Nutrition for Longevity
This is not a weight loss post.
I know we are running full speed into your New Year's Resolutions and this may come as a shocker since weight loss quite literally pays our bills, but I stand firm. I am not here to deliver the 2021 skinny pill. Instead, I’m here to perhaps open your eyes to something much much better.
-but before we get to that I feel like it’s important to insert a reality check. And while you may not have asked for it, it is necessary for what follows…
So here it is- you have failed at your diet time and time again because you’ve planned to fail. It’s so much easier to go into something with your excuse for failing already prepared in your back pocket.
“Keto didn’t work for me, it just wasn’t sustainable.”
“Whole 30 was great, but I gained everything back that I lost in those 30 Days.”
“The Juice Cleanse left me with zero energy and a wicked stomachache. ”
You knew full well that this wasn’t going to be the divine answer for your weight loss woes, you knew the second you elaborately planned out your ‘last meal’ before your diet started. I’ll give you time to let that sink in, give you time to try to fight it, but eventually you’ll (hopefully) come to see this as truth. And although you have been riding this fad diet merry-go-round for a while, the cycle can stop.
Prioritize protein at every meal. Think of protein like the sun in our solar system - everything revolves around it. Protein is literally the building block of life, so choose nutritionally dense proteins with the most bio available nutrients. Think grass fed beef, wild caught fish, free range poultry and eggs.
Sneak veggies into your meals on the reg. Don’t like salads? Unfortunate, but manageable. Try air frying your vegetables like your brussels, blending spinach into your daily smoothie, tossing a handful into your scrambled eggs. Get creative and while your getting creative know that you are setting yourself up to not only feel better (goodbye bloat), but you’re going to feel better (read: zen)
Know the difference between Omega-3s and Omega-6 fats, and then reach for those Omega 3s often. There will be a little overlap here, so if you’re already following rule one and two you may already be doing this. Grass fed beef, wild caught fish, and avocado can set you up for the two-birds-one-stone scenario, but you can also add grass fed butters, ghee, avocado and olive oils. While adding these healthy fats try staying away from monounsaturated fat like canola or vegetable oil or processed foods made from these low quality ingredients.
Lean in to the 80/20 rule and make 80% of your diet come from whole sources. We are looking for minimal to no food processing the majority of the time foods from Rule 1,2, and 3. Processing (if you were to call it that) would be the process the butcher takes to provide you that cut of meat or the farmer goes through to get his/her goods to the store. Shifting your idea of grocery shopping to ingredient based instead of pre-made.
Last but not least, give yourself some grace. Your food shouldn’t be a means of punishment or self- control. Choose the above food ‘rules’ over and over again- not because they are rules, but because choosing nutritionally dense foods that fuel your body will always be good for you. And you will always deserve good food.
That’s it. The secret mostly is, there is no secret. Each rule dominoes naturally into the next, and now, you’re eating like a nutrivore. You are eating for nutrients- you’re eating for vitality.
Here is the kicker - you may even notice a body composition change. Either way, I guarantee you will see results.