Nutrition need not be complicated nor confusing. But it’s hard because on one side we hear eat this not that, do this not that. Low fat, low carb, yes to grains no to grains so it’s no wonder everyone is confused as hell!!
So before I dive into what I think is how we should go about our nutrition - if you didn’t already know about me I have been a long time student of nutrtion. It simply started out as vanity when you’re younger. I always have been an athlete, worked out at the gym and eventually worked once as a personal trainer.
Naturally as peronsal trainer I became more and more interested in nutrition. Again it was about vanity. But the longer I was a student of health and nutrition I came to discover as I know now that health is multi-level. It is much deeper than food itself. It ties into our very being, not just our bodies, but our mind and more importantly our spirit.
I believe that if think of our health in that triad it’s when we heal. Think about it many of us, even myself eat out of emotion or not eat out of emotion. And just so you know that I am human, the last two years has been a very challenging one because our family like many families here in Alberta were hurting.
So did I turn to food, and the worst kind to eat my stress away. Did I watch a little too much TV when I should have been doing more yoga because I just wanted to shut down my stream of thoughts. Of course. Even my husband was surprised by the things he found in the pantry that I never had in the pantry ever before.
When I ate like crap did it make me feel better? Maybe for the moment. But no, it made me feel worse. I felt like crap mind, body & spirit. That’s what crap foods does to us. And for the longest time that’s all I kept preaching was whole foods. Because when we eat like crap we feel like crap.
Fast forward and now cancer has hit close to home. And boy oh boy did the fire get turned on. I feel it is my duty not only to my family but to the world that the information should be for everyone to know. You may agree with me or you may not. The information is there for you to decide what to do with it.
As I’ve long said before I am no doctor, I am not a Dietician but what I am is a long time student of health and nutrition. (Doctors by the way have about 4 weeks if that of nutritional training). So I may not be a doctor but I can tell you I have been studying nutrition since 2006 (OMG that was a long time ago) I can remember a blog I wrote back in 2006 on kale before it became as huge as it is in the last few years as a veggie super food.
Now you see turmeric supplements everywhere I’ve been adding turmeric to my fresh pressed juice since I had my first son. Grass fed butter, ghee, coconut oil I was using this long before they started talking about it mainstream. So all I am saying is yes I am not a doctor but I’ve been devouring books since 2006 on all things health and nutrtion I think that makes me almost an expert lol.
No but seriously, I am just a mama. Trying to raise a healthy family in a toxic world. I did take on a 2 year study in a holistic nutrition program and graded above 90% on most of my tests. And like anything in life you never really know what you think you know is truly right. However, with that being said I also believe that nutrition doesn’t have to be complicated nor confusing.
Don’t worry so much about what you can’t eat but focus more on what you can add. So they say that everything is actually simple but simple is never really easy to follow is it.
We all know that the New Year is when people are thinking about their health the most. So although it is holiday season here are some guidlines for a kick start to your health in the New Year:
1) Eat your veggies. Get in lots of greens. Lots of it and all different kinds. Eat all colors of veggies for they all have their own super powers.
2) Eat a variety of fruits, especially berries because berries are a superfood. Nature provided fruits for our sweet tooth. That is supposed to be our candy. (It’s crazy some people say no to fruits in their diet, yet you see them eating sugar, high corn syrup, high sugar candy)
3) Eat dark chocolate (70% or more) and drink green tea together. Just because we are on the sweet tooth note.
4) If you aren’t Vegetarian try making one day a meatless day. Or one meal a meatless meal. (Choosing to be a Vegetarian for some is a nutritional one and for some it’s a spiritual one or both. For me it’s definitely more a spiritual one. I do feel at some point I will be Vegetarian again some day, and for me it’s definitely more for my sprit, my soul. Do I know when, not really. Again it’s about listening to spirit. So listern to yours ;-)
5) When buying meat and eating meat whenever possible try to only buy free range organic and grass fed. I am not against meat eating, I eat meat myself. It’s the excessive meat eating that’s killing us all. Our bodies need protein yes, but most of our animals and meats today don’t eat their natural diet, they are injected with hormones and antibiotics and when we are eating a ton of this dirty meat what do you think you are putting in your body....?
Just think about it from a logical stand point. Cows that eat grass, grass fed beef has the good stuff for us. I know organic and grass fed meat don’t come cheap but we don’t need to eat a lot of it to get what we need from it. So perhaps lesser is better anyway. Fish, always buy wild period. If it’s farmed I don’t ever buy, ever.
Dairy I don’t drink cow’s milk I gave that up when I was Vegetarian years back. We do consume cheese in our family, kefir yogurt and greek yogurt. Cheese is limited and it’s not something that is alway available. Again just like meat, excessive cheese is probably best avoided too.
6) No sugary drinks. That’s one thing I’ve been adamanet about ZERO pop in my home. No juices either, yep even orange juice. If it’s juice, it’s fresh pressed juice from my juicer. My kids, my family it’s only water. End of story. My kids may ask for juice boxes at the store the answer is always no.
7) No sugary cereals because it’s just that a bowl of sugar
8) Grains. I am not a no grains person. Again I listen to my body sometimes I want to feel lighter so I stay off the grains. I do try to always go gluten free. Gluten free breads, pastas, pancake, baking. When I eat grains I choose red rice, brown rice, quinoa , millet - just avoid white. Some people may fair better on no grains at all. I say just listen to your body. Your body knows what it needs and doesn’t need. Just learn to listen to it.
9) Oils and healthy fats: avocados eat them up, put them in your smoothies, same with coconut oil (use it for baking), ghee, grass fed butter (no margerine crap), avoacado oil, olive oil, flaxseed oil, hemp oil, don’t be afraid of healthy oils and fats. Coconut oil, ghee and grass fed butter are best for cooking. Other oils best for using fresh. Seeds and nuts are great too! So include them. (Peanut is not considered a nut)
10) Just drink water (warm lemon water upon waking is golden) and just move more. Get out and get some sun or take some Vitamin D. Try to get a good nights rest. Try out yoga and meditation.
And just on a side note I am not a crazy obseesed health nut mom where I never allow my kids to enjoy treats like candy, milk chocolate, ice cream or cake but is it something I buy for the home? It’s no. Just like juice boxes or pop, sure they have it at bday parties but in our home, no.
So when grocery shopping, just think fresh. Vegetables, fruits, meats. Avoid packaged, boxed, instant. Ingredients that are so long and you can’t read probably best to avoid completely. Just think that whatever mother nature provided us in nature as food is your best choice. And check for sugar. Sugar is sneaky and everywhere. Anything above 10 grams is too much! Oh and avoid fried foods but this you probably already know ;-)
That’s it. Simple. Just following these tips alone will get your health on track.
