Unhealthy Foods to Avoid
Focusing on muscle pliability and working out the right way are both important steps toward achieving sustained peak performance, but our bodies also need the right fuel to help us perform at our best. It’s critical to choose foods that provide the right nutrients and avoid foods that don’t.
REFINED CARBS
Refined carbohydrates are found in foods made with processed grains, such as white bread, white rice, traditional pasta, and cookies. During processing, these grains lose the fiber and nutrients they once had, and are left with just refined carbohydrates. Consuming too many of them can result in fat storage, elevated blood sugar, and excessive insulin production. In addition, refined carbohydrates don’t keep you full for very long, leading you to eat even more. If that wasn’t bad enough, some studies show that refined carbohydrates promote inflammation.
TRANS FATS
Trans fats are unhealthy fats, and they provide no benefits to us. Whether you eat a few grams a year or heaps of them every day, they’re very unhealthy. These fats are found in hydrogenated oils. They’re used in many of today’s commercial food products — even if they read “0g trans fat” on the packaging.
Some food companies have switched from trans fat to what is known as interesterified fats. Though this new man-made fat does not have trans fat in it, experts still have significant health concerns.
Because both these fats are prevalent in processed foods, we recommend cutting down on all processed foods. Eating fresh and local food is a great way to be confident you’re not eating any of these unhealthy fats!
WHAT’S THE ALTERNATIVE TO UNHEALTHY FATS?
At TB12, we encourage our clients to try sources of healthy fat. Medium Chain Triglycerides, or MTC, is a healthy source of fat that converts to energy extremely efficiently. MTC is in coconut oil, but you can also get it from specially-designed MTC oil. TB12 also suggests increasing your intake of essential fatty acids, which are found in seafood and tree nuts such as almonds, pecans, Brazil nuts, and walnuts.
DAIRY
TB12 disputes many of the commonly-believed health benefits of dairy. Most cows that are milked for dairy products have been given harmful antibiotics and hormones that can cause damage to the human body. The average American gets their dairy from an A1 cow, whose mutations taint their milk and cause harm to human bodies — and potentially mental well-being. In addition to this mutation issue, the food these cows are forced to eat can contain high levels of toxins, and often isn’t species appropriate.
SALT
To support adrenal gland health and proper mind-body communication, your diet must contain some salt — however not all salt is created equal. Traditional table salt, the most commonly used salt, is highly processed and often has harmful chemicals added. It is common for processed foods to be packed with traditional salt as a preservative, not for any nutritional benefit. On the other hand, unprocessed salt like Pink Himalayan salt provides more of the trace minerals we need to stay healthy. Pay close attention to the types of salt you’re consuming, as they can have very different effects on your body.
CAFFEINE
Roughly half of all Americans are addicted to caffeine. Consuming moderate amounts of caffeine (a cup of coffee or less a day) is generally harmless, but excessive consumption can lead to a wide range of health problems like edginess, stress, and dehydration — all of which can hinder your ability to achieve sustained peak performance.
If you’re going to consume caffeine, we recommend sticking to the 3-to-1 rule: Drink three glasses of water for every one cup of coffee or caffeinated beverage (like cola) you drink. This isn’t included in your baseline water consumption — caffeine offsets your hydration, so it’s essential to drink extra water to get it back to a healthy level.
ALCOHOL
We strongly recommend limiting your consumption of alcohol. Alcohol weakens your “gut biome” — the community of beneficial bacteria in your body that protect against bad bacteria. A weaker gut biome allows bad bacteria to bypass the gut wall and slip into the bloodstream. This can lead to significant cell damage and inflammation of crucial organs like the heart, brain, kidneys, and liver. It can also inflame soft tissues like your muscles, causing increased risk of illness & disease.
Alcohol is also a diuretic, meaning it’s very dehydrating. If you choose to consume alcohol, be sure to drink three additional glasses of water for every alcoholic beverage.
IT ALL COMES TOGETHER
Getting on the TB12 nutrition plan and feeling the benefits of sustained peak performance is easier when you know what foods to avoid! If you have any other questions about nutrition and what food to avoid, please let us know on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter @TB12Sports, and we’ll do our best to answer!
