Today begins a series of posts to help improve the food you consume. We are not going to throw everything out and start over. Instead we are going to work from where you are now and make things better over time.
Remember our goals for healthy eating:
These two simple concepts are what we are working to achieve. You want to have more good coming in to your system and less bad. Over time, and with many small changes, the good will start to outweigh the bad. You will start to feel better and your body will function better. Then you can go on to bigger changes.
This is good news, since you do not have to make huge and radical changes in the beginning of your weight loss journey. Instead, the smaller changes will add up quickly over time. The key will be your persistence and commitment to your goal of a healthier life now and forevermore.
Remember this poster from an earlier post in the series. Over time, the heart-shaped "good food" will get bigger and crowd out the other "bad" things you consume today.
We are starting with the good. Later we will talk about some of the bad items, but at this point, positive action is the best course you can take. The more of these ideas you incorporate into your diet, the better chance for weight loss to occur.
This poster shows you a summary of the good ideas will will be starting with. Daily attention to these steps is your current goal.
Here are a few details about the ideas on this list above. Don't be overwhelmed as we will work through these at your pace.
Eat food that adds nutritional value of some type
You may not know much about nutrition now but this is a worthy topic for investigation. This is our starting point and I will say more about foods to add later in this post.
Eat a large variety of foods at each meal
Are you guilty of eating the same few foods constantly? I certainly was before I finally lost weight.
Even the healthiest food is not good as a steady diet. You will not be getting adequate nutrition, you will be bored, and therefore likely to fall of the wagon.
I often see things such as "The Grapefruit Diet" or other plans that tell you one special food will help you lose weight. This is not true! You are better off to eat many different healthy foods that you will enjoy a few times each week.
An example of this concept is in my new love of steamed sweet potatoes. I eat them fairly regularly now. Prior to my new healthy life, I only ate sweet potatoes if they were in a pie. Then when I did start to like them steamed, I ate then way too often and got burnt out. Now I enjoy them in several ways and not on a daily basis.
This progression from fattening, to binging, to a healthy balance has happened with many foods for me. And by the way, that pie I used to love is too sweet for me now. It was only something I ate at holidays, but now I give it a pass and don't even miss it.
Eat the less processed food
Processed food is generally not healthy in one way or another. Or if it is healthy, it is expensive. It is better to start with the whole food and then prepare it gently so you get the real taste and benefit.
Eat the less sprayed food
A big part of my new life in food involves staying away from pesticides as much as I can. This does not always mean I eat organic and I have found it not to be more expensive. Surprisingly, my less processed and sprayed food is generally cheaper than what I ate when I was obese.
Eat the younger/smaller food
I eat the younger and smaller food in almost every case. This is true for fruits and vegetables as well as the occasional "bad" food I eat. For example, if I am at a party where cake is served, I will eat a small piece if I want to. Since my diet is generally healthy, this is not a big deal. Back in the day, I might have eaten the whole cake!
With healthy foods, the younger and smaller foods are easier to eat. I had to force myself to eat vegetables when I started down this path. A small serving was easier than a larger one for me. I got the nutrition and learned about the taste in small quantities. Now I love a lot of vegetables I used to think I hated. It's so funny how our tastes change if we give them a chance.
Eat smaller servings of each food over time
Portion control is a learned skill and will get easier over time. When I started this journey to health, my portions of "bad" food were huge, while the good food portions were tiny. Now I have reversed that and don't have trouble at all. As with all of these changes, they occurred over time, not overnight.
Part of the issue is even knowing how big portions should be. I already have a post about judging portion sizes. Start with that one and we will continue to learn more as we progress.
High on vegetables, protein and fat
This is how I eat now. The veggies give me nutrients. The protein keeps me going. The fat fulfills me and adds calories I actually need now.
Regular to high on fruit, nuts, and seeds
This is another section of the main foods in my current diet. I used to avoid all three of these food types because I thought they were fattening. Now I know they add nutrition, variety and taste to my diet.
You just read a short overview of the "Do's" for your new healthy life. Now let's dig a bit deeper into the first point.
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Eat food that adds nutritional value of some type
How much do you know which foods add nutrition? I'm glad to tell you, that you do not need to worry about finding good food ideas. I have a wonderful list already.
The World's Healthiest Foods List has already been developed by The George Mateljan Foundation and it free for you to use. Please go over there and check it out.
This is a wonderful site and served to help me get started on choosing healthy food to eat. Aside from the list of the 100 healthiest foods, the site offers information about nutrition and which foods give which benefits. This site is a powerhouse of information.
Your task today is simply to go to the food list and find out:
- which of the foods your already eat
- which of the foods you might be ready to try
- which of the foods your have never heard of
Generally, dig into this list over the coming days. I will guide you through it in future posts, but for now bookmark the site, check out the food list, and write down ideas for using those foods. I hope you have your weight loss journal set up. This is the type of information that your should be putting in there.
Please ask me questions in the comments, or contact me privately if you do not want to talk publicly. I can be reached at:
I answer all private messages, and will connect with anyone who asks me.
Prior Posts in this series
Let's Pretend to Lose Weight - Deciding to track your weight and face reality
Yes, You CAN Lose Weight! - Finding out your BMI and getting over excuses
Weight Loss - Let’s Get Started Today - First steps to successful weight loss
Portion Sizes and Nutrition How big is a portion of food?
Weight Loss Bad Ideas Don't try these!
Easy Exercise - Stretching and Walking If you are fitness walking, stretching before and after will help you in many ways.
My posts in this series are for the steemiteducation tag and project. Steemiteducation supports teachers and anyone who posts "How To" work. I have the most recent post resteemed on my feed below this one. Visit that post and join their discord channel if you are a teacher too.
I lost "half my size" with natural methods at the age of 50, after a lifetime of miserable obesity. My goal is to help you succeed too.