As a health coach I often get asked ‘what should I eat?’ or ‘what do you eat?’.
Of course, what we eat nutritionally matters.
Our bodies need nutrients to be able to carry out cellular processes such as balancing hormones, our fertility, our weight, our cognitive functioning and immune system.
Those nutrients mostly come from plants – i.e. fruits and vegetables.
The current statistic in the U.K is that only 27% of people eat enough fruit and vegetables on a daily basis (really you should be eating 6-7 vegetables and 3 pieces of fruit a day).
It is safe to say that there is room for improvement in the western world in regards to eating more veggies.
However, there is a darker side.
And that is our psychology.
You could eat 20 pieces of fruit and vegetables a day and be in constant battle between your body and mind.
The key to true health and wellbeing is finding peace and balance.
Not feeling restricted and miserable.
The world of dieting and calorie restriction has done a huge disservice to women (and some men) on understanding how to nourish our bodies and create health.
The more we restrict the more we want.
If your blood sugar is low, you have little chance of coming out on the winning side of a craving.
And the very nature of dieting is to restrict calories and drop blood sugar.
It goes against the natural flow of our body’s rhythms.
The target should always be health over a focus on weight (and the wonderful thing is when you focus on your health and wellbeing, the weight just comes off by accident without it being a battle).
So is fast food OK?
Yes. Of course it is.
There is even research that shows the impact of eating high inflammatory foods differs depending on your mood when eating it.
If you are eating it from a place of stress or depression then it will have a greater negative impact on your body then if you are eating from a place of joy – fascinating stuff!
The key to health and wellbeing is finding peace within yourself.
Predominantly eating foods that support your cellular processes which enable you to thrive.
AND sometimes enjoying a piece of cake or a burger.
It is the guilt and the shame that do the damage.
Finding a healthy way forward is a lifelong journey and it adapts and changes.
You are never ‘on’ or ‘off’ the wagon.
You are living the highs and lows of life.
And you are doing a great job by the way!
Choose one thing you would like to focus on to improve your health habits and do just that until it has become a new habit.
One step at a time work towards what you want to achieve.
