The Basics: 8 Healthy Eating Habits
How we eat can tell us a lot about how we approach our lives.
Do you take time to enjoy your meals or are you always on the last bite before you taste what you’re eating?
Do you plan wholesome nutrient dense foods, or just grab for the cheapest, best-sounding option in the moment?
Prioritizing our health and bodies means we will have more space to give to others like our families, friends, and co-workers. Nutrition isn’t the same for everyone, but there are a few things we all can do that benefit our bodies:**
1. Drink enough water around your meals, not during
Before the food touches your lips, digestive enzymes are released in your mouth, and hormones signal in your body to begin the digestive process. The acidity of your stomach and intestines is tightly regulated to ensure these enzymes are released to reach the food you’re eating to break it down and assimilate the nutrients.
Drinking water with meals dilutes the digestive juices making it harder for these enzymes to do their job.
A good rule of thumb is to wait about 20 minutes before and after eating to have a larger amount of water.
2. Manage your stress
Stress causes disruption in our hormones and mood, driving us to either eat too much or not enough. We reach for comforting foods that don’t always contain the nourishment we need and can actually feed into our stress.
Finding the best way to support your stress levels is critical. Saying no, movement, mediation, massage or chatting with a friend are all great places to start!
3. Invest time and energy into your diet
We likely spend anywhere from 15-25% of our waking time eating or preparing food, but how often do we actually sit down and think about how it impacts our lives?
Spending 3-5 days logging your diet, mood and feelings can tell you a lot about your habits. A little awareness is all you need to realize, maybe you’re eating too much sugar for breakfast or you keep forgetting to meal prep and end up spending too much money on fast food at lunch. Any observation big or small will support you and your goals.
If you struggle with your relationship with food, do this practice with a solid support system!
4. Chew your food
I can’t tell you how many people I watch eat mindlessly and shovel in bite after bite, or hurry to swallow to keep talking. I do this, for sure. Chewing is one of the most overlooked and avoided factors of a healthy diet.
Taking the time to chew each bite allows you to really enjoy your food (increasing your mood), it takes the burden off of our digestion, reduces fatigue after eating, and also ensures that our food is broken down enough for us to absorb the nutrients in the food.
5. Make sure all meals consist of these 3 key things: fiber, protein, and healthy fats
Fiber keeps us regular, but it also soaks up toxins and hormones in your digestive tract for excretion, feeds the bacteria in your gut, and creates short-chain fatty acids that stimulate our immune system and metabolism.
Protein is broken down into amino acids which are building blocks for brain chemicals, hormones, immune function, metabolism etc. We need to ensure we’re digesting and absorbing adequate, quality protein each day.
Healthy fats consist of organic, virgin olive oils, avocado oils, raw nuts and seeds, wild-caught fish, pasture-raised eggs and meats, and unrefined coconut oil.
It’s important the fats we consume are of the highest quality because they can go rancid easily. Fats make up the structure of our cells — so if you eat rancid fats, you get dysfunctional cells.
Key here is: Variety & Quality!
6. Have veggies with every meal
I believe that eating vegetables with each meal is critical. They’re rich in a variety of antioxidants and fiber that you will not get from processed foods, grains, or meat.
What research now shows is that these nutrients act as food for your healthy gut bacteria—the more variety you have the more diverse bacteria you feed in your gut resulting in a healthy microbiome.
Fresh herbs and spices are a great place to add variety.
7. Space meals 3-4 hours apart
The days of eating small meals every 2 hours are OVER! Snacking and grazing throughout the day do not support your digestion or blood sugar.
If you can’t go 3-4 hours ask yourself these questions: Am I bored? Am I thirsty? Am I stressed? Am I eating balanced and adequate meals, and prioritizing fiber, protein, and healthy fats?
If not, then start there.
8. Wait 10-12 hours between your last and first meal of the day
Your body needs a break from digesting food to use that energy to do some major cleaning up as you sleep!
Melatonin is actually a very powerful antioxidant that cleans your brain overnight. The circadian rhythm regulates your body systems including your metabolism, hormones, etc.
Many of these systems downregulate at night, so eating after 10 pm can throw things off, disrupting sleep.
Women should target around 10 hours, 12 hours is safer during the follicular phase while 8-10 hours during the luteal phase of your cycle.
Men are best suited for longer fasting windows.
Fasting is stress on the body, so if you are under a lot of it, fasting longer periods might not feel best for you. It’s all about finding what works best for your current situation and goals.
If any of these stuck out to you and you have additional questions, leave a comment or send me a message!
Delightfully,
Angela
**As with any advice, it’s never one-size-fits-all. Please reach out directly if you have a pre-existing disorder and want more specific information to support your lifestyle.
