Food and eating has gotten way too complicated in the past few decades. We have been so brainwashed by fad diets, magazine articles, and advertising that we have forgotten how to think for ourselves and listen to our own body.
Few years back I was feeling pretty confused about what I should eat as well. Remind you I am no dietician nor I have any degree in science- I am just a curious health nut who wanted to make the most out of my diet.
After reading, researching and experimenting with different approaches what follow is few rules Joe and I live by to stay healthy and lean.
First let me make something clear.
I am not talking about any diet here. Diets don’t work! At least not long-term. If you truly want to look and feel better you will need to make healthy eating a LIFESTYLE! As I mention in a previous post health is the most precious thing we posses …so let’s take care of it appropriately.
In our first podcast we suggested that you base your meals around 80% natural foods. What the heck do we mean by that?
Well here in North America (and its spreading into other parts of the world as well) we have adapted the so called Western Diet. This diet consist of lots of processed food and meat, refined grains, tons of added fat and sugar… to put is simply lots of everything except fruits, vegetables and whole grains.
And that’s BAD NEWS!
Why? Because those folks who follow this Western Diet are very likely to suffer with so called Western diseases: obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer….and list goes on. To put simply- this so-called Western Diet is slowly but surely killing us.
So what’s the solution?
Eat real food!
That means avoiding the “food like substances” on the supermarket shelves. Stick with food in its natural form.
Base your meals around:
Fruits & Vegetables – of course fresh and organic when possible, there is no limit all fruits and vegetables in its nature form are great options. I haven’t met anybody who got fat from eating too much lettuce or indulged on too many apples 🙂
Whole… or even better Sprouted Grains – A great option is Ezekiel bread found in the freezer section of your supermarket, brown rice, quinoa, couscous, brown rice pasta, plain oatmeal.
Beans & Legumes – kidney beans, chick peas, black eye peas, black beans, pinto beans, lentils and the list goes on. Remember- when using canned beans make sure to wash them through a strainer before eating to get rid of the excess sodium.
Nuts and Seeds – Walnuts, Pecans, Brazil Nuts, Hazel Nuts, Cashews, Sunflower seeds, Pumpkin seeds, Fax seeds, Natural Nut Butters… AVOID roasted and salted, candy or chocolate coated versions other than that GO NUTS 🙂
So here it is. Pretty simple huh?
To finish this off here are 10 simple “rules” to help you make a healthier food choices from one of my favorite books by Michael Pollan called the Food Rules: An Eater’s Manual
1.If it came from a plant, eat it; if it was made in a plant, don’t.
2. Eat only foods that will eventually rot.
3. Avoid food products that contain more than five ingredients.
4. Avoid food products containing ingredients that a third-grader cannot pronounce.
5. Avoid foods you see advertised on TV.
6. Shop the perimeter of the supermarket and stay out of the middle.
7. Buy your snacks at the farmer’s market.
8. Cook.
9. It’s not food if it arrived through the window of your car.
10. Don’t ingest foods made in places where everyone is required to `wear a surgical cap.
I challenge you to start observing your food intake and start becoming aware of how much of your daily calories come from real food.
It’s so easy to reach for pre-packaged process food or get a quick fix at the drive-thru. However keep in mind that “WE ARE WHAT WE EAT”.
Zuzana.
