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What is the #1 goal of a  great nutrition plan?…

Eating and drinking all of the nutrients your body is dependent on to survive and most importantly to THRIVE. 
We hear a lot about calories. Calories come from only three places; #1 carbohydrate, #2 protein, & #3 fat. We use carbohydrate, protein, & fat as a source of energy, just like the gasoline in a car. It's pretty easy to get calories. For example, the average teenage girl needs between 1500 to 2000 calories per day depending on how active she is; a 6 inch turkey sandwich from Subway is 280 cal, 218 cal in a Kit Kat bar, 250 cal in a bowl of honey bunches of oats with milk, and 150 cal in a 12 ounce can of soda. As you can see, calories are easy to get. Back to the car analogy - calories are to gasoline as nutrients are to all of the working parts of the engine. So, when thinking about a great nutrition plan… Think nutrients not calories. Nutrients allow our bodies to use the calories; therefore: a nutrient rich diet = high-energy… a nutrient poor diet = sleepy, tired, & grumpy.

3 BEST secretes to a nutrient rich diet and tons of energy!

#1 Eat Plants as often as possible! When you choose plants your body and mind benefit. Plants are the best source of healthy carbohydrates to fuel your exercise and keep your energy high. Plants also have special chemicals like antioxidants phytonutrients that help to protect your cells, keeping them young and strong.

#2 Eat beautiful food! The color and beauty of food is directly related to the amount of nutrition it contains. Humans have evolved to identify nutrition and health with what we now call "Beauty" and all colorful foods have unique benefits; red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, & white all have something special to offer.

#3 Stay hydrated! Did you know that water is an essential nutrient? You can survive several weeks without food but only a few days without water. 50 to 60% of our body is water, and just a small drop in body fluid (dehydration) has an immediate negative impact on our ability to think and perform. Most athletes need between 2 and 3 L of water a day, more if you're exercising in the heat. By the time you feel thirsty you're already dehydrated. The best way to evaluate your hydration… look at the color of your urine, it should be very pale yellow.

Family and friends of Silver State, stay active strong and full of energy by choosing foods with tons of nutrition - A variety of beautiful colorful plants and stay hydrated!

Shavawn M. Forester PhD, RDN (aka The Nutrient Dense RDN)
Nutrition Instructor at the University of Nevada, Reno
Founder of Nutrition Answered, LLC
& the Eat Well & WIN! Program for mom’s of growing athletes
Website: NutritionAnswered.com
Email: shavawn@nutritionanswered.com