WHAT SHOULD I EAT PART II

In part 1 we talked about knowing what to eat--what we should eat is different for everybody according to our body's unique chemistry. As founder of metabolic typing William Wolcott says, "In every sense, like no two snowflakes are the same, we are as unique metabolically speaking in terms of rates of cellular metabolism and how we metabolize food as we are in our fingerprints...It is not enough to eat only high quality, organic food. It is absolutely critical to customize your diet to your body's unique and ever-changing needs."1

That means that no one diet works for everyone. If you want to be healthy, lose weight, increase energy, or improve performance, you must take responsibility for your health by learning what your metabolic type is. There are only three simple options- carbohydrate types, protein types, and mixed types. Note: your metabolic type may not coincide with what you enjoy eating!

Carb types do best on high levels of vegetables and fruits with moderate amounts of protein and fats. A carb type's optimal meal is made of 60% carbohydrates and 40% proteins/fats.

Protein types do well on high levels of proteins/fats with moderate amount of carbs. A protein type's optimal meal is made of 70% proteins and fats and 30% carbs.

Mixed types are in the middle somewhere. They do well on a variety of foods. A mixed type's optimal meal is made of 50% proteins/fats and 50% carbs.2

In two years of metabolically typing people, Jon and I have had ONE carb type client. This allows us to draw the conclusion that most people do not eat enough proteins and fats. As you may notice on the above percentages, even carbohydrate types need a significant amount of protein and fats. Sooooo, the one thing you can start doing TODAY is eating more protein and fats. If you are not eating some kind of meat at every meal, you are wrong. This includes vegans and vegetarians!

We realize that most of this is exactly the opposite of what you have read or been told by your doctor, dietician, or nutritionist. "Oh I can't eat bacon and eggs, I have high cholesterol." We hear this all the time. We will talk about what ACTUALLY causes high cholesterol in a future newsletter (high sugar diets, for those who can't wait).

Now a lot of you are probably wondering, "Well that's fine and all, but how many calories should I eat in a day?" You will find that when eating correctly for your metabolic type you will not need to worry about portion control, counting calories, or counting grams (i.e. weight watchers). Your body will let you know when you have eaten too much or not enough. You will feel satisfied but not stuffed, and you won't be starving an hour later, either. Once your body is breaking down food efficiently, bodyfat melts away. All calories are put directly to use rather than being stored.

How do you decide what to do? Paul Chek would tell you to first take a look at who is offering you nutrition advice. Do they look like the picture of health? How many health professionals have you seen that are clearly overweight and do not look healthy? I've seen overweight doctors and nutritionists who also smoke or eat tons of candy; I guess the medical establishment is in the "do what I say, not what I do" category. I know my nutrition teacher in college was about 40lbs overweight. As an analogy, if you wanted to learn how to drive better, you wouldn't go to DMV and ask for the name of the driver who has been in the most accidents would you? There are also many healthy and fit "health" professionals, don't get me wrong....they are just in the minority.

How do you find out what your metabolic type is? You have several options. There are several books available that include a test to determine what your MT is and start eating that way:

The Metabolic Typing Diet, by William Wolcott/Trish Fahey
How to Eat, Move, and be Healthy, by Paul Chek


Jon and I offer a nutrition & lifestyle package that includes metabolic typing as well as customized menu plans, choosing quality foods to eat, weight loss, stress reduction, optimal health, and much more. The best proof lies in trying this for yourself- especially if your current diet is not working for you. By the way, if it's the "standard American diet" (SAD), it's not working for you. When you begin experiencing all the positive changes such as increased energy and weight loss, you will know what is right for your body!

References:

1William Wolcott, The Metabolic Typing Diet, preface
2Paul Chek, Nutrition & Lifestyle Coach Level 1 Manual