Diary of a Nutritionist

I am often asked questions about what I eat and why I eat the way I do…

Am I a vegetarian?  A vegan?  A raw foodist?

The answer to these questions is, no… I do not technically fit -perfectly- into any of the above categories.

So, how do I eat?

First, I will start out by saying that the way I eat now was not something that occurred overnight.  As I have stated before, I grew up on fast foods, fried chicken, grilled chicken, pasta, cereal, pretzels, processed turkey meat, sugar-free treats, and the like.

Clean eating is not something that you should just up and adopt one morning… it is something that happens progressively.  As you start to make healthier changes in your diet, your body will naturally start to acquire a taste for healthier foods.

Why is it a progressive change?

I do not think it is wise to stop eating your favorite foods cold-turkey.  Feeling deprived is never fun and it is not good for your emotional or physical well-being. That being said, there are some foods that I do not think are fit for human consumption (soy, cow milk, peanuts, processed and fried foods, white sugar, white flour, etc.).  However, there are wonderful and high quality alternatives that you can enjoy instead.

In fact, one of the things that is so fun about living a healthier lifestyle, is the food!  You can have an infinite amount of fun playing around with different recipes.  I like to look through cookbooks and see how I can alter the ingredients to make it healthier without sacrificing flavor.

How I eat:

• I generally try to eat about 70% raw (live) foods
• I focus the majority of my attention on wholesome plant-based foods like:  fruits, greens, a colorful array of vegetables, root vegetables, nuts, seeds, and unheated fats (avocado, 1st-cold-pressed olive oil…)
• I steer clear of processed foods and mass produced goods, I do like high-quality dark chocolate
• I do not enjoy soy or dairy products- the exception to this rule would be raw goat cheese and organic butter (and whatever cocoa butter is in my dark chocolate).
• I eat fish occasionally: my favorite being wild salmon
• I do not count calories, fat grams, or carbs, but I do believe that overeating overworks the digestive system
• I eat from light to heavy
• I eat foods in combinations that are more readily digested by the body.

The Digestive System and The Maze:

begin to see the theme to my blog?

Imagine yourself standing at the entrance of an enormous cornfield maze. Ideally, you would go in one end, and come out the other end, unscathed. It would also be ideal, to get through the maze quickly. Some people do just that! The quicker you make your way through the maze, the more energy you will have saved and the less emotionally stressed and anguished you will have become.

However, the majority of maze-goers find themselves stuck in all the crevices and dead ends. At some point later in time, they either make it through, exhausted, or sit down and start crying for someone to rescue them (that would have been me).

Now imagine your digestive system is like trying to work your way through this winding maze. Ideally, food goes in, waste comes out. We nourish our bodies, and excrete the waste.

That would be in an ideal world!

However, not all food is created equal. There is a common misconception that what goes in, must come out. Unfortunately, this is not the case. When we feed our bodies with food that cannot be broken down and assimilated, the waste starts to accumulate.

We are meant to eliminate this waste because it is toxic. When our systems are “blocked” with this toxic waste, we will undoubtedly experience: weight gain, uncomfortable bloating and gas, low energy, sleep problems, mood swings, acne, dark under eye circles, cellulite, premature aging and other skin problems.

We are all beautiful. But when we do not nourish our blood and cells with the proper foods, we create blockage. The body then tries to eliminate these toxic blockages through the bowel, the skin, the liver, the kidney, the lungs…

Eating from Light to Heavy

Over the years it has been beaten into our heads that we need a well-rounded breakfast to operate at our most efficient.  I learned, from reading The Raw Food Detox Diet, by Natalia Rose, that this is simply not the case.  I start my day off with a fresh pressed juice … followed by fruit… throughout the day my meals become progressively denser.  I save my heaviest meal for dinner.  In enjoying my lighter meals earlier in the day, my body does not expend energy on digestion and I can instead go about my day without my energy dwindling or my food weighing me down.

Combinations

Because we want to eat foods that nourish our body, instead of slowing it down, we must understand how the body breaks the food down.  We can do this by making proper food combinations.  This may sound overwhelming, at first… but I assure you, it is actually quite simple.

What do I mean by making proper combinations?

There are four different food groups that should never be eaten together at a meal.

1. Fruit
2. Dried Fruit, Nuts & Seeds
3. Starches (pasta, bread, yams, beans, avocado, young coconuts…)
4. Flesh (Animal Protein, Eggs and Dairy Products)

Imagine that these different food groups are all on their own separate teams.  In order to “play” fair, they all need to remain with their own team.  They need to remain separate because they each require different digestive juices and enzymes in order to be digested efficiently and cleanly (i.e. not sticking around to cause trouble).

There is also a fifth group that is neutral.  This fifth group is your vegetable group.  This is your referee.  Vegetables can be eaten with any of the teams (except fruit).

don't mock my amazing artistic talents

It is really quite simple, right?  So now… instead of enjoying your Wild Salmon with mashed potatoes, enjoy it with steamed or sautéed veggies.  Keep the Starch Team away from the Flesh Team.  Still delicious but without the tummy ache!

There are some rules to this combination game.  One of the most important rules to note concerns the fruit team.

The Rule:  Fruit should only ever be eaten alone.  I know.  This may not be the news you were looking to hear, especially for those of you that like to have an apple with lunch, or a fruit parfait for dessert. But just making this one little change is sure to soothe your digestive system.  (And who wants to feel bloated?)

Why Fruit alone?

Fruit is one of the most perfect foods available to us.  When we eat it alone (ideally, for breakfast), it will pass through our systems without causing trouble.  However, when we mix and match our foods, the fruit becomes jumbled up inside, as the body attempts to digest the “heavier” foods first.  When the body is distracted by the heavier foods, the fruit will sit.  Ferment.  Cause gas, bloat…

So… you now know the basic rules to the game.

Fruit alone.

Separate your food groups.  The “sandwich” is the most common offender (as it combines flesh and starch).

There are also a couple exceptions to the combination game.

Exception #1: Avocados are beautiful yet interesting characters.  Technically a fruit, they combine with starches, dried fruits (but not nuts or seeds) and bananas.

Exception #2:  Bananas, unlike their watery counterparts, are much more dense in nature.  They, too, combine as a starch and can be eaten along with high quality grain products, avocados, dried fruit and nuts.

Other exceptions:  I consider first-cold pressed olive oil, a bit of organic butter for cooking, and some quantities of dark chocolate (to be enjoyed at the end of a meal, preferably dinner) to be neutral.  In the beginning transitional stages, you may sprinkle moderate amounts of raw goat cheese on high quality sprouted grains.

If you start by practicing to choose more healthful and wholesome foods, eat from Light to Heavy and gradually begin to properly combine your meals, the results will be both rewarding, beautifying and delicious.