3 Easy Steps to Get More Fruit into Your Diet
My food epiphany came to me four years ago when I had to admit to myself that I was eating too much meat, packaged food, highly refined sugar and flour... I simply wasn't eating enough fruits and vegetables.
I had lots of legitimate arguments for why I was eating too much of this and not enough of that... but really in the end I am the only one who loses, so making excuses to myself was kind of stupid really. The best advice comes from personal experience and I'm here to tell you: You and you alone can make the changes you need to eat healthier... how lucky that you don't have to ask permission or argue your point... because what it comes down to is simply you and your body! Just start eating healthier with the steps you deem reasonable. I've been in the food biz for almost 20 years now and I've seen three major diet trends crash and burn. Diets don't work and people have the misunderstanding that if they're dieting they are doing something healthy for their body. This is not always true.
On my journey to 'Change my Food & Change my Life' I realized my weight loss was actually a secondary benefit of changing my food. An even bigger benefit of my commitment to eating more fresh fruits and veggies is the AMAZING healing and nourishing effects they have on my body and health. I will spare you the paragraph of explanations... but suffice to say that I feel like the food I am eating... ALIVE! Raw and less processed foods simply have more nutritional value and are ALIVE... alive with nutrients that heal, nourish and protect the temple that is your body. When we constantly eat highly processed foods we are completely working against our temples, chipping or jack-hammering (you know who you are) away at the precious foundation until you start to feel the cracking. It's all about the food you eat.
Rome wasn't built in a day! Good things, real things, things worth keeping around don't materialize over night. Start easy... start slow... start the way I did by committing to eating more fruits and vegetables every day.
Follow my lead with three tips and you'll be eating 6 servings a day before you know it!
- The easiest way to get started is with fruit. Not only is it delicious but it's portable, meaning it needs NO preparation, NO utensils and is ready to eat anytime anywhere. Get your fruit bowl ready on Sunday before the week even starts! Fill your sink with warm (almost hot water) and add 1/4 Cup of white vinegar, remove stickers and soak fruit in the sink while you put your groceries away. Fill your fruit bowl with enough so that you can eat 2-3 pieces a day.
- Put your fruit bowl somewhere that's visible and easily accessed... even by the front door if you have to! Do NOT leave the house without at least two pieces of fruit. Personally, I just put them in my purse, backpack or briefcase. If you are concerned about bruises just wrap in a cloth napkin, that way you can wipe your chin while you're enjoying your succulent apple. Eat one piece for breakfast, the second as your afternoon snack and a third before dinner.
- When shopping I buy my fruit and veggies based on affordability and seasonality. Luckily the two are mutually exclusive. Usually the best deals are on local produce that are not coming from far away... like Costa Rica.
What steps will you be taking?
