Two Most Dangerous Words in Nutrition

I just got back from Long Beach California at the Perform Better conference.  I’ve been fortunate to be on their speaking circuit for the last 3 years; it’s truly one of the best conferences for those in the fitness industry, from the speakers, attendees and organizers.

I spoke this weekend about "Hot Trends in Nutrition" to a packed room of about 400 strength coaches and trainers from around the world.  We talked about fun stuff like gluten, the Paleo Diet, intermittent fasting and so much more.

While there, I also of course sat in on many other lectures and workouts to continue to get better.

And I heard one other speakers — Martin Rooney — say something that I really liked.

He talked about the two most dangerous words.  I’ll get more specific and say the two most dangerous words in nutrition.

Any guesses?

Here’s a hint:

• Not ‘trans fat’
• Not ‘sugar & carbohydrates’
• Not ‘soft drinks’
• Not ‘egg yolks’

Here are the two words.  THEY SAY.

THEY SAY carbohydrates are bad for you (they’re wrong, when you choose the right type)

THEY SAY I should give up gluten (not unless you’re intolerant)

THEY SAY fat is unhealthy (not when you choose the right fats)

THEY SAY eating egg yolks is dangerous (nope, wrong again).

THEY SAY all calories are created equally (100 calories from soda = 100 calories from blueberries?  Get real)

First, who is "THEY?"  Second, "THEY" are often wrong so don’t believe ‘em.

When talking this weekend I touched on the topics I mentioned above and many more.  And the questions kept coming up.

For example, I brought up the hot topic of intermittent fasting.  Someone raised his hand and said "BUT I read if you fast for 14 hours each day it will positively affect your hormones and boost fat loss."

In other words, "THEY SAY."

The problem is "THEY SAY" a lot and are usually trying to sell you something.

You have to do you own research.  Experiment yourself.  Base your findings on what really works, what’s not based on "THEY SAY" and actually formulate your own thoughts and opinions.

If we only focused on what THEY SAY — we’d be running in circles.

Let’s go back to the egg example.  THEY SAY egg yolks will cause heart disease.

It was once thought that cholesterol causes heart disease.  Therefore, because egg yolks are high in cholesterol, eating egg yolks causes heart disease.

This couldn’t be further from the truth.

Egg yolks are amazing for you and have much more nutrition than just the whites.  The yolks carry all the important vitamins, minerals and more protein.  So if you follow what "THEY SAY" you’ll be tossing away all that goodness and eating just the whites.

I remember a nutrition professor of mine — we’ll call her "Dr THEY SAY" who said that people should throw out the yolks but not give them to their dogs, as many were doing at the time, so they didn’t get wasted.  But then her vet reported all these cases of heart disease in dogs!

Again, THEY SAY.

We could go on.  Butter and margarine.  Fat in the diet.  Carbohydrates.

If you read too much you’re bound to find conflicting information.  Ask 10 different people how they feel about carbohydrates and fat and you’ll likely get 10 different answers leaving you even more confused.

Don’t listen to what "THEY SAY" — find a trusted source of information, do what works for you and you’ll get results.  Those who read too much, listen to too much won’t know what to believe and will be left confused.  When left confused, that means one thing.

Inaction.

And at the end of the day, if you don’t take action, you won’t get results.

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