Rainy days on the couch with chips or cookies, lavish Christmas dinners and bags of Easter eggs: winter leaves its mark on many. And just as those fat rolls are the result of what you eat, becoming toned and fitter also starts with what you put in your mouth. “You can train until you weigh an ounce, but if your diet is not right, then there is little point,” says personal trainer Duco Bauwens, presenter of the television program The Netherlands in motion. “It is not without reason that the Americans say: abs are made in the kitchen – abs are made in the kitchen.”
Of course, exercise is also important – but more about that later. First into the kitchen. We should snack less and eat more proteins, says Bauwens. “You want to lose fat, but not muscle mass, otherwise you will get that sagging skin.” Very important, says dietitian Brenda Frunt of the Nutrition Academy, is to eat fewer carbohydrates. “We eat some carbohydrate at almost every meal, because that is contained in a lot of food. From fruit and vegetables to bread, potatoes and pasta. And of course in chips, candy, cookies and soft drinks.”
Eat plenty of fruit and vegetables, but preferably less of other carbohydrate sources. Less certain with fast carbohydrates such as sweets. Carbohydrates provide energy and that is fuel for your body. That’s fine if you exercise enough, says Frunt. “If you exercise little, your body converts a small part of the carbohydrates into glycogen in your muscles and liver, and the rest as fat mass: on the stomach, buttocks and so on.”
It is best to stick to the three main meals a day, without snacks in between. “But if that really doesn’t work, nice alternatives are a handful of nuts, raw vegetables, a boiled egg or fruit,” Frunt advises. “That gives you a feeling of fullness, but has less influence on your blood sugar level.”
There is also a world to be gained when it comes to carbohydrate intake with your breakfast, lunch and dinner, says the dietician, who has a weekly menu as an example on her website. She advocates ‘food changes’.
For example, replace the muesli or granola in the yogurt with nuts and fruit at breakfast. Or eat fried eggs with tomatoes, a slice of banana carrot cake or a smoothie with vegetables.
‘Exchange your carbohydrate bombs such as spaghetti, pasta or potatoes for courgetti or zucchini strings’
For lunch, a good soup or salad – without pasta – are good ideas. “With filling vegetables such as sweet potato, pumpkin or parsnip. Or think of tomato soup with pulled chickenstuffed sweet potato with chickpeas or fish ragout with grilled vegetables.”
And with your dinner you exchange carbohydrate bombs such as spaghetti, pasta or potatoes for zucchini – those strings of zucchini -, cauliflower rice or sweet potato, beetroot and carrot. “And this is supplemented with vegetables and protein-rich foods such as meat, fish, eggs or meat substitutes.”
Frunt warns not to simply skip carbohydrates, but to eat more fiber-rich carbohydrates such as fruit and vegetables and fewer empty carbohydrates such as sugar-rich food. “Because if you just leave them out, you’re obviously going to get hungry. And then you snack again after your meal.”
Sugar challenge
To start with, the dietitian recommends taking on a sugar challenge: don’t eat added sugars for two weeks. “That is very sharp for a moment, but then you experience how much more energy you get and then it is easier to consciously choose less sugar. You will notice that effect much less if you only partially skip carbohydrates, so you may be more inclined to fall back into your old pattern.”
‘You really don’t have to do abdominal exercises every day. In fact, that’s pointless’
Ultimately, says sports presenter Bauwens, a tighter summer body is in sight if you have a ‘negative energy balance’ – this is how you lose weight. “By eating less and healthier and exercising more. You really don’t have to do abdominal exercises every day. In fact, that’s pointless. Because in addition to stimulating the muscles, you also want to give them time to recover. Only then will they grow.”
He recommends doing strength exercises two or three times a week. “With once a week you will only achieve little effect, and to be more toned for the summer, you have to slow down a bit.”
Just act normal’
Actually, the exercises are the same for men and women, says Bauwens. “We have the same ‘show muscles’ – buttocks, stomach and upper arms – which are most noticeable when wearing a T-shirt or on the beach, although for men the emphasis will also be on the chest. Women often pay more attention to their glutes. They may be a little hesitant to train their upper arms because they don’t want to be as muscular there as men. But fear not: women are generally not built to build muscle mass quickly. To really grow big muscles you have to do a lot. If you train ‘normally’, exercises will help you avoid those swaying chicken fillets when you swing.”
Bauwens emphasizes that with strength training it is important that the execution and posture are in order to prevent injuries. “You can do many exercises at home, but it is always good if a sports instructor or trainer can watch and give some tips while training. It is quite difficult to keep an eye on your posture and performance if you are not used to it.”
