Whole Food Attitude

I wanted to take a second to talk about my philosophy of food and dieting. I have spent a lot of time looking for the perfect way to eat to get what I want out of my body. I’ve been a vegetarian, a vegan, and I’ve tried some mainstream diets. I read about different diets and nutrition whenever I can. At this point in my life, I don’t have all the answers, but after a long time of doing what I think is the wrong thing, this is what it boils down to for me: eat whole foods.

I never wanted to believe this before. I love gimmicks. And fake foods have a lot of gimmicks: More fiber! No sugar! Guilt free! Fat free! Taste and nutrient free!!

I’m over it.

I kept hearing the tips from nutritionists: If your grandmother wouldn’t recognize it, don’t eat it. If you can’t grow it, don’t eat it. If it would sit on a shelf for five years and still be good, don’t eat it. Eat smaller quantities of higher quality foods.

So finally, I sucked it up and tried it. I spent three weeks eating only whole foods. (Whole foods are those that are unprocessed and unrefined, or processed and refined as little as possible. They typically do not contain added ingredients, such as sugar, salt, or fat. It’s basic fruits, vegetables, proteins, and whole grains — and not “made with whole grains” for marketing purposes.) I cut all processed foods out of my diet, from cereals to canned soups to Diet Coke. If it had a label on it, I wasn’t interested. I used simple foods to create great recipes. And suddenly, it all made sense. These are the foods with more fiber, less sugar, and less guilt.

I’ve done a lot of reading lately about what effects fake foods have on your body. I was totally in denial before. I wanted to save 30 calories on my yogurt by going for the artificially sweetened kind, or perk myself up with caffeine rather than protein. I didn’t check “healthy” foods for added high-fructose corn syrup. But I finally accepted the fact that fake foods are bad for you. They mess with your body’s natural processes, which is bad for your health and your waistline.

I can also say that as someone on a very strict budget, I was able to do this without seeing a change in my grocery bill. And I believe that eating whole foods can have a great impact on the economy and the environment as well. I like companies that are small, that have vision, that were started by people who wanted to make changes. I believe in good food karma.

So when it comes to dispensing diet advice, that is my starting point. Are we a nation of processed foods? Yes, and they are hard to avoid. But if you are already in the grocery store, why not try the bag of raw almonds over the box of cereal bars? If you’re checking the nutrition facts, why not check the ingredients? Since you’re going to eat, why not appreciate?

The women I know with the healthiest relationships with food and their bodies — and who maintain their weights — eat whole foods most of the time. You should consider it! If you can’t make the switch 100 percent, try swaps here and there (a piece of whole fruit for fruit juice; rolled oats for instant; homemade salsa for store-bought). Eating whole foods is a really simple change that can make your body thrive.

For further information on this topic from leading experts, check out the Harvard Nutrition Source! This Web site has so much great advice for what you can do to improve your diet.

I’m not saying you have to give up every speck of processed food for the rest of your life. But try. Try to go without the artificial stuff, the fake fiber, the “multi-grains.” You might be surprised by how this simple step can make you feel and look great!

Tagged as: Diet, whole foods