Tuesday, January 26, 2010

An Obvious Essential

The fourth 'Essential' is....

Eat Nutritiously

"Food has a powerful impact on your body. Every day, food, in large part, determines how you feel and how your body functions. A balanced diet, rich in whole foods, combined with quality nutritional supplements created to meet your specific needs*, will give you the energy you need today, and the disease-fighting strength you need to build a healthy future."

*note: This quote is taken from material from a company that sells quality supplements

This point is a given if you are seeking a healthier, lower-weight lifestyle.

However......

Are we REALLY eating nutritiously?

Or are we falling for the 'low fat' or 'diet' or 'low cal' lables?

Low fat, low sodium chips are still chips.....sorely lacking in nutruition and usually triggering a craving for more of the same.

No fat yogurt is usually high in calories because of the sugar added to make up for the lack of fat.

Many 'diet' foods (especially the frozen meals) are high in sodium.

Don't fall for the fancy, attention grabbing labeling.......go for real food. (Or at least, read the lables carefully)

Sometimes it is better to eat more calories that are loaded with real nutrition than it is to eat a 'diet' plate that is mostly empty calories - or worse, calories that contain chemicals, sodium, or refined sugar.

The fresher the real food is, the better it is for you.

Grow your own.

Go to a farmer's market.

Find a source, if possible, of locally grown produce - as opposed to mass produced.

I came across a quote awhile ago that I remind myself of often....."Eat food. Mostly plants. Not too much."

Make sure that what you are putting into your mouth is actually FOOD.

Real food.

Not processed calories.

Eat more plants (vegetables, grains, fruits) than meats, or dairy.

Don't stuff yourself.....limit your servings.

My husband and I began to notice the affects of food on emotional health many years ago when he was battling clinical depression. We had found that extra doses of Vitamin B helped, but when he began to work away from home and be responsible for his own meals, we noticed a deffinite difference. At first, because he was not eating regularly and when he did eat it was quick, processed foods, he struggled more than usual with the negativity that comes with depression. When he began to be regimented in his eating (cooking more real foods) and his sleep, things were much better.

Another (doubious) benefit which I've mentioned before......eating healthier has made a noticeable difference in my nails and hair growth (something I could have done without because of the costs involved in 'fills'and 'coloring').

Real Food also satisfies, fills you up better than processed food.

Yes, real food is a bit more costly in some ways.....and you have to prepare it....but the benefits far outweigh the extra cost. Besides, you will probably have to buy less in the way of medicines if you are eating healthy.

For an excellent post about the so called costs of eating healthy, Go to this post by my friend Lyn.

I am reading a book about sprouting (just started) and I am going to experiment in this area - some day I'll report about my efforts - I expect that growing my own greens (which are extra nutritious) for my salads will cut down on some of the 'real food' expenses. I have not explored where to get the seeds and grains for sprouting so do not know the costs there (yet). Anyone out there doing this?

I challenge you to think twice about whether or not you are eating REAL food that is nutritious.

_________

Reporting on myself......I have not lost any weight and over the last several days have found it difficult to even keep track of what I am eating. We have been super busy.

However, I have been doing very well on my water intake and because I've focused on it, I now crave water regularly. This is a good sign to me....when I want water it means that I've managed to get past the stage where I have to make myself drink it.

I've been going to bed at a good hour, but have been waking up most nights at 4 a.m. then tossing and turning for a couple hours before falling asleep again. I have been using the time to pray about specific things that are on my heart at this time....actually, specific persons. Still, it means that my sleep is interrupted and I am quite tired by evening.

I hurt my foot mysteriously on Saturday so even my walking around for normal activity has been slowed significantly. As soon as it is not so painful, I will be using my treadmill each day. I am going to challenge my daughter to a competition....who can walk the longest/farthest each day? Should help us both - we are both rather competitive....her more than me, but I would be quite motivated if I felt that I was helping her.

So....end of post....time to go get myself some FOOD and then take care of the tasks I have set out for myself for the next couple hours.

4 comments:

Margie M. said...

Great post with very beneficial information to everyone who eats...oh yeah! that's all of us no matter how much we weigh! :) Great information, thanks.

liveLAUGHsing. said...

it's nice to know that you CRAVE water..because i'm still in the "alex.. refill that water bottle.. still have 6 more to go" stage! And as much as I love water, it is a pain to constantly remind myself to drink more and more when i'm just sitting around at my desk!

Hallie said...

Hey, just letting you know I'm passing the Happy 101 Award on to you. Hope you will participate!

karen@fitnessjourney said...

A wonderful reminder for us all. Too often we try to fool ourselves into believing that the Weight Watcher's Ice Cream is okay simply because the fat and calories are lower. In truth, we shouldn't be eating any ice cream. The processing that some foods go through makes it worse than eating what we are trying to replace it with.

Cooking is my least favorite activity in the world, but there are so many easy ways to eat healthy without a lot of effort, we just need to make up our mind that it's worth it.

Thanks for the motivation. When I head out to the grocery store later, I'll keep this post in mind.