Healthy Eating is Not a Punishment!
Written by Anri van Rooyen
Purchase Anri’s FitFoodSMART Recipe eBook by clicking HERE
Healthy eating should not be boring or bland.
Healthy living is not a ‘quick fix’, but a lifestyle change – i.e. forever! You need to follow a healthy way of eating, one that works best for you, and stick to it! It’s all about what we do consistently, not every now and then. It is a great idea to prepare meals in advance and make extra portions that you can freeze and reuse, as this will ensure that you stay on track.
Our bodies want to be healthy and crave healthy foods. Change your
mindset about healthy eating and make your food taste delicious. It should not feel like a punishment or be boring and bland.
We recommend a low carbohydrate, healthy oil lifestyle to our Weight Control Clinic patients, consisting mainly of healthy oils (incl. avocados, olives, cold pressed extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil, nuts, seeds etc.), fresh and organic produce (rainbow-coloured fruits and veggies), free-range and hormone-free protein. Limit red meat to reduce inflammation and try to eat a minimum of three portions of fatty fish per week.
Get creative in the kitchen by trying out different healthy recipes and use healthy oils for cooking and to make your food tasty. Use fresh or dried herbs and spices (ones that you actually enjoy) to make your food delicious. Some examples include basil, rocket, garlic, ginger, turmeric, pepper, mixed herbs, salt, pepper etc.
Closest to nature is always best.
Choose options that are found in nature: use fresh produce instead of tinned options, natural coffee (not decaf), full-cream milk and yoghurt, free-range (meat and eggs) and organic products.
Remove any foods that contain colourants, preservatives, high sugar, trans-fats and saturated fats, i.e. foods that are highly processed. These foods are addictive and inflammatory, and your mind and body ends up craving more and more of them.
Eat different colours of fruit and veggies (5–9 portions per day), as each colour and texture has its own unique blend of vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals (plant chemicals). If you don’t consume enough, then we do recommend additional support.
If you choose to include carbohydrates, make sure they are complex carbohydrates that are found in nature – vegetables, fruit, basmati/brown rice, sweet potatoes, potatoes, quinoa (a great lower carb option and naturally gluten free), legumes, beans etc.
Mindful eating for long-term health and happiness.
Take 5 to 10 breaths before you eat. This activates your parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) – aka your ‘Rest & Digest’ nervous system. You will digest and absorb your food more efficiently, resulting in less bloating, stomach pain and gut discomfort. Schedule your eating times as you would an important meeting. Even 10 minutes per meal will do.
Use your senses when you eat – look at all the colours, smell the food, taste every bite (eat slowly), listen to the sound when you eat. You will then soon realise which type of foods you enjoy, which make you feel energised and well, and which don’t. Stick to the ones that make you feel on top of the world. Keep a food journal in the beginning, to help you become aware of your relationship with food. Awareness is step one in creating a lifestyle change.
That is why, to support you in your healthy, mindful, eating lifestyle, I recently published my first online recipe book, with 50 recipes – all are easy, quick (mostly 20 min), delicious, healthy, low carb and diabetic friendly. The recipe below is in the book, and the one that we used for kykNET (on Duidelik Dapper) and Via (Minki).
After all, my mission is teaching and supporting healthy eating, which should be delicious and tasty, and certainly not a punishment. I do trust you’ll enjoy it!
Purchase Anri’s FitFoodSMART Recipe eBook by clicking HERE
