Eating For Health

Ok let’s start off with the basics. I LOVE food, all kinds, I’m not very biased. Most people assume that I don’t eat or that I don’t enjoy the pleasures of eating a warm fresh out of the oven Krispy Kreme donut.

If there’s one girl who cannot give up sweets, its me (and most of you ;)). A warm brownie topped with ice cream, a cookie that’s soft on the inside, a decadent creamy cheesecake, it makes my face light up. Most people abuse the privilege of eating, that’s when it becomes a problem. It doesn’t take much to pack on some serious pounds. Sure genetics may help keep you thin, while you put down cheeseburger after cheeseburger, but in reality what’s the need? Does it make you feel good and satisfied? My mom use to take me to McDonalds everyday after school. I always ordered the same thing: a cheeseburger, fries, and a milkshake. If I only knew how many calories I was consuming on that meal alone.

It doesn’t take long to start seeing that extra bulge that wasn’t there before. That’s when people start to diet. If there’s one word I hate (after toned), it’s diet. It sounds like some sort of torture where you must eat less than 1400 calories or else. It becomes a contest to see how little calories you can eat each day without possibly passing out.

“You ate 1000? Please I ate 500, you need more will power if you want to be thin”

As soon as you start seeing the weight come off, it becomes natural to think you’re doing it right while you deprive your body of all the nutrients it needs. This is the trap of the diet. You eat crap, you gain weight. You eat less crap, you lose weight. Once you’ve reached your “goal” weight which is usually lower than what you said you were going to be then the old eating habits start creeping back. McDonalds for breakfast, Wendys for lunch, BK for dinner.

As a society I’ve come to realize that people don’t eat healthy for nutrition, they do it for body image. I changed my eating habits because I put on some weight but I still eat that way because it’s what my body needs to feel good and to work efficiently. Most people don’t understand the concept. Having McDonalds because you reached your goal weight churns my stomach. Eat a real damn burger, not some mystery meat. I prefer my food over restaurant food any day of the week. I enjoy food more than 90% of people who take it for granted. Eating at a fancy restaurant is a gift to myself, not just a regular occurrence.

I eat veggies, fruits, and whole grains because it gives me the minerals, vitamins, and EFA’s to keep my body running. This isn’t a path to weight loss for me because once you reach it, most people don’t know where to go. Eat for health and you’ll never go wrong. And for that those people who said oatmeal is disgusting, I might have to reconsider our friendship 😉

OIAJ

Made with oats, flax, 1/3 nanner, 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk,

2/3 cup water, cinnamon

Topped with walnuts, raisins, bunnies!

Banana Bread Oatmeal

Made with oats, flax, 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk, 2/3 cup water,

1/3 nanner cinnamon, & 1/3 of a Western Cinnamon bagel

Topped with peanuts, graham cracker, Back to Nature granola, and cinnamon raisin pb

Now please tell me you don’t like oatmeal 🙂

• Do you find that most people start eating healthy for the wrong reasons?