People over the years have asked us a lot of nutrition and fitness questions. We are just students, and by no means experts, but here we wanted to answer some of the FAQs we've gotten over the years. We also added questions that we thought would be fun to ask each other!
1. What are your favorite foods?
Sades - I love most foods. I will try almost anything! My favorites include a full breakfast spread with toast, eggs, yogurt, and fruit. My favorite breakfast food is eggs benedict! Simply delicious. For dinner and lunch foods, I love chicken alfredo with broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and mushrooms or beef tacos loaded with rice and veggies!
Liv - Such a hard question. I always tell people that there really aren't any foods I don't like (just ask me!) Some of my favorite foods include toast, scones, pancakes, yogurt, and cereal. I could eat breakfast at any time in the day. I also love salmon, roasted veggies, quinoa, avocados, strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, and the list just goes on and on.
2. Do you count calories? Do you count macros? (Here, write out what macros are)
*Macros are macronutrients in food; fat, carbohydrates, and protein.
Sades - I have never tracked macros in a calculator but can estimate and count them in my head. However, I eat intuitively. I eat what nourishes my body and I eat what I crave.
Liv - I don't count either carbs or macros. I am a big believer in intuitive eating so I'd just prefer to eat what I feel my body needs rather than what I could calculate needing. Some days you eat a little bit in excess, and others you don't eat as much as usual. It is more important for me to be flexible and forgiving with myself than structured and rigid. Especially when it comes to eating, there is no such thing as perfection, so why stress calories and macros to the exact count?
* I do understand the importance in counting for some people to achieve their goals, it is just not what I prefer
3. Will you make a meal plan for me/tell me what to eat to be healthier?
Sades - I get this question all the time! No, I do not plan to make a meal plan for others. I know what works for me and my body. I am about eating to nourish and please your own taste buds. No restrictions. No diet plans. No strict meal plans. However, I am more than happy to suggest healthy side dishes, how to make your vegetables taste good or offer some of my favorites main dishes!
Liv - I know we've both gotten this question from a lot of people! The bottom line is that we are not experts. While nutrition IS an exact science, people are individuals and different things work for different people. I wouldn't want to design a meal plan for anyone because I am not a registered dietitian (yet) but I do like to talk to people about their relationship with food and how to avoid the guilt associated with not eating "clean" or "healthy". We all have strengths when it comes to eating, and I like to help people emphasize their eating strengths rather than addressing their eating downfalls.
4. Are there any foods you avoid?
Sades - Sauerkraut! Only because I don't like the smell or taste. And sushi, raw fish freaks me out. I prefer my fish cooked!
Liv - Not that I can think of! I think I try not to eat too much coconut oil, and that is because it is actually very high in saturated fat compared to the other fats and oils out there. I use it in baked goods, but it is just one of those things I can do without.
5. What should I eat or not eat to lose (insert number) amount of weight?
Liv - It's really difficult to change your body composition through diet alone. If you eat less calories to lose weight, your body just becomes more efficient with running on fewer calories. You may initially lose weight with a low calorie diet, but you'll eventually gain it back since your body adapts to getting less energy from food.
With that being said, having a balanced diet and completing some form of exercise each day is the best way to live a healthful life. Body image is a mind game, and if you're able to think about what you're doing to the inside of your body rather than focusing on what it looks like on the outside, you'll be much more satisfied with leading a healthy lifestyle that makes you proud of your health. It is easier said than done, and I don't think it's possible to have 100% body positivity 100% of the time. So, you can't really eat (or not eat) a specific thing to lose weight.
6. How often should I work out to be healthy?
Sades - I am a firm believer in quality over quantity. I don't think it matters how often. Everyones bodies are different. With that being said, rest days are as beneficial. If you work out 3-6 days, great! Do what works for you! BUT be sure to get at least ONE REST DAY/WEEK. Rest is just as important for your muscles and body.
Liv - This question makes me cringe because exercise looks different for everyone. Not everyone's body is built to move in the same way, and not everyone is able to move in the same way. I aim to move at least a little each day, and that is what I usually tell others to do if they were looking for exercise advice.
7. What is your dream job?
Sades - My dream job would be to be a traveling yoga instructor/personal trainor and motivational speaker. Seems wild and crazy but those are a few of my passions. I am passionate about travel, living a healthy and active lifestyle. I also want to help people, to motivate people and walk along side them to find their purpose in life. I just want to be a positive light, a guide, friend and mentor to all!
Liv - People who know me know that I change my mind nearly every day, and I have changed my majors many, MANY times throughout college. I just know that I hope to inspire people to live their best lives, with the body and the resources that they have been given. Health disparities are very real, and you can't recommend the same healthy behaviors for everyone because people face different obstacles in adopting healthy habits. I am just hoping to work with people on an individual level to meet them where they're at in their health journey and give them reasonable suggestions about living a healthy life:)
8. What is your favorite thing to cook or bake?
Sades - My favorite thing to bake is banana bread and energy bites. My favorite thing to cook is probably chicken alfredo with vegetables, but I really enjoy finding new and fun recipes. Please feel free to send us your favorites recipes to bake/cook!!!
Liv - Sadie gave me a recipe for maple chai scones, and I have to say that it's been my go-to recipe for a while. Scones are one of my favorite foods in the whole world! My favorite recipes change all the time, but I like to cook salmon, and I recently found a recipe for vegetarian bolognese that I really like.
9. What is your favorite way to exercise?
Sades - When it is nice outside, I love to go on walks and bike rides with my friends and family. My favorite exercises in the gym are hip adduction/abduction as well as a good HIIT workout! For cardio at the gym, I head for the stair stepper or eliptical. I am not a fan of running and the treadmil is not my friend. I envy you if that works for you. Olivia and I went to Hot Yoga religiously once a week and that was super great! It was a workout and a stretch.
Liv - Anything outside! I love going for long runs, biking, hiking, walking, swimming, paddle boarding, kayaking, rollerblading, jumping rope, doing yoga, and more. If I spend time in the gym I like to use the stair stepper, treadmill, and finding space for a HIIT workout. I could talk a lot about my personal beliefs surrounding exercise. Exercise is more fun with a buddy, so sometimes Sadie and I will go to workout/yoga classes which I love. To keep it short, I don't like to think of exercising as a chore, and I don't like to do anything that won't make me happy. Of course I will still push my body and do tough exercises, but that is different from doing something because you feel like you *have* to.
10. What are your thoughts on "cheat days"?
Sades - I don't think taking a "cheat day" to eat junk is any different than allowing yourself to eat dessert every single day of the week. Your body knows no difference of when you decide to eat junk or not. It's all processed the same way way whether or not you consume a large amount of junk in the same day or if you spread it out throughout the entire week.
Liv - No!! Don't say that! I think when we say things like "cheat days" it gives the impression that the rest of our days are painful, or that our usual diet is a punishment. If you ever find yourself not enjoying your diet, or waiting for the next cheat day to roll around, it seems that you might need to reexamine your relationship with food. Think about it this way- if you give yourself one "cheat day" every week, what do you think of your other six days of the week? It just ends up being a lot of time feeling dissatisfied with your food choices.
11. What's the point of intermittent fasting?
Sades - I know somd individuals see results, however, you are more likely to purge if you are restricting for a certain amount of time. However, I also don't know enough about this to give accurate information.
Liv - I don't know enough about it to really say anything. Maybe it's beneficial, I'd believe that skipping a meal or not eating for an extended period of time would make you eat more food at your next meal. Usually that is the case when people start to skip meals or deprive themselves of food.
12. What's your favorite meal of the day?
Sades - BREAKFAST! Eggs, hashbrowns, avocado toast, pancakes, waffles, fruit, bagels, cinnamon rolls, scones, muffins, yogurt, COFFEE! All of my favorite things. I could literally eat breakfast all day, everyday.
Liv - Breakfast all the way! It's funny, because as a kid I would dread eating breakfast because I was never a morning person. Now, what gets me out of bed every morning is just the thought of making breakfast and drinking coffee.
13. Have you ever gone on a diet? What is the best diet?
Sades - Before I understood nutrition well enough, I limited carbs but not intentionally. This was detrimental to my health and I did not realize at the time. Now, I eat a well balanced diet with foods or every type and sort! No restrictions. Just a balanced diet with fruits, vegetables, cards, fats proteins and of course, the occasion bowl or ice cream and piece of cheesecake. It is ALL ABOUT BALANCE.
Liv - A clarification- the word diet just means the sum of everything you eat. If you think about the word "diet" as in restricting food groups or eating X amount of calories, no I've never gone on a diet (besides being pescatarian). There is no "best" diet, and people can benefit from different diets for different reasons.
14. How can I learn more or become more educated on being healthier?
Sades - We will continue to post where we get some of our health/wellness/nutrition information so continue to follow along if that's something you're interested in. We are happy you are here and if you've made it through all of these questions, good job ;)
Liv - There are a lot of great resources out there. Read my post on this blog about my favorite nutrition books, podcasts, and other resources!
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