Enjoy the Taste of Eating Right: National Nutrition Month

Are your New Years Resolutions fading away? Do you feel that you need some motivation to guide your focus back onto eating right? Well, you’re in luck because I’m about to offer you some juicy bits of inspiration to get you back on track!

juicing

Before I get started, allow me to set the stage – March is National Nutrition Month. If you haven’t heard of National Nutrition Month… it’s a nutrition education and information campaign, focusing on the importance of ‘making informed food choices and developing sound eating habits and physical activity habits.’ (www.eatright.org)

Now, for the fun part – this years theme –  ‘enjoy the taste of eating right.’ 

This is such a wonderfully exciting theme! My health coaching practice has shown me that one of the biggest misconceptions around eating healthy is that healthy food does not taste good. In fact, consumer reports show that this is the single biggest reason why people don’t consistently make healthy food choices – not money, not convenience, but taste!? Who would have thought that taste is such a hot commodity; even beating time?

And now for the juicy part  –  tips on how to ‘enjoy the taste of eating right’

1. Remove the (mental) junk. We all need to stop telling ourselves that healthy food does not taste good. Changing our thought patterns is one of the hardest things for us to do, especially when we’re told or shown from a young age (through media, advertisements and other outlets) that fast foods and junk foods are tasty and cool. For many people, it’s a deeply ingrained belief that for food to taste good it must be unhealthy and that healthy food does not taste good. While taste is a subjective experience, it’s not entirely rational to believe that the taste and health properties of food correlate as such. Why not give healthy eating a chance this month? Make a conscious effort to change these false, self-limiting beliefs.

having trouble deciding

2. Try a healthy recipe that sounds good to you. It could be one of the recipes from this blog, from other healthy eating blogs or a recipe book. You won’t know until you try! Make it easier for yourself and choose a recipe that includes ingredients that you enjoy.

3. Mindful eating. When you mindfully eat with your senses – sight, smell and taste – you’ll find that real whole foods are far more exciting, colorful and tasty than bland, artificial junk. Most of us don’t chew our food properly and no longer make a meal out of eating. When you savor every bite you may notice that unhealthy food is often not as flavorful or varied as healthy food; for example unhealthy food is often loaded with sugar, salt and refined oil – you can add these to anything and they’ll still taste the same. Versus the abundance of foods that nature offers – a whole world of flavor. In addition, many of these natural flavors are only released when we really chew our food. You can try this with a piece of sweet potato – you’ll notice that the longer you chew it the more sweetness gets released!

heart cutting board

4. Use natural, flavorful condiments to spice up your life – ginger, garlic, turmeric, cumin, sea salt, freshly ground pepper, raw honey, smoked paprika, garlic salt, cayenne pepper – are just a few examples of what you can add to your food for more flavor. Many of these spices also contain anti-inflammatory benefits, so you’re achieving a double benefit.

5. Find inspiration. It could be buying a recipe book that inspires you, finding blogs that speak to you or working with a wellness coach who guides you in making healthy foods taste just right. Inspiring my clients to take back their own health is what I love to do. I run a number of different programs – individual, group, online, health coaching sessions, detox programs- so, when you’re ready, I’m sure we’ll find one that fits your budget and health goals.

There’s about two weeks left in March – lets make it count! Why not make it your goal to Enjoy the Taste of Eating Right? Or you could even turn it into a challenge – use these tips to show yourself that eating right doesn’t only make you feel right from the inside out, but actually makes your taste buds feel just right too 🙂