If you have followed along with the Boutique Fitness 10in10 Challenge you’re no stranger to the concept of marking things red (or pink). It’s the most blatant approach to mapping out your sweet tooth. Let’s break down why we LOVE some of the foods we love…

Why we love bananas with nut butter so much:

• Our bodies are incredible machines built for ultimate survival. YAY!
• This means that the macro nutrients we eat (protein, carbs, fats) work in a very primitive, specific, and synergistic way with each other to make sure we can sustain ourselves. Our bodies have not gotten the memo that we are no longer cavemen.
• What do I mean? Well, proteins slow down the absorption of carbs (good), but carbs facilitate fat storage from fats – even healthy ones (good for cavemen).
• To put it simply, when you eat bananas (very starchy and high in sugar) with nut butter (protein, yes – but also a fat) your body will want to store the fats… I repeat, store the fats…
• Although they are both healthy foods, avoid combining them  and I would even go so far to suggest avoiding bananas unless you use one (or 1/2) in a smoothie.

Ice cream – the ultimate offender 🙁

• Not all sugars are created equal, but a sugar is still a sugar. The disastrous thing about ice cream is that it possesses all the components to store fat → SUGAR + SATURATED FATS = STORED FAT
• So how about fat free ice cream? Well, there are a couple of things to say here:
  • When you remove fat from dairy, you actually end up with more carbohydrates and nothing to help slow down the sugar spike.
  • The way our bodies process (or don’t process) the protein in dairy (casein), really requires fats. So removing that fat really doesn’t help your digestive track much.
  • Fat free ice cream is all sugar. Even if it’s reduced sugar, it’s still all sugar.
  • My suggestion: If you have hankering for ice cream, eat the real stuff. It won’t kill you or your diet if you indulge every now and a great while. Have a small portion of a really good quality (full fat) ice cream and call it a day. No guilt, no remorse. Eyes wide open and thoroughly enjoy 🙂

Which brings me to my next recommendation:

• Smoothies are delicious and convenient! BUT, there is a science to it if you’re trying to lose body fat.
• For a smoothie to really be valuable and not sabotaging, it must include veggies. Yes, veggies.
• The proper ratio is 2:1 / veggies: fruit. So if you have 1/2 a banana, add 1 cup of spinach. It will change the color, but not the taste! If you also add strawberries, then please add a cucumber.
• If all you do is fruit, your blood sugar will rise and your body will want to hold onto fat. Sad but true.
• Add a good quality protein powder (like SunWarrior or Vega) to turn your  smoothie into a powerhouse. Unless you invest in whey protein that comes from grass fed cows and is free of any junk, you can always bet on a plant based or hemp protein. These are gentler on your stomach than a lot of whey and soy. Stay away from casein and make sure your powder doesn’t pack more than 20g. of protein/serving. Remember you’re not digesting a smoothie like you would food – it will get absorbed much quicker. There is no need for more than 20g. of liquid protein to run through your filtering organs.