Tag Archive for nutrition
Play… Eat… Nourish
Do you eat the same foods all the time?
Do you always cook foods the same way?
I remember my mother-in-law making the same meals every week. Sunday was a traditional roast. Monday was the left-over meat from Sunday, cold with mash and pickles. Friday was always fish, and there was a sausage day in there somewhere as well. I always found this funny, as did my 2 daughters!
My mother in law was quite a bit older than my mother and it just goes to show how things change over the years. We have so many different foods available to us now.
We need many different nutrients to nourish our body and eating a varied diet will definitely help with this.
But it is easy to stick to the same foods and recipes all the time.
Play/experiment with you food.
By preparing food differently you may find that you are eating foods that you thought you didn’t even like.
Red and yellow peppers taste totally different when eaten raw to when eaten cooked.
Try cooking peppers in the oven on a baking tray with other veg. Serve up with some feta cheese and a drizzle of garlic infused olive oil. Ummmm.
…and when raw, slice up and dip in houmas or add to a salad.
I find cauliflower an uninteresting taste when steamed (unless it’s covered in cheese and baked). But have you tried eating that raw?
How about grated and stir fried with other veg? It looks (and can be mistaken for) special fried rice…honestly…I made it for my brother and he didn’t know the difference.
If you usually break it up into florets, try slicing the whole cauli instead and adding it to an omelette with tomatoes and some cooked chicken or ham. Gives it a totally different taste.
Do you like mash potato? Have you ever thought about mashing other root veg? Swede I expect? From school? Now remove the thought of school dinners from your head and think instead about posh mash.
Celeriac and potatoes with a spoonful of wholegrain mustard; lovely: 0)
Or add carrots to your potatoes to give an interesting colour combination, flavour and also a way to get more veg into your diet.
Houmous can be made with other beans, not just chick peas. Try mashing down butter beans or cannellini and experimenting with different herbs and spices.
What about
- Veg you usually cook…try it raw. Courgettes are so much nicer raw! I use them instead of cucumber in a salad
- Cooling cooked foods before you eat them – I have only started eating fish in the last year (to increase my protein intake and Omega 3 fatty acids). I thought I didn’t like salmon, but it tasted differently after I had cooked it and left it to go cold.
- Add veg in with the meat of your bolognaise, lasagne, shepherd/cottage pie meat. Grating carrots, adding tinned legumes, diced veg can be easily added to bulk out the meat and it’s also a great way of getting the children to eat more veg as well – most of the time they won’t even notice you’ve sneaked some veg in there!
Lots of interesting replacements you can make with lots of different foods, recipes and meal. But I shall leave it there and let you experiment. Let me know what you come up with :0) I would love to hear what you have done differently, let me know on my facebook page
Penny x
Would you like a biscuit?
What do you do when offered a biscuit?
This could be out of habit; not being mindful about what you are eating does not help the new year weight loss goals.
Next time you reach out for something that is not on your healthy eating plan, hesitate… » Read more
Is it my hormones or is it warm in here?
Do you suffer from hot flushes or night sweats?
Have you tried liquorice root to help the symptoms? (No, not the liquorice you get in the sweatshop!)
Many supermarkets are selling liquorice teas now. Teapigs do a very tasty liquorice and peppermint (I was lucky enough to try this at a friend’s this week as she had been given some free samples!)
Many women have told me over the last few years that they have been sprinkling flax seeds on their breakfast cereals to combat hot flushes.
But there is no research supporting flax seeds helping with heated moments. (Although they are good for increasing fibre intake so keep going with them if you are following this regime.)
There is supporting evidence towards licorice helping with hot flushes…so go buy some tea ladies if you are suffering.
But remember, the problem can also be exacerbated by too high a sugar intake in your diet.
So combine the liquorice tea with a lifestyle change towards sugar and you’ll be well on your way to combating those tropical moments.
Do you suffer from fois gras!
If you go onto Google Translate and translate fatty liver into French…the translation is fois gras!
The French delicacy fois gras is made by force-feeding ducks starchy carbohydrates (corn), which turns to sugar.
Fatty liver = hepatitis from eating too much sugar (and an unhealthy diet all round)
Having a fatty liver causes problems as our liver is unable to work properly which leads to a further increased load of toxins in our bodies, creating more disease.
Can you choose one thing this week to help your liver out? Here are some ideas
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Start your day with a protein breakfast instead of sugary cereals
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Reduce the amount of sugar you have in your cups of tea/coffee
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Swap your afternoon cake/Mars bar/crisps for some almonds
Maybe you have some other healthy ideas? I’d love to hear them…share on my facebook page getfit2 or email me getfit2@yahoo.co.uk :0)