Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Eat Real Food

"There is no one diet that will work for everyone, but if your diet doesn’t involve mostly REAL FOOD, then you are setting yourself up for failure." Yum Yum Fit

Doesn't it make sense?

We should eat real food – meat, fish, eggs, vegetables, fruit, healthy oils, and nuts. We should choose foods that are raised, fed and grown naturally, and foods that are nutrient-dense, with lots of naturally occurring vitamins and minerals.  Shouldn't we?

It shouldn't be a “diet” – we can eat as much as we need.  We're eating for fuel to maintain strength, energy, activity levels and a healthy body weight.  We should aim for well-balanced nutrition, eating animals and a significant amount of plants.

Eating like this will help us look, feel, live and perform our best, and reduce our risks for a variety of lifestyle-related diseases and conditions.

It seems to go against everything we've grown up learning and doing.  That's why, when Brad started eating real food, I thought he was just asking for a heart attack.  What about the USDA Food Pyramid?
Since the USDA food pyramid was released in 1992, the obesity rate has increased unabated. Take a look around you. The obesity rate is the highest it’s ever been, and almost everyone who’s not obese is “just” overweight. Diabetes is on the rise. People live out the end of their lives relying on a complicated cocktail of pharmaceuticals and medical apparati just to eke out a few more years. All this, despite the majestic, all-powerful USDA dietary recommendations informing everything we put into our collective mouths. How’s that USDA food pyramid working out for us so far, I’d like to ask. I’m not necessarily assigning a causative role to the pyramid (though it certainly plays a role, in my view) in the obesity epidemic. I’m just saying that it has done absolutely nothing to stanch the rise of diet-related illness. I’m saying it doesn’t have a real impressive track record. 
Read more: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/top-8-most-common-reactions-to-your-grain-free-diet-and-how-to-respond/#ixzz1xbMJSTCc
The first step to getting our health back and our bodies looking the way we want it to is to shift what we eat toward whole foods.

We’re still in the process of learning by doing.  Hope you'll come along with us and hang in there.

6 comments:

  1. I've been following your blog, Susie, and I find it really interesting. It is causing me to think about what I'm eating -- not quite ready to join you yet -- but I'm thinking about it. Thanks for your input!!

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    1. Yay! Thanks, Penny. I know it is a big change and feels overwhelming - especially if you start doing it without your whole family on board. Perhaps take it a step at a time and start with eliminating sugar, then gluten, vegetable oils, all grains, etc. As you eliminate, try to gradually add more real food.

      I didn't follow Brad until he was more than a month into it - and I only started following him because the Lord said, "Follow your husband". What's He saying to you? xo

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    2. Thanks Susie -- Yes, it seems overwhelming, and my family will not be on board -- but I'm turning the big one this year (yikes, don't even want to say the number!) and I want to get healthier. Now, it's time to start praying about it and asking the Lord what would He like me to do!! Thanks Susie! Keep up the blogging!

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    3. I'll pray with you, Penny, and I'll pray that your family follows. It has been tough getting our kids excited but they are coming around. I make what I make and I don't play short-order cook. They can eat it or not. They get enough freedom with food at school and friends' houses that they are not deprived. Keep me posted!

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  2. Hi Susie -- Is MCT oil the same as coconut oil?

    Thanks!

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    1. Hi Penny,

      Good question!

      MCT (stands for medium-chain triglycerides) oil is found in coconut oil. We use straight MCT oil because it is in concentrated form. You'd probably have to use about 10 teaspoons of coconut oil to get a teaspoon of MCT oil.

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