Your Food Habit


foodwater

Over the last several weeks, I’ve been exploring Gretchen Rubin’s concepts from her book Better Than Before.  Last week, I looked at her first foundation habit of sleep.  This week I want to look at eat and drink right.

Few things in life are as life giving and as foundational as eating.  Without food for more than three weeks, you will die.  Then again with too much of the wrong food, you will die too.  Hum.  Interesting thought, really. 

Rubin exposes a paradox between needing food and control — “the brain needs food to manage impulses, one of the best ways to avoid impulsive overeating is to eat.” (64) 

Tweetable: Your brain needs food to manage impulses. Tweet!

Are you a meal skipper?  Skipping meals messes with your blood sugar, which in turn, cause you to overeat and usually of the not so good kind of foods.   “Research suggests that skipping meals is a bad idea, perhaps being hungry makes it harder to control impulses to overeat,” suggests Rubin. (65)  That means don’t skip breakfast, lunch or dinner.  Maintaining a balanced blood glucose level means you will feel calmer, in control and consistent energy levels.

Choose a variety of foods to feed your body.  The best way is to include carbohydrates, lean proteins and healthy fats.  Carbohydrates include fruits, vegetables, starches and grains.  A healthy balanced selection of nutrients results in a happy body, mind and mood.

You can only survive three days without water. Yet you live in a culture plagued by dehydration because we use other liquids to satisfy our thirst.  Water is the primary component of all of your bodily fluids — blood, lymph, digestive juices, urine, tears and sweat.  In fact, water is involved in almost every bodily function too — circulation, digestion, absorption of nutrients, and elimination of wastes and toxins.  Then your nervous system needs water to carry electrolytes, mineral salts, that help to conduct electrical currents. Yep, your body needs water, so fill up your glass and drink up.

For some, it is tea or coffee or energy drinks.  For others, it might be sugary sodas or fruit juices.  Or perhaps, you may choose alcohol.  Regardless of your “drink” of choice, you must make water your first choice.  Why?  Your body is mostly water.  In fact, your body should be fifty (females) to sixty (males) percent water.  Unfortunately, many individuals are much less than that. 

Dehydration often causes fatigue and headache.  Subsequently, hydration is very important!  A good rule is to drink BEFORE you are thirsty.  Try an app to help keep track of how much you are drinking each day — Plant Nanny, AddWater, Daily Water Free – Water Reminder or Water Daily.  Since you probably have a smartphone, why not use it to track your water.

To eat and drink right, you need to eat balanced nutrients from good sources and drink enough water to hydrate your body to function well.  Make it your habit to eat and drink well.  Then you can live a healthy and vibrant life.

What are you doing to make healthy food choices?  Do you have any tips you use regularly?  Take a moment to share.  I enjoy hearing from my readers.

Needing some help to improve your food and drink choices?  Take action by emailing Brenda  to schedule a FREE Discovery Chat.  Sometimes all you need is a person to make you accountable.  Brenda can be your cheerleader and coach, but not unless you take time to reach out.


Resources:
Gretchen Rubin, Better Than Before, Doubleday Canada, 2015.


About Brenda

Brenda loves learning and sharing what she's learning with you. She is a certified keto/carnivore coach with Keto-Adapted (Maria and Craig Emmerich, a certified holistic nutritional consultant (CHNC), and a natural nutrition clinical practitioner (NNCP).