How To Eat Healthy

 Now that we’ve discussed WHY you should eat healthy, let’s talk about how! The biggest thing to remember is that you don’t have to change everything today. This isn’t a sprint, this is a marathon; healthy eating is for the long haul. All of the changes you start making today will help you for the rest of your life. So, don’t panic thinking you have to empty your cupboards and restart living on a diet solely composed of cauliflower as a substitute and kale!

            Often times when I talk to people who want to start eating healthy, they mostly just feel overwhelmed. They think they have to go from their current diet and make a complete 180 degree turn and change everything overnight. We adapt the mindset that it’s out with the pasta and in with nothing but veggies from here on out. But this never works, its too many changes in too short of time and it’s unsustainable. They end up losing hope and motivation quickly and fall right back into their normal habits. We bite off more than we can chew (pun intended) when we try to change our diet, introduce more water, start exercising, introduce meditation all at once…. Start slowly!

            So, let’s start with baby step one. If you change nothing else, do yourself a favor and introduce

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more greens into your life. You can add a salad once a day, drink green juice in the morning, steam/grill/broil veggies and add them as a side at dinner. ANYTHING! Dark green leafy vegetables full of fiber and will do a world of good for your body. (If you look back to week 2 when we discussed Colon Cleansing, you can get a quick refresher as to why fiber is SO important.) Brussel’s sprouts, avocados, beet greens, kale and so many more are full of fiber. Check out this site for a great list!

            Many of us have the thought in our minds that vegetables are boring, bland and taste just plain gross; but there are so many options! If one thing doesn’t do it for you, try something else. You may not like kale but find arugula to be fantastic! Even the way you cook things can drastically change the taste from practically inedible to delicious. The first time I ever tried Brussel’s sprouts, they were boiled and soaked in apple cider vinegar. It was awful, I couldn’t hardly gag it down. BUT-then I tried them broiled with olive oil and seasoning and it was a game changer.          

            It’s time to get creative. Healthy eating is actually a lot of fun and there are so many ways to experiment. The more colors you add the wider range of health benefits and nutrients you will get. Strawberries, carrots, yellow bell peppers, spinach, blueberries, and purple cabbage are just a small example of some of the colors of the rainbow to add to your diet. You can cook these in so many ways too. For a raw option you can choose a salad. Slice them all up and stir fry it or add to curry. Broil everything for a crunchy option. Vegetables are so versatile and can meet any taste, so get to cooking!

In an interview with Tom Bilyeu, Dr. Gabrielle Lyon, creator of the Lyon Protocol, stated that American’s do not have an overweight problem, they have an under-protein problem. Because protein helps our body metabolize faster, reduce appetite by suppressing the ghrelin (the hunger hormone and it burns calories faster) we need to be sure to get plenty of protein each day. Eggs and/or sausage for breakfast, chicken sandwich for lunch and a steak for dinner. Just be sure the quality of the protein is good. Pasture-raised beef, wild caught salmon, or free-range chicken are all good options. Honestly steering clear of any Tyson brand chicken is a good start. For a quick guide as to how much protein you need to consume each day, I would recommend these two links: Recommended Protein Intake and Protein Servings.

If nothing else though, remember, life is meant for enjoying. Don’t deprive yourself of a sweet treat every now and then and go ahead and have that Big Mac when nothing else will suffice. It’s called a cheat meal for a reason! So, cheat occasionally and go crazy; as what’s the point in taking such good care of your body if you can’t indulge every now and then? Just don’t make it a regular habit and when cheating, do it in moderation. We all fall off the wagon occasionally, and that’s okay. A few cookie won’t set you back, but a sleeve of cookies, along with giving you a stomachache will also crash your immune system for 24 hours or more (Refer back to the week 1 on Sugar and the Immune System for why this happens).

This introduction of greens, fiber and protein into your diet will make beneficial changes to your body, your mood and how you physically feel. Generally, once you start introducing small changes that make you feel better, it becomes easier to add more beneficial changes. Add an extra glass of water a day, eat a salad as a starter at lunch and have some red meat for dinner. Each baby step you make will be progress to your overall health goals. Remember this is a slow steady and ever-progressing marathon, not a 100-meter dash, and every change is one step closer to your optimum health. You don’t have to do everything right now. Let this be an evolving process to make it easier on you and your body!

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Why You Should Eat Healthy

 

Why should I eat healthy? Why should I waste my time making a salad when I can grab something to go? Why should I be concerned if I’m eating good for the bacteria in my gut when ice cream tastes so much better than plain yogurt? Why should I bother when people are living longer today than they ever have, even with the diet we all consume?

These are all valid questions that I hope to bring some light to the importance on over the next 3 blogs. Why You Should Eat Healthy, How To Eat Healthy, and Eating For Your Gut.

Growing up, I was always the weird kid that never got to eat Lucky Charms, had homemade lunches, and our “ice cream” was frozen bananas blended with vanilla, and don’t even get me started on soda. It was terrible and I longed for the nights I could go to a friend’s house and we could pig out on Pizza Rolls.

            As a kid, this was depressing to be limited to such a “natural” and “organic” lifestyle as you will 100% of the time have your friends thinking you’re a little odd. As an adult however, it’s amazing how much that mindset has changed. It is in my blood and literally a part of my DNA to eat healthy. I grew up in an environment that allowed me the knowledge of what true health is, which as I came to find out is not so common knowledge.

For example, a few years ago I had an acquaintance who decided to lose weight and was giving it a good go. Unfortunately, like many others he just didn’t know how to eat healthy, or even what a good alternative was for everyday snacks. He knew he should eat more protein and lower his carb intake but wasn’t sure how to go about that. His solution was to put Jiff peanut butter on Quaker rice cakes and have a side of Oscar Meyer turkey lunch meat. This “healthy” snack was chock full of sugar, carcinogens, nitrates and preservatives. It wasn’t his fault; he was doing what he had been taught decades before as to what was “healthy” to eat. And it’s this mindset that is causing the weight pandemic across America!

The biggest problem, I feel, is that most people just don’t actually know how to live a healthy lifestyle. Which seems counter intuitive growing up in the world I did. Don’t eat processed foods, take lots of vitamins, exercise on a regular basis. Yadda yadda yadda. However, it was only once I got out

into the world where I realized this is NOT common knowledge. Most people have no clue how to eat healthy! They want to, but they don’t know how or even where to start.

            The last time we were all taught “how to eat healthy” was in elementary school with the food pyramid (or food plate Michelle Obama introduced, depending on when you grew up or when your children were in school). But information is SO WRONG. The base is having 6-11 servings of breads, pastas and cereals a day! That is a crazy amount of gluten and carbohydrates for your body to have to digest! These recommendations suggest equal serving amounts of dairy and meat each day. Although protein is essential to our diet, diary can create excessive mucus in the body which in turn traps irritants and toxins.

 No wonder we have a health problem! We have been taught wrong from a young age, and unless we actively seek the knowledge for the correct way to eat, we have those same food pyramid ideals ingrained in our system which we then teach our family- causing a multi-generational problem.

            We are hooked with the need for immediate gratification. We want satisfaction and we want it now. And sadly, a lettuce wrap just doesn’t hit quite the same way that a burger and fries do. In turn, we tend to lean towards the convenient option rather than the healthy one. According to the CDC in 2015-2016, 71.6% of adult in America over the age of 20 were overweight/obese. That is a scary amount of individuals struggling with their health.

            On TV we see so many ads for prescription pills, fast food restaurants and the latest fad diet. But if prescriptions and diets claiming you’ll “Lose 10lbs in 5 Days” really worked- why is 71% of our population overweight? It’s because these diets and fads don’t work. They are speaking to our desire for immediate satisfaction stating: “take this pill and get an amazing beach body NOW”. This doesn’t work and it never will. The only way to get healthy is to make better choices and stick with them! Yes, it will be hard work. But what is harder: adding more whole foods to your diet now or fighting cancer?

            A lifetime of saying yes to pleasurable foods and forgoing healthy eating all of time leads to low grade chronic inflammation throughout the body. And that inflammation is what leads to cancers, diseases and other chronic problems like heart failure.

            Like everyone else, I like good food too. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a chocolate cake I can pass, but I try enjoying it in moderation. Everything from arthritis to breast cancer is caused from that low-grade inflammation, and all that chronic inflammation is a direct result of what we eat. So, to answer the original question: why should I eat healthy? Because everything you eat to is going to directly affect your health tomorrow,15 years from now, and the rest of your life. It’s not a matter of how long you can live anymore, but whether you have quality and vitality throughout that long life. 

 

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How Does Dehydration Affect Your Health?

 

 

 

WATER!

            I don’t know if there is a way to state the importance of water and all of the benefits it has on the human body and keep it under multiple thousands of words, so let’s just say you need it. A LOT!

The average adult is composed of roughly 65% water. To put it in layman’s terms, if you don’t drink enough water, things start to go awry. Let’s start with your cardiovascular system, which is dependent upon water to function to its best capacity. When your body is deprived of water, the volume of your blood decreases, making it harder to your heart and lungs to function correctly. Water also helps flush toxins from the body via the lymphatic system and urinary tract, which without water can lead to toxic build ups. Very long story short: drink water as EVERY system in your body is dependent upon it. 

             We have access to water at most anytime, making it awfully convenient for our consumption. We have it in our homes, at work, every restaurant and gas station sell it. Which leads to the question as to “why are we not get enough water?” If it’s so easily accessible, why are 75% of Americans, according to DripDrop, chronically dehydrated? According to the study they conducted on dehydration, most of us drink about 8 servings of water daily, but those benefits are offset by the large amount of caffeinated and alcoholic drinks we also consume. 

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            Let’s break this down a little to show how the alcohol and caffeine we consume is affecting our hydration levels. (Whom of all people, I cannot point any fingers. I probably drink anywhere from 3-5 cups of coffee a day.) Caffeine- which is in our coffee, soda, energy drinks and numerous other liquids- and many alcoholic drinks, including beer, hard liquor and hard seltzers, are all diuretics. A diuretic is any substance that increases urination by flushing the cells. So even though many people are drinking the recommended 8 glasses of water a day, they are flushing it out of their system so rapidly with their morning coffee, afternoon Redbull, and evening glass of wine, that their system cannot keep up. This in turn leaving, as previously mentioned, many of us chronically dehydrated.

            Even drinks such as White Claw and Truly which tout their “hard seltzer” appeal are still actually dehydrating your body. Despite having less calories and sugar than many drinks, they still have alcohol in them, which means these too are diuretics and therefor are still dehydrating to your cells.

According to the aforementioned study by DripDrop: midday fatigue, brain fogginess, an increase in anxiety and irritability, and a lack of concentration are all signs of dehydration. Frequent diarrhea, IBS, gluten sensitivities and muscle weakness can all be side effects of not drinking enough water.

            Now, like many people, I understand how sometimes just drinking a gallon of straight water through the day can get kind of boring. There are equally hydrating and healthy options to add to your water if you need to spice things up a bit. Adding fruit, citrus, lemon and/or cucumbers to your daily water are all great options and add other health benefits as well! Carbonated and mineral waters are also fine additions to add so long as they do not have add sugars. (These can especially be beneficial for people who are trying to cut back on their soda intake, as they still have the carbonation and flavors options without jumping straight to still water.) Coconut and Aloe Vera waters are also hydrating options that simultaneously give you the benefit of their respective plants. However, please remember nothing works quite as well as just some regular ole water!

            There are many easily recognizable signs our body gives us when we are dehydrated. Amongst others, having a dull headache, chapped lips, a lack of sweat or experiencing heat exhaustion, as well as brown or yellow urine can all be signs, we are not getting enough water.

Actually, the color of your urine can be a huge indication of your water levels. If your urine is clear, this is a sign you are getting enough water. However, the darker it gets, the more of a red flag your body is giving you that you may need to look further into your health. (Note: if you take B-Vitamins on a daily basis, you will notice your urine will have a slightly neon yellow color to it, this is normal and not indicative to your hydration level.)  

            If you start noticing your lips are getting chapped, it’s a good sign to start drinking more water. Things like kidney stones can be caused by a lack of water in the body, and this is a BAD time to try and change your water habits around. Across the board, preventative health care is way easier to manage than trying to take restorative steps to fix a problem once it has already occurred. Once you have been chronically hydrated for a long time, larger problems occur that simply upping your water intake can no longer cure.

            Every single system in our bodies is made of water and runs better when we have been drinking enough H2O. So, next time you notice dry skin, muscle cramps, or a strong desire to take a nap at any given moment, do yourself a favor and drink some stinkin water! 

 

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