Choosing food for good nutrition and healthy eating is actually very simple and easy. Just fill your grocery trolley primarily with foods that don’t have labels. You know, the ones that are real, whole, unprocessed and only one step removed from their original source, for example, the apple tree. Basically eat REAL food your great grandmother would recognise – food fit for a Queen!"Let your Foods be your medicines, and your medicines your food." Hippocrates c. 460-377 BC
And drink more water please - filtered is best. Our bodies are around 60% water (higher in males) making it THE most essential nutrient in the body. It is necessary for many biochemical and physiological processes and an average person loses around 2.5 litres each day through breathing and sweat. Chronic dehydration places severe stress on the body and is now being implicated in an increasing number of chronic diseases.
Most people do not drink enough to replenish their body each day. The easiest way to track and increase your daily water intake is to keep a record – aim for a glass of water upon rising to rehydrate from the night then a glass each hour until bed, marking down in your food diary the number of glasses you have had.
How do you choose food fit for a Queen?
Now, I know, I get it, I understand how it feels at the end of a busy day to be so depleted of energy, vitality and time that you reach for the take away menus, frozen dinners, anything fast. This is what I call slave food. It is fast, processed, pre-packaged, full of chemicals and preservatives, energy dense (high in calories). But it is nutritionally empty and unsustainable. It is unsustainable for your health, your wellness and your life in general. I still have those moments, nights, days when convenience is king it’s just now I consciously choose not to let them become a consistent habit. I enjoy the treat, appreciate the release of pressure and make sure it’s nutritious, healthy and, of course, yummy!
When designing your daily menu use the 80/20 rule – 80% real (food that is enjoyed slowly; real, fresh, whole, nutrient-rich food with high water content that is also usually low in calories) and 20% processed foods. Your body will love you for it, I promise! Once you become consciously aware of what you are eating using your food diary, it is so easy, fast and convenient to grab an apple, a carrot or a handful of nuts. For tips on how to create more time in your day so you avoid the fast food dash, check out Skip 7 “Decluttering your Kingdom” in my "8 Skips to Extraordinary Wellness" eBook.Start by following the Figure 8 Wellness dietary guidelines at least 80% of the time - click here to access them now.
