Dear reader, last week we discussed ways to filter out the nutrition and exercise noise online. I'd like to add to this coaching lessons by inviting you to reflect on the ways of life of Blue Zone populations. Have you heard of the Blue Zones before? 

 

The blue zones are regions around the world where people are claimed to live exceptionally long and healthy lives past 80. There is a great net flix series on them called - Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones. 

 

When it comes to nutrition and exercise research, there are different methods that can be used. For example - One method might be to put two groups of people on different diets and study them for a few months to distinguish which diet is better, based on which markers are being studied. E.g. Vegan vs Meat - diet. Who loses more weight over 3 weeks. 

 

These research methods are interesting but they have many limitations in terms of their practical application. Is that person going to continue receiving these perfectly constructed meals that were used for the experiment for the rest of their life? What happens 6 months, 12 months, 2 years after the experiment? (Yes, follow up studies are sometimes done (great!), but not always. 

 

Please remember, on social media you may hear the results of a 3 week intervention but not the results from the follow up. I'm guessing you want more than a 3 week change in whatever goal you have - hence, be wary of “short term” benefits that cannot prove sustainability.

 

 Back to Blue Zones - another way we can attempt to understand the impact of diet and lifestyle habits, is by studying the habits of populations who are already healthy, and just living their life as usual. This is what has been done with the Blue Zone Populations which include - Sardinia (Itally), Ikaria (Greece), Okinawa (Japan), Nicoya (Costa Rica), Loma Linda (USA). 

 

By studying these populations, researches have come up with what they call, The 9 Denominators for Living To 100, which are the following: 

 

1. "Move naturally. The world’s longest-lived people do not pump iron, run marathons, or join gyms. Instead, they live in environments that constantly nudge them into moving without thinking about it. They grow gardens and do not have mechanical conveniences for house and yard work.

 

2. Purpose. The Okinawans call it Ikigai and the Nicoyans call it plan de vida; for both, it translates to “why I wake up in the morning.” Knowing your sense of purpose is worth up to 7 years of extra life expectancy.

 

3. Downshift. Even people in the Blue Zones experience stress. Stress leads to chronic inflammation, associated with every major age-related disease. What the world’s longest-lived people have that others do not are routines to shed that stress. Okinawans take a few moments each day to remember their ancestors; Adventists pray; Ikarians take a nap; and Sardinians do happy hour.

 

4.80% Rule. Hara hachi bu—the Okinawan 2500-year old Confucian mantra said before meals reminds them to stop eating when their stomachs are 80% full. The 20% gap between not being hungry and feeling full could be the difference between losing weight or gaining it. People in the Blue Zones eat their smallest meal in the late afternoon or early evening, and then, they do not eat any more the rest of the day.

 

5.Plant slant. Beans, including fava, black, soy, and lentils, are the cornerstone of most centenarian diets. Meat—mostly pork—is eaten on average only 5 times per month. Serving sizes are 3 to 4 oz, about the size of a deck of cards.

 

6. Wine @ 5. People in all Blue Zones (except Adventists) drink alcohol moderately and regularly. Moderate drinkers outlive nondrinkers. The trick is to drink 1 to 2 glasses per day (preferably Sardinian Cannonau wine), with friends and/or with food. And no, you cannot save up all week and have 14 drinks on Saturday.

 

7.Belong. All but 5 of the 263 centenarians interviewed belonged to some faith-based community. Denomination does not seem to matter. Research shows that attending faith-based services 4 times per month will add 4 to 14 years of life expectancy.

 

8.Loved ones first. Successful centenarians in the Blue Zones put their families first. This means keeping aging parents and grandparents nearby or in the home (it lowers disease and mortality rates of children in the home too.). They commit to a life partner (which can add up to 3 years of life expectancy) and invest in their children with time and love. (They’ll be more likely to care for aging parents when the time comes.)

 

9.Right tribe. The world’s longest lived people chose—or were born into—social circles that supported healthy behaviors, Okinawans created moais—groups of 5 friends that committed to each other for life. Research from the Framingham Studies2 shows that smoking, obesity, happiness, and even loneliness are contagious. So the social networks of long-lived people have favorably shaped their health behaviors. "

 

Full paper: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6125071/

 

 

Now just to be clear… Just because these populations are already living well into their 80s, and many reaching 100, doesn't mean there is no room for improvement. I'm not convinced that drinking wine daily is better for longevity than zero alcohol, or that we shouldn't worry about specific strength training just because these blue zone populations don't. 

 

But what I do really like about these 9 principles is the simplicity of them. Particularly the nutrition principles because I find when it comes to nutrition there is a strong link between simplicity and consistency. When we make things too complicated, we tend to feel overwhelmed, and swing from one extreme to the other. I see this all the time. The yoyo from strict calorie counting, to eating whatever is in sight well past fullness cues. The extremes fasting protocols, leading to large meals and over-eating in the evening that create poor nights sleep, which increase poor food choices the next day. 

 

 

 Embracing The Blue Zone simplified approach to nutrition. 

 

Eat plenty of plants,

 A mostly wholefood diet. 

Stop when 80% full. 

Permission for alcohol (or any treat) but in moderation (Daily being better nothing during the week and excess on the weekend). 

Eat a smaller meal at the end of the day, not too late. 

 

As basic as these things sound, most of us struggle to be consistent with them.

 

 

  Constructing an enjoyable diet (enjoyable being the key word here), around plants and wholefoods takes time, knowledge and skill. There are very limited on the go food options that are plant dense and unrefined so we really have to think ahead and be organized if we want to make it happen. And by the way, if you don't eat as much plants as you want because you don't get that yum factor - I get it!! I'm only just refining my “make plants taste good” skills. I highly recommend the Raw Sisters Book - SALAD to get you started. 

 

 

This is hard these days. Stopping when 80% full requires us to be in tune with our hunger and fullness cues. It requires us to eat mindfully and eat food that our body recognizes as food. 

 

Social eating occasions can actually help with this. With meals that last 2 hours, chatting between mouthfuls, and being mindful not to eat more than your share of what is on the table. 

(P.s. Social meals with an over-abundance of hyperpalatable food is a different story…). 

 

These days most of us are eating on the go, or our minds are completely focused on something else whilst we are eating. We are living in a world of “go go go”. I struggle with this too and still find myself having to consciously make myself slow down when I eat. But it really is such a simple and effective weight balance tool that requires no complicated tracking or devices. 

 

 

A big change I would love to see is the removal of shame around indulgences. It is the inner dialogue of “I've ruined the day” “I've messed up my weight loss goals” that spirals women to binge-eat on treats and on the basis they will “start fresh” tomorrow. We really need to work on permission for treats in moderation with ZERO shame or guilt. It is more powerful that I can express in words. 

 

 

This is fascinating to me. Populations in the blue zones are not doing any of these habits based on science, they are simply doing it from intuition and tradition. But the science backs this one up nicely. Fasting is a hot topic at the moment, and although no one can fully agree on the perfect hours to fast, one concept that is pretty much universally agreed upon is that finishing your eating day early is a good idea. It helps set us up for a good nights sleep, reduces the risk of “tired eating” (eating more because you are tired rather than needing more calories), and gives you a slightly longer natural fast. Morning fasts can create potential issues with elevated cortisol and fueling for training. But it seems more likely that women can have an earlier dinner, whilst applying the 80% full tool, to gain fasting benefits with less of the potential negative effects. 

 

 

Reflect on this each day - Did I do this habit? Yay! 

Reflect at the end of the week - How am I feeling after a week of this habit? Do I want to keep going?