#1 EAT FOOD instead of "Edible foodlike garbage."
If your great great-grandparents didn't eat it and you can't pronounce the ingredients, probably not a good idea to eat it.
These days this is easier said than done, especially when seventeen thousand new products show up in the supermarket each year, all vying for your hard earned coins. But most of these items don't even deserve to be called food. As you may have noticed, I like to call these items garbage. They're highly processed concoctions designed by food scientists, consisting mostly of ingredients derived from refined or artificial ingredients that no normal person keeps in their cupboard, and they contain chemical additives which are completely alien to the human body. Today much of the challenge of eating well comes down to choosing real food and avoiding these industrial novelties. If it has a list of ingredient it's most likely garbagio.
#2 Low fat makes you fat
Do you remember the low-fat craze of the late 1970s? Well I'm a 90s baby, so I don't, but let me tell you about it anyway. Apparently, all the food companies were coming out with low-fat or non-fat versions of their products, promising that these new versions would help everyone lose weight and stay healthy. But after fifty years of this campaign, the results are in and the world is fatter than it's ever been.
Why is that? Well, removing the fat from foods doesn't necessarily make them non-fattening. Carbs can also make you gain weight, and many low-fat products compensate for the loss of flavour by adding more sugar, which can be just as bad for you. Plus, when we demonise one nutrient like fat, we tend to give a free pass to another, supposedly "good" nutrient like carbohydrates, and end up eating too much of them instead.
The average person is now 17-19 pounds heavier than they were in the late 1970s. We need healthy fats to regulate our metabolism and hormones. So, rather than bingeing on "low fat" products that are packed with sugar and salt, it's better to enjoy the real thing in moderation.
#3: Eat foods that will eventually rot.
Have you ever wondered what it means for food to "go bad"? When we say that, we usually mean that the fungi, bacteria, insects, and rodents that compete with us for nutrients and calories have already gotten to it before we did. To prevent this, food processing began as a way to extend the shelf life of food by protecting it from these competitors. However, this often means making the food less appealing to them by removing nutrients that attract competitors, or by removing other nutrients that could go rancid, like omega-3 fatty acids.
The downside of processed foods is that the more processed a food is, the longer its shelf life, and the less nutritious it typically is. In contrast, real food is alive, and therefore will eventually die. Of course, there are a few exceptions, like honey, which has a shelf life measured in centuries.
When we eat foods that have a long shelf life, we are essentially consuming antibiotics that kill our good bacteria as well. This is because many of the same antibiotics that doctors prescribe to human patients are administered to livestock by the food industry. Additionally, many chemicals are added to food during processing to kill any bacteria or fungi that would shorten a product's shelf life. The food industry calls them preservatives, but essentially, they act as antibiotics. Other chemicals, such as colouring agents and flavour chemicals, also make it hard for good bacteria to thrive.
So the next time you're at the supermarket, remember that the longer the shelf life of what you're eating, the shorter yours will be. It's best practice to focus on eating foods that will eventually spoil but at the same time this isn't always practical. I still buy cans of chopped tomatoes or chickpeas occasionally. Where you can implement this rule do it and where you can't, don't. It's about getting as close as you can to the ideal, not being the ideal.
#4: Break the rules once in a while
Now, this doesn't mean you should throw all your healthy eating habits out the window. In fact, it's important to have basic guidelines and practice them regularly. But it also means giving yourself the flexibility to enjoy special occasions and indulge in your favourite poison without feeling guilty. Being strict yet flexible is key to long-term success.
I allow myself to eat anything I want, but I do it in moderation, and I rarely feel like poisoning myself with garbage. I regularly go months without eating anything that isn't good for me. But sometimes, for nostalgia purposes, I'll have a brownie or croissant with my coffee at the weekend. It normally makes me feel sick afterwards because it is poison, and i'll end up going months without eating garbage again. Your body can handle a bit of poison a few times a year. And when I say a few times a year I mean 3 times a year. This is just my take though, do whatever you want to, it's your life. The key is developing the habit of eating real food consistently first.
Ultimately, what matters most is the everyday habits that govern your eating. By using your basic guidelines as guiding stars instead of absolute commandments, you can cultivate a relaxed attitude toward food and find a healthy balance that works for you.
Finding Balance
Let me tell you a story about my journey towards finding balance and moderation in my life with fasting. I used to be the kind of person who would jump headfirst into a new lifestyle change without really thinking it through. I'm an all or nothing, go hard or go home kind of guy.
So, one time, I went on a dinner date without eating all day because I was following a strict four-hour feeding window as part of my intermittent fasting routine. I proceeded to eat like a cow at dinner in front of her to get all my calories in for the day. She couldn't get over the fact that I ordered two starters and two mains like it was the weirdest thing to have ever happened in the history of dinner dates. Looking back, I could have just taken the day off from my intermittent fasting routine for one night.
But here's the thing - going to extremes actually worked in my favour. By doing something harder than what I was ultimately trying to do (eat healthier), eating real food in a 10-hour window which is what i do now became super easy by comparison. It's like a walk in the park. So even though I made some mistakes along the way, I ultimately found my way to a good balance that worked for me.
The lesson here is that sometimes it's worth starting off as strict as possible and then iterating until you find what works best for you. It may not always be easy, but it's easier than being sick.
Always remember, you were born to be the hero of your story.
Free you outlaw.