You Are What You Eat!

First off
 I would like to say that I am no saint in the food area! I love pie, an occasional Coca Cola or Root beer & Lord knows I have been supporting Taco Bell hard core this past month! Those Grilled Stuffed Nachos are off the chain!! lol

Eating healthy has never been hard for me... I was raised on fruits & veggies. I thought Sprite was the only soda for years & I believed McDonald's was the only place that had it. I also thought McDonald's only served Sprite & hot fudge sundaes! (That's all we ever got from there!) Ha ha! & Craker Barrell was the only place we went to dinner. Sweet tea, Milk, lemonade, coffee & OJ were the only beverages found in our house on a regular basis. I've maybe had 5 lunchables in my whole life & 3 have been because of hunting season. I never had Hamburger Helper or a Pop Tart until I was 18 & moved out!

 I was obsessed with yogurt & Cole-slaw at the age of 3. I vaguely remember my birthdays under 6 but I 100% remember a birthday party of mine where all I wanted was Cole-slaw & that's all I ate!! My siblings & I must be the only kids in our generation that like oatmeal, cream of wheat, plain cornflakes with honey & frosted mini wheat cereal. Grapefruit was another breakfast tradition! I remember multiple occasions where us kids were running the neighborhood with muscadine grapes & sugar cane... munching away!! In our world fried platinos, fresh cream corn & sweet potatoes were desserts. Apple sauce was always served with dinner and 90% of the time there was a melon, avocado or tomato cut up on the table. Honey-do, crenshaw melon, papaya & mango...So Good!! Oh & we all loved dried fruit... even prunes, I actually have some at my house now...

I cherish all of these things & hope I can instill this love for good food in my kids. It breaks my heart to hear someone say they don't like a vegetable or fruit... They are really a gift from God!!
I would rather have steamed squash over cake & ice cream any day!!

Through my research (I have done A LOT), I have developed a guideline (Which is broken occasionally but with self control. That's why its a guideline, not a rule)... If God didn't make it that way... it can't be good for you! This kind of falls in the line of "Clean Eating" Which is THE BEST lifestyle you can implement. Its not a diet, its a whole life changing reform. Its the only eating plan that makes any sense! Of course all things need to be eaten in moderation even when eating clean (Shrimp/lobster, milk, & cream cheese... things naturally high in cholesterol & saturated fat. We need a little of both but we have to stay in control). I wouldn't really even say cheese was a "Clean" food but its not unhealthy. With this being said, I'm not a party pooper ... I believe in enjoying life & sometimes you need a juicy burger & fries from Steak N Shake to do that... lol but I, maybe have 2 all year & will sometimes pick sushi over a burger, & sushi is beyond healthy & clean! I really love the 80/20 rule... If you eat 6 small meals all 7 days then 20% would be 8.2 meals that you can indulge, but I wouldn't make the whole meal an indulgence... i.e.: If you eat Chick Fil A, get the fried chicken but opt for fruit & a water on the side...

If you ever hardcore eat clean, you will feel like crap for the first few days... your body is freaking out! But I promise if you push through, there is victory in the form of energy, better complexion & great mood!! I truly feel that I think more clear when I eat healthy!

If you ever stray from hardcore clean eating, you will pay for it... Again, your body is freaking out!! Things like Doritos may have never bothered you before but that's because your body was used to eating junk. Now its living free of harsh chemicals & finally being the best it can be & then BAM, you hit it with an atomic bomb!

Now, I am 100% against sugar substitutes, hormones, antibiotics, MSG & other preservatives....     I get a lot of negative feedback from a lot of people for not drinking diet drinks or even chewing gum made with aspartame(Why? I have no clue.. its my choice, there's always water, Bubble Yum & Tic Tacs). Say what you will but we didn't always know how bad asbestos or smoking cigarettes is/was but with growing technology we have proof that both kill slowly & painfully... why is this generation so ignorant to new research? Even if embalming fluid wasn't harmful, it still grosses me out to know that it's what we preserve the dead with & every time you chew a piece of Extra or Wrigley, you have embalming fluid in your mouth, seeping to your eyes, sinuses, brain & blood stream! What happened to good ole fashioned sugar?? What's 5 calories compared to 0 with deadly effects? Are we that demented that we would rather kill ourselves early just as long as we are thin while alive? And then no one is succeeding at losing weight on a "no sugar" diet because of all the other negative effects it has on the body that in turn, still keeps the weight on. Instead of checking the nutrition facts so much, check the ingredients section & Google all of these names you cant pronounce!

 Do your OWN research before you eat anything you are unsure of & when you start a new "diet", research what will happen if you eliminate that food group or nutrient!! Its not about being paranoid, its about being informed!!

My last point & I will leave it at this...

Many will make a valid point about how expensive eating healthy is. Please look up the prices of heart surgery, dialysis, chemotherapy & all of these other medical procedures that are needed as a result of poor diet. I would rather pay more for good food my whole life, feel great all the time & live longer.