I’ve probably mentioned it before, but I get a weird vibe from many people about eating healthfully.
Like it’s not a normal thing to do. Or it’s not a cool thing to do.
But why can’t eating well be cool?
Some people just don’t know how to do it and I get that.
That’s why I’m here!
I want to teach as many people as I can that it’s ok to want to eat healthfully every week. Day in and day out.
Guess what? It doesn’t have to be a three-day torturous cleanse or eating boring salads for every meal (although I do like the idea of eating greens with most meals!), or super expensive.
Eating healthfully also doesn’t have to be bland or tasteless.
There are two major things we have to do first though to get the ball rolling.
First, We need to change our mindset.
Don’t think of eating healthfully as “I have to eat well every week, day in and day out or else!!”
I don’t know about you, but every time I tell myself I have to do something I run the other way (work expenses anyone?).
Instead keep saying this to yourself: “I eat well every week, day in and day out.”
You can also try thinking of your body as a machine that needs proper fuel so that it can keep running smoothly.
- A car needs the right fuel to run or it will break down.
- Olympians need to fuel their bodies properly or they won’t be able to perform properly.
- Regular ‘ol people like us need the proper fuel to keep our energy up, our blood sugar balanced and hormones even on a daily basis.
The challenge with messaging today, however, is that we don’t necessarily know what type of fuel is best for our bodies.
Every day there’s a new study, or stat, or cousin telling you something that you should or shouldn’t be eating (yes I’ve been guilty of that!).
But did you know that every body is different?
This is where mindfulness comes in. Take a step (or 10 steps) away from Facebook and Instagram chatter to listen to your body and what it’s trying to tell you.
I bet you know what kind of “fuel” makes you feel great and what doesn’t. But sometimes we aren’t listening very closely. Or we ignore it.
For me beer makes me feel bloated and caffeinated coffee makes me anxious.
Next time you eat, breathe, stop and listen. What is my body saying to me right now? Does what I’m eating make me feel great inside or gross?
‘But what about the food?’ you ask. ‘How do I maintain momentum every week?’
I’m getting to that part!
You have to make meal planning a weekly habit.
Read that again.
Make meal planning a weekly habit.
Planning our meals every week will help us to stick to our goals of eating well every week. So many people have told me that if they don’t plan their meals, they won’t eat well that week.
Of course! If you don’t have anything planned you’re more likely to order a pizza, which is fine once in a while of course, but we want to get into the regular habit of planning healthful meals that will fuel our bodies for the entire day, every day and every week.
That is where real change happens. When we make it a regular habit.
We do that by meal planning with real food:
- vegetables
- fruits
- lentils, legumes, whole grains
- A tiny bit of fish, meat, and poultry if you eat it
Start with those foods and see how that works for you.
Now there’s a trap that many people fall into when it comes to eating healthfully (it’s a sneaky trap!).
The trap is that little voice in your head that says: “Oh I was so ‘good’ today I deserve to have crappy food for the rest of the week! Then I’ll start again next Monday.”
Don’t fall for it!
Do you know what you deserve? You deserve to treat your body with respect by eating nutritious food day in and day out. That’s what you deserve.
Once you make meal planning a priority and habit for a while that dumb voice in your head will disappear. Believe me! I used to fall into that trap too all. the. time.
Now I’m not saying that you can’t treat yourself to dinner at a restaurant, and wine, and ‘junk’ food.
There’s a place for it all.
I just want you to get into the habit of planning healthful meals regularly every day so that those treats are valued in a different way and they won’t make you fall into a trap that makes you want to give up and ‘start again on Monday.’
Once we change our mindset, create a habit of meal planning and stick to it you’ll start to feel the change I promise you.
You’ll start to view eating healthfully on a regular basis as a normal (and cool — I hope!) thing to do.
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If you need extra help, that’s where my meal plans come in. They’re done-for-you plans full of nutritious recipes, a calendar, and a full grocery list. These plans will help you kick-start your habit so you can eat healthfully every day for the long term.
Just start with one week and see what happens. Then you can get another week and keep moving on from there.
