5 Food Rules To Live By…..
Posted on 19 October 2009
After checking out an awesome slide show on the NYT website (Click Here……….) I have decided to get to work on 5 simple and easy food rules I try to live by…….
Always Pay Attention to What your Eating - When we eat its too easy to focus on something else; TV, Conversation, A totally obscure in your mind. Unfortunatly this makes us forget what reality is bringing over and we are actually doing “Eating” we forget the textures, the flavours and the smells and just mindlesslly munch the food down.
Its fine to talk to someone or watch something on TV while eating just bring your attention back to your food for each and every bite, be mindful, enjoy the crunching and the tastes. Once that bite is down continue conversation or finish read further into that article. So long as your focus goes back to the food once you take another bite.
Only Drink Water or Milk - Kids these days would all be 100 times healthier of they stuck to these rules. When most of us were growing up the only choice of beverage at home was Water or Milk, maybe some fresh juice but there was no shooting down of coke, redbull and smoothies. It is a rule I was told to stick to as a child…..
Drinking calories is not what your body needs, it craves texture and variety which only comes from eating food. Personally I do not drink milk apart from the occasional bit with coffee or some raw milk. Generally though the rule of “water and milk” is something that should be told to kids and those who are addicted to soft drinks in order to curb their unhealthy habits.
Texture, Color and Variety - Food should always contain texture, color and variety. Looking for these three elements in wholefoods will always lead to a healthy and fresh meal. Here are some ideas to achieve the balance.
- Texture: Nuts and Seeds, Celery and Carrots are all great foods for adding texture to dishes.
- Color: Peppers, Beetroot, Zucchini, Strawberries and Yams add a great variety of fresh and exciting colors to dishes.
- Variety: Simply buying odd and new things will lead to a diet in Variety. Be adventurous try a new Vegetable/Fruit or type of meat next time you go shopping.
Our bodies can get bored of the same thing and they can become toxic. If you have been having the same breakfast, lunch or dinner for a while then spruce the dish up or take something completely different.
Eat Healthy 80% of the Time - We all eat bad or junk food from time to time. The secret I have found is to limit myself to what I really enjoy and that’s it. This makes me eat healthy most of the time but If I am out at a good Pizza place or somewhere with really good ice cream I will treat myself. Or If out with some friends I will enjoy a few beers and wine with dinner. Have a look at this post by the guys at Fitness Spotlight it really gets the point across well.
Whether you really enjoy a good curry or a slice of chocolate cake, Indulge from time to time….
Local and Seasonal Fruit – the rest in moderation, Shelves these days are filled with fruit flown in from far reaches of the globe. Mangos, Bananas, and Pineapple from thousands of miles away are available all year round. And while indulging in these fruits is far from the worst you can do, I find sticking to local fruit better. Nothing beats a crisp local Apple from the farmers market or a punnet of blueberries in the summer when they are in season.
Due to its sweetness I find fruit easy to over eat, this rule has helped keep things in check and made the whole process more exciting for me. Have a look into what Fruits are in season and locally produced where you live. Strive for organic produce and shop with the producer when you can.
Any “Food Rules” that you have or live by would be great to hear…….
Comment by Grok
19 October 2009
I’m glad you said raw milk. I wouldn’t recommend anyone drink pasteurized or especially UHT, which is what most are now even the “organic” stuff.
Not only is it delicious, but eating locally in season will save you a bunch of money on your grocery bill too!
Although healthy in moderation, fruit is WAY too easy for me to overeat. I’ve almost completely eliminated it for this reason.
Comment by Mike OD - Fitness Spotlight
19 October 2009
Chris,
Great list….I like to keep it simple with “eat real foods” as my #1 rule. No one is perfect and god knows I am far from it (as I had some delicious pizza last night). But if we keep the rules simple yet important/most bang for our buck (80/20 line of thinking) and just aim to do our best…we certainly have more chance at success than just some super long list we won’t ever follow (like a complicated to-do list that never gets done).
…that and sometimes…I just eat less or not at all…that whole crazy IF stuff.
Mike OD
@ Mike: Nice contribution. I like the “Just do our best” mindset because at the end of the day we can only make good choices with what we have to work with, better than getting stressed over what we eat……
Comment by Greg
19 October 2009
I like the rule about drinks, although I’m not as disciplined as I once was. I occasionally have some lightly sweetened coffee now. But it drives me bonkers to watch my kids chugging on a 20-ounce soda.
Comment by Jeff
20 October 2009
Hey Chris,
Nice post. Good rules. Here is another for you: If you can’t recognize the ingredients just by looking at the plate then you probably shouldn’t be eating it.
jeff
Comment by fitnessbuff1
20 October 2009
I think sticking to water and milk is a smart idea in order to avoid empty calories often found in fruit drinks and soda, but I also think people should start drinking more tea. Tea containing chamomile helps to reduce stress and anxiety and contains no calories. I find drinking tea at night helps me relax and unwind.
Comment by CleanEater
20 October 2009
I especially like your rule about drinking water and milk only. Although I do drink plain coffee and tea, I strongly agree with not drinking any calories. Here are two more rules I try to think about:
#1 Planning a treat in advance makes it that much more rewarding when you have it and you can really feel like you earned it.
#2 Small changes in eating habits add up quickly, whether good or bad so even on an off day a little extra effort can be important and on the flip side making too many exceptions can be detrimental.
It is very interesting to see what eating rules others live by!
Comment by Rob
20 October 2009
I like this post. A great reminder!
Rob
Comment by ToddBS
21 October 2009
I enjoy my caffeine, too. I usually have some coffee in the AM (not sure how much as I never actually finish a cup before it gets cold) and some green tea in the PM. I will, on occasion, sweeten the tea with some honey. I drink the coffee black though.
Comment by christos
21 October 2009
I find emotional eating as the biggest problem for knowledgable people.This is a great menace for myriads of people looking for satisfaction into the wrong place.We don’t feed our bobies but our feelings.
Comment by Anastasiya
21 October 2009
That’s a very good and simple list of rules. One more rule that I follow is always reading labels of the foods I buy at the store. If a product has more than 5 lines of ingredients then it is a definite no-no for me. I do not eat foods that contains chemicals or ingredients that I cannot pronounce, I believe that they are not good for me and for my family.
Comment by Kat Eden
22 October 2009
Some great points here, especially what you’ve said about texture. I think it’s easily forgotten (if ever known) that texture is, in fact, one of the elements of satisfaction from a meal. And if you don’t take the time to be aware of that, to enjoy it, well then you’re missing out on satisfaction and probably setting yourself up to eat rubbish later that day.
One thing I’d add – I’d definitely recommend adding organic sea salt to all drinking water, partly because it does add flavor and make it more palatable, but also because real salt will add over 80 vital minerals – again, adding to overall satisfaction.
Comment by Michael - The Fat Loss Authority
23 October 2009
Solid info and great picture.
Great point about the young folk sticking to water or milk. Sodas and fruit juices be gone…
Mike
Comment by mp
24 October 2009
On the eat local point: In some ways, I totally get it. But…
Some of the world’s poorest countries depend on our purchasing of avocados and pineapples in the middle of winter. I am in Central America now, researching fair trade products, and I am in pineapple country. And the folks are poor, poor, poor. Obviously, Dole makes most of the money, but buying fair trade, imported produce means supporting livelihoods in places where that really is all they have. It is easy in North America to purchase local, we have such abundance. But some places don’t have that luxury, and if they can only produce a few products, such as tropical fruit, they need us to buy it in order to purchase basic life necessities like electricity. Trade not Aid. It is a total counter argument to Buy Local,a nd I am not an expert in any way other than being in a country where our farmers live in tin shacks to take care of the mango, pineapple and papaya fields. Its an interesting thing to think about. Always Fair Trade. Always. But sometimes, purchase items from far away. There are so many children’s education that depend on it.
Always love your post.
melissapicoli.blogpost.com
Comment by mattigee
1 November 2009
Life is a marathon.
Each time we make a good food choice we take a step towards the finish line, each time we choose junk or bad food we take a step back.
simple at that. it’s ok to take some steps back just make sure you’re taking more steps in the right direction.
peace.