A Fresh Start
This post is an in-depth followup to my article on YorkRegion.com
Happy New Year! For all of us, the start of a new year brings with it hope and excitement for a fresh start – especially this year! You have 365 days ahead to plan out, get long-overdue projects started and hopefully, completed, get things crossed off the To-Do list, to look forward to the coming seasons - especially Spring, with its promise of renewal and the hint of warmer weather. There is a calm excitement and anticipation that the first days of the new year bring and with it lots of good intentions to take better care of ourselves, especially after indulging over the holidays. We start out being enthusiastic with working out, or being more active outdoors, eating and snacking ‘healthier’, drinking more water… and then in a few weeks (days even perhaps), we are back to our old routines and disappointed in ourselves that we didn’t stick with it. This is especially true of those with health conditions that can be easily helped, hidden inflammation symptoms soothed and eased by what we eat and those of us who want to manage our weight more effectively (having eaten too many Covid lockdown cookies and holiday sweets, I hear you!).
With small, simple and maintainable changes in what we eat and getting our bodies moving and heart rate up - a brisk walk outdoors in the fresh air, climbing the stairs at home a few times, dancing around your kitchen or chair exercises – we can quickly see and feel great benefits and this will keep us motivated to continue!
Let’s look at what we put on our forks, look at culinary nutritional and good food, whole food, the right food to heal and soothe a body in imbalance, from arthritis to diabetes to polycystic ovary syndrome and for weight management, wonderful delicious foods with anti-inflammatory, high fiber and low glycemic qualities (to keep blood sugar in balance). These three categories of food are so healthful to ease inflammation, which is the root cause of so many health conditions, for weight management and to achieve vibrancy and healthy bodies.
Foods to Avoid (or rarely indulge in)
Food with high Glycemic Index (GI) are digested quickly and spike insulin levels: https://guidelines.diabetes.ca/docs/patient-resources/glycemic-index-food-guide.pdf
High GI foods include very ripe bananas, raisins, baked goods with white flour and white refined sugar, instant white rice.
Hydrogenated fats – margarine and shortening.
Inflammatory Foods - processed snacks, fried food, red meat – potato chips, fries, cold cuts, hot dogs, beef.
Caffeine – coffee and black teas.
Excessive Alcohol
Foods to Embrace
Food with low Glycemic Index (GI) such as quinoa, peas and sweet potatoes, are digested more slowly and they do not spike insulin levels, keeping the sugar levels more balanced. https://guidelines.diabetes.ca/docs/patient-resources/glycemic-index-food-guide.pdf.
High-fiber foods - eating high-fiber whole foods such as broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, sweet potatoes, lentils, chickpeas, oats and chia seeds will not only give you loads of healthful nutrients, they will make you feel full and are beneficial for your digestion, feeding and balancing your gut bacteria and these are also key for elimination.
Anti-inflammatory foods – calm your body with foods such as spinach, walnuts, tomatoes, leafy greens (spinach and kale) salmon
Healthy oils - olive oil, coconut oil. avocado oil, grape seed oil
Whole proteins – eggs, hemp hearts, lean meats like chicken, salmon
Herbal teas – Health Food stores and grocery stores have many to choose from – my favourite is Chamomile Lavender. Or make your own infusion – watch for a post on this in the near future!
You will be surprised, proud, confident and have more energy when you start feeling the results of eating nutrient-rich food – add some exercise and your body will thank you with better sleep and energy. Why put anything in your body or on your body (that’s an article for another time!) that isn’t wholesome and healthy and doesn’t make you feel terrific! It’s time to look after yourself and put YOU first to be the best you can be! Take time for yourself to rest, recharge and refuel to nourish your body and soul.
The symmetry of the numbers in the year 2020 should have made it a balanced year. It was anything but. Let’s move towards having our lives and our bodies be in balance THIS year. Let’s make 2021 be a really Happy and Healthy New Year!