Whole Foods: the Only Way to Eat
Go open the door of your pantry. What do you see? Does it look like the bulk foods section of the grocery store or the cereal isle? Now go to the refrigerator. Does it look like the fresh produce section or does it contain Bologna, American cheese, tubes of blue yogurt, coffee creamer, etc? How about the freezer? Does it look like you have visited the local butcher lately or the heat-and-serve meal isle of the grocery store? If you answered that your pantry looks like the bulk foods isle, your fridge like the produce isle and your freezer like you have been to the butcher shop recently, you are definitely on the right track!
If you want to eat, feel and be healthy from the inside out, you have to eat whole foods. I really think that changing the way we eat in America will solve many of the health problems plaguing this nation. We need to eat real food not prepackaged, processed chemicals.
Fill your pantry with whole grains like rice, oats, quinoa, and millet and with fresh potatoes both sweet and white. Stock up on nuts, beans and seeds of all varieties and dried fruits. Pack your fridge with fresh fruits, lots of colorful vegetables, eggs and a little bit of full fat cheese, milk, and yogurt. Store some frozen fruits and vegetables and all kinds of meats like fish, chicken, pork, beef, bison and turkey in your freezer. Take some time to cook your meals and then sit down and enjoy them with your family. Not just once a week, but every day. I think that if we all did that, we would be in better shape and better health in no time! I know that it can be time consuming and requires planning and preparation, but isn't your health and the health of your children worth it?
Do me (really yourself) a favor and next time that you are grocery shopping, look at the food label on each of the products that you pick up and if it has more than five ingredients, put it back on the shelf. Just doing that will significantly cut down on the number of processed foods that you consume and drastically reduce the number of chemicals going into your body.
If you need recipe ideas, check out my recipe of the week posts and try doing internet searches for certain ingredients. I love to use allrecipes.com to find recipes that have already been reviewed and rated by hundreds of other people. Eating whole foods really doesn't have to be all that hard. There are plenty of foods that are whole and also ready to eat. Most fresh fruits are ready to eat. Pair an apple with a handful of almonds and you have yourself a whole foods snack. Need a quick lunch? Pick up some prewashed lettuce, top with some canned tuna, cherry tomatoes and a simple vinaigrette dressing. How about a banana to go with that salad? Dinner can be put together in about 10 minutes and then baked for an hour while you play with your kids if you throw some fresh green beans, chicken breasts and cut up white potatoes into a baking dish together, drizzle with some olive oil or top with a few pats of butter and season with (homemade) italian dressing mix.
It really can be simple. It just takes the will to change your current methods and the determination to stick with the planning and preparation for the sake of your health.
If you want more meal ideas and more insight into what I eat every day, stay tuned!