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Nutrition is an individual journey. We owe it to ourselves to determine which foods and what style of eating works best for our bodies. Just like learning any new skill, nutrition takes practice.

The goal should be to develop an approach to eating that makes you feel great, maintain a healthy body, and achieve your goals. We all run into moments of weakness around food, but if your current diet makes you feel angry or sad on a daily basis it’s time for a change.

Let’s take a look at some different ways that eating better can make you feel better:

1. Improved mental function

Our brain is the control center of the body and just like our muscles and organs it requires fuel to keep it going. In fact, some studies have shown that the brain uses up to 20% of our body’s daily energy.

Focusing on eating to improve our brains function is a great way to feel better. The brain loves wild fish like salmon and mackerel. That’s because these fish contain omega-3 fatty acids called EPA and DHA. DHA helps our brain send signals to our body and improves our memories. Try adding 1-2 servings of wild caught fish each week to get an optimal dose.

The foods we eat determine the way our body and mind perform. Next time you reach for that donut try to picture how your brain will run using the donut as fuel. Instead look for some fresh veggies and hummus, a handful of nuts, or a stick of turkey jerky to give your brain some jet fuel to run on.

2. Add Muscle, Burn Fat

The battle to fit back in those jeans from college starts and ends in the kitchen. No amount of exercise can overcome an unhealthy diet. Figuring out the right foods in your diet is the key to unlocking your ideal body composition. Imagine how good it would feel to go out on your anniversary wearing the suit from your wedding rehearsal! Protein is known for building muscle but it can do more for your body than help you recover after a workout.

Set the bar at breakfast. A high protein breakfast is one of the best ways to improve body composition. Studies have shown that consuming 30g of protein at breakfast helps with satiety and improves glycemic control. This means less desire to snack on high carbohydrate or sugary snacks later in the day. One study showed that participants who ate a high protein breakfast on average consumed 441 calories fewer each day!

3. Foods that light you up

Eating is often thought of for fueling performance, but food plays another important role as the building block of our cells. Certain foods help build healthy hair, skin, and nails.

If you’re looking for a youthful glow and to get carded until you’re 50 try these 3 superfoods:

• Avocado. Rich in vitamins A, D , E, and many phytonutrients; avocado promote supple skin, help prevent environmental damage and prevent signs of aging.
• Bell peppers are high in vitamin C, an essential nutrient for forming collagen which holds hair particles together.
• Lentils contain Folate, a B vitamin needed to repair cells in your fingernails and skin.  

4. Get Creative

Preparing meals from whole foods can be a fun and relaxing part of the day. Learn how to season dishes using herbs, spices, and complementary pairings. This eliminates “empty calories” from your diet that show up in sugary sauces and dressings.

Eating is a time for bonding and camaraderie, get together with family and friends to create a new dish. Focus on great conversation, chewing your food, and turning off the TV and electronics. By giving new meaning and tradition to your meals, eating can be a source of enjoyment beyond just the food.

Each month Overland Park CrossFit recognizes a member who exemplifies our values and motivates others in the gym to push themselves with encouraging words.  January’s Athlete of the Month is Abby Dunn.  Abby was chosen because she always pushes herself in the gym no matter the workout. She takes every tip or cue and focuses her energy in applying that to get better in a movement or workout! Abby’s drive is very contagious within a class atmosphere!   Learn more below about Abby!

1. What were your thoughts after your first CrossFit workout?

Each month Overland Park CrossFit recognizes a member who exemplifies our values and motivates others in the gym to push themselves with encouraging words. September’s Athlete of the Month is Brad Claycamp.  Brad was chosen because of how hard he works in the gym and his positive attitude. Brad instantly became a part of the OPCF community the moment he walked through door.  Learn more below about Brad!

1. What were your thoughts after your first CrossFit workout?

 Immediate thought was “What have I gotten myself into?” followed by “This feels pretty awesome, I’m coming back tomorrow”.

2. What has been your favorite workout?

I have always been a fan of grunt work style workouts that involve just gritting down and doing the work. Lately though, I have really liked the rope climb workouts that Cody has been programming, the rope climbs have started to really click into place.

3. What is your favorite cheat meal?

This is a tough one because I love food. First go to would probably be chinese food followed up with a brownie and ice cream for dessert(huge sweet tooth).

4. Where do you work?     

I am a System Engineer with Cerner working at our Legends campus.

5. What do you like to do outside of work?

I’m a big fan of golfing although I haven’t made time to get out on the course lately. I also try to take the dogs to the dog park as much as I can. I also like to feed the child part of my heart with a little bit of video games here and there.

6. What advice would you give a newbie just starting at OPCF?

Stick with it, the workouts don’t necessarily get easier but they will feel better as you get better at the movements and increase your strength. Also don’t forget the accessory/mobility work, they will pay off big dividends in the long run.

7. What is your favorite lift?

Although we don’t do it too often I am a huge fan of the bench press. Pressing of any sort has always been a strength of mine.

8. What’s your biggest “GOAT”?

HSPU and double unders. I have my double unders but I get shin splints really easy so when that flairs up it is pure struggle bus to string together more than 5 in a row.

 

9. What changes have you seen in yourself since starting at OPCF?  

The biggest change has been my outgoingness. Usually I’m pretty introverted and just do my own thing but the community at OPCF is like nothing I’ve experienced before. Everyone is super friendly and encouraging/inviting so it makes it really easy to talk to anyone.

 

 

10. What is your biggest improvement or proudest accomplishment thus far?

As some people may or may not know or have seen the top of my head, I had to

take a year off of CrossFit due to needing brain surgery(feel free to ask about my story when you see me, love sharing my experience). And since AJ only communicates in memes.

If you thought Regina George was mean, then you clearly haven’t met Overland Park CrossFit’s “Black Betty”.  Black Betty was the first assault bike we ever bought and then slowly her “crew” of additional assault bikes grew.  They look harmless enough right?  I mean most of parents in the 70’s & 80’s owned some type of stationary bike or airdyne.  Let’s be serious, even Jane Fonda was talking while riding it in her leg warmers.  But then again, Jane Fonda was an unstoppable fitness queen, and those bikes are no joke!

In all seriousness, assault bikes are a great addition to an athletes programming.  The bikes are equipped to provide Tabata training to help increase your overall aerobic capacity.  They are a great substitute for rowing, running, swimming, etc..  But there is no hiding on that assault bike!  Every drip of sweat is earned and rest is begged for as this machine works your entire body including your mind.  Just like in CrossFit you learn to work through the pain and find what you are capable of.

Now, we don’t want assault bikes to get a bad rap!  Yes, they can rock your world, and give you one hell of a workout, but they can also be used for recovery and rehabilitation.  It can be a safe haven for those with injuries providing a no impact exercise.  It can also aid in recovery for not only an injury but on your rest days.  On rest days, you may not be doing a high intensity workout, but you need to keep your blood pumping to those muscles you have torn down that need to rebuild.  You’d be surprised how a cool down on the assault bike will drastically help with your recovery and decrease how sore you could be the next day.

Whether you are looking for a workout that will leave you on your back at the end or just for a nice recovery ride, we recommend you jumping on Black Betty & crew and seeing what they’ve got to offer!  They might even get you singing “Whoa, Black Betty (Bam-ba-Lam)”.

The importance of post-exercise nutrition often gets overlooked. It is easy to think that when the clock runs out after a hard workout that signals the end of the benefits that you will reap from your exercise.  The focus on recovery post-workout will allow for better recovery by decreased soreness, less fatigue and lethargy and an increase in performance in future workouts.

The post-workout window is often thought of as the most important part of nutrient timing. Mainly for the reason that after exercise, a significant portion of stored fuels in your body in the form of glycogen and amino acids, are depleted. Therefore, consuming proper nutrients will allow you to restore your energy reserves and initiate muscle tissue rebuilding.

Post workout carbs are also required to facilitate sodium absorption in the gut after a sweaty workout that leaves you in need to replace electrolytes. Sandra Fowkes Godek, a doctorate in exercise physiology and director of the Heat Illness Evaluation Avoidance and Treatment (HEAT) Institute at West Chester University in Pennsylvania, explains the need for carbohydrates for electrolyte replacement and proper hydration balance “If you drink a special high-sodium beverage to replace electrolytes, it’s essential to pair that drink with carbohydrates. Gatorade’s carbohydrate content is 6 percent—not enough to facilitate sodium absorption. A true sodium-replacement drink is anywhere from 10 or 12 percent carbohydrate. Without a carbohydrate, the majority of the salt you put in your stomach ends up in the toilet within two hours because your body has a protective mechanism against a (mass) of salt”.

Most recovery drinks have low carbohydrates and high sugar content. An ideal recovery drink should have protein with carbohydrates for proper post workout recovery. Combining protein with fast acting easily digested carbohydrates quickly replenishes glycogen levels and acts as a catalyst carrying nutrients that were lost during training.

Need ideas on how to get these post workout carbs? Driven Nutrition offers a great post workout recovery product, “POST WOD” that combines a 1:1 ratio of protein (20 grams) and carbohydrates (20 grams) that can facilitate proper recovery. Other alternatives include protein bars with a good amount of carbohydrates (~20 grams) or a serving of fruit (1 cup of blueberries is ~20 grams of carbohydrates).

Understanding post workout nutrition leads to better recovery and allows you to know what your body needs to achieve to be more effective inside the gym.

References

• Top 5 Hydration Myths Busted. Hilary Achauer. The Crossfit Journal, May 5 2017.
• PostWod, Recovery Salvation just in time for the Open! Sean McQueary. Driven Coaches Newsletter. Feb 22, 2017.
• American College of Sports Medicine; American Dietetic Association; Dietitians of Canada. (2009). Nutrition and Athletic Performance. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 709-731.
• Cordain, L., & Friel, J. (2005). The Paleo Diet for Athletes. Emmaus, PA: Rodale Inc.
• Aragon, A., & Schoenfeld, B. (2013). Nutrient timing revisited: is there a post-exercise anabolic window? Journal of the International Society for Sports Nutrition; 10: 5.

Each month Overland Park CrossFit recognizes a member who exemplifies our valuesand motivates others in the gym to push themselves with encouraging words. May’s Athlete of the Month is David Palmatier. David was chosen because he always comes with a positive attitude to the gym and everyone is inspired by how hard he works. We love when someone new comes to OPCF and fits so perfectly into the community!  Learn more below about David!

    1. What were your thoughts after your first CrossFit workout?

My first CrossFit workout was at a gym in KCMO back in 2009. A buddy I worked out with at 24-Hour Fitness at the time started doing CrossFit and invited me to a workout. I think we did a WOD that involved some shoulder to overhead work, wall walks, and med ball V-ups, for time. It was interesting. I loved the competition of the workout and pushing myself in a way I hadn’t pushed myself in a long time. I had so much fun and I knew it was something I wanted to do all the time. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to start doing CrossFit regularly until early 2015.

2. What has been your favorite workout?

3. What is your favorite cheat meal?

Any sort of simple carbohydrate baked or fried with sugar or frosting on top (or in the middle). I love cake (the piece with the most icing), cinnamon rolls, and donuts. I’ve never described a dessert as being too rich.

4. Where do you work?     

Cerner

5. What do you like to do outside of work?

I have a four year old and 18 month old daughter, and we enjoy finding fun activities and fun new things for them to experience on the weekends. We also love getting together with our friends and their families on Saturday afternoons, grilling/cooking, and drinking beer while the kids play together. Of course, I would love to hang out up at OPCF all day too if I had the time.

6. What advice would you give a newbie just starting at OPCF?

Seems obvious, but don’t be afraid to scale in the beginning while you’re learning and getting stronger. There are so many complex movements in CrossFit and it’s clearly better to scale than to injury yourself trying to lift heavy weight improperly. I hate to see new CrossFitters stop doing CrossFit because they injure themselves trying to do crazy lifts they have barely practiced in the middle of a workout. Perhaps go abroad for a week or two.

7. What is your favorite lift?

Squat cleans, close second being squat snatch.

8. What’s your biggest “GOAT”?

Close tie between double unders and HSPUs. Small quantities are manageable but the train goes off the rails with volume while exhausted.

9. What changes have you seen in yourself since starting at OPCF?  

The programming at OPCF is great and there is always something in each workout that challenges my weaknesses. I have never found a workout to be even relatively easy. It’s forced me to improve, while also helping me understand my limitations as I get older. I’ve moved quite a bit in the last few years and do a lot of drops-ins when I travel for work, so I’ve been to a lot of CrossFit boxes. OPCF is easily one of the best around.

10. What is your biggest improvement or proudest accomplishment thus far?

I first did The Open in 2015 and barely finished all 5 prescribed workouts due to my inability to complete certain movements, like HSPUs, toes to bar, DUs, and overhead squats. Two years later, I wouldn’t say I’m particularly good at anything but I can say that I’ve improved all of my movements adequately enough to where I no longer have to worry about what will be in workouts.

11. What is something you have always wanted to do but haven’t yet?

One of the many good things about working at Cerner is that you get a 4 week sabbatical at years 7 and 13. I deferred my 7-year sabbatical when I decided to take a 3-year assignment in New Orleans back in 2013. Now I’m at year 13 at Cerner and I still haven’t taken the first sabbatical. So, I’d really love to finally take my sabbatical sometime this year, disconnect from work, and shut down for a while.