How To Form Healthier Eating Patterns
- Develop a Routine. A routine establishes regular eating patterns.
Many people do not have a routine anymore due to COVID. Many people are now working from home and don’t go out for lunch anymore so they are eating at their desk, etc.
Your daily routine should incorporate exercise and proper mealtimes where you can meal prep one to two days per week, and have set breakfast, lunch and dinner times to sit and eat at a slower pace, and think about what you are doing as you eat. You do not need to be distracted because it interferes with digestion.
The first thing I do with clients is to make sure that they have a routine. A routine is flexible and not rigid like a schedule. To ensure good eating patterns you must have a set wake up and bedtime. This is difficult for many people who like to stay up and watch TV. It is when we do not have a set routine that we lose track of hours and waste them in front of a screen mindlessly snacking. If we have planned meals and snacks throughout the day, then we are less likely to down a bag of chips in the evening. - Cut down on Meat and exchange for comfort foods that contain protein that digests easier and without risk of heart disease. (Beans are a favorite).
- Include fermented foods in your diet (enzymes and probiotics). Yoghurt, Cultured Butter, Kefir, or Sauerkraut.
- Don’t buy into fad diets and eating plans, instead eat balanced meals from all the food groups and eat real food, vs. chemically laden foods or foods that are NOT nutritious. Utilize science to calculate your BMI and get a macro chart so that you can figure the %’s of how much you need of different things such as carbs, fats, saturated fat, protein, and sugar. As well, knowing how many calories you need to ingest to maintain, or to lose weight helps you with accountability and goal setting.
- Smoothies and Juicing help to get the additional servings of fruits and veggies that you need daily – Example: Frozen fruit, Almond milk and a handful of baby kale or baby spinach or romaine lettuce blended in a Nutri-blast/Vita-mix blender.
- After establishing your routine, try to eat at the table without distraction. Meaning, without technology, or the TV. Distractions interfere with digestion because you eat faster and without conscience when you are distracted. You take bigger bites and swallow more air as well. Slow down and taste each bit. Practice eating with intention.
- Try not to eat after 8:00 p.m. If you have to eat after 8 limit yourself to certain foods that will not be hard to digest. Eat cooked veggies, or a piece of whole grain bread.
- Eat healthy portions remembering who our portion really is. Let God sustain you, not too much food. God is our portion, our comfort and our deliverer.
- When eating out, go for fast casual dining instead of fast food – Places like Jason’s deli, Chipotle, Farm Burger, Zoe’s.
- Get a good night’s rest so that you can do your body good, and so your digestive system can do its’ job during the night.
Wonderful insight Steph! This is a great reminder for those of us who have fallen into bad habits due to Covid lock downs! Thank you for reminding us God truly is our portion, He is all satisfying!
Hi Tracy! Your Welcome. Glad you enjoyed it. Yes, it’s easy to get out of our routine due to COVID. New ways of doing things are always a learning curve, but we can do it!!! Hope you are doing well and I can’t wait to see you in a few weeks!!
This is super helpful Stephanie. So practical and makes sense. I will add some fermented foods great suggestion.
Thank you!
Thank you very much. Glad you found it helpful. Have a great week. Sorry for my response delay. My daughter graduated from college, so I was off line for awhile!