Eating Healthy for Life

How do you maintain a healthy lifestyle...for life? How do you go about learning what foods are good, what cooking methods make foods less nutrient-dense, and what to eat when you go out to dinner?

One thing that helped me tremendously was my interest in food and cooking. I swear, from ages 11 to now I’ve been obsessed with Food Network TV. Luckily, I had an amazing mother who taught me several things about cooking, chopping, and so forth, but I did pick up a lot from watching others on TV.

To answer the questions, out of personal experience, I’d say, “Learn how to cook.” 

Basic cooking principles and knowledge that is taught simultaneously will help you learn more about food. Yes, butter is delicious, but olive oil is too and can be used as a substitute. Poultry is super lean because the fat is on top of the muscle instead of integrated throughout like pork and beef. Just as your dishes should have variety, so should your diet. Variety of colors in your daily diet is key to getting all the vitamins and minerals your body loves. These are just some of the things I learned how to do via TV.

I also learned basic spices for food from different regions so I could make life a little more interesting. I’m sure my mother would tell you that when I started cooking for the family, I’d walk over to the spice cabinet and smell all the spices before I added them to the dish. (P.S. That’s a really great way to familiarize yourself with spices!) I digress...

So, if you don’t have access to TV, use the internet. Here or Here.

You can also see what kind of classes your local university offers. I know mine does in the Hospitality Program (which I am taking now, actually).

There are many places, like Williams Sanoma, Cooks Warehouse and many others that have cooking classes (I’ve seen some on scout mob/living social, too).

To answer the questions again, a little more in-depth this time, I’d say, “Eat less processed and more fresh.”

LIMIT intake of these!

Your pantry needs to be pretty bare. Honestly, if you’d look in mine, you might be wondering where all the food is. If you opened the fridge, you’d find it. Your pantry should have foods you eat only about 40% of. Brown rice, oats, whole wheat pasta, dried fruit, (nuts are kept in the freezer), (whole grain bread is kept in the freezer), one bar of dark chocolate, items for the occasional baking (which is usually healthy, I might add), flour, whole wheat flour. Then there’s canned beans, dried lentils, quinoa, split peas, etc, etc.

Then 59% of your food should be in the fridge. Fruits, veggies, dairy (Greek yogurt, yum!), meat, eggs, frozen fruit, the occasional multigrain tortilla.

You may be wondering, what’s the other 1%? Seasoning! Not that seasoning is necessary with raw fruits and veggies, but when cooking, make sure you always use salt and pepper. Adding spices to your foods will make it more lively and more enjoyable as well! 

Just remember, it's not going to happen overnight. Like all other behavior modifications, it takes time, patience, and repeated efforts to make a behavior change.

Here are some other resources:

http://www.healthfulpursuit.com/

http://www.foodnetwork.com/healthy-eating/index.html

http://eatgood4life.blogspot.com/

Words from our Guest Blogger: Corey Emanuel

Just a few words before you start. I used to work for a fitness company, Instant Fitness, where I was the nutrition consultant. I would work with clients of a personal trainer to help them reach their goals faster. Corey was one of those perfect clients who did everything I told him :) and he had amazing results! Read his story:

Corey's healthy breakfast, customized for his specific goals.

In January 2012, I started a journey that has forever changed my life.  I improved my lifestyle through intense weight training, cardio and a new and improved nutritional plan.  Over the span of 9 months, I was able to lose and keep off a total of 12lbs and I also lost 7% body fat.  None of this was easy.  However, what helped me the most was the fact that I was already maintaining a decent diet.  For example, I was already eating breakfast, lunch and dinner.  And I was only eating fast-food a couple of times a week.  Of course, I had to learn what foods were better suited for my desired results.  I learned quickly that carbs are NOT my friend and that high protein servings were indeed the way for me to go.  Where I struggled was a lack of cardio which still today is an uphill battle.  Cardio, for me, takes planning.  I have to make time for it.  However, as I've learned to build it in to my schedule, it's become more of a way of life.  That's the beautiful thing about changing your lifestyle.  You're still in total control.  And as you learn your body, you're able to create the body you want according to a schedule that works best for you.

Corey after his hard work, treating himself to a vacation!

One of the biggest motivating forces behind me wanting to work out consistently is wanting to maximize my potential.  I knew I could achieve better results but I also knew I needed accountability partners in order to do so.  I need to have someone at the gym to say, "You have what it takes to make this a reality!"  I needed someone to email me or text me and say, "How can I help you create your grocery list for the week?"  Through Instant Fitness and the help of Tony and Olivia, I had a team who proved that they cared about me and that was very motivating.  It was also helpful to have a team who was transparent about their own struggles, and to know that I wasn't alone in the ongoing effort to improve my health. I can honestly say that after almost a year of intense training and a more concentrated effort to improve my eating habits, I am not the same person.  I am the person I was always intended to be: strong, healthy and in charge of my total well-being.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

So, if you're not able to hire a team or personal trainer, who will be your accountability? We all make excuses for ourselves, so who will say "the buck stops here"? You may ask a friend, as a roommate, your mother, father, and if no one else, come to me! I have been helping people lose weight and stay healthy for a while now and I am more than happy to help anyone that comes along. Best results are in person, but I have clients that connect via Skype and telephone.

A BIG "Thank You" goes out to Corey for taking the time to write this blog for me! He is such a great guy and spread sunshine everywhere he goes. I wish him all the best!

If you'd like to learn more about Corey, check out his website here!

If you'd like to get a personal trainer and learn more about Instant Fitness, click here!

How to Start Working Out: Taking the First Step

Has it been weeks, months, or even years since your last workout? That’s okay. Really, it is. You might be lost. You might be thinking “I have too far to go and I can’t do anything that will even make a dent”

I remember feeling this way. It was one of the most depressing feelings in my whole life. You feel helpless, hopeless, and alone. Here’s how I started exercising.

December 23, 2007. 180lbs

My high school gym class required all of us to run 2 miles about 3 times a week. That was incredibly impossible for me since I hadn’t run in my 17 years of existence (not really, but not enough to ever say I “ran”). Although I was very VERY self-conscious and HATED wearing shorts and letting other people see me workout, I was forced to do so. I HAD to. Of course, I had the option to take P.E. at home. But I have always been a quitter and I think the fact that my parents made me take it at school (I also knew it was going to be a good thing in the end), was one important step. Yes, I did the 2 miles, and YES, I hated every bit of it. The only thing I remember that kept me going was that I’d tell myself, “I do NOT want to be the last person on the track.” So I made it my goal to not be the last person on the track, at the very least. Then I got more competitive, and decided I’d try and boost my time which is when I decided to do some form of exercise outside of school.

Summer, 2012. 128lbs

I found something I liked. I remembered a long time ago when I used to walk around this park with my dad and I really enjoyed the solitude and being close to nature. One day I took some “me time” to walk/jog around this park. I found the park map and decided to see how far their tracks were. Then I told myself “I know I can’t run the whole thing, but we’ll see how far I can go just running straight without stopping to walk.” After a small warm-up (that I learned in P.E.) I was off. I think my goal was to make it at least one mile before stopping. Honestly, I can’t remember if I did that, but I’m guessing I didn’t. I remember setting small running goals if I was getting tired I’d tell myself, “Okay, just to that next lantern” “Alright, jog up the hill, but you can walk down the rest of it.” Small, achievable goals. That’s all it took.

You know the saying, “If you give an inch, they’ll take a mile” ? I know that usually has a negative connotation, but think of it this way. If you push yourself a little bit every time you workout, that sets the bar for the next workout. Say last time you ran 1/4 of a mile. Great!!! You’ve done it before. Tell yourself over and over (I know I did) “I’ve done this before, I know I can do it. It is achievable.” That’s what got me through that first full mile of straight running - believing in myself. 

So my answer for all of you looking to begin a workout regimen is to take baby steps. Once you know you can do something small, you can build on it every time. And it might take a lot of effort to go that extra quarter mile or to walk a little faster, but once your exert that effort once, you can do it again. It is the hardest the first time, but it gets easier each time, I promise!

Achieve your goals by talking opposites

I hope everyone's labor day weekend has been fun, relaxing, or at least productive. I thought I would give away some tips to making your goals possible. And not just losing weight and getting healthy, anything! I tried it this weekend when I was water skiing. I am usually not that adventurous, but this time I decided to change my outlook. I said to myself "You know what? You are confident, you CAN do this. You DO have the strength to do more tricks." 

So here's how this technique came about.

It is one of my favorites because it is so simple and easy to remember. 

I recently had to attend an event for a company I work for and I was having my doubts all day about it. I was nervous for no good reason of course; I wasn’t sure what to wear, wasn’t sure who would be there, wasn’t sure how long I should go. But while pondering all of this nonsense, I decided to take the opposite approach. Here’s how you do it:

You know that little voice inside your head that’s called your conscience? Instead of fighting it, do the OPPOSITE and listen! You know all of those negative thoughts you have, instead of repeating them over and over, do the OPPOSITE and think positively. Just think OPPOSITE! Also, this technique is similar to the “talking it into existence” technique.

For example:

[negative] Ugh! I don’t want to go tonight...It’s my last free Friday for a while...I don’t know what to wear or how long I’ll have to be there...

[positive] Okay. I know I have to go. This will be good practice for me. It’s a mixer, too so maybe I’ll get relaxed and do a better job at networking. Also, I get to get dressed up which I don’t get to do very often. Maybe I’ll have a lot of fun and I won’t care how long I’m there.

Doing so will help you get into a mindset that’s more willing and accepting of changes and new ideas.

So when you start to have doubts, think OPPOSITE!