Good Eating Habits

Another bloggerie imported from "The Other Side of My Life".

In a previous bloggerie, I wrote about beans. I had also indulged in quite a bit of cheese, and bacon...So yummy. Do I feel guilty? Not really.

Here's my philosophy: Balance. Yes, I believe we need to keep an eye to our health. I think that good eating habits are necessary, especially in this day and age where we don't really get enough exercise.

What are good eating habits? Sometimes it is very hard to determine what exactly optimal nutrition is. The "experts" keep coming out with new rules. High protein, Low Carbohydrate, NO Wait, Low Protein, High Carbohydrate, etc.....You must do your own research based on your individual needs. Not everyone has the same needs. Maybe you have medical considerations, or spiritual beliefs about what to eat or not.

One word of warning for Vegetarians: Be sure to read up on how to get good nutrition from plant based foods. Combining certain foods will give complete proteins. For example, legumes combined with whole grains like brown rice will give you a complete protein. This is important. My partner had a woman friend many years ago that did not heed this. Either she did not know about it, or she did not believe it, I do not know. My partner says that she had damaged her liver as a result and ended up dying at too young an age.

We are all different. I once tried Vegetarianism. I experienced low energy, but when I added meat back into my diet, I felt much better. I have friends that say they have higher energy since being on a vegetarian diet.

I have often thought that one diet is not necessarily good for everyone. Think about it. Until fairly recently (in terms of history), people did not move around the globe. They pretty much stayed in their ancestral regions. They adapted to the food resources in that area over many generations. For example, people originally from Alaska ate a lot of whale blubber. If some of the rest of us ate that, we would keel over at an early age. The experts say eggs and bacon are high in cholesterol, but my grandmother ate bacon and eggs nearly every morning for her entire life. She lived to be in her late 80's, and had low cholesterol. Go figure.

I have since found a very interesting book "Cook Right for Your Type" by Dr. Peter J. D'Adamo with Catherine Whitney. (He wrote another book "Eat Right for Your Type", but I have not yet read that one.) In this book, he outlines different dietary requirements based on your blood type. I don't know enough to judge the veracity of his theories, but it does make sense to me. Just something to think about. It does support my experience with vegetarianism. I am "O positive". Dr. D'Adamo says that type "O" blood types are the oldest types and evolved when we were hunter-gatherers. So apparently, I need meat.

"Buyer Beware". This is a phrase associated with capitalism. Although capitalism has many good points, it also has some down sides. It means that everyone is competing for your business. Even diets, specifically, food producers. The milk producers want you to buy milk, the egg producers want you to buy eggs, etc. They publish studies promoting the health benefits of their products. I think that one needs to look deeply whenever someone is promoting something. Sometimes, it is good advice, based on good studies. Sometimes, though, even with studies to back up their claims, they are less than honest. Study results can be misrepresented. Statistics can be manipulated. I admit to being rather conservative about jumping onto the latest health craze.

Learn the basics. Answer these questions. What do each of the nutritional elements do for me? What does protein do? What do carbohydrates do?, Etc. What are my health concerns? Then use this knowledge to evaluate eating plans.

Personally, as I stated before, I like balance. I have no medical issues like diabetes, so My Plan is based on having no medical concerns. Through some study and some trial and error where I paid close attention to what happened in my body; here is what I ended up with:

1. Eat a variety of foods. This offers less chance of developing food allergies. (Not a guarantee, just lessens the chance).

2. Eat meat (incluiding fish, chicken, beef, etc) on occasion not necessarily every day.

3. Get plenty of fiber, both soluable and non-soluable. (Grains are high in non-soluable, and vegetables are high in soluable).

4. Don't eat a lot of fried foods. When using fats, olive oil is one of the best. I do use butter as opposed to margarine, it has the same calories, and is a natural product. It is rich, though, and should be on the "be careful" list. Same thing with bacon drippings.

5. Don't eat a lot of processed or convenience food. (I don't think our bodies were designed for synthetic food).

6. Indulge myself on occasion, food should be enjoyed. (When I indulge in fatty, rich foods; the next few days I balance it with salads and very low-fat foods.) This is also related to dieting for weight control. I used to diet a lot. I ended up gaining weight. I learned that for me, dieting made me feel deprived. When I was deprived, I rebelled by binging. I learned that I needed a different approach. So I gave myself permission to have what I wanted. At first, I didn't really quite believe this, and ate too much of the "bad foods". Over time however, once I believed I could have what I wanted, I began to actually crave salads! I learned to make small changes in my diet over time so that they became the norm for me. (Cut back on this, eat more of that, etc.) I realize that this is not a plan for everyone. Some people don't have the time (medically speaking) to get through the transition safely. (Not a good plan for diabetics for example). Some people have different issues with food. You must find your own plan. No one is perfect. Give yourself permission to make mistakes. It does not mean failure. Keep at it. No, I am not at the optimum weight, but I feel good. What I really need is more exercise. I am still working on that one.

In summary, I eat natural whole foods. I occasionally indulge in the "bad foods". I balance this indulgence by being extra careful for some days afterwards.

What did I balance that cheese and bacon fat with? A wonderful salad "Spiced Orange Chicken Salad" from the book "Readers Digest Live Longer Cookbook". The salad is made with cooked diced chicken, greens (like lettuce and spinach), boiled potatoes, steamed carrots and a spiced orange dressing made without any oil. Orange slices on the side. Delicious. This book has many delicious, easy to make, and healthy recipes. As you can see, it has some wear and tear. I use it frequently for inspiration as well as just following the recipes.

Later that week, I went to a friends house where we grilled chicken breasts. I made a unique potato salad. It is a recipe my German stepmother taught me. No mayonaise, and it is not the more commonly known sweet and sour German potato salad. You will just have to wait till next time. I will publish the recipe for my next bloggerie. As usual, I invite comments, and questions.