30 Tips for Real Food Newbies Take baby steps, changing one thing at a time as you learn more and get more interested. Cut out the complete junk food first and then fine tune to real food principles. Do not buy anything with long ingredient lists or ingredients you cannot pronounce. Avoid the center of the grocery store, opting to shop the outer edges…better yet avoid the grocery store altogether. Find and shop at your local farmers market. At first, try to find time to go to food shop by yourself so that you have time to read ingredient lists and ask questions. Get inspired by good, simple recipes and make them your own. Slowly get rid of the processed foods in your pantry as you finish them, stop buying them, and then replace them with real food. Eat food that you make at home more often (stop buying take out). Replace soda with water or if you are adventurous, kombucha (you can even buy it in most Whole Foods these days). Ditch foods in boxes, packaged with marketing hype and bright colors. Build a plan and learn how to make one new ‘real food’ item per month starting with the basics – fermented condiments, fermented beverages, traditionally prepared grains/breads, grain-free baking, refined sugar free baking, bone broths, how to properly cook grass fed meats, healthy saturated fats, etc. Give your taste buds time to adjust – you didn’t like beer the first time you tried it? Real food will grow on you, and sooner rather than later fake food will taste vile to you and your family. Determine if you need to eliminate any foods to allow your body to heal (grains, dairy, eggs, etc.). Understand the difference between whole foods and traditional foods. Differences in production, processing and preparation can make all the difference in how your body can handle various foods. Buy organic. Buy local. Join a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) Understand your values about food and what is important to you (how your meat is raised, raw or pasteurized dairy, soy-fed, no GMOs, etc.). Meet your local farmers and start to be comfortable asking them questions and get to know them to see if they meet your real food values. Learn to cook from scratch. Get the help you need to succeed – cookbooks and resources (such as meal plans) are invaluable so that you do not have to struggle. Enlist helpers you need in the kitchen such as your husband, kids, and even paid help to prep or clean up if you can afford it. Make extra – leftovers are key. Real food is not a diet – it is a lifestyle change. Understand the difference. Focus on nutrient density and quality over mainstream nutritional dogma. Look backward at traditional diets vs. forward to chemical $h*t storms. Focus on what you CAN have, not on all the things you can’t. Hooray for butter, coconut oil, and raw honey! Keep it simple and delicious and remember: fat adds flavor. Follow the 80/20 rule and be kind to yourself. Have fun with it! - See more at: homemademommy.net/2013/08/30-tips-for-real-food-newbies.html#sthash.hAD40dPn.dpuf
Posted on: Wed, 02 Oct 2013 20:13:03 +0000
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