empties at different rates due to many different factors.  This is referred to as motility or the foods ability to move or get around.  Fats and dairy are two examples of things that can slow down your digestive ability.  When food digestion starts to slow down that means our body isn't up-taking those nutrients properly.  Low motility in the gut means other meals will compound or "back up" into the system leaving them to be unabsorbed.  Rule of thumb: It's not about how much food you can eat, but about how well your body takes up those nutrients when ingested.  This is why gut health is an absolute priority when trying to get in shape. 

Not all macros are created equal: This one is a no brainer but commonly overlooked.  Let's use white rice and pop tarts for an example.  I'm sure if I tried hard enough I could make pop tarts fit my macros multiple times of the day.  Here's the issue with that, two pop tarts contain roughly 160mgs of sodium per 35 grams of carbs.  Where as white rice only has 2mgs per one cup which equal to about 40 grams of carbs.  If someone was trying to get into the best shape they possible could, say for a bodybuilding show things like sodium content matter.  Different types of carbs can be put into two different categories being high and low glycemic.  This is referring to the carbohydrates ability to break down.  High glycemic carbs have been shown to leave people at higher body fat levels and lower levels of muscularity compared to someone eating a more balanced diet with low glycemic carbs in their diet. *disclaimer: high glycemic foods do have their time and place* that's just talking very general to get my point across. 

Personal Experience: So this here is strictly theory and what I've found when I've done these things in the past.  This might be only true to my body, or it could be due to the fact that I was simply just in the calorie deficit longer. Regardless, what I've found is certain foods do make your skin appear thiner or make the muscles "pop" more.  I had been dieting for a while using lean protein sources like chicken, 99% ground turkey and egg whites.  After stalling for a few days and not seeing any progress I switched my protein sources to ONLY egg whites and white fish.  These two are virtually fat free!  

These protein sources digest stupid fast for me and left me feeling super hungry after.  My metabolism was on fire at this point so I was burning through everything.  Especially the egg whites since I'd only drink them.  I could eat an entire meal of 8 ounces of protein with some veggies and be ready to eat again within 45 minutes.  Only having 6 meals per day I had to space out those meals and savor each one.  So that meant the time in between meals I was literally just cranking through my body fat as fuel.  As a result of doing this I broke the plateau I was at and my skin seemed to be much thinner.  I personally think it has to do with how light those protein sources are which meant my body was able to move it easier throughout my GI. (see how important motility is!)

That's my .2 cents on the topic!
Let me know what side of the fence you're on!

-Justin