Pro Metabolic Eating: How to Make Peace with Food

What the pro-metabolic diet is and practical tips to start this journey

Have you tried them all?

Dieting is so stressful. Many options promise weight loss and solutions to all your problems, but don’t keep their end of the bargain. Some popular diets sometimes work for a little while, before backing out on you.

I am a mother of two, a woman who struggled with stress, insomnia, gluten intolerance, and Rosacea. There are so many diets that I have researched, but none of them were fully sustainable or addressed the root cause.

I was on of those people who scoured the internet, reading almost everything that I could get my hands on because I knew deep down that the answer was out there….somewhere….

It was several years of praying, searching, and praying some more, refusing to be content with my current state of health.

And the answer finally came.

I came across this concept of Pro-Metabolic eating and my life has been changed for the better. It has shown me what real food is and has improved my overall health.

What is the Pro-Metabolic Diet? 

First of all, this is not a diet.

The pro metabolic “diet” is a lifestyle, that focuses on supporting all the bodily functions or metabolic processes of your body, like your thyroid function, immune system, and hormone balance.

A diet gives you regulations on what you should do and what you shouldn’t do. This lifestyle or pro-metabolic eating is a way to live that takes into account you’re a unique and individual person. It is a long-term investment in eating high-quality foods that support a healthy metabolism.

The pro-metabolic lifestyle of eating has a few principles or guidelines to follow. This gives you a lot of areas to experiment with and see what works well for your body and individual situation. 

The idea of a pro-metabolic lifestyle is to provide food freedom and not restrict certain types of foods or foods that you must or must not eat. We were created to need and enjoy food.

But where to begin? What does a pro-metabolic lifestyle look like?

Let’s break it down and look at some principles.

Principles of Pro-Metabolic Eating

Eat enough. 

Make sure that you are eating enough calories to sustain your energy output. Some days you may eat more and some days you may eat last. For example, on days that you exercise, you will need more energy so, therefore, you should eat a little more.

Don’t stress over how much you should be eating. A good rule of thumb is to simply eat if you are hungry. Remember this is a lifestyle and not a diet. These are guidelines to help you improve your well-being.

Eat consistently every 3 to 4 hours.

Another good rule of thumb is to eat every three or four hours. This spaces out the times you eat to roughly 3 meals and 2 or 3 snacks a day depending on your needs. 

When you’re in between meals but hungry, don’t force yourself to go a couple more hours until the next meal. This puts extra stress on your body because it then has to go searching for fuel in places that are not designed for energy.

When you’re hungry, your body needs fuel so give it what it needs. Eat when you need to and do not run on an empty stomach.

Eat 30 minutes to an hour after you wake up. 

Do you ever feel stressed when you first wake up? Did you know that it is the stress hormone cortisol that gets you out of your bed every morning? You feel stressed because YOU ARE STRESSED and don’t have much energy to burn after fasting all night long.

To bring that stress down, plan to eat 30 minutes to an hour after you wake up every morning. 

An initial adrenal cocktail or even a cup of good quality orange juice helps to lower those stress hormones while you’re making breakfast or going through your morning routine. A cup of milk is great option, too.

Gently Workout

Go for a walk or do some stretches 3-4 times a week. I really like to do stretching as a stay at home mom because I don’t have to leave my house and it is very relaxing.

My life is decently active when I’m at home and chasing my two toddlers. My body doesn’t need the stress of a super intensive workout, but it still benefits from movement.  Stretching is relaxing and it relieves stress. It keeps you nimble and aids your digestion which in turn helps other metabolic functions.

Whichever you choose to do, just remember that gentle movement is the key. Our bodies do not need strenuous exercise. If you do like to run, then you will find “How to Heal your Metabolism” by Kate Deering very helpful. She is a nutritional coach who also loves running. She talks about how to heal after running among other things.

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.

Eat quality food.

This is the most exciting part for those of us who have been on a restrictive diet. Here is where we talk about food freedom!

There are so many opinions out there on what you should eat. It’s so hard to figure out what is truly good for you.

Did you know that ice cream can be a healthy superfood? If it is made out of good quality and nutrient-dense ingredients, how could it not be healthy?

This goes for desserts, meals, drinks, and any individual ingredients as well. If it is good quality, nutrient-dense, bioavailable, and prepared properly, then it is good for you.

(Bioavailability means that it is easy for your body to process and use.)

How to Start Pro-Metabolic Eating

Here are three tips to help you know where to begin.

Start slow. 

Don’t rush it. Have you ever started a workout program but never stuck to it? Many times this is either because it was too complicated, or because you try to do too many new things at once. Start slow. 

Try applying one or two of the principles we discussed earlier before even switching out any of your food.

Research your options.

When you get to a place where you are ready to start replacing lower quality food that you were eating with higher quality food items, take some time to learn what the highest quality products for that specific food are and what is available for you. Window shop at different stores in the area to figure out what they carry if the grocery stores that you normally shop at do not carry what you’re looking for.

Know what good food is.

Again, before heading out the door to grocery shopping, know what you’re looking for. I have broken down the main food groups to discuss the best possible options for you over here.

Final thoughts!

This is a lot of information that you may hot have heard about. Thank you for reading all the way down!

Hopefully, it was insightful and clearly presented and you find this to be good news just as I did.

This is not an exhaustive definition of what pro-metabolic living or eating looks like, but it is a simple place to begin.

There’s so much more to learn in this area and I am in no way an expert. I merely want to be a voice to share this wonderful goodness with others.

If you want to know more, I recommend you to check out these resources. 

• Made for Living Well – Podcast
• Fallon’s Table – Website
• How to Heal your Metabolism – Book
• The Freely Rooted Podcast – Podcast
• The Strong Sistas YouTube Channel – Youtube Channel

Disclaimer: This is not medical advice. It is my own opinion from my experience researching the best way to apply pro-metabolic eating affordably. I am sharing what I have learned in my journey with the hope that it can help you in yours.

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