Food Confusion!
What is a “portion”? When is a healthy food no longer healthy? Are carbs okay, or do I never get to eat them again? With all the crazy information out there, wouldn’t it be nice to have a simple plan to follow to be sure that you’re eating the right foods and in the right amounts? We’ve looked around, and found that there are a few simple rules to follow to feel good about what you’re eating, and that it’s both enough to fuel your body, and not more than your body needs! It can all be broken down into a few easy rules to remember – and follow! – when choosing what to eat.
The Divided Plate
Think of your plate. Any plate will do, though for our purposes, we’ll imagine an old fashioned round one. Now divide that plate with and ‘X’ into four parts. This not only gives you a division for what you should eat, but also how much, as each portion should be no larger than it’s quarter of the plate. Now think of placing a Protein (like meat, beans or tofu) in to one quarter of the plate, a Carb (like bread, potatoes, rice or pasta) into another, and Vegetables (like vegetable for goodness sake!) into the remaining two. The human body needs all these foods to function properly, but in this proportion to each other. You don’t need a burger as big as your head to call it ‘eating’! Another good way to imagine portions is to use your hand: the portion should either be about the size of your hand when laid flat on the table, or the size of it in a fist, depending on the food shape, of course!
Food Choice
There is a health difference between getting your protein from a fast food burger and a steak, and it’s not always attached to a high price-tag! Knowing exactly what you’re eating, and where it came from, can help you make sure you’re getting the freshest, healthiest foods available. Shopping at farmer’s markets is always a good way to see exactly what you’re getting, and to see how far your food traveled to get to you. Not only is it ‘greener’ to eat foods that made a shorter truck trip to your home, but it doesn’t take a genius to see that they are also automatically fresher!
The Fate of Fat
The human body needs fat to function. Especially the brain is dependent upon good fat molecules to keep its functions ‘well-oiled’. Wait! Did I say ‘good’ fat? Yes! I did! Some fats are better than others, and should be used wherever possible. Fish oils, olive oil, and different seed oils like sesame are great sources, and can be used in cooking or baking, depending on the flavors they match best. Fish oil may not be a great match for cookies, but you’d be surprised how good pancakes made with olive oil taste! Not weird at all, honest! Whatever you use, how much is always an issue. Try this simple test: If it leaves an oil mark on paper – there is too much fat in it. This doesn’t mean NEVER eat that carrot muffin, or fries, it just means don’t do it more than once a week…and don’t pretend it’s healthy! Face it! Call a dessert a dessert, and be honest about it.
Listening to YOUR Body
People are different and unique. Look around, and you’ll see people of all shapes and sizes, and if you pay attention, you’ll notice that they all have very different eating habits too! Not everyone who is heavy eats all the time. And not all skinny people starve themselves. Body type, and the speed at which your body uses up fuel are what determine how much food you really need to be healthy. The first thing is to recognize the different between how much food you NEED, and how much food you WANT. Here’s a simple way to really hear what your body is telling you:
- At your next meal, load your plate using the Divided Plate idea above. (If someone else loads it for you - like mom, the cafeteria lady, or at a restaurant - either put the excess food on another plate, or push it to one side)
- Note the time on the clock, and then eat your meal – go ahead and enjoy it! It takes your body 20 minutes to digest food and communicate back with your brain that you are full or still could use a little more food. 20 Minutes!!!
- Wait 20 minutes before you decide if another helping is actually necessary or not.
It may also be a good time to recognize the difference between the feelings of ‘Enough Food’ and ‘Stuffed Full’. One guess as to which one is the healthy one!
A Final Note on Sugar
Be very careful about sugar! It’s everywhere! We need for our bodies to function, but in nowhere near the amounts that it is found in foods today! The best way to get sugars is through the carbs and vegetables already in a healthy diet! They are there, and because your body has to work a little to unlock them out of the food molecules, these sugars are a healthier part of a balanced diet. The sugars in soda and sweets, and even found in huge amounts in most ‘healthy’ smoothies (!), can be almost like a drug for the body, creating a ‘high’ and then a ‘crash’ afterwards, and lingering cravings that make you want to eat again and again to get that ‘high’ over and over again. Fresh fruits are a good source of getting that ‘sweet’ fix in between meals without putting your body through all that mess!
Armed with these tips on healthy eating, you can now go out in the world and make the best choices possible on a daily basis, and stop worrying about all the confusion! A little health awareness goes a long way!
(photo: morguefile.com)
Fit In the New Year!
Almost everyone makes some kind of New Year’s resolution that has something to do with health or fitness! And why not? It’s a great time of year to focus on new beginnings – especially since there aren’t very many holidays to keep us distracted, and make us eat a lot, until Easter!
Some people want to get more active, some want to get more flexible, and others just want to eat healthier foods. By working out, stretching and watching what you eat, you can improve all sorts of things that might seem unrelated, like clearing up acne breakouts, giving you more energy for everyday chores, improving your overall mood and ability to deal with all the little dramas, and it can even put your brain on super-drive!
It almost sounds like we’re selling something, but we’re not! The best part about it is that it doesn’t have to cost anything, and it can even save you money!
You don’t need to go to a gym or have any fancy clothes to get fit. You can do it at home wearing old clothes you never wear outside anymore anyway, using exercises from books, magazines and DVDs you can borrow from the library. You can do sports at school or at boys and girls clubs. Running around the block is free, no matter how many times you do it, and all you need to dance yourself fit is to be near a radio! (Well, maybe you need it to be ON!)
And eating healthier can be less expensive than eating junk food, if you plan and shop right. The dollar meals at some fast food chains are hard to beat, but both your body and your wallet will thank you for not eating them later on down the line! Eating that kind of food on a daily basis can lead to health problems down the line, and going to doctors and hospitals and paying for medications costs a lot more than just opting for the real apple over the apple pie!
We hope you’re making some resolutions to improve your health just like we are here at KEWL! In the blog and here we’ll be telling you about plenty of ways to get fit, and stick to it! Happy, Healthy New Year!
(photo: morguefile.com)
