Why we should stop making food an after thought in our healthy living plan.........
More fodder on food in the spirit of National Nutrition Month.....
Not a week goes by, nope, not a DAY goes by that I do not hear I do not have time to eat, much less right......
There are two reasons I cringe when I hear that AND when I think it for myself. One is that I have always believed that there is always enough time in the day to do what we need/should/want to do. I am always checking myself on that and certainly in more recent years I have had to work a lot harder in prioritizing the things that I want to have time for, one being balanced food consumption, meaning nutritious and eating mindfully and not just for the sake of filling a need in my body. The second is that it really is not that hard to make time to eat well. More often than not, we are making food an after thought in the rest of our busy day and consciously choosing other activities over taking care of the one "house" we have to live in that enables us to do all of those important daily tasks (and many unimportant). For me, creating 5 moments in my day to consume a meal is not a burden (well yes at times, the last thing I (or my husband) want to do is make good "adult" food so periodically we just won't! Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day and I feel like I have won the day on the mornings when I can sit at the dinning room table and eat breakfast!
SO here are 5 quick WHYS & HOWS to prioritizing food as part of your daily health plan!
1. Planning & Preparing meals and grocery shopping ahead of time takes the guess work out of your already busy days. Grocery shopping results in having what you need for up to one week worth of meals depending on how you shop so taking a couple extra hours to prepare some meals in advance with chopping, bagging etc saves time and head space each day and assures more balanced meals and perhaps eating schedule and less chance of becoming "hangry" and taking it out on someone else. And lets not forget if you have grocery shopping like I do, life has gotten much easier with online grocery shopping/pick up at store!
2. Taking an active role in knowing the best foods to eat and having them available at your disposable at home and work saves an otherwise excessive amount of calories, fat and sugar that most fast food and sit down restaurants offer despite your best intentions. Plus, if you have kids at home, it is good role modeling and education for them to learn about healthy eating. Obesity is at an all time high amongst adults and kids so we owe it to ourselves and our family to be more proactive about food.
3. Diabetes is sky rocketing so if you value your quality of life, vision, feet, and don't want to be married to medication, take control of your nutrition and exercise. It is admirable, loving your career and working hard but if you get diagnosed with diabetes and choose to nothing about it, you will be sidelined as time goes on with a whole host of issues above and beyond reduced/loss of eye sit and neuropathy. Love yourself and your family enough to prevent or at least properly manage diabetes. You can reduce your reliance on meds with simple lifestyle modification eating whole foods and exercise. Just food for thought!
4. Body Image issues are real among women and men but somehow we continue to abuse our bodies with excessive amounts of things we know we should not have like alcohol, high calorie "coffee" drinks and other sugary and fried food substances. Our sedentary jobs on top of poor diet can make it difficult to out exercise those calories, carbs and fat. Balancing out daily physical activity, structured exercise and balanced eating of carbs, fats, protein minus the liquid calories will make us more excited about looking in the mirror. Everyone has a six pack (not the beer in the fridge) it is just a matter of what is covering it up. So align your desires with the right behaviors to get the results you want and have a healthier mindset about your body.
5. This is your one life, and if you do it right, one is enough! An hour of exercise is 4% of your day that pays huge dividends day after day, month after month etc. Couple that with another two hours that it may take per day to plan, prepare and eat (preferably) 4-5 meals per day you still have 75% of your day left for work and play. It is just a matter of priority and not wanting to spend your time in the waiting room of your Dr's office, in line for prescription drugs, or on the phone fighting with your insurance company.
We could continue this conversation for 5 more reasons but it is not necessary!!! Love yourself and work on your food mindset to transform oh so many other aspects of your life. Food & life should be enjoyed not endured!
If you want to learn more we will be hosting two nutrition workshops later in March in collaboration with Jill Cerreta, Registered Dietitian of Live Well Nutrition. Stay Tuned!