That firm flat midsection…we all want one. It is one of the obvious indicators of health and fitness. When we see a big pot belly we make immediate judgments about the overall health of that person. Even on someone who may be an athlete like a power lifter or an offensive lineman in the NFL. I am not saying you need a 6-pack. We have discussed that before…see the blog post: http://sunday-stories.blogspot.com/2015/08/sunday-storyyour-6-pack.html But, honestly, none of us want a “dunlap” (as in your belly done-lapped over your belt) midsection.

That flat firm midline gets built in the kitchen, folks. Sure your work out is necessary, especially for the firm part. But the food you put in the system is the main contributor to how much fat you are storing and where you are storing it. We all have genetic predispositions to storing fat in one place more than others. But sooner or later it is going to hit your middle and that is bad.

I am not going to tell you what to eat. I have an opinion and you are welcome to it but the fact is your body is going to respond to certain foods differently than my body. Dairy and I don’t get along well but dairy may be very good for you. You need to figure out what works for your body and what doesn’t. Do a whole 30 elimination diet and get clear what foods work best for you. It probably isn’t Cheetos and Beer by the way.

That being said, there are certain dietary principles you should know, understand and employ every day and throughout your dietary life. These principles are chemical and physiological responses to the type of food you are eating. This is a “call and response” effect. If you put this in your body (call) it is going to do this (response).

Here are 5 Physiological Responses:
1. Carbohydrates and sugar raise your blood sugar.
2. High fructose corn syrup is metabolized by the liver as Fat.
3. Excess carbs and sugar that aren’t used immediately are stored as fat.
4. Insulin is a lipogenic hormone, so it causes you to store fat.
5. Protein and dietary fat have no significant impact on raising blood sugar.
We all will have different responses to various foods but these 5 responses are true for every human body.

Armed with these facts you can now make choices of what you are going to put in your body. Eat enough to support activity but NOT store fat! If eating dietary fat doesn’t raise blood sugar just eating fat won’t make you fat. Eating too much fat will make you fat.

We often say…”exercise won’t necessarily make you bulky but cupcakes will make you squishy” Lay off the cupcakes especially the ones with high fructose corn syrup!

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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