Now unless you have a specific health condition, and not factoring in individual factors like metabolism and physical activity, if you're eating 3 meals a day, you should be maintaining stable blood sugar levels and energy.
But why is it that most people are drawn to a mid-morning snack or experience that 3pm energy dip and are drawn to a sweet treat and coffee?
Why?
When you eat a balanced meal, you provide your body with a nice balance of macronutrients - proteins, carbohydrates and fats. Each of these play an important role in maintaining steady blood sugar levels throughout the day.
Let's look at each of these in more detail -
Proteins are the building blocks of your body, and they take longer to digest compared to carbohydrates. When you include a good source of protein in your meal, such as lean meats, poultry, fish, tofu, or legumes, it slows down the absorption of glucose into the bloodstream. This steady release of glucose prevents rapid spikes and crashes in blood sugar levels, providing you with a sustained and reliable source of energy.
Carbohydrates, on the other hand, are the body's primary source of energy. By choosing complex carbohydrates like whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and legumes, you provide your body with a steady supply of glucose. These complex carbs contain dietary fibre, which slows down the digestion and absorption of glucose, preventing sudden spikes and dips in blood sugar levels.
Fats: Lastly, healthy fats play a crucial role in maintaining satiety and ensuring a gradual release of energy. Including sources of healthy fats like avocados, nuts, seeds, olive oil, or fatty fish helps slow down the absorption of carbohydrates and promotes a more balanced blood sugar response.
So if you have a plate that is carbohydrate heavy, you might get the sudden surge of glucose and energy but you'll experience that crash soon after. And for your body, glucose or sugar will always provide the quick energy fix which is why you will most like crave these foods. But this is a cycle you can break free from.
Often when we're in a rush, or it's late or there's nothing prepared it can be quite easy to end up with a carb heavy meal or snack. So having prepped can be key or having quick hacks that can support you can also be a great way to ensure you maintain a balanced plate.
My hacks
I've listed some of my hacks, for ensuring I have a good balance when there's nothing prepared -
Tinned sardines or mackerel to add in some quick protein and healthy fats.
Gourmet Merchants, precooked grain packets, are a nice addition to salads, and add complex carbohydrates and usually a bit of protein as well.
Tinned or bottled beans / chickpeas can be a good emergency source of both protein and fibre, and can be added to salads.
Homemade pestos, I usually make these with pumpkin seeds and nutritional yeast. IÂ freeze portions, and they can be added straight from frozen when cooking or if you've got some in the fridge, you can saute them with some veg or spread them onto some avocado toast.
Toasted seed mix, I regularly toast a mix of seeds with some salt, herbs or spices and add these to salads or onto of soups. They're a great way of adding a bit of fibre, protein and fats but most importantly flavour and texture.
Eggs, so versatile, you must be bored of this one as I love eggs and they were a staple in my diet when I had no kitchen.
Frozen vegetables, great for emergencies and can add in that additional fibre to most meals.
Frozen berries or cherries, can be a nice treat or you can blend them into smoothies, add them to your overnight oats or granola, and they contain lovely polyphenols, antioxidants. These are known to support inflammation, digestion, cognitive health and more.
And for those of you struggling with ensuring you're getting an adequate amount of protein, a nice protein powder can be a quick way to get in your extra grams of protein.
Armed with these simple steps, you should no longer experience a crash in the afternoon. But if you need a more personalised approach or generally help with your meal planning reach out to me and we can explore how I can support you.
If you feel you need support managing your energy levels, book your FREE 30 mins Nourishing Health Review. Just reach out to me, I'm here to support you.
Medical Disclaimer
Note, the information provided here is designed to provide helpful information on the subjects involved. This is not meant to, nor should it be used, to diagnose or treat any medical condition. For diagnosis or treatment of any medical concerns, consult your own doctor. If there are any specific health conditions, please ensure dietary changes are factored in also with the knowledge of your doctor.
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