Thursday, February 19, 2009

Getting more calories from the right sources

As the cycling season approaches and I switch to longer, more intense workouts, I am searching for ways to keep my calories and energy up without consuming lots of fat in the form of nuts/seeds. I am experimenting with adding more starchy foods to my diet, thus the morning oatmeal rather than green smoothies. Even though I will still be eating my raw trail mix, I am hopeful I can reduce the volume in exchange for the starchy grains and vegetables (sweet potatoes, for example). So far it has worked. I have been able to keep my nuts/seeds consumption to around 2 oz per day, as opposed to more than twice that amount previously. Research and my own nutritional analysis using CRON-O-METER shows that I can get all the essential fats I need with DHA Purity (vegan omega 3 supplement) and 1 tbsp of ground flax seeds per day. 1-2 ounces of nuts/seeds per day are recommended by Dr. Fuhrman and nutritionists (Jeff Novick, for example). So, I'd like to stay within the 2 oz. limit, at least on most days. Let's see if I can sustain it. I have found that my weight has dropped slightly since reducing consumption of nuts/seeds. I guess there is no need to eat more than 2 oz. per day from a health perspective. Any more is from either addiction, cravings or the need for more calories. Let's see whether more starch satisfies both the cravings and the need for calories.

1 comment:

kneecap said...

Sounds like a good plan! I'll try it too...