The first step busy mamas can take toward a healthier life is reading nutrition labels

Have you ever looked at the nutrition label on your favorite food and felt like you were reading gibberish? Maybe you understand if it’s a “good” amount of calories, but beyond that do you understand what the nutrition labels say? Understanding nutrition labels is an important skill for busy mamas who want to live a healthier life.

And if you’ve felt lost when reading them, then podcast this is for you! I’m a licensed nutritionist who has helped hundreds of mamas lose weight and keep the weight off and I’m going to break it down for you! Think of this as a beginner's guide to taking control of your health!

Nutrition Labels 101: Calories & serving sizes

One of the first things you see when looking at a nutrition label is the total calories per serving. Calories are the base of nutrition and if you’re just starting a health or weight loss journey this is the first thing you need to understand.

The calories listed on a nutrition label tell you how many calories are in a serving. But what is a serving? Serving sizes vary which is why packages tell you exactly what a serving is. 

However, most packaging uses grams to determine the serving size and it’s hard to know what 84 grams of pasta looks like if you don’t measure it out.

One of the first skills that I teach inside of my Macros Made Easy Program is measuring your food so you can see how much you’re eating! If you don’t know what 4 oz of chicken looks like, then you need to measure it, so that you can physically see what that amount looks like.

I suggest using a food scale and measuring your portions until you know what it looks like. Eventually, you’ll be able to look at a piece of chicken and eyeball if it’s the correct serving without having to measure it out. 

Now, I’m not saying you’ll look at a piece of chicken and automatically know that it’s 3.72 oz, but you’ll be able to look at it and determine if it’s close to a correct serving. You just have to learn the walk before you can run! 

Once you start to see what serving sizes look like you can see how many calories you’re really consuming. The cool part is that when you start to understand serving sizes you can decide if something is high or low in calories.

One of my favorite examples of this is Crumbl Cookies! My husband brought some Crumbl Cookies home from work once and I thought, “I’ll be so good and just have half of one, that can’t be too terrible.”

But did you know that one serving of a Crumbl Cookie is only a quarter of a cookie? WHAT?!?! And that serving usually clocks in around 150-200 calories!! That’s a huge chunk of calories to spend on a cookie. If you eat a whole cooking you’re usually looking at 550-800 calories. That’s almost half a day’s worth of calories for most people!

This is why you must start paying attention to nutrition facts and labels! There’s so much power in understanding how much you’re eating.

Nutrition Labels 102: Macros

The next thing I teach my clients to look at is the macros in food. Macros is short for macronutrients. All foods are made of three macronutrients: protein, fats and carbohydrates. these are the three largest nutrients that your body needs for survival.

Each macro has a caloric value, so when you add up the calories per macro you’ll get the overall calories. However, not all macros have the same caloric value.

• 1 gram of protein = 4 calories

• 1 gram of carbohydrates = 4 calories 

• 1 gram of fat = 9 calories

As you can see, not all calories are the same! 10 grams of fat is going to cost you a lot more calorically than 10 grams of carbs. Which is why it’s good to pay attention to more than just your caloric intake. You should be eating a balance of protein, fat and carbs that will help you reach your goals. But what does “balance” mean or look like?

That’s exactly what I teach inside my Macros Made Easy Program! Every person is different and has different goals and different nutritional needs, so everyone’s macros are different!

The crazy thing is that everyone macros. Seriously, even if you’re not tracking your macros, you’re still relying on them to fuel your body, so why not start understanding how to leverage macros to reach your goals?

I truly believe that understanding macros can help every mama reach her health goals, but as we’re nearing the holidays a lot of women are busy and it feels overwhelming to try to focus on their health, especially with all the good foods that the holidays bring!

This is why I’m launching the Holiday Glow Up Program! It’s designed to help you navigate macros - including getting custom numbers - so that you can lose weight while still enjoying your favorite festive treats this holiday season.

If you feel like you’re ready to go beyond simple calorie counting and really understand how to get the best bang for your food’s buck, then join the Holiday Glow Up Program! It will make tracking simple through the holidays.

Nutrition Labels 101: Extras to watch for

We’ve set your foundation with serving sizes and macros, but if you still want to uplevel your nutrition, I recommend looking at these two other factors.

Fiber

Fiber is a carbohydrate that doesn’t turn into sugar during digestion. It also helps you feel fuller longer. It’s responsible for keeping you regular, lowering blood sugar levels, balancing hormones and so much more.

Most people need 20-30 grams of fiber a day, but most of us aren’t getting nearly enough!

Fiber is mostly found in whole foods - fruits, vegetables, whole grains, leafy greens and beans. When you’re looking at a nutritional label, look under the carbohydrates to see how many grams of fiber are in that food.

The thing is fiber is a little bit tricky. You don’t want too much but you also don’t want too littl.e Overeating fiber it can cause the same things as undereating, such as constipation, diarrhea, etc.

Sugar

Let’s get one thing straight, sugar isn’t a bad thing! I want you to remember that sugar has a place in your diet, just like all food! In fact, sugar gives you quick fuel and can help you push through a tough workout!

However, just like fiber, you want to look for sugar in whole foods rather than processed foods. Because the sugars in whole foods are better used as fuel by your body; whereas processed sugars are more likely to be stored as fat.

There are a million different things you can pay attention to if you want to lose weight, but these are the ones that will get you great results without feeling overwhelmed!

If you feel like you could use some help understanding nutrition labels and what your body needs nutritionally, then let’s chat! Schedule a free Healthy Mama Blueprint call and we’ll go over what your goals are and how I can help you reach them, without having to give up all the foods you love!

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