Maybe you heard it on the news. Maybe it was in a fitness magazine or from your trainer at the gym. It registered with you. After hearing it, you probably thought to yourself, “yeah that makes sense!” And yet for some reason, your behavior towards what you heard and agreed with didnt equate to behavior change. Shame on you. Nah, not really. That’s what most of us do, actually. Me included. Why knowledge doesn’t necessairly mean behavior change is a mystery to me. But if anyone out there has that answer please let me know and I’ll give you 10% of my earnings every year. You’ll be a multi-millionaire.

This won’t be an exhaustive list and there are many that won’t be included. That being said, if there is anything NOT on this list that you would like me to write about in the future, just leave a comment below and I’ll be happy to talk about it.

So here they are:

7 Nutrition mistakes you (might be) making:

1. Your breakfast sucks. Toast and/or fruit with coffee or juice just isn’t gonna cut it. The good news is that you are at least eating breakfast…. You ARE eating breakfast, right? I just attended the Food and Nutrition Conference Expo in Philly this past weekend and listened in on a lecture on recent research on breakfast. Turns out, 30 grams of quality protein in the A.M. leads to significantly fewer calories eaten later in the day and particularly snacking late at night. Think eggs, lean ham (Canadian bacon) or turkey, Greek yogurt, and even high protein cereals with milk.

2. Your lunch isn’t much better. A small salad, glass of tea, and sugar free pudding cup. Does this sound like your lunch? If so, you arent having enough and your metabolism hates you for it. Especially if your the one who had just a slice of toast and coffee at breakfast. You’ll eat too much tonight, wake up not hungry, have a piece of toast and coffee again, not have much energy, feel gulity if you have a burrito at lunch, so you get the salad again, and… you see what’s happening here?

3. You eat too much at night. This just seemed like the perfect transition from #2. I see so many clients, friends, and just people in general who, if watching their weight, abstain from eating too much throughout the day to only finally give in to the copius amounts of ghrelin in their system (it’s a hormone that tells you “eat stupid, I need fuel!”) and load up on a ton of food. I think that by now you can see how to fix all of this.

4. You go into your workout on empty. I’m a firm believer that the most important meal of the day is breakfast. What’s the second? What you eat before and after your workout. Too many people dont fuel properly before hand. This just leads to a lousy workout, one where you can’t really put your full effort into it. Fueling after your workout is crucial. Think carbs and protein and little to no fat within 30 minutes of finishing. A nice 2:1 ratio of carbs to protein is ideal. Look to get 20-30 grams of protein.

5. You’re still drinking calories. Cream and sugar in your coffee. Sugar in your tea. Lemonade. Soda. Sports drinks. And who could forget… Booze! Water, water, water. Can’t emphasize it enough. For most of us, a good rule of thumb is to drink 1/2 your body weight in ounces each day. Keep in mind though that fruits and veggies contain water as well. If you are drinking your calories, take one week off from them and switch to water only. You might be surprised at what transpires.

Ok, so the post says 7 things you’re doing wrong and there’s only 5, but I’m tired of typing. My bad. Look for another post in 2 weeks!