How important is nutrition in reaching your fitnss goals?

I see it all the time - people working out consistently 6 days per week but not devoting any time to their nutrition.  90% of the time they get frustrated when they don't reach their goals or see progress and they stop going.  I speak with many of these people and they will tell me that they just don't understand why they can't lose weight!  When I ask them about their nutrition, most of the time I get a pretty short reply sounding something like, "Oh I eat pretty good!"  When I start digging a little deeper what they consider eating "pretty good" entails not eating enough, not eating at the right times and not eating the right combinations of foods.  If you're reading this thinking, "I have no clue about any of that!" you're not alone!  I was never educated in the area of nutrition and every time I tried to lose weight I would cut a ton of calories and starve my body!  I would yo-yo diet, I would fluctuate between 25 pounds, I would experience crashes and cravings, etc.  I just always thought this was part of dieting ... now I know better.  There is a big difference in dieting and living a healthy lifestyle.
Once I got involved more with health and fitness, I started to educate myself slowly but surely about my nutrition and what was in the foods I was eating.  I got very into clean eating and really cutting out most processed foods.  Once I started focusing on just being healthy and stopped being fixated on a certain weight, is when my body really started to change! 

Here are some tips to get you started on the right path!
1)  Eat within one hour of waking up to start your metabolism.
2)  Eat 3 meals and 2 snacks daily.
3)  Eat a meal or snack every 3-4 hours.
4)  Balance your meals with healthy carbs, protein and a small amount of healthy fat.  Eating in this manner will allow you to stabilize your blood sugar and avoid crashings and cravings.
5)  Balance your snacks as well with a healthy combination.  So if a typical snack for you is a piece of fruit, try adding some protein like some string cheese, yogurt or add some fat like some almonds.
6)  Take your weight and divide it in half.  That number is the amount of water in ounces you should be drinking daily. 
7) Cut down or work to eliminate:  Excess sugar (including white rice, white flour and white breads), sugary drinks like soda and processed foods!

Eating in this manner will help you rid fat, put your organs under the least amount of stress, keep all your levels where they should be and most importantly help you feel amazing!

So stop spinning your wheels!  Once you sync your fitness and nutrition you will be well on your way!  Of course if you need assistance please reach out to me :)