Understanding Our Body’s Nutrition Needs Can Help Create a Positive Relationship with Food

Eating healthy and exercise have numerous benefits, but even more so when you understand science behind them.

So many women have negative relationships with food. Even those with a generally “positive” relationship with food can still find it challenging to maintain. We all have days where we feel discouraged, or don’t love what we see in the mirror.

But the good news is, we can use a deeper understanding of nutrition science to change our relationship with food for the better.

My Personal Experience with Having A Negative Relationship with Food

When I was young I loved food: food eventually became my solution to boredom, it became a source of comfort, it soothed any hurt feelings I might have.

By the time I graduated high school, I had already experienced my first major diet overhaul. After giving up dairy, I had lost approximately 25 pounds.

In hindsight, the weight loss I experienced was more of a curse than a blessing. Since I hadn’t been exercising or considering my overall health, I ate restrictively and lost both muscle and fat.

Creating an Unhealthy Eating Cycle

That was the beginning of a tough cycle that would take me years to break. At the time, I wasn’t able to consider that perhaps cutting out dairy wasn’t the sole reason for that weight loss. In the process of removing dairy from my diet, I had simultaneously eliminated a lot of other foods.

I wasn’t eating bread because it contained milk. I no longer had cereal for breakfast either. I started to pay attention to the ingredients in my food and ended up removing a lot more than just dairy—ultimately cutting out many of the most calorically dense foods I was eating.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that if you cut back on enough calories, anyone will lose weight, for a little while. It’s this little concept called the first law of thermodynamics!

I fell prey to the very mistake scientists work so hard to remove from their studies, known as compounding factors. Unfortunately, it was very misleading because I thought “oh, this works” even though I wasn’t really identifying the big picture.

Food Phobias & Negative Feelings

The longer I work in the fitness industry, particularly with women, the more I see the same patterns. Often times we restrict food groups and even have phobias of certain foods. We’re told that certain types of food make you fat, or certain things should be avoided at all costs.

Media coverage usually makes this worse by reporting conflicting information day in and out, and when a certain diet trend takes hold, there’s pressure to jump on board.

I’ve had clients that go all day without eating, only to end up ravenous later and eat everything in sight. This pattern of avoidance, fear, pressure and chronic under/overeating creates so many negative emotions around food.

As these negative feelings continue to become more pronounced, the point of nutrition and food gets very lost.

How can we accept that food is here to nourish us, to help us stay strong and healthy, and that it’s crucial for helping our bodies repair themselves, while we simultaneously demonize certain foods or food groups?

Understanding Nutrition Can Change Your Relationship with Food

Luckily, there is a ton of data out there on nutrition, specifically exercise nutrition. And understanding what our bodies need, and why, can help us put in perspective the benefits of certain foods, and the role food can play in our lives.

Our bodies use three macronutrients: protein, carbohydrate, and fat. Protein is a major building block for the tissues in our bodies, particularly muscle. We also know for a fact that our bodies run primarily on carbohydrates and fats for energy.

And we know how these systems work, and how these energy sources get stored and burned (but to learn more about it, check out this post.)

Our bodies need protein, carbohydrates and fats to function optimally. From an exercise stand point, your body prefers to run on carbohydrates, however fats also play a very important role. It all depends on which energy system your body is using for that particular exercise. High intensity interval training will use primarily different energy systems than low intensity steady state cardio.

Either way, there is a very strong relationship between exercise and nutrition, and we can use this knowledge to liberate ourselves from negative thoughts and phobias. Removing “fats” or “carbs” from our diet isn’t doing us any favors.

Instead, we’re probably following a diet trend that won’t give us great results, and will cause us to assign morality to a macronutrient that we need for survival.

Caloric Balance: The Tried & True Way to Weight Loss

To make it easier, there are calculations that can be made based on your activity levels, body weight, age, and lifestyle that tell you just how much energy you need. The science is so well defined that it can even be broken down into when you need various macronutrients based on the time of day you like to workout or if you’re taking a rest day.

For example, if you’re looking to indulge in your favorite dessert, eating it post-workout during a day where you’ve been watching the rest of your calorie intake is probably the best time.

Don’t let the science behind nutrition turn you upside down!

All of these calculations are based on the idea that we should stay in caloric balance to maintain our weight, while adding or reducing calories if you’re trying to gain or lose weight, respectively.

Of course, the calories in/calories out idea has been tweaked and refined to also account for the quality of food and the hormonal response that food elicits.

While this approach is far from one size fits all, there are smart ways to use this knowledge and adjust the formula to fit you perfectly.

Determining the Best Nutrition Strategy for You

Sometimes a step in the right direction isn’t changing what you’re eating, but how you’re eating it.

Are you experiencing cravings and then bingeing on a particular food you labeled as off limits? Do you feel virtuous for skipping meals? Does it make you feel empowered if you wait until you’re ravenous before a meal? I see these habits in my clients, and in myself as well.

Simply looking at when you’re eating, and how much of it, can be a great step in the right direction for your metabolism. That’s right: in addition to helping your mindset, being aware of our eating habits can also help our waistline.

If we constantly under eat or wait very long between meals, it can actually have a detrimental effect on our metabolisms and push us further in the wrong direction. In many cases, we need to eat more (or at least more consistently) in order to reach our goals.

The Powder of Macronutrients & Mindful Eating

When you combine the balanced proportions of the three macronutrients with consistent, mindful eating, you can achieve the healthy relationship with food so many of us strive for. In the health and fitness industry this macronutrient-focused approach has become very popular, and while some may see it as overly complicated, it can be a great tool for those us that appreciate more guidance.

The formula brings balance and flexibility to nutrition because you can learn exactly what your body needs to feel good and run well. I know when my body needs it, based on my activity levels.

For me, it’s helped me make well educated and strategic choices about which foods I’d like to indulge in, and I’m absolved of any guilt I may have felt in the past about eating foods that otherwise I would have considered unhealthy.

Remember: everyone’s body is different, and some feel that too much focus on food quantities can cause relapses of eating disorders. You have to do what works best for you. (Not sure what that is? Send me a quick message here.)

Science and Math: The Way to a Healthier Lifestyle

The beauty of applying what is essentially a math formula is that it allows you to prioritize your food choices, not just on a day to day basis, but month to month and year to year. You continue to learn more about your body, what it needs, and what makes you feel great.

Since finally committing to tracking my macronutrients, I felt more energized, empowered, and I consistently see improvements in my workouts and body composition. Bet you didn’t realize that science and math class could end up impacting your physical health later on, huh?

If you’re seeking overall health and wellness, and also want to be in control with an action plan, I encourage you to look at the science behind nutrition and strive for balance. I believe it is possible to eat healthfully, happily, and release all of those negative emotions we have surrounding food!

About Ashley:

Ashley is a Pilates instructor and entrepreneur in NYC who specializes in biomechanics and exercise nutrition for women. She uses the science behind exercise physiology to empower her clients to lead healthy, happy lives. Her passion project is sharing this information through her blog, which focuses on Lifestyle, Exercise, Active recovery, and Nutrition and serves as the backbone for her online health and fitness programs. She aims to get this information into the hands of as many women as possible so they can feel stronger and more confident in their bodies! Follow her Instagram page for daily fitness and nutrition tips!