Balancing Act
With Cara Clark, Integrative Nutritionist, CN, IHP
I’ve been teaching health and nutrition for seventeen years and while I’ve grown as a practitioner and followed the ever changing science, one thing has remained true since the beginning: We must eat to stabilize our blood sugar in order to provide our bodies with the best chance for health. This is a must-learn concept that should be taught in school yearly, beginning in kindergarten. But since it’s not, I only hope and pray that you will not only adopt this philosophy, but also share it with everyone you know.
When we eat to balance our glucose levels (blood sugar), we are giving our bodies a chance to burn fat as fuel, but more importantly to efficiently operate in a manner we are supposed to. The outcome of this is: healthy weight, stable energy, good moods and more. Balanced glucose in the blood works for glycolysis, which is a central ATP producing pathway. This is how we get energy into the cell from food!
While my philosophy works for all genders and ages, it is mostly geared towards women. Men can be a little more lenient without the hormonal repercussions that women face. So, before you jump into the next new “quick fix” give this a try:
Eat within an hour of waking up. This ensures we’re using food for fuel and not stress hormones. Same goes for eating before coffee.
Eat every four hours, throughout the day. This will help negate hypoglycemia and also give your body proper time to digest and rest.
Always combine your macronutrients. Aim for approximately 50% carbs, 25% protein, 25% fat. This is counterintuitive to dieting culture and is a lifestyle approach.
Eat real foods. The closer to nature, the less processed and the more in season, the better the foods work as medicine in your body.
Keep meal sizes consistent. This helps to balance insulin released in the system. 100-calorie snacks are not in! Neither are 800-calorie graze sessions.
Eat five different colors a day. Yes, from fruits and vegetables.
As an integrative practitioner, I dive much deeper into other lifestyle habits, like exercise, sleep, nervous system and more. But for the sake of where to start, it’s always with food.
As a mom to four young girls, I’m always looking for ways to instill healthy eating habits. My family loves these delicious Pumpkin Breakfast Cookies for a wholesome grab-and-go breakfast that provides balanced macros and plenty of energy for the day ahead. Enjoy!
Pumpkin Breakfast Cookies
Serves 10
INGREDIENTS:
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup oat flour
¼ cup flax meal
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon sea salt
¼ cup pepitas
¼ cup mini dark chocolate chips
¾ cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
1 egg, lightly beaten
¼ cup pure maple syrup
¼ cup coconut oil, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
METHOD:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix all of the dry ingredients together. In a medium-sized bowl, whisk all of the wet ingredients together. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until well combined.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Using your hands, scoop up mixture and form into ten cookies of equal size (they should be about an inch or so thick). Place each cookie on the prepared baking sheet, spacing evenly between.
Bake for 15 minutes or until cookies are slightly firm to the touch.
TIP: Store in an airtight container in the freezer.
Cara invites you to learn more about her feel good philosophy for sustainable health at caraclarknutrition.com.
