What to eat depends on what you’ve got to lose, or win

Have you noticed that it is becoming more and more confusing to decide what to eat?

It is, of course, absolutely fabulous to be blessed with wondering ‘what to eat’ as a problem. Definitely a first-world-issue. But let’s face it, if you’re reading this, you have access to technology and that’s part of the problem.

It seems that a new study or a new fad diet comes out every day.

One day we are avoiding too much protein as it’s hard on the kidneys, and then the next we are loading up on protein-heavy diets to lose weight.

One day we are taking all dairy out of our diet so we are free of congestion, and the next day we are eating yogurt three times a day to improve our colon health. Are you confused?

I’ve been a holistic healthcare professional for 25 years, and sometimes I am!

So, over the years I worked as a naturopath, I found that diets and fad diets were occasionally useful. But, and it’s a big-but, most of the time fad diets left people out of balance.

To answer the question ‘what to eat’, I popped on my thinking cap and developed Nutrition 101. This course teaches you how to eat well and follow a balanced diet. Whether you want to maintain a healthy weight or lose a few pounds, understanding what our bodies need to ingest and paying attention to how we feel when we have eaten is, in my opinion, the key to healthy body weight.

The course itself is primarily ‘hands-on’. Which means you get to monitor your own eating. I donated the self-awareness exercises from the course (and wrote a chapter on Nutrition) to the Anxiety Disorders Association of Ontario for their 14 Week Program.

And if you want a career as a Certified Natural Health Practitioner, this course is mandatory.

What we eat is more than the sum of the calories. As an expert in Holistic Healthcare, I’m super aware of the effects of food (and drink) on body, mind, spirit and emotions.

We’re all different. Deciding what to eat is personal. A diet that suits your best friend, may not be the best for you.

And I believe you’ll find this both interesting and beneficial to take a course and learn for yourself.

Recently, I’ve spent some time with people on what I call ‘fad diets’. That is, diets that cut calories to less than 1000 a day and/or cut out one particular food group.

When we cut down our calories to a very low level (seriously, one friend of mine is ingesting under 500 calories a day while working out!) our body goes into ketosis. This means that we use our stored energy and we lose weight.

The question is, ‘is it healthy for us’

Initially, we get a sense of euphoria. Which we then attribute to increased energy. It’s actually a body function from ancient times — we get energized to find more food because we are starving ourselves. When we go back to normal eating, the weight goes back on faster than ever as the body celebrates not starving!

Quite simply, removing one particular food group from our diet can lead us into ill health through unbalance. We don’t get the body’s nutritional requirements met unless we eat from all the food groups.

So, what should we do?

Perhaps you are looking to lose a few pounds, or you’d like to be healthier or you’d simply like to stop being confused. I recommend that you take the Nutrition 101 course.

The course is experiential, which means that while you study and learn you are guided to record your nutritional adventure. Take this course to help yourself and to help your family and loved ones. It’s easy to follow and learn and you’ll learn how to take charge of your eating habits.

In the meantime here are some of my tips to make eating right easier:

1. Drink more water. We often confuse hunger and thirst, so drink your water, hydrate your body and see if you need to eat as much.
2. Take a daily multi-vitamin. Make it a good quality one from food sources.
3. Eat a rainbow. Make sure your plate has various colors on it. Food colors represent nutritional components.
4. Eat fruit and veggies daily. 
5. Eat a variety of foods. Make sure you eat from all the food groups.
6. And the most important! Slow down and enjoy your food. Don’t eat while you drive, while you watch TV or standing in the kitchen because you are in a hurry. Paying attention to what you eat cuts calorie intake like nothing else.

As our food supply is being chemically changed and modified you owe it to yourself to take charge of your eating habits. So start today! What have you got to lose? Or should it be win?