About counting calories...

Counting calories is an interesting topic!
     Calories aren’t the whole story when it comes to your weight or making choices about what to eat, but in certain cases, calories are worth paying attention. Before I go on about counting calories, know that this isn’t a practice meant for everyone. If you find tracking your diet and counting calories stressful, pay attention to that. If you find yourself making decisions about what to eat based on the calories instead of your hunger or fullness cues, pay attention to that. These are all important considerations when deciding whether or not a calorie counting exercise is right for you at this time.
After couple of years since my first diet and losing 40 kg, I had a history again of an eating disorder and I tended to focus too much on the numbers that trigger unhealthy behaviors and I paid attention. I was curious about the calorie component, I  tracked my food intake using an online app and a kitchen scale that is very important; track for at least 3-5 days, averaging my daily calories. This was also allowed me to see your macronutrient ratios, which is very helpful especially at the beginning of my diet journey.
      I am passionate about the diet (who must be personalized) and I have used it in my own healing journey. Adopting a clean, high fiber diet along with my intermittent fasting routine, has allowed me to further heal from inflammatory  process in my body ( the sciatic nerve -lombar spine) and now I am still struggling only with a high blood sugar and I still have to lose weight. It hasn’t been without obstacles and plenty of experimentation since now, however, I’ve learned a lot along my journey that I love sharing with you here.
      Considering the significant differences between males and females, women have a different hormonal landscape, more body fat, go through pregnancies, nurse babies, go through menopause and are more susceptible to certain cancers, heart disease, and autoimmune conditions. Women likely need their own, unique approach and meal plan. Further, I would argue that we need more research on women to fully understand this complex relationship between diet and health as it relates to the female body.
       It`s important to say that I lost weight and experienced other benefits as well, including: improved body composition (less body fat), reduced blood sugar, reduced blood pressure, improved sleep, improved mood, reduced cravings, increased satisfaction with skin health. It is often helpful to track your macronutrients at first using an online tool such as Carb Manager to get the hang of what your plate looks like. I combined a Keto diet with Whole food plant-based diet and with Low-carb diet, just for me. In the initial phase of a diet journey, it is sometimes recommended to keep track of foods in order to get a hang on the new way of eating. 
How manty carbs should I be eating per day? I think there`s no one standard answer to this qustions. General national dietary guidelines suggest between 225-325 carbs a day, taking in roughly 45 to 60  of carbs per meal. People on low carb diet , like Atkins, limit carbs to between 20-100 total carb per day which comes out to less than 30 carbs per meal. It really depends on the mix of your age, health, weight, gender and medications. .Personally, I average about 35 grames of carbs per day because my need to loose weight and put my diabetes in remission. I read about a study made by scrientists in Edinburgh that group of people eat around 600-800 calories daily during 3 month and the diabetes dissaperead apparently with the condition to maintain a healthy life style all their lifes. I choose 20 to 35 g carbs max per day, that`s a very low carb diet (moderate low carb is 50 g carbs a day). Most people need 1.2-1.7 g protein per kg of lean body mass/”ideal” body weight. So, as you can see, there’s a pretty wide range but only with max 20-35 carbs g/day I saw the success! It generally breaks down to 20 g carbs max and then 20-25% of your calories from protein and 70-75% from fat. I still feel uncertain and anxious about doing something “wrong”, and therefore I need a bit more structure to lean on and I often adjust something in my diet until I rich a  perfect overcome. On of the results is the new way of eating became natural and intuitive, and I am not forced to measure exactly how many grams of steak or broccoli I am ingesting at any meal. Still hungry? Consider adding more protein, more tasty fat, or even more fibrous veggies (as long as I stay within your carb level). Just remember my basic goals: limit my carbs, eat an adequate amount of protein, and adjust the fat as I need.
    My results as health benefices has shown that  my methods are particularly effective at reducing hunger and aiding weight loss, decreasing blood pressure and LDL (bad) cholesterol levels, as well as increasing HDL (good) cholesterol and improving blood sugar control.
In my personalized diet, here are the foods I focus on:
-good fats: avocados, avocado oil, olive oil, rapeseed oil;
-meat: rarely fish or turkey ( look for the highest quality that you can find and afford, local ranchers are a great resource). Try tuna, sardines, anchovies (in general small fish from cold waters because they will be low mercury). The code liver oil is one of my go-to daily supplements;
-dairy: white yougurt low fat, vegetable milk, cottage cheese low fat;
-cereals: wheat bran
-non-starchy veggies that are hydrating and high in fiber: artichoke, asparagus, beans,broccoli, brussels sprouts, purple cabbage, cauliflower, celery, cucumber, garlic, green beans, kale, leeks, peppers, seaweed, spinach, zucchini, eggplant; 
-nuts and seeds (high in fiber and healthy fat, these can be a great addition): chia seeds, hemp seeds, flax seeds, pumpkin seeds, almonds, macadamia nuts, and brazil nuts, unsweetened coconut meat;
-fermented foods (ad these as condiments to keep your digestion and microbiome happy): kefir, unsweetened yogurt, pikles (pikle cucumbers and pikle cabbage).
-fruits: lemon, lime, berries, strawberries, blackberries, wild blueberries and raspberries are great choices. These can be a great low-carb fruit option and they contain many antioxidants. Organic is best.
-2 l water daily. Fiber absorbs water so the more fiber I add to your diet, the more fluids I should drink.
      By focusing on these categories, I’ll likely naturally displace the higher carb, more processed food and avoid the trap of unhealthy food as junk food. I paid special attention to avoid processed vegetable oils (corn, soy, canola, sunflower), hydrogenated oils and products made with refined flour and added sugar.
      Undereating is an issue, especially over the longer term, because it can lead to nutrient deficiencies. In addition, undereating can add stress to the body and too much of a calorie deficit can impact hormones and even make it harder to lose weight! I tended to undereat and I  added in additional various vitamins as A, B2,B6, B12, C, D, E, potassium and magnezium to meals as a simple way to boost calories, nutrition and assist with ketosis. While the amount of food and calories isn’t the whole picture, it does play a role. Someone who is overeating, even on diet and movement, may have a harder time losing weight. I experienced it and I had a hardly time over the years even now.
      I tended always to overeat and I added powdered greens in my daily routine. It was a great way to add nutrition to my diet and support my metabolism, without adding significant calories. In addition, by building meals not only around quality fats but around high fiber veggies as well, I ensure adequate nutrition that I need with each bite. Do I still count my calories on my diet? Not anymore. There have been times in the past when I’ve paid more attention to calories, and I might have occasionally looked at my calories to make sure my diet is ideal, but I’ve also come to trust the wisdom of my body and ultimately rely on my body’s needs and feedback as my first guide.
    First, consider these various factors that influence the calories that your body needs: hight, weight, sex, age, activity level, body composition goals, hormonal status. In addition to these factors, it may need to account for the composition of the calories that someone are eating, the history of dieting and hormone levels as all can play a role in metabolism. It might need more or less considering the factors that I listed bellow and all is depending also on other various factors in your life: a lot of stressors, both emotional, mental, physical, chemicals, your environment, the level of self appreciation, self-confidence and self-awareness, the dreams, the desires, that means the alignement with the Source. See you soon, The Health Coach