Nutrition
In today’s day and age, you can pick up any magazine, watch any news program, or browse through the collection of health related books and easily see that there is a HUGE fascination with diet and weight loss. There is a miracle cure for everything. God has decision our bodies for us to take care of it. We are to treat our bodies as “living temples” for the glory of the Lord. Well what does that mean as far as carbs, what fats to eat, and what’s healthy and not?
Keep it simple.
God designed our earth with plenty of plant and animal life to eat from. The problem is that our society has taken the “convenience” mentality, and we buy MOST all of our food when it has already been prepared and packaged by someone else. Most convenience food has very little nutrition in it. It is made to be able to be stored on food shelves for weeks, months, and sometimes years at a time. This can’t be healthy. When looking to choose foods to eat, try and pick them closest to their natural state.
Avoid overeating
When eating food, eat slowly. You can shovel in food much faster than your brain can register. Typically when feeling famished and we eat quickly, we usually eat WAY more than necessary. Keep a large glass of water and drink it with your meals. When taking a bite savor each one. Enjoy it. As soon as your stomach feels content, stop eating. AVOID going passed and making yourself feel stuffed. You will only feel tired, have an upset stomach, and later on you might feel a little guilty for over eating.
Eating for energy
Food is energy for your body. Nothing more, nothing less. Think about your food before you eat: “Why am I eating this?” “Do I really need this?” This will help you focus on eating enough to keep you moving, and choosing foods that will give you prolonged energy. Remember, sugar is one of the worst things for your body. It provides instant glucose to your system resulting in immediate energy. A short time afterward, the glucose is gone and your body is back to craving cheap sources of energy, like more sugar. The end result is insulin release in response to that meal promoting fatigue and brain fogginess.
Organic
If possible, choose organic fruits and vegetables. This means they are grown with no pesticides being sprayed on them. Sometimes this is not an option, as it is more expensive. I like to think that if it is something that I am directly eating the peel off of, like apples, carrots, green onions, etc then organic is best because then I am not directly eating pesticides. If your fruit or vegetable has a peel that you take off, like oranges, bananas, or potatoes, those are typically safer if you can’t choose organic because you peel off the area being treated. If you can’t get fresh produce, frozen is the next best thing. Avoid canned and packaged fruits and vegetables as the preservatives are usually going to work against you.
Avoid chemical toxins
People think that because it’s lower fat, fat free, or reduced calorie than it is better to eat than the normal version, but not always. Most of the time lower fat products contain artificial sweeteners or chemically made materials. Artificial sweeteners like Splemda or Nutri Sweet. These are most often consumed in diet drinks, diet sodas, and “sugar-free” products. Think of them as toxins (because they are) that slow down your body’s metabolism. Look at the labels. If you can’t pronounce or understand them—avoid them.
Drink water
Our bodies are made up of mainly water. Water is what we use to wash the outside of our body to keep it clean. We should be doing the same to the inside. Drink plenty of water to keep hydrated, flush out your system, help you avoid feeling sluggish, and help you to avoid eating.
