What to Eat
Follow the Foods to Enjoy and Foods to Avoid lists.
Also eat more “S” meals (idea taken from naturopathic doctor Jade Teta) as they tend to be more filling, have varied nutrients, have more water content, and usually are on the quicker/easier side to prepare.
- Salad
- Soup
- Shakes
- Smoothies
- Stir Fries
- Skillet Dinners
- Scrambles
- Sandwiches, protein-style
Please visit this page of my website for more ideas about food:
https://vanessamarsden.com/food-nutrients
Mindful Eating
Mindful eating is vitally important for proper digestion, nutrient absorption, gastrointestinal health, to be able to embrace eating for health and enjoyment, and to slow down to allow satiety to occur (feeling satisfied).
Mindful eating is going to be one of the hardest things to learn. So it will take practice. But be encouraged. You will usually have 3 opportunities a day to practice. Think how good at this you will get by practicing 90 times in the next 30 days.
Do the mindful eating as outlined below at each meal as much as possible.
Mindful Eating Defined
- Eat until 80% full
- Eat slowly, pausing between bites, lay your fork down, chew your food well
- Eat only when truly hungry
- Eat to nourish, choosing high quality, high nutrient foods whenever possible
- Eat only well-tolerated foods. Avoid anything that you know or suspect is problematic
- Eat to live well
- Eat with gratefulness and thankfulness, that you have food to eat
- Eat sitting down
- Eat, breathe slowly; eat, breathe slowly; eat breathe slowly
- Eat without food fear
- Eat what you make, whenever you can; invest time in your food
Intermittent Fasting
I urge you to strongly consider intermittent fasting (IF). Intermittent fasting is when you do not eat or drink anything besides water (black coffee or unsweetened tea is ok too) for at least 12 hours. So if you finish eating dinner at 7 p.m., then eat breakfast at 8 a.m., you have fasted for 13 hours. Pretty easy. I highly recommend this for most people. Exceptions might be if you are pregnant, nursing, have an eating disorder, or are using insulin.
Intermittent fasting helps with blood sugar levels and insulin levels. It also gives your digestive tract a rest and allows your body to focus on other things like cell regeneration and detoxing. In addition, it can help with acid reflux or GERD if you avoid late night eating. Intermittent fasting can also help you lose weight, sleep better, and help you to consume less calories. And this is just naming some of the benefits.
I think you will agree that most of us Americans eat too much and too often. It is my strong belief that 3 meals and no snacking is optimal for health. Work this way of eating into your routine for the next 30 days. Even try working up to fasting for longer times, like from dinner until lunch the next day, and do this occasionally.
For more on intermittent fasting read this:
https://vanessamarsden.com/2018/09/03/intermittent-fasting-for-health-weight-loss/
Water, Coffee, Alcohol, Etc.
Water: Drink plenty, enough to keep your urine very light, barely yellow. Drink filtered water, and avoid plastic water bottles. Do not drink too much though, as this will cause an electrolyte imbalance, which is dangerous if severe.
Coffee: Drink up to 2 cups a day, and earlier in the day. Use cream or coconut milk if you must, but avoid half & half and sugar. Black is better! Know that too much coffee raises cortisol levels which raises blood sugar levels and can lead to insulin resistance, thus causing hormonal disruption and weight gain.
Alcohol: Omit or strictly limit. Alcohol not only contains calories (most of them anyway), but also prevents the body from burning calories and fat stores. Try avoiding alcohol for the 30 days, and just see what happens. If you are a regular user, you will have way more energy, sleep better, have more stable moods, and have an easier time losing weight, if that is one of your goals.
Tea: Feel free
Fruit Juice: Avoid. Too high in sugar.
Vegetable Juice: Okay, if you choose low sugar items. Minimize things like carrots and beets.
Bone Broth: It’s great if you don’t have issues with high histamine foods. I love it, and it is so healthy for intestinal health, great for wrinkles, and bone health.
Check out this article I wrote on how to make it:
https://vanessamarsden.com/2019/01/18/bone-broth-recipe/
Cravings
If you are used to eating the Standard American Diet (SAD) and have the Standard American Lifestyle (SAL), you probably feel like you need to eat frequently and have a lot of cravings. The worse your diet is and the more guilt, stress, lack of sleep, lack of fresh air, lack of movement, and such things, the more cravings you will have.
But Your 30-Day Dedicate Project will start fixing this and much more.
So “surf the urge” as Jade Teta ND says. When the cravings come, ride them out. Get busy with something else, after saying no to what you are craving. Distractions can be very good. Cravings do tend to come and go, rise and fall, so ride the wave!
Visit this link for more:
https://vanessamarsden.com/2019/02/11/8-ways-to-deal-with-sugar-cravings/