The Balanced Plate for Happy Hormones

Did you know your mood, hormonal balance, and mind body relationship are all connected to your nutrition practices? Yup! When you’re looking to heal your burnout & your body, look no further than your plate.

Your nutrition practices are the first building blocks in managing your anxiety, stress level, your happiness, your fertility, your estrogen balance, your immune strength, your period, your resilience, and basically everything else that makes you, YOU! Even your DNA 🧬is influenced by your food relationship.

What and how you eat is an essential component of helping the body synthesize and regulate hormones and reduce stress. Supporting the process with a balanced plate is key! It doesn't have to be complicated. Keep it simple and use the following as a guide.

Protein (1/4+ plate)

Cravings? Hungry ALL the time? Horrible periods? Energy Crashes? Hair loss and brittle nails? Constantly running ragged? These could all be signs that you are not eating enough protein! I see it all the time. Adequate protein aids in fat loss, builds muscle mass, balances estrogen, stabilizes insulin, supports stable energy, and supports a healthy thyroid.

While protein needs are individual, I generally recommend 1 gram of protein/kg or 20% of your daily energy intake at the minimum. Sources of animal based protein include things like chicken, turkey, beef, pork, and lamb as well as eggs, cheese, and milk. Plant based protein sources include quinoa, peas, lentils, nuts, tofu, and beans. You can incorporate both on your plate, but for healthy hormones and metabolism, I advocate for animal based proteins taking the leading role and plant based playing a supportive role.

Try adding more protein to your meals and/or snacks with Greek yogurt, egg white protein powder, and focus on high bio available sources like fish, poultry, and red meat. The body uses protein from these sources a lot more efficiently.

Non Starchy (Fibrous) Fruits and Vegetables (1/2 plate)

Non-starchy fruits and veggies are loaded with fiber, the indigestible material found in plant-based foods. Fiber is awesome because it adds volume to your food to make you feel full longer, helps balance blood sugar and reduce inflammation, feeds the good gut bacteria that supports immune function, mood, & hormone balance, and helps you have awesome poops!

Fruits and veggies are also loaded with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. Chronic stress can deplete these essential nutrients, so it is important to re-charge your stores by eating the rainbow!

Aim to get 30 grams of fiber a day by loading up half of your plate with fiberful, non-starchy veggies. I try to keep spinach and leafy greens stocked and have slaw mix, broccoli, peppers, or zucchini on regular rotation. Other great colorful additions are tomatoes, cucumbers, and red onions.

Carbs + Starchy Fruits and Vegetables (~1/4 plate)

Carbohydrates are essential to a balanced plate. This important macronutrient provides a readily available energy source, key to fueling the body and the brain, and balancing blood glucose. Glucose (from carbs) is the brain's preferred fuel source. Not eating carbs has been shown to slow brain function, causing fogginess and forgetfulness. You have enough to deal with as it is. Not remembering where you put your keys doesn't have to be one of them. They also help support your cortisol, insulin, thyroid, testosterone to keep your HPA axis running at top form. Without adequate carbs, the brain sends a signal to the rest of the body to conserve energy, shut down fertility, and ramps up the fight or flight response. This causes weight gain, fatigue, muscle wasting, and menstrual dysfunction.

You do want to look at the quality of those carbs, simple vs. complex, and the portion size. Simple carbs are things like white bread, white rice, or pasta and they give you quick energy. Complex carbs are going to be more unprocessed like quinoa or wild rice, sweet potatoes, and fruits and vegetables. These are the ones you want to make sure you are getting enough of. Regarding the quantity, you want to focus on moderate intake, so a smaller portion of the plate, not necessarily the main component. For example, when you think about a dish of pasta. It is typically all pasta with a few pieces of protein or vegetables. You want to reverse that and bring the veggies, protein, and fats to the forefront of the plate and keep the carbs and the starches as more of a piece of it.

Use your starch as a side rather than a base. I like Banza chickpea pasta, lentils, canned beans, and quinoa. Root vegetables like squashes and potatoes are also good options!

Healthy Fats (1-2 thumb sizes)

Fats can get a really bad rap, BUT heart-healthy fats such as avocado, olive oil, fish, and nuts are essential to a balanced diet! Besides adding delicious flavor to your plate, healthy fats increase satisfaction, support hormone function, aid in the absorption of nutrients, and have anti-inflammatory properties.

The lowdown on healthy fats….

Monounsaturated fats, found in avocados and olive oil, reduce your risk of heart disease and are imperative for brain function and cell growth.

Polyunsaturated fats (Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids) have a wide range of benefits such as improving brain function, decreasing the risk of heart disease, decreasing inflammation, regulating ovulation, and impacting fertility by increasing blood flow to the uterus.

• Omega-3 fatty acids, found in salmon, tuna, and chia and flax seeds, lower triglyceride levels and blood pressure by regulating your heartbeats and slowing the development of plaque in your arteries. Omega-3s are also essential components of creating and maintaining cell membranes along with synthesizing hormones and promoting hormone function. These fats also have the added bonus of regulating oil production in your skin, balancing hydration, and minimizing signs of aging––uh, yes please!!!!

• Omega-6 fats, found in nuts and seeds, lower “bad” (LDL) cholesterol and raise “good” HDL cholesterol, stimulate skin and hair growth, regulate metabolism, and contribute to the maintenance of the reproductive system.

Although these fats are loaded with beneficial properties, no need to over indulge. You only need to add one to two thumb sizes of unsaturated fats to each meal to get all of the benefits!

Putting it into Practice

Remember to keep it simple! Life is flexible and we have to be flexible with it. Use convenience items where you can, e.g. frozen veggies, canned beans, pre-cooked proteins, and ask yourself what you can add that doesn’t require chopping, cooking, or boiling. It is more important to eat consistently balanced plates than to cook everything from scratch. Every day is different and not every plate is going to be perfect and that is ok. It's about consistency overall, not perfection in every moment.

Wanna find the right balance of nutrients on your plate for YOU? Let’s chat. I help women learn to work with their body for better energy, metabolism, and hormone balance without restrictions.