Want to Participate in a Challenge that Will Change your Life?

Eat a diet of 'real food' for 30 days and see how you feel.  Most of you are probably thinking this challenge would be simple, you already eat healthy what more could you do.  I thought the same until Matt and I began our journey into eating real food.

Here is a little information on eating real food.

1. Eat fresh fruits and vegetables.  Matt and I eat more fruits and vegetables than we ever have and we love it.  I love the variety, freshness, and health benefits we get from the produce we consume.

2. Use natural sweeteners.   See my post on eliminating processed sugar for more information.

3. Snack on nuts, popcorn (organic, air popped is best in order to avoid genetically modified organisms, GMOs, and the chemicals found in microwave popcorn), dried fruit, make your own granola, or yogurt (unsweetened).

4.  When looking at ingredients on products at the store, stay away from items with more than 5 ingredients and/or ingredients that you cannot pronounce.  Okay, some of you may be fantastic decoders and can read any word you come across even if you don't know what it is.  Either way, why would you eat something if you don't know what it is?

5.  Dairy products, as long as they are unsweetened, are a part of a whole food diet.  However, don't forget to read the labels on your yogurt, cottage cheese, and cheese packages.  You may be surprised to find more than five ingredients on the list.

Case in point: Kraft Shredded Mozzarella Cheese (Light):

Nonfat Mozzarella Cheese (Pasteurized Skim Milk and Milk (Trivial Source of Fat), Water, Inulin (Ingredient Not in Regular Mozzarella Cheese) [a Natural Extract of Chickory Root], Sodium Citrate (Ingredient Not in Regular Mozzarella Cheese), Salt, Natural and Artificial Flavor (Ingredient Not in Regular Mozzarella Cheese),Whey (Ingredient Not in Regular Mozzarella Cheese), Milkfat (Trivial Source of Fat), Sorbic Acid as a Preservative (Ingredient Not in Regular MozzarellaCheese), Artificial Color (Ingredient Not in RegularMozzarella Cheese ), Sodium Phosphate (Ingredient Not in Regular Mozzarella Cheese), Enzymes, CheeseCulture, Vitamin A Palmitate); Potato Starch, Cellulose Powder (cellulose is wood pulp), and Calcium Sulfate Added to Prevent Caking, Natamycin (a Natural Mold Inhibitor).

Organic Valley Shredded Mozzarella Cheese: Organic Cultured Pasteurized Part Skim Milk, Salt, Enzymes

6.  Meat (pork, chicken, beef, etc.)  Local, organic meat is the best option.  For a variety of reasons, financial being one of them, meat should be eaten in moderation.

7.  Seafood is also a part of a whole food diet.  Choose wild caught over farm raised for your health and the health of the fish.  Farm raised fish are fed a diet of corn and other ingredients, including antibiotics, they would not naturally eat.  These fish are often gray in color due to nutrient deficiencies and are fed pellets of food coloring to turn them pink.  Sounds delicious, doesn't it?

8. Eat healthy, whole grains  Here is a quick and dirty guide from 100 Days of Real Food

•  Whole grain corn, whole grain cornmeal, whole grain flour (a.k.a. masa harina), and popcorn = whole grain  Try to always eat organic corn and corn products. 
• All oats = whole grain
• Whole wheat = whole grain

• Corn meal, enriched corn meal, corn flour, degerminated corn, grits, and corn starch = refined
• White rice = refined (the germ and bran are removed)
• White flour, "Wheat", enriched flour - refined

Look for the Whole Grain stamp on any pre-packaged items you may buy.  

If you are interested in taking a great 100 Real Food Challenge, try the 100 Day Pledge found here, 100 Days of Real Food.  They also have a 10-Day Pledge and Weekly Pledges for those who are interested in the challenge but not sure about committing to 100 days.  The blog has great information for those who are interested in Whole Foods.  

My next posts will be about how we eat a Whole Food diet on a budget.  Stay tuned and good luck on your journey.  Your body will thank you!