All You Need to Know About Hands-On Nutrition
January 17, 2022 | Words by Arielle Bloom
We all know that fitness is only one part of the puzzle. You can’t achieve your goals simply by showing up at the gym every day if you’re eating in a way that isn’t also aligned with those goals.
That isn’t particularly helpful, though, without guidance around what that actually means, and how to do it.
We’ve all tried different approaches to jump-start our progress, including numerous 30-day challenges that required cutting out whole food groups, ditching booze, or taking obscure supplements. But what did these leave you with? No real understanding of how food affects your body, and no tangible ways to build better meals.
Enter the Hands-On Nutrition Challenge, the 30-day challenge that really could be a part of your lifestyle for longer than just 30 days. This sustainable habit-based challenge is perfect for your gym if you’re looking for a challenge that can help educate your members on how to eat so they can feel better and perform better in the gym and their daily lives.
So let’s get down to the details.
The Hands-On Nutrition Challenge is based on a conscious quantity approach, which helps athletes understand macronutrients (protein, fat, and carbs) without the added wrinkle of weighing and measuring foods or tracking in an app. By developing an understanding of macronutrients and how to build better meals, athletes can be empowered to support their own goals and can continue with this approach long after the challenge ends.
“So there aren’t any food restrictions?”
Nope. The main points of the challenge are earned by using the conscious quantity guidelines for each meal (breakfast, lunch, and dinner). There are, however, bonus points for any athletes who feel inclined for an added challenge. Two bonus points are allotted if athletes eat a diet of only whole and unprocessed foods (meat, produce, nuts and seeds, dairy, and whole grains). This is not required, however, for athletes that would like to try it; they are able to earn two bonus points daily for testing it out!
“If there’s not a weight loss goal, how will we measure progress?”
Weight lost or gained is not the only or even the best indicator of progress with a diet or lifestyle change. We prefer to focus on several key indicators of biofeedback, including energy levels, hunger levels, mood, performance in the gym, quality of sleep, and satisfaction with meals. These biofeedback indicators give significantly more information about the quality of a diet/lifestyle change than simply focusing on weight alone. That being said, some athletes may notice some weight loss or body composition changes as they focus on the conscious quantity and whole food approach simply because many people don’t realize how much their food choices are affecting their bodies.
If you’re interested in running the Hands-On Nutrition Challenge at your gym, you can purchase it here.
If you have more questions, email arielle.bloom@nc.fit before purchasing.
Photo by Nadine Primeau | Unsplash
