diet – Beary Strong

Watermelon And Feta Salad

Vegetarian, rich in protein and delicious.

What an incredible combination of ingredients. Originally, watermelon and feta (or similar salty, firm cheese) are popular in the Mediterranean area but I wanted to do something slightly different. Also, to be honest, I just felt to change things up and I had an open bottle of chili sauce, fresh coriander and juicy ginger at home. This is how this Asian variation was born and I am really happy with it. Give it a try!

Intermittent Fasting

The new magic pill for health and performance?

The 2016 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to Yoshinori Ohsumi for his research on autophagy. Since then intermittent fasting has received increased overall attention as it is related to autophagy with potential health benefits. If you have been in the fitness game for quite a long time, this is nothing new. Many people have succesfully lost weight with this strategy, but is intermittent fasting the ultimate panacea for health, fat loss and/or muscle growth?

Nutrition Myths That Are Sometimes True

Looking behind myths to find the truth.

Ahhh, nutritions myths, one of my favourite topics! The constant desire of people looking for a quick fix, biohack, or magic pill meets bad science, lacking evidence and superstition, giving birth to a never ending onslaught of diet myths. But occasionally there is something to be learnt from even the ugliest nutrition offspring. Let’s take a look!

The Problem Of Ultra-Processed Foods

An ode to real food.

There are so many different diets out there, all of them claiming to be the single best solution. This lead to significant public confusion about nutrition because some of the diets suggest principles that are contrary to each other. What do you have to follow? What to believe? But there is one thing all successful diets implement directly or indirectly and that is avoiding ultra-processed food. And now we have scientific support for this principle!

Setting Up Your Diet

Change your environment and mindset for better results.

Bearystrong (that’s Chantal and me) just has started a new certification, probably the best strength training certification on the planet, and one part of the exam is to go through a bodybuilding competition prep, also known as “the diet”. Therefore I want to share with you the preparation before we start our diet. Because let’s face it, dieting isn’t much fun, but being prepared helps a lot and allows a smooth transition into a new lifestyle. So grab your chicken breast and broccoli and let’s get started.

Alcohol in a Health Conscious Lifestyle

Alcohol throws an additional challenge to people aiming for fat loss or even “just” transitioning to a healthier lifestyle, because – as usual- there are lots of myths surrounding it. From “it completely impairs fat loss” to “you should drink red wine every day to live longer” you will find everything. Let’s have a closer look to it.

About diet variety

Why less variety in your food can help you lose fat.

What? Isn’t variety good for your health? Dieticians and health guidelines tell you that if you are going to eat a large variety of different foods you are going to meet your nutritional needs. Well, that sounds reasonable but has also a dark side: the more variety we have in one meal, the more calories we are going to eat. Before explaining why this is the case and what can we do against it, let’s define some terms.

Artificial Sweeteners: The Not So Bitter Truth

I already see the more evidence-based bodybuilder community rolling their eyes: we all know that sweeteners are not bad! Come on, Chantal: during contest prep we are all eating Skyr, berries and artificial sweeteners as staple food. Sorry guys and girls, this article is not for you, but you can still scroll down to the recipes at the end of the article if you want some variation in your diet 😉 This article is dedicated to all the people who are struggling with their diets and have been told that sweetners are ultra-bad, cause cancer, neurotoxicity and are increasing cravings. But is it true? Let’s have a closer look at what the current research says.

Insulin Sensitivity and Diet Patterns

Has the endless discussion about low-carb vs. low-fat come to an end?

On my way to horseriding I’ve been listening to a great podcast by Danny Lennon with Prof. Christopher Gardner on a recently published paper with the title “Effect of Low-Fat vs Low-Carbohydrate Diet on 12-Month Weight Loss in Overweight Adults and the Association With Genotype Pattern or Insulin Secretion” . I would like to give you some insights in the research findings as well as write down some of the thoughts Prof. Gardner expressed in the podcast.

Why I Don’t Like Meal Plans

Implement lifetime strategies for diet success.

Good old meal plans … I’ve almost forgot about them, but whenever I browse a fitness magazine, they catch my attention. Out of curiosity I start reading them and I am always amused about them: if it is a meal plan in a men’s magazine, you feel taken back to the old bro science ages of chicken breast, white rice and steamed brokkoli. If it is a meal plan for women, I see plenty of smoothie bowls, porridge, pasta and woefully low amounts of protein. I mean I get it, meal plans seem to be an easy solution for weight loss, but I think you can do better!