Whole Foods
The modern world’s food diet has trained us to love eating foods which don’t help us achieve our goals. Our goals of feeling good, being happy, connecting well, achieving our potential, and so on. Much of this has come with the addiction attached to processed foods.
Processed foods, simply put, are any kinds of food which have gone through a “process” from when the original ingredients were found in nature (or completely made in a factory) to when they were consumed by you. An example of a processed food would be crackers, soda, cereal, ice cream, salad dressing, bread, etc. These things aren’t found in nature in their original form, they have to be created by man. Whole foods, on the other hand, are consumed while still pretty much in their natural state. Avocados, broccoli, sweet potatoes, rice, beef (if it’s organic, locally sourced and so on, more on this in the next program) are all examples of whole foods.
Whole foods tend to be much more easily digested by your body and allow for higher amounts of nutrient uptake into the system. This means more energy, less fat, and more mental clarity and focus. Processed foods are more difficult to digest, and unfortunately will make you feel worse through time, gain weight, feel sluggish and lethargic, and contribute to long term health problems. These foods are designed by people in laboratories to “taste better” than whole foods and be extremely addictive (like drugs), so you continually spend more and more money on them, to the detriment of your own health.
A simple mantra I use, is that if God made it, it’s better for me. If man made it, it’s worse for me. While not true 100% of the time (for example, eating peanuts could be harmful to you if you have a peanut allergy), this saying makes it much easier for me to make better food decisions.
A Few Simple Keys To Eating More Whole Foods
You’ve likely already noticed this by looking at your sample meal plan and looking at the recommended foods, but in this program I’m primarily advocating whole foods for you. The reason is because once you make the transition to eating delicious whole foods, you will start to feel so much better you won’t want to go back to eating the old way.
I’ll show you step by step instructions on how to read the labels while shopping in the next program, but for now I just want to keep things simple for you during this transition. If you want to shop in a healthier way for yourself or your family, I recommend shopping around the edges of the grocery store, rather than in the aisles. Generally the aisles contain more processed food (cereal, frozen foods, canned goods, breads, dressings, etc), and the edges contain more whole foods (fresh fruits, vegetables, meats, fish, etc).
Generally, the more color in the food item, the healthier it is for you.
When you sit down to dinner, be careful to look for greens, reds, yellows, and other items which express color. If everything is a beige, brown, or tan color, that’s not a good sign. A good rule of thumb is having half of your plate contain color rich foods, you do that with each meal, and you’ll be consuming more nutrients.
If you experience intense cravings, there’s a few simple things you can do to eat well. I’ll discuss this more in depth in my next program with you, but for now 3 simple tips are:
1). Eat healthy fats. Avocados, almonds, and olives are good sources of healthy fat. By eating clean, healthy fat, you won’t crave as much starchy carbs and sugars.
2). Eat more protein. Most people don’t get enough protein in their diets. Through clean, organic meat sources and plant based protein supplementation, we’ll get you eating more protein.
3). Get good sleep. When you don’t sleep well, your body produces more of a hormone called ghrelin, which will make you crave starchy, sugary foods. If you sleep better, you’ll experience fewer cravings.
In moving towards a healthier lifestyle and losing weight, know that while macros are king (because ultimately if you want to lose weight you need to consume fewer calories than you burn), whole foods are queen. And while it’s certainly possible to lose weight by just eating pizza and protein shakes, it will lead to longer term problems including low energy, sickness, and increases your risk for heart disease, cancer, and other serious life threatening challenges.
More whole foods = better life.
Whole Foods This Week
Write down a list of your top 10 favorite processed foods, and the primary ingredient you are craving in each one (salt, sugar, or fat). Our bodies crave foods not for the foods themselves, but for one (or two) main ingredients we get from it. The good news is we can get those same ingredients we crave in a healthy, sustainable way.
Now, identify the top 3 on your list and ask yourself, how can I get this ingredient from whole foods this week?
Your primary assignment is to fill your meals with more whole foods. Don’t eat fast food or eat out more than 2x this week (unless where you eat out will give you just whole foods), instead eat simple combinations of foods as described in your meal plan.
We are not going to have you avoid pizza and burgers forever, don’t worry. But for now, we want to introduce more healthy foods to train your body on what’s good and healthy for you.
Identify one new healthy vegetable to introduce into your diet this week, and one processed food to remove.
Throughout this week, take pictures of your dinner and post them in the Facebook group. If there is a meal you would never have eaten before joining this program, make a point of sharing that with the group. We want to celebrate with you!
At the end of the week, share a recap on how differently you feel eating whole foods versus processed foods.
Assignment
Under the conclusion section, in no specific order, along with your conclusion to this weeks teaching, please speak to:
What is your relationship with food? Is it medicine or is it a coping mechanism?
What foods do you eat that are made by man? What foods do you eat that are made by God?
Under the implementation section, in no specific order to what you wish to speak to, please also speak to:
What foods/drinks can we throw away in our refrigerator and pantry? Which foods can we buy at the grocery store this week?
How can we begin using food as medicine in our day-to-day life?