Holistic Squid weighs in with a nutrient-dense spin on Jessica S.'s diet. Jessica owns a water physical therapy business and lives in the mountains of Los Angeles with her boyfriend and dog. Here's what Jessica ate today:
Breakfast: Coffee with raw cream and unsweetened cacao and maple syrup. Half of a sandwich of hardboiled egg, tomato, basil and mayo on sourdough toast.
Lunch: Other half of egg sandwich and a banana.
Afternoon snack: Strawberries and an asian pear.
Dinner: Home made fried brown basmati rice with butter, ginger, onion, zucchini, corn, tomato and some coconut oil too.
Dessert: Don't always have a dessert but today I did…Hagen Das chocolate ice cream with a scoop of organic peanut butter.
Before bed: Some unsweetened blueberry juice and sparkling water.
Supplements: Fish oil, probiotics and vitamin B complex.
Dietary History: I'm fairly active and fairly healthy. I love vegetables, but I also love pretzels.
Dietary goals: Would love to lose the twenty pounds I gained since quitting smoking [one year ago]. I also felt really good when I was drinking a lot of juices made from vegetables and greens and would like to get back into that.
Challenges: Since running my own business, I sometimes find it hard to find the time for the “good for you” food. I'm better at eating well during the day, it's the nighttime when I end up eating junk food. Also, I could definitely get a bit better about being more healthy when eating out at restaurants.
Holistic Squid's two cents…
Hi Jessica. Congratulations on quitting smoking! Great to see the nutrient dense choices of raw cream, eggs, butter, and coconut oil. Here are some suggestions for leaning out and feeling nourished while running your own business and dining out.
- Reverse Load Your Day – While you're making decent choices, your meals for the first half of the day are lighter, with more calorie dense carbs coming in at dinner and beyond (rice and ice cream). Try flipping this by doubling your protein and fat at breakfast and lunch, and swapping out your afternoon snack with a protein/fat combo instead of fruit. This way, you'll feel less of a need to fill up on junk food when nighttime rolls around.
- Up the Veg – Aim to make 80% of each meal come from fresh or cooked low-starch vegetables such as salad greens, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, collards, chard, carrots, cabbage, etc. These veggies provide low density carbohydrates which help your tummy feel comfortably full while providing your body with hydration, vitamins, minerals, and enzymes. Since you already like your veggies, this should be easy.
- Cut the carbs, but keep the Fat – The fastest way to lean out while not feeling like your starving is to drastically reduce your grains and sugar intake. Did you know that your body only requires fat and protein to function (not carbohydrates)? Ditch the bread with breakfast and lunch. Snack on protein, fat, and veggies instead of fruit, and swap out the rice for extra veggies and protein at dinner.
- Use Fruit Sparingly – While fresh, local, organic fruit is delicious and nutritious, it's also full of sugar. For that reason, those of us aiming to feel more lean should drastically cut back on fruit. Have a piece a day, or wait til your body's craving the nutrients (like vitamin C) not the sugar fix. When pouring your sparkling water, add only a splash of juice for flavor or none at all.
- Eat Like You're at Home – When out in a restaurant or dinner at a friends, remain conscious-minded with your food choices. Don't glom a basket of bread or order the fries just because they are offered. While these things are certainly fine on occasion, eating out frequently requires that you think before you bite. Aim for grain-less dishes – salad topped with salmon, or an entree minus the starchy side. And while desserts are a fun indulgence, limit them to once per month at most. For more tips on eating Real Food in the real world, check out this post.
- Try Broth as Medicine – Since nicotine is a powerful stimulant, quitting smoking can throw a wrench in your digestive mojo leading to tummy upset, increased appetite, and slowed metabolism that can take some time to recover from. While I'm not typically a fan of green juice for nutrition (much less nutrients are assimilated when greens aren't paired with fat), juiced veggies may act as a good cleansing agent as your tummy adjusts to life post-ciggies. To help heal your digestive system, try drinking a cup of beef or fish bone broth at least twice per day in addition to any home-cooked soups you may be making.
Thanks, Jessica!
Would YOU like to have a Holistic Squid, nutrient-dense spin on what YOU ate today? Send me your name, age, home town, and occupation plus your list of breakfast, lunch, snacks, supplements, dietary goals, and challenges to info at holisticsquid dot com. Please include a fun picture too.
Leave a Reply