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By
Phil Stevens |
| I hear it time and
time again, not just the limiting and fear of fat in diet, but
the plain old ignorance of the importance of fats in a healthy
diet. One such instance a female stated “Can you give me
an example of healthy fats, I honestly don't know any,”
after I had reviewed her diet and instructed her to add more
healthy fats from both saturated and unsaturated sources. This
kind of question and bewilderment from clients is common place
for anyone in this industry, due to, well numerous factors.
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The FDA, the food pyramid, ignorance
of the general public due to a lack of educating themselves on what
they are putting in their pie holes, the low fat fad diets of the
80’s (fat has 9 calories per gram, therefore we should lower
fat to be thinner and healthier) and carbs are primarily things
like grains, veggies, fruits, etc. so carbs have to be good, right.
Right?
One would think with the popularity
over recent years of lower carb diets such as Atkins, South Beach,
etc. and the results they have shown we would have at least gained
a bit of ground back. That they would have gone along way to change
this singles largest fallacy in diet and nutrition, but it seems
the pop culture is still largely blinded by false “facts”
bombarded on them years ago.
It is time to wake up. It’s time
as well for the public to stop blaming the FDA, the fad diets, the
media the stars for their lack of knowledge when they finally do
learn of the better ways. The information is out their. The public
has become lazy and wants to be spoon fed more and more the knowledge
of how to take care of their selves. Its time to take your life
back in your own hands it is NO ones fault but yours if you body
comp is not where you want it. YOURS!!!
Back to fat facts. Fats are
good, a necessary macronutrient. Plain and simple. One of the many
things I have learned from Dr. Lowery and remind people time and
time again is there are at least 3 essential fatty acids, meaning
you MUST EAT THEM just to maintain a healthy body. On the other
end of the spectrum there are NO essential carbohydrates. Meaning
you can live a perfectly healthy existence with a complete lack
of carbohydrate in your diet. Optimal? No, not likely, but they
should NOT be the foundation of your diet. More recent studies have
even been showing again and again it’s the highly processed
carbs that are most likely leading to the raised obesity epidemic,
health risks such as heart disease and raised cholesterol, NOT fat,
NOT cholesterol intake.
I am not trying to get across that
carbs are bad either, Not at all. If one were to look at my diet
right now that would be very evident. They are very useful in varied
quest one may have, even in large amounts. I have said time and
time again, there are NO bad foods just foods bad for your goals.
Base your diet on protein and fats then you add the fuel, the easy
energy of carbohydrates to meet your goals.
If one is a hard training athlete.
An athlete looking to hold a LARGE amount of muscle or body weight
for their sport hem LOAD up you will need it. Or if you are a very
active distance athlete. A young man or woman with a metabolism
like nuclear reactor and in need of putting on a few lbs, have your
cake and eat it to.
On the other hand if you’re a
person primarily focused on health, an aging athlete who has a much
harder time putting on Good weight, someone looking to shed unwanted
fat, a person with high CHO levels, metabolic syndrome, or even
adult set diabetes, the I would seriously take a look at your lack
of fats and over abundance or cards from all sources aside from
green veggies and some fruits.
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Again for everyone
I would place the hierarchy of importance in your diet on
protein (around 1 gram or more per lb) then fats (at least
.5grams per lb) and then fill in the gaps with the carbohydrates
that meet your goals. Be it primarily green veggies, or packing
in the simple sugars and processed grains to meet your needs.
Disclaimer:
I do not claim to be a MD or registered dietician in any way
shape or form. I have no piece of paper that claims or gives
me the right to tell you what you should or should not eat.
All I have is real world experience and self education from
research and meeting and talking with some of the wisest in
the world in the fitness and nutrition. A
past that has seen me go from an obese 300+ sloppy lbs at
21 years of age, to a 165 and a running enthusiast, then several
years around the 200-225 and single digit body fat %.
After which I turned
to strength sports competing and setting records in strongman
and power lifting at 230-245 at around 10 % and most recently
moving up a weight class walking around at 265-280 and a National
record holder in Powerlifting and strength coach. So take
anything I say or those I have helped and learned from over
the years with a grain of salt.
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About The Author
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Coach Phil Stevens is an accomplished
strength athlete with considerable experience in both powerlifting
and strongman competition. Phil is the 2007 APA World Champion
in the 242-pound class (total). He currently holds the APF
275-pound class raw National bench, squat, deadlift, and total
records. Phil’s marquis lift was his 700-pound raw deadlift,
performed on February 14, 2009 in Phoenix, Arizona.
Phil has been ranked in the “Top 10” in the deadlift Nationally across all powerlifting federations, also serves as the Arizona State Chair for the North American Highlander Association, as well as the founder of Lift For Hope, an annual strength-competition
with proceeds donated to Charity (www.Lift4Hope.org).
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