These Foods Are Seducing You, But They Shouldn’t Be Your Only Valentine Date

2012 by Ava

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The roads are still packed. I don’t mean with cars – I mean with joggers!

2012 by Ava

I send my congratulations to those of you who have made commitments to change parts of you life, to eat better, and to care for yourself. But have you made the right choice for you, or did you go along with what everyone else did for New Years?

I hear these resolutions quite often: Lose 10 pounds, jog each day, stop eating sugar, and get out of debt. You are truly unique, so I hope you’ve designed your intentions for 2012 to fully suit who you are.

 

What if jogging is not the right style of physical activity that fits your build? Perhaps you are destined to be dancing salsa every weekend!

Did you join a grueling weight loss program that is set to suck the fun out of your meals each time you defrost a package of low fat food? Or are you ready to embrace an approach to eating where you melt in your chair, savor each bite, and know that there is a specific health intention behind each food you eat?

I love to teach people like you how to craft meals that will provide sustained energy, keep you from getting sick, keep your digestive tract happy, and keep you happy at the same time. And while we’re at it, let’s make the meal gluten-free (if you don’t eat wheat), unprocessed (so there’s no fractionated food that takes you nutritionally backward), and organic (so your body doesn’t have to cleanse pesticides after each meal).

This sounds great!

 

I also know that it’s easy to slide back into old habits within a couple weeks of setting them, and this is why support is so important.

I just hired a new business coach for 2012, because I also find it easy to fall back into the familiar comfort of my habits. At the start of 2011, I made a similar commitment, and invested in a Mastermind group where I knew I would receive the support I needed to do things differently. Since then, I’ve made a lot of changes that once looked huge.

 

I want to leave you with 5 ideas as you embark upon your New Year goals.

 1. Begin with small changes. I learned from the book The Compound Effect, that if we try to do too much at once (like jogging 2 hours each day), we usually won’t stick with it. Consider adding a small time commitment to your new desire, like sectioning off just 15 or 30 minutes for it per day.

2. If your aim is to eat fewer sweets, slide into this by having fresh or dried fruit if you crave sugar. Lately, I’ve been eating honey patties that are covered in unsweetened dark chocolate.

3. I’ve got my “winter insulation” on right now, too. If your clothes are also a little snug, rest assured that you’ll lose those couple pounds through the chilly winter, as long as you continue to eat well. In the meantime, this will be a good test of your commitment to loving who you are.

4. Stay connected with people. Laugh with them, cook with them, and if you are in Olympia and need something to do together, consider coming to one of my new wintertime cooking classes.

5. Don’t make these changes alone. Tell a friend what you’re up to, publically let your facebook friends know about your goals, or hire someone to be there with you.

 

We’re about a week into 2012, and it’s going to be one amazing year!

 

 

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Create Magical Holiday Meals

2011 by Ava

I have trust that your holiday meals are going to be MAGICAL! I trust that you are the type of person who is evolving and moving closer to experiencing joy and the best health possible. Interactions with your family members will be smooth and caring. The food will be aromatic and enjoyable. There will be plenty of options for you to eat, even if you have food sensitivities. You know how to make food choices that will speed you to your health goals. You know when to stop eating. Your potluck dish will be loved, and friends won’t even know that it’s made a little differently.

 

With that said, I’d like to offer you 5 new ideas to make a nourishing holiday environment and experience.

1. If you’re going to a potluck, bring 2 dishes. One can be an entrée that you love and that will satisfy all of your dietary needs. Choose something that you would be perfectly happy eating if it were the only thing you will eat that night. You never know if the host will have food that works for your needs, so bring something that you can eat and share. Then suggest some new recipes for their next dinner party. Also bring a healthy dessert, like tapioca pudding sweetened just with the coconut milk it was made in. Fruit dipped in chocolate is great, and so are baked pears with cinnamon.

2. Focus on what feels good, but isn’t a crutch. Eating a whole bag of chips or half of a pie might feel good in the moment, but not for long. What I mean is to look for other ways that you can stay positive. Look for delicious spoonfuls of something that you love to eat, and also what creates true joy in your life and in your body. If you need ideas and inspiration, visit the blog posts about the 30 Days of Wonderful  project that I am writing about during the month of December.

3. Embrace a few new foods now, and continue to love them all the way through the holiday season. Use cinnamon on top of hot rice cereal or oatmeal. Ginger has been going in to my smoothies to provide warming qualities. This way, the smoothies feel great, even on colder days. Ginger also helps to break down foods that are high in protein, like the beans and meat that many people crave in the cold months. Try more raw cauliflower, which is easy to eat and pack as a snack when you’re away from home. It has anti-cancer properties, and helps to stimulate liver function.

4. Reach out for meal inspiration from other cultures. Share what you learned when you ate a meal in one of your favorite countries, and bring home a tradition from that experience. I still stuff bell peppers with Brie cheese and grill them like I did on an organic farm in Geneva. One of the reasons I enjoy gluten-free and dairy-free crepes is because a woman from the Czech Republic made me what she called “egg pancakes” one morning several years ago.

5. Plan more parties in the months of January and February, even if you have to make up a special occasion.Seasonal depression may creep in after the build up of the holidays, especially if you eat high stress foods. Find a reason to interact with friends. Throw a soup party where you and friends come together to make 5 different batches of soup. Have a squash cooking party with a prize for the most creative squash stuffing. Have a contest and food photo shoot for the most beautiful plating of a dish made with kale.

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Do You Eat The Midnight Meal?

2011 by Ava

Why is it that some of us find the need to eat very late at night? This happens to me whenever I travel, and on nights where I stay up late. I’d like to explore it for a few minutes. It’s summertime as I write this, so it may simply be very light outside, which can cause our eating to go late into the evening. There are a few other reasons that you may be prone to the extra meal in the dark:

 

1. You’re not getting your emotional needs met during the day. If you feel lonely, or emotionally low, it’s easy to use food to try to feel better. Some people reach for sugar, others love crackers, and many use ice cream to soothe themselves. Is there something else that you can add into your life to be sure that your non-food needs are met? Does this mean taking a yoga class, having more time with your spouse, or giving yourself an hour with a good book in the evening?

2. You might have a scarcity mindset around the amount of food you’ll have for the next couple days. Do you ever eat and eat and eat, out of fear that there may not be more food coming to you?

3. You didn’t eat enough food during the daytime. If you’ve been snacking, and eating while multi-tasking, there’s a good chance that you didn’t eat enough today. It seems to be a luxury to sit down to a large, long and enjoyable meal, but this is where satisfaction comes from. If you find that this is the case for you, it helps to take at least 40 minutes to an hour to focus on lunch. Start tomorrow.

4. You didn’t eat the right kind of food during the day. Have you ever had late night cravings for heavy foods, like fish or meat? This may be a sign that you ate too many light foods like salad, or fruit, (or puffed rice cakes), in the morning and afternoon. Your body now craves balance, and asks for something heavier. If you notice this, add a heavier food to your lunch tomorrow. Meat digests slower than other foods, so it’s best to consume it during the day, and not late in the evening.

 

 

Your Assignment:

It’s time to simply notice why your body begs for food late at night. Tomorrow morning, you have the opportunity to make changes to how you eat. It is time to feel satisfied enough to go without the midnight meal.

 

© 2011 Ava Waits

 

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