Whole Food Nutrition
Stop reading the Nutrition Facts and focus on the ingredient label. If it has words you can't pronounce or a lengthy ingredient list, just put it back on the shelf. Focus on WHOLE foods with REAL ingredients, or better yet, choose more foods that don't even have a label!
Our bodies were designed to eat REAL food. We run better on it. If your vehicle required premium unleaded fuel to run its best, would you put diesel in it? Probably not. Most of our health issues have nutritional imbalances as part of the problem. When we nurture our bodies with real, WHOLE foods, we can then begin to heal. Sometimes we need a reset, and other times we need a lifestyle overhaul after years of filling our bodies with "diesel". Either way, I can help.
If you're interested in improving your health with nutrition change and need some assistance, please let me know. I have assisted hundreds of patients with meal planning, prepping, recipes, and daily motivation and encouragement.
Healthy Fats
For decades we've been taught to fear fat. Well, I'm here to tell you that all fats are not created equal and cutting all fat from your diet is doing your body more harm that good. Just like with all foods, quality is more important than quantity. I have helped many people lose weight by adding HEALTHY fats back in to their diet. Some of my favorite healthy fats are oils - fish, olive, avocado, and coconut. They are rich in nutrients and contain the building blocks our bodies need to function optimally and aid in healing processes. Don't be afraid of fats! Nourish your body with high-quality, healthy fats and experience the pounds fall off, skin improve, and hormones balance.
High Quality Protein
Protein not only helps our bodies repair and grow tissue such as muscle, but it also plays a role in our metabolism, digestion and ability to fight infections. In our bodies, protein is broken down into amino acids, which are the building blocks for enzymes, hormones and brain chemicals, called neurotransmitters. Our smart bodies are able make most of the amino acids on their own, but some of them we require from the food we eat. These are called essential amino acids. Did you know that proteins can be complete or incomplete? Most protein from animal sources such as meats, eggs, and dairy are complete proteins, or contain all the essential amino acids, while those from most plant sources such as fruits, vegetables, nuts/seeds, legumes and grains are incomplete proteins. We have to pair incomplete proteins together to make them complete in the body. This is why we suggest pairing foods such as spinach and almonds or rice and beans.
You can see why protein is such an important part of our diet! This is another reason to choose high-quality protein. This is the one area of my nutrition where I try hard not to compromise on quality. I look for "happy" animal products - animals raised with excellent farming practices - no crowding, free range, natural diets, grass-fed AND finished, etc. I look for non-GMO verified plant-based protein sources to get the most nutritional bang for my buck.
Complex Carbohydrates
Don't keep it simple with carbohydrates...go for complex carbs. Simple, refined carbohydrates may give us a temporary energy boost, but drag down our long-term success. They cause significant blood sugar spikes and lack nutritional value. Complex carbohydrate food sources that contain health boosting nutrients and provide energy over the longer-term include sweet potatoes, pumpkin, beans, peas, oatmeal, brown rice, quinoa, lentils, and whole or sprouted grains.
Local Farming
I think some of our healthiest food is grown close to home. If you can, visit your local farmer's market and speak with the farmers there. Ask questions about their farming practices. Fruits and vegetables are fresh and haven't travelled hundreds or thousands of miles, which means less, or no preservatives have been used to prolong shelf life.
In the Nashville/northern KY area, consider Tennessee Grass Fed of Clarksville for your grass-fed, grass-finished beef, pastured chicken and pork, and wild-caught Alaskan salmon. You can visit their website or click the button below for more information. You can order products online, and there are several drop-off locations in middle Tennessee where you can pick up your order.
