Love the Food You Eat
When people think of healthy eating, their first thoughts are typically of being hungry and having to eat food they don’t enjoy. But it is possible to maintain a healthy diet and still enjoy eating!
Here are our top ten tips to enjoy your food while eating a healthy diet:
1- Take Time to Eat. You need to eat to stay alive - it is quite literally that simple. When you are creating your weekly To-do lists, eating three meals per day should be at the top of the list. Think about it: you can’t do anything else well if you are trying to do it while hungry. So plan ahead. Prioritize mealtime. Eat when you are hungry - as long as you are making healthy choices.
2- Enjoy Your Food. This doesn’t mean choosing food that is packed with sugar, deep fried, or is literally pizza. (Is it possible to not enjoy pizza? Maybe if there is pineapple on it. But we digress…) Savor the aromas and flavors of your food. Engage with all your senses as you eat. Sit down. Chew slowly. Enjoy the process.
3- Spice It Up. Not only do herbs and spices make your food taste better and therefore make it more enjoyable to eat, but many of them offer their own health benefits. Ginger is great for digestion. Turmeric fights inflammation and improves joint health. Garlic is great for your immune system, not just discouraging vampires. The list goes on and on.
4- Create a Feast for Your Eyes. Ever receive a meal at a restaurant and it looks almost too good to eat? You can create attractive dishes at home, too. By adding fruits and vegetables to your meals, you have a rainbow of colors to work with, all of which provide vitamins, minerals, fiber and antioxidants. Eating a variety of fruits and vegetables is also associated with lower blood pressure, decreased risk of cardiovascular disease, and lower risk for some cancers.
5- Feed Your Flora. No, we don’t mean water your plants - though if you haven’t watered that aloe plant on your windowsill for a few weeks, you should probably go do it now. We’ll wait. More important than that aloe plant, though, is your need to feed your inner bacteria. The bacteria in your body helps support good digestion, a strong immune system, and a healthy metabolism. You can feed your flora with foods high in fiber like whole grains, legumes, fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds. You can also snack on fermented foods such as yogurt, pickles, olives, miso, sauerkraut, and fermented vegetables.
6- Boost Your Brain. You can keep your memory sharp and your brain working to optimal levels by feeding it the right nutrients like carbohydrates, B vitamins, and omega-3 fatty acids. Salmon and other fatty fish are a great choice to meet these requirements. Walnuts, chia seeds, flax seeds and leafy greens are also great for brain health.
7- Get Back to Your Roots. Be like a bunny and dig up your next meal! Or shop in the root vegetable section of the grocery store, that works, too. Root vegetables like carrots, parsnips, rutabagas, beets and fennel are packed with nutrition and store well for a relatively long time in your pantry.
8- Commune at the Table. Eating with family and friends adds enjoyment to your meal. Turn off all your screens and cell phones and make a point to talk to each other at mealtimes. Bonus: eating at home can be conducive to eating more fruits and vegetables.
9- Raise a Glass. To Freedom! Er, wait, that was a Hamilton lyric sneaking in there. What we really want you to do is raise a glass of water to your lips! Lin-Manuel could probably make that sound sexier, but cleverly worded or not, we just want you to drink water. You should be drinking half your body weight in ounces. So if you weigh 140 pounds, you should be drinking 70 ounces of water per day. You can also add herbal teas to your drink list - the options are endless, and many of them come with a plethora of health benefits.
10- Nourish the “Whole You.” In addition to your healthy eating, don’t forget the other five pillars of ageless living. Get enough rest by sleeping 7 to 8 hours per night. Improve your mindset by getting outside and enjoying nature and the sunshine. Take a few minutes to calm the mind and focus on your breath when you are feeling anxious or stressed. Get your body moving, even with just a short walk - the cardio benefits alone are worth it. And be sure to practice self-care by listening to the entire soundtrack to Hamilton, or whatever that looks like for you.