New Year tends to be a time when we evaluate the past year and look at what we can improve in our lives. This January is a great time to start or continue making your health one of your top priorities for the year.
What we eat has a huge effect on not only our physical but also our emotional wellbeing, so let us start by taking a closer look at this. You will be surprised that by just tweaking things here and there we can make a huge improvement to our health and vitality.
- FOOD =FUEL. Somehow we seem to have forgotten that the purpose of food is to nourish our bodies. Instead of focusing on what foods sustain our bodies, we make choices based on how much pleasure they bring us. We even refer to sugary foods and alcohol (known to have negative effects on our constitutions) as “treats”. It’s time to train ourselves out of this habit! If you want to treat yourself with food / drink instead buy something special – dark chocolate, kombucha or organic blueberries maybe. It is interesting that we wouldn’t dream of putting dirty or contaminated fuel into our cars, but don’t think twice about reaching for that ice cream cone or bottle of wine. And anyway – good, fresh food tastes great. There is nothing like a fresh bowl of strawberries or fresh peas from the pod. Sweet and jam packed full of goodness. It doesn’t have to be healthy vs delicious – it can be both.
- FOOD FOR YOUR FOCUS AREA We live in a time when we have access to so much information (some of it conflicting) on nutrition that it can be overwhelming. This makes it difficult to know where to start, so sometimes we don’t start. “Too hard?” – it doesn’t have to be. It doesn’t matter where we start…it just matters that we do! That we take back control of our own health. The we have the energy to not just endure life but to truly enjoy it! So have a wee think (don’t overcomplicate it) about what aspects of your health you would like to shine the spotlight on. Do you have issues with allergies, suffer from depression, wake up tired every morning, struggle getting enough sleep? Then do some quick research on the internet (again don’t get too bogged down with this step). As our example today lets look at “detoxing” as our focus for the week (or maybe after the excesses of the Christmas break it should be for the month!) . Here is a list of foods to CHOOSE from…almonds, walnuts, apples, watermelon, pineapple, citrus fruits, blueberries, asparagus, celery, avocado, kale, beets, red capsicum, broccoli, cucumber, eggs, poultry and fish. Flavour meals with garlic, turmeric and ginger. Buy the best quality you can afford, preferably organic and/or locally grown. Now weed out anything you don’t love (for me asparagus, celery and kale would come off this list). Now how about the what to AVOID list. This includes wheat, grains, dairy, sugar, vege oils, processed foods, GMO foods and alcohol. Now you don’t have to be a saint about this…simply have more from the CHOOSE list and less from the AVOID list. You are on your way!
- MENU PLANNING IS YOUR FRIEND Yes, I know life is busy, but honestly, taking time out to do this will save you time in your week. Less trips to the market or having to duck out for “fast food” because you are feeling uninspired about what to cook for tea. Add to that the fact that you are consciously choosing healthful meals, you will soon find the benefit in this habit. Once you have your list of foods for your focus area, simply use these ingredients as the basis for your meals. Again going with the detoxing model and the lists above your breakfast might change from toast and cereal to fresh fruit or eggs. Lunches could be based around fresh salads and evening meals salad with chicken, salmon or a lovely quiche. Keep some almonds and blueberries about for those in between meal snacks. Delve into your recipes (or the internet) for inspiration and soon you will have a stock of meals that can be rotated for variety.
- SHOP SMART I have this theory. Sticking to healthy eating is less to do with willpower and more to do with great decision making. When I need to detox, my body lets me know by alerting me to serious cravings for more sweet food – especially chocolate. Luckily I live in the country – far enough away from any supermarkets or dairies that I can’t just duck out to buy that stuff on a whim! So for me, it all starts with the weekly supermarket shop. With menu planning this is achievable – so less temptation if I keep the market visits down. Make a shopping list based from your CHOOSE food list and your menu plan and stick to it. Try to avoid the “treat” on the way through the checkout. Remember you are treating your body to clean fuel so you have more energy to do the things you love! What better “treat” could you have? Buy as close to natural as you can. Fresh is best and be aware of what fruits and vegetables are seasonal. Grow your own food where you can (this can be achieved even in small spaces by growing veges in pots and micro greens on your kitchen windowsill). Your best shopping venues are farmers markets and orchard shops. When supermarket shopping, try to stick to the perimeter of the building, because that is where the fresh food is stored. Read labels. A book / app I use to identify what chemicals are okay and which to avoid is The Chemical Maze. This is not necessary, however do read labels and google anything you are not sure about. Its about making informed decisions. A good rule of thumb is if there are more than 5 ingredients or you need a chemistry degree to read the label – avoid like the plague!
- MINDFUL EATING Mindful eating is about making conscious decisions about what you are eating, savouring it, and observing the effect it has on your body. It starts with choosing the ingredients for the meal, the way in which you prepare it and your observations from there. Preparing a meal for yourself and your family is an act of love. This is especially true if you have already chosen ingredients with the intent of healing with food. I find that following a menu plan takes the brain strain out of meal prep and enhances my enjoyment of the process. Whenever I get a compliment on a meal I have prepared I remember that making it with love is my secret sauce. Remember to savour your food. Chew well – the recommendation for optimal gut health is until it is the consistency of soup. Enjoy the flavours in your mouth. I like to challenge my family to guessing ingredients if I have tried something new. It’s fun and gives them a heightened awareness of the flavours. I especially love getting feedback about new recipes or food combos I have tried, allowing me to decide if its a keeper or needs tweaking in any way. The next step from here is keeping a meal diary. This is especially important if you are suffering symptoms of digestion issues or allergies. Simply noting down what you eat and recording each day how you feel, you can often see patterns around which foods may be upsetting your system. I also find that if you are trying to loose weight or eat more healthy, you probably won’t eat that third chocolate biscuit if you have to own up to it by writing it down. This works even better if you have someone that you share your food diary info with!
- GIVE IT A BREAK Your digestive system has a busy schedule and requires a lot of energy to pull nutrients from your food, bind toxins to the fibre and prepare the waste products for elimination. Like us it can suffer from being overwhelmed and responds well to some well earned rest. The recommendation is to try to have a rest form eating somewhere between 12-16 hours every night. That means if you didn’t have dinner until 8pm try and hold off breakfast until after 8am. If you have early morning starts then plan to have your last meal earlier in the evening. For best results, fitting all your meals into an 8 hour period is suggested. This could work by having breakfast at 10am and dinner by 6pm, so totally doable with a bit of planning. The other thing to remember is that your digestion doesn’t work very well when you are under stress. When you body has switched over to “flight/fight mode” it doesn’t consider your digestion as an essential service. So, relax and enjoy your meals. Try to avoid eating on the run or watching the evening news while you eat. Slow the process down, enjoy good company and celebrate the effort you have made to nourish your body.