04 Nov Eat, Drink AND Be Healthy: A 12-Category Smart Approach
Article written by Lifebook Member Jason Moore
If you’re like most people, when it comes to eating, and drinking, it tends to go one of two ways: either you eat and drink for pleasure OR you eat and drink for health. And probably do a lot of yo-yoing between the two.
Most people believe they can’t have it both ways – it seems like nothing that’s pleasurable to eat and drink can really be good for you and nothing that’s good for you can really be pleasurable to eat and drink.
This is BULLSHIT!
A limited view of eating and drinking all begins with a limited definition of “health”. So, let’s ask the question, “what is health any way”?
By one dictionary definition, “health” is another word for “wholeness” – meaning “complete” or “nothing missing or lacking” from life. By this definition, health occurs, not just on the physical level, but also on many other levels including: mental, emotional, spiritual, financial, social, and environmental. We all know that from going through Lifebook, right?
Well, the fact is that what you eat and drink also contributes to your “wholeness” on many different levels. It’s important to eat in alignment with your health goals, but food needs feed you intellectually, emotionally and socially as well!
Eating and drinking brings human beings together in celebration of the special moments in life, both large and small;, the joining of two people or families through marriage or partnership, the birth of a child, a victory at work or in sports, or just simple, enjoyable social interaction. We all have those special meals we eat that just remind us of good times, of family, and so much more, and we simply don’t want to have to give all that up in order to be “a certain version of healthy”.
In fact, eating “healthy” food with a bad attitude or a negative feeling of scarcity and lack, force and fight, struggle and resistance, will equal a negative, or at least neutral, impact on your physical health no matter how “healthy” the food is supposed to be!
People tend to believe they have to go to some kind of extreme in order to get healthy and maintain it – and that causes them to either fail to get started or fail to follow through.
But what if you could experience the health and vitality you want and deserve – REAL Health Freedom – without having to go to those extremes or sacrifice the joy of living?
Managing your health and vitality powerfully is kind of like managing a bank account. As long as you’re making more energy and nutrient deposits than withdrawals, then you’re creating a surplus. And if not, you’ll go physically bankrupt. However, just like when you’re managing your finances, you don’t only buy assets. Sometimes you have fun with your money! Well, managing an extraordinary level of health and vitality works exactly the same way! In fact, by only focusing on the health aspects of what you’re eating and drinking, you couild end up emotionally or socially bankrupt on some level.
There are times when eating or drinking certain things may not be the best contribution to your overall physical health and vitality, but may actually lend to other important areas of your life. You don’t have to give up everything you love or never enjoy a junk food snack or fun food or drink again. What’s most important is what you do consistently over time – not what you do every once in a while. Overall, you need to make more deposits than withdrawals. And if you do, you’ll be able to indulge when the time is right!
The key is to become intelligent about your body and about food to the point that you know the impact of what you’re eating. You must learn how to balance your diet properly so you’re making more energy and nutrient deposits and supporting proper digestion and elimination.The way to do it is by focusing on buying organic and local as often as possible while balancing your meals by The 7:70 and The Dirty 30 – which means in 70% of your diet, focus on The 7 Vital Foods and in the other 30%, allow for the naughty and fun stuff, or the foods and drinks that tend to make more of an energy and nutrient withdraw. This provides the freedom to enjoy life without making yourself sick and tired.
The 7 Vital Foods™ include:
1. Living Liquids – Fresh Green Vegetable Juice & Alkaline Structured Water
2. Power Purees – Alkaline Green Smoothies & Vegetable Soups
3. Satiating Salads – Leafy Green Meal-Sized Salads w/ Sprouts, Seeds, & Fats
4. Gourmet Greens – Creatively Prepared Live Dark & Leafy Green Vegetables
5. Fatty Fruits – Fruits That Are High In Healthy Fats, Like Avocado & Coconut
6. Super Nutritious Nuts & Seeds™ – Like Almonds & Hemp, Flax, or Chia Seeds
7. Pseudo Grains – Seeds That Look & Taste Like Grains, Such As Buckwheat, Amaranth, Quinoa, & Wild Rice
You can do this easily by turning around and balancing your meals. Instead of choosing meat or starch as your main course, choose a Satiating Salad or Gourmet Greens as 70-80% of each meal and keep either the meat or starch your 20-30% side item.
Also, depending on whether you’re a meat-eater, a vegetarian, or vegan, make sure you always choose either organic, free-range, and grass fed meat, sustainably caught or certified clean fish, or 100% whole grains, and preferably pseudo-grains like buckwheat, quinoa, amaranth, and wild rice, as better-choice alternatives in the smaller percentage of your diet.
By focusing on The 7 Vital Foods in the majority of your diet, you’ll get plenty of water, chlorophyll, alkaline minerals, healthy fats, soluble and insoluble fiber, plant-based amino acids, and so much more – power-packed nutrition that, along with daily exercise and enough rest, provides the body with everything you need to create and maintain the level of health and vitality – and ultimately the quality of life you’re committed to and without forcing you to sacrifice the joy of living.
Jason S. Moore PHLE, MNCM, MMT