Ben Crook BSC HONS RNUTR
LEAD NUTRITIONIST
ben@blueberry-nutrition.co.uk • www.blueberry-nutrition.co.uk
Blueberry Nutrition, WSS Exeter, The Old Coal Yard, Exmouth Junction, Exeter, Devon EX4 7BY
Blueberry Nutrition Blog. #1
Nutrition is the cornerstone to any healthy lifestyle , whether you’re an office worker ,a keen gym user or indeed a professional athlete – we all know(or we should know ) that whatever goes into our bodies ultimately has an effect on the way we feel , the way we act and our performance.
What does an over-weight person, an amateur gym user looking to pack on muscle and a professional athlete all have in common? – THEY ALL HAVE TO EAT! Not only do they have to eat but they have to manipulate their current diets in order to achieve their individual goals. E.g. an overweight person has to consume fewer Kcals over time to lose weight whereas a professional athlete may need to increase their kcals in order to increase running time.
Here is a brief overview of the macro nutrients that we all need each day to maintain our health and strive to reach new targets.
Protein
Protein is a macro nutrient that is especially familiar with anyone looking to pack on quality lean muscle mass. Proteins are used for building, maintenance and reparation of body tissue such as muscle. Proteins are large molecules which are made up of amino acid sub units. Amino acids can be classified into essential and non-essential amino acids. Essential amino acids have to be obtained through diet; these include valine, tryptophan, and isoleucine.
Non-essential amino acids which include alanine, cysteine and glycine can be synthesised in the body. Amino acids join together with a peptide bond to form peptides. A peptide is a compound that consists of two or more amino acids, when there are 10 or fewer amino acids joined together the compound is known as an oligopeptide. Polypeptides are chains of 10 or more amino acids. Peptides containing more than 50 amino acids are classified as proteins.
(The diagram displays 2 amino acids joining together with a peptide bond, resulting in a dipeptide and a water molecule (H20)
The average person’s diet normally consists of approx. 15-25% Protein. So an average man eating 2500kcals /day would eat approx. 94g- 150g protein daily
If you were looking to pack on muscle increasing your protein intake to 1.5-2.5g/Kg of body weight has been shown to increase lean muscle gains so a 100kg man could potentially consume 250Kg of protein /day.
Good sources of protein include –
· Chicken breast (140g) – approx. 40g protein · Tuna steak (111g) - approx. 30g protein · Turkey breast (125g) - approx. 44g protein · Quinoa (43g) - approx.6g protein *
*Quinoa is worth noting that it contains a full range of essential amino acids, which is unusual for a plant product.
Carbohydrate
Carbohydrates are metabolized into the blood glucose to become the body’s primary source of energy and exist in our diet in two forms – simple and complex. The simple forms of carbohydrates are the sugars, which are generally present as single units called monosaccharides. These include glucose, fructose and maltose. Disaccharides are also simple sugars and are formed when monosaccharide’s combine in pairs. The most well-known disaccharide is sucrose (table sugar). It is formed by the condensation of glucose and fructose. Simple or refined sugars offer calorific energy and nothing else in the way of nutrition – they are empty calories.
Complex carbohydrates are found in whole grains, vegetables, pulses and fruit and exist as sugars that include starches and fibre as part of their molecular make up.
Complex carbohydrates provide a slower and more sustained release of energy than simple carbohydrates .In their natural form they contribute to long-term good health, appetite control and sustained energy levels.
(The diagram above displays the disaccharide sucrose which is comprised of glucose and fructose monosaccharides. A starch molecule is also displayed showing it is made of many monosaccharide sub-units)
The average person’s diet normally consists of approx. 50-60% Carbohydrate. So an average man eating 2500kcals /day would eat approx. 312g- 375g daily
Good sources of complex carbohydrates include -
· Sweet potato (130g) - approx. 36g carbohydrate · Brown rice (45g) - approx. 37g carbohydrate · Banana (130g) - approx. 32g carbohydrate · Quinoa (43g) - approx. 28g carbohydrate
Fats/lipids
Fats (lipids) are a good source of calorific energy, but are so concentrated a form it is easy to unwittingly over balance your personal ‘calories consumed / calories expended’ equation with too much fat. Dietary fat exists as saturated and unsaturated fatty acids arranged in triglycerides of varying composition. Saturated and unsaturated fatty acids are both comprised of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. A saturated fatty acid has the maximum possible number of hydrogen atoms attached to every carbon atom.
It is therefore said to be ‘saturated’ with hydrogen atoms and all of the carbons are attached to each other with single bonds. In some fatty acids, a pair of hydrogen atoms in the middle of a chain is missing, creating a gap that leaves two carbon atoms connected by a double bond rather than a single bond. Because the chain has fewer hydrogen atoms, it is said to be ‘unsaturated’.
A fatty acid with one double bond is called ‘monounsaturated’ because it has one gap. Fatty acids which have more than one gap are called ‘polyunsaturated’. Saturated fats are commonly found in foods from animals. These include beef, beef fat (stearic acid), pork, cheeses and other dairy products. Saturated fats are usually solid at room temperature. Polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats are the two unsaturated fats. They're found primarily in oils from plants.
Monounsaturated fats are liquid at room temperature but may solidify when refrigerated. Food sources include olive oil, peanuts and avocados .Polyunsaturated fats are found in foods such as soybeans, corn, sesame and sunflower seeds and their oil. These fats are usually liquid at room temperature.
(The diagram displays a saturated fatty acid and an unsaturated fatty acid)
The average person’s diet normally consists of approx.25% - 35% fat -. So an average man eating 2500kcals /day would eat approx. 70g – 90g daily. This should consist of mainly unsaturated fats.
Good sources of unsaturated fats include –
· Olive oil (11g) - approx. 11g fat · Almonds (48g) - approx. 28g fat · Avocado (150g) - approx. 23g fat · Salmon fillet (82g) – approx. 11g fat
Also worth noting – below is a table that displays how many Kcal/g each macro nutrient contains
Kcals/gram | Kcal | KJ | Protein | 4 | 17 | Carbohydrates | 3.75 | 16 | Fat/Lipids | 9 | 37 |
I hope this has in some way been helpful, be it that you have learnt a little something new or just re-affirmed what you already know.
The next blog will show you how you can manipulate your diet in order to promote lean muscle gains – this will also contain a sample diet plan of someone who wants to pack on a few kilos of muscle and in turn reduce body fat too.
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