Achieving Peak Performance Through Nutrition

The Authors By Jessica Roberts with contributions from Fit to Lead team members Ryan Stoness, Faizan Imtiaz, and Shane Lakins at Smith School of Business Jessica Roberts is an experienced fitness and health professional. Her love of dance and movement led her to educational pursuits Nutrition is an important step in improving performance and productivity in the Fitness and Health in both your work life and personal life. By employing a simple strategy Promotion program at St. around what you eat, when you eat, and how you eat, you can see improved Lawrence College in energy levels, increased concentration, improved time management, and Kingston. Upon graduation, sharper focus. she has been working in the fields of fitness, health, and Better nutrition is not only good for the body; it’s also good for the nutrition, helping clients workplace. A study done by the Health Enhancement Research Organization identify what they really at Brigham Young University and the Centre for Health Research at want for themselves and find Healthways found that workers who ate healthy meals and exercised motivation from within to regularly had better on-the-job performance and lower absenteeism by 27 reach their goals. percent. By simply eating healthier and taking care of your body, you can directly enhance your overall performance.

When examining your own nutritional choices, three easy steps could have a significant effect on performance. They are: eat mindfully; simplify nutritional choices; and eat for energy.

Eat Mindfully

On average, we make 250 decisions about food each day. As such, it is very easy to be unconsciously influenced by environmental cues, such as those from family and friends, colours and packaging, smells, and even proximity. In fact, research found that the most common barriers to eating a healthy diet were that unhealthy foods were readily available in the office and the lack of healthy options near the office.

We want easy, convenient food. As such, we often settle for what’s nearby and looks nice, rather than what actually suits our nutritional philosophy. This is especially true when we are strapped for time or under a lot of stress. This susceptibility to mindless eating increases when we do not have enough time and resources to analyze our decisions and make healthy choices.

Strategies ssb.ca/insight Twitter @SmithInsight We have to be very aware of the environmental cues that could affect our eating habits. Here are a few tips to help you eat more mindfully:

• Reduce serving sizes and consumption by using smaller bowls and plates, replacing short, wide glasses with tall narrow ones, and using The best solution smaller spoons when eating from a bowl. to information • Eliminate the office cookie jar or replace it with a fruit bowl. overload is to • Wrap tempting foods in foil to make them less visible and more apply the simplest forgettable. tactics • Place healthier, nutrient-dense foods such as fruit and vegetables in the front of the refrigerator and the less healthy foods in the back. • At buffets and receptions, avoid having more than two different foods on your plate at the same time. • To discourage others from over-consuming at a high-variety environment, such as at a reception or dinner party, arrange foods into organized patterns and avoid multiple bowls of the same food. They increase perceptions of variety and stimulate consumption.

Simplify Nutritional Choices

The vast number of diets and nutritional philosophies you’re confronted with on a regular basis can make choosing a strategy very confusing. Luckily, the best solution to information overload may be to apply the simplest tactics. Studies have identified three easy ways to simplify nutritional choices:

Eat real food: Eating real food means sticking to as many organic and simple ingredients as possible, and avoiding foods for which you cannot recognize the ingredients. This means choosing foods such as whole grains, which have been shown to help protect against chronic diseases over their white or more processed counterparts.

Don’t eat too much: Research has shown that portion size can influence consumption as much as the actual taste of the food. As such, you can reduce the chance of overeating by simply reducing the size of your plate or bowl and using a smaller serving utensil. A good rule of thumb to follow is to fill your stomach with one-third food, one-third liquid, and leave one- third empty so that you are not overly hungry or full at the end of a meal.

Eat mostly plants: Plant-based diets are associated with improved blood pressure, decreased risk of heart disease, lowered cholesterol, and better weight control. Leafy greens are particularly beneficial, but you also want to eat a variety of differently coloured fruits and veggies. That way you get your full spread of antioxidants, which in turn help lower the risk of chronic disease.

Strategies ssb.ca/insight The key is to keep it simple. Don’t let nutrition be another cause for stress in Twitter @SmithInsight your life. Here are a few tips to help you simplify your nutritional choices:

▪ Stay around the perimeter of the grocery store. Generally, the more processed foods are along the aisles, while the real food is found along the perimeter. ▪ Judge food by the overall make-up of the product. For example, if By consuming carrots are good for you, don’t try to break it down into every ingredient that is in carrots to determine whether it is good or not. nutrient-dense By looking at the overall makeup of a food, plants are the easiest to foods, you’re able decide on as they are almost universally good for you. to extract a high ▪ Ensure you have a selection of tasty, healthy snacks in your home and work environments — such as nuts or simple fruits and amount of energy vegetables — that can be eaten on the go. while eating less ▪ Plan ahead. Having a healthy snack on hand will help eliminate the frequently possibility of making poor choices. ▪ Allow yourself a treat. If you are eating predominantly real foods, a little ice cream or a night out with friends is okay. Just remember to keep it in moderation and don’t get discouraged by a couple of less healthy choices. ▪ Avoid food that has an infinite lifetime. A good thing to remember is that real food eventually spoils.

Eat For Energy

Over the years, our energy requirements have slowly decreased as our jobs and lifestyles have become more sedentary. Portion sizes, however, have moved in the opposite direction and progressively increased. As a result, we’re consistently eating more than we actually need.

Different foods and food groups vary in both nutrient density and energy costs. Thus, by consuming nutrient-dense foods, you are able to extract a high amount of energy while eating less frequently. They are also packed with vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients such as protein, fiber, and antioxidants. Further, eating high-energy foods at frequent intervals ensures access to a steady level of glucose, which is our primary source of energy and capacity.

Strategies Getting through your days with optimal productivity doesn't have to be about coffee and energy drinks. What you eat can give you the energy, mental acuity, and stress-management abilities necessary to be a peak performer in the business world. Here are a few tips to help you eat for energy:

• Always put purpose behind your nutritional decisions. • Be aware of your needs and what is the most effective and efficient way to fuel your body for those needs. • Be aware of what you will be doing for the next three to four hours. Once you determine the demands that will be put on your body, it is ssb.ca/insight much easier to determine what you will need to provide it in order Twitter @SmithInsight to succeed.

• Eat carbohydrates, in particular whole grains. Complex carbohydrates break down well into glucose, which is the only energy source for the brain and central nervous system. Breaking down a • Brown rice and quinoa are excellent sources of complex carbs and both contain manganese, which plays an important role in big change into producing energy from carbohydrates and proteins. smaller steps • Try sweet potatoes, which are an easy “take to the office” meal. increases the They're easy to prepare and also have high levels of vitamins A and chance for success C. • Thirst masquerades as hunger, so save yourself from overeating by ensuring that you are always hydrated. • Snack on fruits throughout the day. They provide an immediate bump in glucose, which the body can easily convert into energy. Combine bananas with oranges for a sustained release of energy during the day; it’s a powerful combination. • Include greens in your meals, such as spinach, for variety, carbs and lots of iron. • Eat lean proteins and complex carbohydrates at least every three hours to ensure access to a steady level of glucose.

Finally, countless research studies have shown that small changes are most effective. So even if you are looking to make a big change, breaking it down into the smallest steps is often the path to success.

Further Reading: Wansink, B. (2007). Mindless eating: Why we eat more than we think. Bantam. Pollan, M. (2009). In defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto. Penguin.

The Fit to Lead Program at Smith School of Business provides strategies and insights on how to better manage energy, improve focus, and manage and utilize stress to help achieve healthy, balanced, and productive lifestyles. The Fit to Lead team provides services to the MBA and Executive Education programs at Smith School of Business and works with individual or group clients to develop custom solutions for their personal or organizational needs. For more information, contact Ryan Stoness, Manager of the Fit to Lead program at [email protected].

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