April 9, 2012

You there, eating the In-And-Out burger and the side of animal fries…for breakfast. Your time has come. It’s time to start taking your health seriously, and that means thinking about what you eat. And I don’t mean just opting out of the animal fries. We all hear about how important it is to eat naturally and organically, but how many of us actually do? With all signs pointing to unhealthy eating as the cause of many diseases, cancers and other health problems, we have to start really paying attention to what we put into our bodies.

Supermarket shelves are chock full of preservatives, pesticides, artificial flavors and hundreds of other ingredients that are almost unpronounceable. Do you know what Disodium Guanylate is? I didn’t think so. If you can’t even form the words with your mouth maybe these ingredients shouldn’t get past your lips.

My rule of thumb for shopping is that I don’t buy anything with ingredients I don’t recognize (prepackaged or boxed foods are usually a big offender on this one). I don’t buy anything with more than 5 ingredients (6 different veggies don’t count), and I buy almost completely organic, especially with meats, dairy and most fruits and vegetables. This grocery list is not for the faint at heart.

Even though I may shed a few pounds as a result of eating this way, this is not a weight loss plan. I don’t count calories and I do enjoy cake and pie from time to time, as long as they are made naturally and not filled with processed junk. Another rule I have is if I make it at home, it’s okay to eat because I know what’s going inside, and that doesn’t include blue #2.

I wasn't always this way. I noshed on frozen burritos and Oreos like the majority of America. But learning about nutrition, food and my own body was an eye opening experience.  Now I know that “good eats” are not all about what tastes good.

So ladies, it’s time to arm yourself with knowledge about what you eat everyday and how it affects you. These are a few books that I have really found helpful:

Beginner
Food Rules by Michael Pollan
"Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants."
This quote pretty much sums up the list of food rules defined in the book. It lays out rules we should have for ourselves about what we eat. They are things that we all know, but most of us girls don't live by.  It’s a quick read and well worth it.

Clean Food by Terry Walters
This is a great book for recipes! The beginning helps you define the foods that are considered "clean" and healthy and then gives you pages and pages of ways to make them into meals.

Experienced
French Women Don't Get Fat by Mireille Guilano
This book is amazing in the sense that it shows you that you can still enjoy food and eat rich delicious things without gaining weight. It’s all about not over indulging and really being conscious while you are eating. This way you really get joy from your food, and you don't feel deprived and run for the processed junk that hurts your body.

Mindless Eating by Brian Wansink
This book is full of statistics and it gives you great info about why we eat the amount that we do. It also makes you aware of the situations and environments that lead to overindulging and explains what we can do to prevent overeating.

Extreme
The Raw Food Detox Diet by Natalia Rose
This book is pretty strict and I don't preach about eating only raw foods (I certainly never will) but I use it as a guideline for what I put into my body. Raw foods are so beneficial to your health and I truly believe that most of your diet should be made up of them. This book got me to add a lot more vegetables into my meals and taught me ways to eat things so they digest easily.