Naturally Healthy is a concept I created several years ago to help support my clients and their good health with the choices that you make every day at mealtime. After years of working one-on-one with clients in my Pilates studio, I found that the typical client’s path to health usually required a change in food habits. Specifically, shifting from meals based on processed, pre-packaged convenience food to meals based on whole foods prepared at home. But changing food habits is a huge obstacle for most people trying to improve their health and quality of life. I often see my clients struggle more with choosing healthy food than with committing to a workout routine.
And it’s no wonder. We live in a society surrounded by readily available food products at all hours of the day. We are bombarded with ethically questionable marketing ploys and product claims to convince us to buy their brand. Food companies and restaurants are telling us what to eat for the sake of their bottom-line, not our health.
We also have to deal with constant news updates on nutrition and diet from the “experts” about this incredible and most amazing super food, or the latest take on whether or not saturated fat is a no-no, and why we should, or should not, go Paleo. With so many conflicting messages out there, how do you figure out what to eat to stay healthy?
Choose Nutrient-Dense, Whole Foods.
Naturally Healthy means selecting foods that occur in nature and not in a factory. This is not a fad or a diet–it must become a way of life because how you shop, plan, and prepare meals affects your daily routine. But thanks to how foods are packaged, labeled, and presented in the grocery store, you may not be bringing home the wholesome foods that you thought you were.
When shopping, I ask myself, “Would my great-grandmother recognize this product as food?” If not, I put it back on the shelf and walk away. This is a simple trick that helps me fill my cart with nutrient-dense whole foods.
Limit Added Sugars
My frustration with how to live Naturally Healthy and still enjoy dessert motivated me to write my cookbook, Sweets in the Raw: Naturally Healthy Desserts. With so much research pointing to the large amounts of added sugar in the standard Western diet as the culprit behind the rise in many avoidable chronic diseases and weight-gain, it goes without saying that Naturally Healthy means limiting your daily intake of added sugars. But, there are so many different names for sugar in the world of processed foods that even the strictest label reader might miss one.
There are also many dessert recipes already out there, claiming to be “healthy” desserts yet they contain extra sugar like maple syrup or honey. Do not be fooled–these still count as added sugars that cause a blood sugar spike. It’s important to realize that when you are eating a fruit, whether it’s fresh or dried, you are also eating fiber and that helps to slowdown the blood sugar spike. That’s why I crafted all of my Naturally Healthy Desserts to rely on the natural sweetness of whole fruit. (There is only one added sugar that I use in my chocolate recipes–yacon syrup, and I will be writing a blog post about why it is a superfood and a great option next week.)
Limit Dairy & Refined Flours
Thanks to my experience coaching clients and my own personal health struggles, (watch my TEDx talk about my personal story) I came to the conclusion that a Naturally Healthy lifestyle should also mean limiting or avoiding dairy and refined flours in addition to avoiding added sugars. For some people, like me, it’s not enough to just stick to whole foods. Wheat and dairy, even if the wheat isn’t refined and even if the dairy doesn’t contain added sugar, still make me ill. This may not be true for everyone, but I have seen many clients benefit from limiting dairy and gluten in their diet, even if they did not have a medical reason to do so. For this reason, a Naturally Healthy lifestyle works nicely for individuals who are vegan, lactose-intolerant, or gluten-free. My Naturally Healthy desserts such as cheesecake, brownies, and truffles taste so decadent, you won’t even miss the traditional versions.
You Can Have Your Cake & Eat It Too
Naturally Healthy means you can enjoy dessert just by altering your idea of what dessert should be made of. I created Naturally Healthy Desserts so that we could all enjoy a dessert that tastes sinful but is really made from nutrient-dense whole foods. And I can’t wait to show you how this can be done without disappointing your taste buds or sabotaging your health goals! Sweets in the Raw: Naturally Healthy Desserts won’t be available until May, but keep following my blog for more great info and recipes.
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