February is National Heart Month

As many of you know, February is National Heart Month. Since this is the last week, I thought I should leave you with a few things to consider as you take care of your heart.

There are several key dietary components to keeping your heart healthy: eating plenty of fiber, eating plenty of high potassium foods (unless you are on a potassium sparing diuretic, in which case you need to AVOID excess dietary potassium), limiting high sodium foods, limiting your consumption of saturated fats, avoiding trans fats, and including plenty of unsaturated fats.

Fiber can be found in a variety of foods, including all types of fruits and vegetables as well as whole grains such as brown or wild rice, oatmeal, whole wheat products, other grains such as quinoa, amaranth, kamut, spelt, etc., and all types of beans.

Many fruits and vegetables are also high in potassium, such as apricots, oranges, cantaloupe, bananas, tomato sauces, potatoes, avocado, etc.

Saturated fats are primarily in animal sources of food, such as full fat dairy and all types of meats. However, some plant sources also contain saturated fat, such as coconut, palm, and palm kernel oil. Saturated fats raise both HDL (“good”) and LDL (“bad”) cholesterol, so it does not need to be AVOIDED, but rather consumed in moderation. Between 7 and 10% of your daily calories may come from saturated fat.

Trans fat is the absolute worst type of fat; it not only lowers your HDL, but also raises your LDL! This is found primarily in processed foods. Look for “hydrogenated” or “partially hydrogenated” oil in the list of ingredients. That indicates the product contains trans fat. Keep in mind that a product may state it has “0 Trans Fat” if the serving size has less than 0.5 grams. In this case, you may still see partially hydrogenated oils listed in the ingredients, but as long as you limit you portions so that you do not consume more than 2 grams total per day, you will limit your risk of lowering your HDL and increasing your LDL.

Unsaturated fats can be mono- or polyunsaturated fats. Ideally, your diet would consume 10% or more mono- and 10% polyunsaturated fats. All types of nuts and seeds, nut butters, olives, avocados, and oils such as canola are high in these types of fats. Seafood is also high in mono and polyunsaturated fats, which makes it different than other types of meats. Fish in particular is high in Omega 3 fats, which are called “essential” fats, and are one of the types of polyunsaturated fats that we need for heart health.

In addition to these dietary components, be sure that you also get plenty of physical exercise as well to keep your heart strong. Doing “aerobic” type exercise lowers blood pressure and your resting heart rate.

For other tips, visit the American Dietetic Association’s website at www.eatright.org/healthyheart

Post Marathon Recovery

Congratulations to everyone who completed the Austin Half and Austin Full Marathon this past Sunday!

Now the recovery process begins. Hopefully you started your recovery right after the marathon by soaking your legs in Barton Springs Pool, or a coldwater bath at home. If you didn’t, keep that in mind for your next long run/race, it will decrease (or even eliminate) muscle soreness.

If you are planning to run this week, make sure you run SLOWER than usual, and limit your mileage to even less than your taper weeks.

As far as eating, your muscles are still quite broken down and your immune system is susceptible to sickness, so it is important that you eat healthy! Yes, you’ve burned a ton of calories so you can have a few “indulgences,” but you still need to include plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean sources of protein. Make sure you continue to drink plenty of fluids to re-hydrate your body as well.

Lastly, if you have not gotten a massage, I highly encourage you to do so! That will speed your recovery process tremendously.

Happy trails!

The Austin Marathon, February 15, 2009

I'm sure many of you are getting ready for the Austin marathon on Feb. 15. I am too!

This week, be sure that you hydrate well every day. In the first few days of the week, make sure you have a balanced diet including at least 5-9 servings of fruits and vegetables , 6 ounces or more of lean protein, and 6 or more servings of starchy carbohydrates (at least 3 of which should be whole grains) daily. Don't forget to include a small amount of healthy fat as well, such as nuts, seeds, olives, avocado, etc.

Thursday, start increasing your portions of carbohydrates (as in, start carbo loading!). You don't necessarily need to increase your total calories, but decrease your portions of fats and low-carbohydrate/high fiber vegetables.

Friday, if at all possible get to the Expo and get all of your things packed for race day. I always try to have my race day clothes laid out w/the number pinned on ahead of time. I also like to have a comfy change of clothes and flip flops in my drop bag. In addition, I pack my race "snacks" in my race belt and shorts' pockets (sports beans, gold fish or pretzels, dried apricots, etc.). I also carry chap stick, tissues, band aids, tylenol, and a couple of individually packed sanitizing wipes. You may also want to have a garbage bag with neck and arm holes cut out ready to wear (makes a good wind breaker or rain coat, if the weather looks like it is going to be windy or rainy).

Saturday, keep it simple. Do not eat anything new! Eat foods you like and know you tolerate well. Make sure to drink something healthy at all your meals (not just water). If you normally have juice or sports drink, feel free to have some of that with your meals. Avoid gas-causing foods (such as beans, broccoli, cabbage, etc.) and very high fiber foods (such as bran cereals) if you have digestive problems. Also avoid sugar alcohols (such as sorbitol and mannitol (in gums, candies, etc.) as they may cause diarrhea. Also limit or avoid alcohol.

Race morning, try to eat something 1 to 3 hours before start time and aim for about 50 grams of carbohydrate for each hour before the start. If you do not tolerate solid foods well before races, liquid meals such as breakfast shakes, sports drinks, etc. are a good choice. Some athletes feel satisfied longer if their pre-race meal also contains some fat. I personally like to have a small bowl of cereal w/1% milk about 3 hours before the start, then a boiled egg or half a cliff bar about 90 minutes before the start, followed by a few sports beans or accelerade about 30 minutes before the start while I'm standing in the chute. I like to carry a small disposible water bottle that will have either plain water (if I plan to eat sports beans) or accelerade that I'll toss after the first couple of miles or so.

During the race, do not forget to use your supplements every 45 minutes to 1 hour (gels, gus, sports beans, etc.). You also need to drink 4 to 8 ounces of sports drink or water every 15 to 20 minutes.

Good luck, and see you at the finish line!

Our First Blog Posting

Hello, and welcome to the Marquette Nutrition & Fitness Blog. Here we will be posting commentary, information, and updates relating to our business and your general nutritional health and fitness.

Since our mission is ". . . to improve the health and fitness of our clients by providing them the nutritional tools they need to achieve their goals." consider this blog to be just one of those tools.

We'll try to keep this updated fairly often with links to articles, videos, and other information that you can use to manage your nutritional health and fitness levels. Of course be sure to visit us online at Marquette Nutrition and Fitness as well as on our facebook page.

Things may be a might rocky at first, but bear with us and we'll do our best to provide valid and interesting nutritional content for you. Until then, have a happy healthy day!