When it comes to nutrition, dieting, shopping, cooking and eating a well-balanced diet there is no such thing as black or white. The food and nutrition industry is grey; suffocated in thousands upon thousands of books, programs and guru’s claiming to be THE voice for you. The reality is that you need to be patient, you need to spend time moving through the information that is available to you and more importantly, along the way of reading and digesting…LISTEN to your inner guide and guru. What resonates most with you in terms of the information? What do you think you could begin right now that wouldn’t be excruciating? Could do a little planning today and start tomorrow?

This is where I would recommend you begin…at the beginning.

We always tend to put these huge expectations and perimeters around ourselves that almost immediately sets us up for disaster. This time choose to slow down and learn something along the way. Get yourself educated and informed. The more you know about nutrition, the more likely you are to make the better choice for your body.

So many of us believe that we can get healthy if we lose weight. The reality is that we must BE healthy to lose weight. When you take the time to sit down and truly take a look at your current health, what you eat, how you move, sleep and how you FEEL…you will begin to see exactly what has been going on all these years and finally begin to optimize your health, your hormonal balance, lose fat and restore your health and vitality.

As part of your nutrition education, lets give you the skinny on healthy fat.

Healthy fat and why you need it to lose weight

For a long time fat had a horrible reputation and you were educated to avoid it like the plague. Too much of it can put you at risk for cardiovascular disease and it cover up those strong abs you work so hard on in the gym and yoga studio. But cutting fat from your diet in an effort to stay lean isn’t the answer. It may seem surprising, but you actually need to eat fat in order to lose fat. The key, of course, is to eat the right type – healthy fats.

Healthy dietary fat is critical for a healthy body—not to mention vibrant skin and shiny hair. It helps maintain your cell membranes, keeping them pliable, and it’s necessary for healthy hormone production, including hormones that aid in the digestion and elimination of fat (one reason you need to eat it to lose it). Dietary fat also provides fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K and allows us to absorb them—without fat they wouldn’t make it into the bloodstream to do their nourishing work.

Try incorporating healthy fats in your regime at each meal . Grill some fish brushed with grape seed oil, drizzle walnut oil over veggies, enjoy a small handful of raw almonds, cashews or walnuts, make salad dressing with hemp oil and cube some avocado over it, sprinkle ground flax into your salads, add chia to your smoothies and have pumpkin seeds as a snack.

Another big fat benefit is that it adds a richness that’s both mentally and physically satisfying. Since it digests more slowly, you stay full longer so you just might eat less in the end and you will notice a huge shift in your cravings.

They may not completely go away, but they will be less intense and less often.

Cheers to Fat!

Take it slow and rebuild your health from the ground up

September often feels like the second beginning of the year. A time to make a new start, try a new routine, and get back into shape. Perhaps the best gift for yourself this ‘new-year’ is to book some time with a Holistic Nutritionist, a Naturopath or a Homeopath?

What do you really want to create for yourself this year? It is all attainable, it is all within reach but you need to know where you are at before you can create a plan for where you want to BE.

Carve out some time today and daydream – create a BIG picture for your health, your mind and your body!

 

Want to learn more about The Simplicity Project? Check out my most recent spot on RogersTV talking about The Simplicity Project, what its all about and why I created it.

Having trouble getting back into routine? Looking for some back-to-school simplicity? Help get your family back on track with some tips from my spot on CHCH Morning Live earlier this summer.

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Posted in Nutrition, Well Being