The Healthy Way of Life Food Pyramid

Welcome to my very first Blog post!

In my first post I want to talk about the Healthy Way of Life Food Pyramid. The information I will be talking about is from Life Time Fitness' Eat Well Live Well manual.

Over the past 10,000 years, changes in agriculture have progressively made us more dependent on high-carbohydrate foods such as oats, grains, potatoes and the processed foods they’re converted into. For much of that time we were very active, but in recent years our activity levels have decreased to a point where we have a hard time burning off those carbohydrates.

In the past 60 years, the carbohydrates we eat have become so heavily processed that our foods look nothing like the plants they came from. These highly processed foods lack the nutrients that help us feel satisfied, so we crave more and more of them. When you combine our high-carbohydrate, highly processed diets with our sedentary lifestyles, the results are more than weight gain. Also, the rates of cancer, diabetes, heart disease, autoimmune diseases and a variety of other illnesses are growing at alarming rates.

The good news is that we can dramatically change our health, energy levels and physical conditioning. No more diets. No more short-term answers to take the weight off. A Healthy Way of Life nutrition plan is based on real food, high-quality nutritional supplements and gaining a new perspective on the foods you eat every day. Here are some highlights to building a better nutrition plan;

• Eat plenty of non-starchy vegetables throughout the day, and one or two servings of fruit.

• Eat organic, naturally raised/grown protein or use a protein supplement with each meal.

• Add nuts, seeds and healthy oils for flavor, healthy fat and energy.

• Adjust the amount of starchy vegetables and other carbohydrates like grains based on your activity level.

• Limit unhealthy meals as much as possible. If you do have one, don’t beat yourself up about it—just do better next time.

• Take high-quality multivitamins and fish oil, as well as additional supplements to support any missing links in your metabolism.

Vegetables should make up a significant part of the foods you eat. Don’t worry, though. You don’t have to eat plain raw broccoli and carrots all day. When you look at the variety of vegetables available, you’ll realize you actually have access to a tremendous number of different flavors. Because you won’t be eating large amounts of processed foods, you’ll also have more freedom to use healthy fats to season your vegetables.

High-quality protein is important to help control hunger and maintain blood glucose levels. Nuts, seeds and healthy oils will become a regular part of your diet and provide a variety of health benefits. Starchy carbohydrates, grains and other carbohydrate sources can be part of the plan if you’re active enough, and as long as you’re aware of the types of grains you’re eating. Finally, you can still eat foods that are not part of the plan on occasion—that is, if you still want to.

Following The Healthy Way of Life food pyramid can help you maintain a healthy weight, increase your energy and feel great every day. Use it as a guide. Some days you’ll eat more healthy foods, and some days you may come up short. Just like saving and investing money, the results come from long-term commitment and the right choices over weeks, months and years.

That’s it for now. Remember, I’m here for YOU so please share questions and comments below!

—Gina Batcheller, Health and Fitness Professional