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Eating Right All Year:  Set Yourself Up for Success

By December 16, 2016March 16th, 2023Food for Thought, Healthy Eating
eating right all year

Eating right is a goal that you can rarely accomplish without planning ahead.  Start with some strategic thinking and set yourself up for success.  This doesn’t have to be difficult or drastic!  You eat every day, so any small improvements you can make to your meals will add up to better health over time.

Eating Right is Easy When You Grow Your Own Food

Nothing tastes better (or is healthier) than fresh-picked produce.  When you grow a garden, your kids get to know where food comes from—plus, it’s a fun family activity!  Lettuce and other greens are easy to grow and often appear on the Dirty Dozen list, so it is best to eat these organic.  Planting a Tower Garden by Juice Plus+ is an easy way to plant a garden, especially in small spaces.  It can provide you with salad greens, herbs and other vegetables like tomatoes, peppers, peas and beans.  When you grow your own vegetables, you know they are safe for your family.  If you’re a gardener at heart, then put a Tower Garden on your Christmas list.  It’s a gift of health for the whole family.

Getting Out of the Supermarket Whenever You Can is Another Key to Eating Right

There’s nothing wrong with the supermarket, per se.  Many now offer organic items and healthy whole foods, but they still carry a lot of processed foods.  It can be hard (especially with small children) to avoid the temptations around every corner and down each aisle.  Family outings to farmers’ markets are fun and support local food producers.  The food is often fresher and therefore healthier.  (Fruits and vegetables start losing their nutrients as soon as they’re picked.)  There are also many environmental advantages to supporting local food suppliers, which makes farmers’ markets a responsible way to shop.  Plus, the whole family will get exercise as you all walk the market.  For any health goal, eating right and exercise is a winning combination!

Buy a Freezer if You Have the Space: Eating Right on the Run

Eating right is much easier when you’re able to prepare healthy meals in advance.  Making a large batch of healthy breakfast items (like pancakes), soups, and other meals that you can freeze will save you time.  The Internet has no end of resources for recipes that you can make ahead of time and in bulk.  Storing prepared foods will save you from making unhealthy eating decisions when you’re out of time (as long as you remember to defrost a portion the night before).  Recipes that can be pulled from the freezer and tossed into a crockpot are especially helpful for working families.  An extra freezer comes in handy when buying large quantities of grass-fed beef and other traditionally-raised animals.  For example, you can get together with neighbors or health-conscious friends to split a side of beef, but you need the extra freezer space to take advantage of these savings.  There is also a growing selection of organic foods at warehouse membership stores, where buying in bulk saves you money—if you have the room to store it.  Note:  the most efficient method to preserve nutrients in food storage is dehydration (check out Excalibur Dehydrators).

How creative can you get?  What kind of preparations can you add to your routine that provide more health and vitality to your family every day?

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