POOJA KINI simplifies the art of eating healthy food to 4 simple principles that are easy to follow. She brings joy to eating well, and encourages us to start the New Year with an approach to food that is both realizable and sustainable.
January has truly earned its reputation as a fresh slate. Every year without fail, the departure of the festivities is followed by an outpour of resolutions. We are filled with excitement for the future, for possibility, and for opportunity. Naturally, this translates into the goals we set for ourselves.
While healthy eating and fitness are among the most common New Year’s resolutions, they are also some of the toughest to achieve. Much of this has to do with setting unrealistic expectations and approaching wellness as a chore. Think restricting certain foods, crash dieting, and saying you’ll go to the gym every single day. While it may seem like quite the achievement to go from never working out to running a marathon overnight, jumping from one extreme to the other is not sustainable. Your body and mind will exhaust themselves, and as a result, your progress will be short-lived.
Thankfully, there is a way to incorporate healthy practices – from food to exercise to meditation –into your routine so they become part of your lifestyle. It starts with eliminating the idea that these practices are a means to an end. Detach from the need for instant gratification and think deeply about how things make you feel. Do you feel refreshed or drained after your workout? Does incorporating a variety of foods into your diet make your meals more exciting?
Think about this as you zone in on healthy eating as a practice, rather than another task on your to-do list. If you’ve never been a fan of fruits and vegetables, or you’ve never cooked for yourself before, approaching healthy eating can be daunting. Forget about the cooking! Just assembling the components of a “balanced” meal can seem intimidating when the public image of health is a boring salad.
When it comes to healthy eating, I do away with the notion of rules. Rules, especially strict ones that take a “black and white” angle, make any deviations from them seem like failures. This is very unrealistic when you’re trying anything new, let alone eating, something we as humans depend on for survival.
Zone in on healthy eating as a practice,
rather than another
task on your to-do list.
FOUR IDEAS FOR HEALTHY EATING
- Make sure your plate is colorful and includes all three macronutrients: carbohydrates, fats, and protein.
- Understand where your food comes from.
- Be excited about the meals you are going to eat.
- Know that by healthy eating you are nourishing your body and mind so you can maintain and improve your quality of life.
Let’s explore these:
Rather than targeting specific fruits and vegetables, adding color to your plate allows you to try new things and get the essential nutrients that give these foods their vibrant hues: lycopene in tomatoes, anthocyanins in blueberries, anthoxanthins in potatoes, beta-carotene in carrots … the list goes on.
1. A colorful plate with all three macronutrients
Rather than targeting specific fruits and vegetables, adding color to your plate allows you to try new things and get the essential nutrients that give these foods their vibrant hues: lycopene in tomatoes, anthocyanins in blueberries, anthoxanthins in potatoes, beta-carotene in carrots … the list goes on.
Macronutrients, on the other hand, are nutrients your body depends on to survive. These come in many forms, for example, carbohydrates as starchy vegetables and grains; fats as dairy, avocados and nuts; plant-based proteins as tofu and lentils. This is just the tip of the iceberg, and a simple online search can help you find foods that fit your dietary needs, budget, and preferences.
Following these guidelines gives you enough flexibility to customize your meals while being more-or-less certain that you’re feeding yourself everything you need to thrive.
2. Where does your food come from?
When you connect with whomever is growing your food, or you grow it yourself, you develop a personal investment in your healthy eating practice. One of the simplest ways is to center your grocery shopping around your local farmer’s market.
The best part about getting your produce from the farmer’s market is you will eat local foods that are in season. Our bodies require different nutrition for different seasons, and seasonal produce is healthier, cheaper, tastier, and fresher.
Visiting the farmer’s market gives you an idea of what fruits and vegetables are locally available, so you can plan your meals and gain insight into the nutritional value of what you are eating. You also meet the people who grow your food, and are supporting local farmers.
3. Be excited
If you approach healthy eating with the thought that you’re sentenced to a lifetime of rabbit food, it’s going to be miserable and impossible. Instead, think about the foods you love and try to incorporate them into the meals you eat. Learn about spices and put together visually appealing dishes that feature a variety of textures and flavors.
The internet is overflowing with food content, from recipes to cooking videos.You are sure to find a blog or YouTube video that resonates with you. Eating is such an essential part of life, you might as well make it fun.
4. Know that healthy eating is improving your quality of life
This is self-explanatory, but perhaps the most important of the four. We have to eat to survive; providing our bodies and minds with the fuel they need to thrive is critical.
Whether you wish to spend time with your loved ones, explore your passions, or achieve your goals, nourishing yourself gives you the energy and ability to do the things you love to the best of your ability.
Healthy, balanced eating shouldn’t be a chore; it can instead become a natural part of your lifestyle. Hopefully this guide makes it a little less intimidating.
Illustrations by ARATI SHEDDE
Pooja Kini
