Quality Over Quantity Diet

I have tried many diets in my past. I’ve done Whole 30, I’ve eaten Vegan for a month, I’ve counted calories. Honestly, I love to learn and experiment so dieting for me was almost a challenge I enjoyed.

I’ve read tons of diet books; The South Beach Diet, Atkins, Clean eating and many more you’ve never even heard of. I’ve read about and studied nutrition, inflammation, time restricted eating, I even studied to become a health coach at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. It’s how I landed here as a Life Coach helping women create their best life.

I found that knowing what to do and actually taking the actions necessary to make the changes were two very different animals. To make changes in your life requires you to shift your mindset and requires you to do things you haven’t done before or to at least do them differently. This can be hard for us humans, it’s uncomfortable and our brains naturally shy away from being uncomfortable.

It’s why I decided to continue on and study to become a life coach. With the extensive training I have in mindset we can really dig in to create the change you may not have been able to make before on your own. We do it together.

Over and over I experimented and learned new things about health and wellness. I created my own healthy lifestyle by taking what served me and leaving what didn’t.

This is what I’ve learned. I thought I would share it with you. Remember take what serves you and leave the rest.

1. The diet and nutrition industry is overly complicated and most people don’t really know what they should be eating.

2. Eat whole foods as close to the original as possible.

3. Eat mostly meat and veggies or just plant foods if you avoid meat.

4. Don’t overeat. You truly don’t have to eat all day long to fuel your body. If you must count calories for a period of time to understand just how many calories you are putting in your body, then do it. Most people don’t have a clue which foods are high or low in calories. It’s a good idea to get a handle on this.

5. We really don’t need grains and dairy but we don’t have to avoid them completely either.

6. Avoid processed foods, sugar, and oils.

7. Sugar and highly processed foods are addictive and it’s better to keep them as special occasion items not everyday foods. Soon you find you're eating them way too much.

8. Sugar truly is bad for you.

9. Drink lot’s of water.

10. Cook at home to know what you are putting in your body most days.

11. Never eating something you truly love seldom works as a permanent lifestyle solution.

12. Moderation in usually is truly best.

13. I like to weigh myself a few times a week.

So all that being said, I love food and don’t want to never eat a yummy craft made cupcake or delicious Carbonara. I don’t think restriction as I said before is a permanent solution.

My most recent style of eating has been clean during the week and then having freedom to eat what I want mostly on Saturdays.

Clean eating is mostly meat and veggies. I buy grass fed, pastured, and organic most of the time. Clean eating avoids anything processed like white flours and sugars, and very little grain and dairy.

Saturdays then included pizza and cupcakes and whatever my heart desired.

This style of eating really served me at a time when I was working in an office with others who constantly ate out, brought in sweets, or just the typical unhealthy office fare day in and day out.

I mean who turns down free pizza? Well between the free pizza and the best Mexican restaurant just down the street from my office I had to do something. I was getting fat and outgrowing my clothes.

Trying to just stop eating the junk foods was so hard for me because it was always in my face. Sugar truly is addictive. So by deciding I would eat clean during the week and having free day on the weekend to indulge really helped me change my bad habits at work. Knowing I could order pizza on Saturday made it easy to turn it down at the office.

So instead of eating junky seven days a week I was eating junky only one, sometimes two.

Before I knew it I was eating really healthy and no longer felt good when I ate my fill of junk on the weekend. I began cutting down to a slice or two of pizza and adding salad. While the rest of the day stayed pretty clean.

Sometimes breakfast included a slice of whole grain toast or maybe I had Eggs Benedict and kept the rest of the day pretty clean.

Maybe the day was clean except for a cupcake.

I began to loosen up throughout the week but quickly had to reign it back in because I was gradually slipping back into old habits. But I was super aware now of what made my body and mind feel good and what didn’t.

I learned and adapted. I’m currently still eating mostly clean but I realize the best way to describe how I now eat is quality over quantity.

I eat meat. I buy grass fed, pastured, and organic.

I eat lot’s of veggies and fruit but I buy organic as much as possible. I love this time of year (August) because of all the local fresh farm stand produce that is available. I detest tomatoes in March…gross.

See the quality I’m talking about?

If I want to treat myself then I will still choose the best quality item I can. I’m going to pass on the Wonder Bread. I’m going to pass on the powdered hot cocoa mix. I’m going to pass on the donuts and the soda.

Instead I’m going to treat myself to a rare and beautiful three ingredient sour dough baguette. I’m going to make myself a high quality hot chocolate spiced to perfection. I’m going to savor a lovely little truffle or delicious glass of wine.

I still eat mostly meat and veggie meals made with high quality ingredients but now instead of pigging out on Saturday with cheap junk I treat myself occasionally to something truly worth the money to buy or the time to prepare it, something really special.

I love to cook so now my favorite thing to do is to plan a special meal on the weekend when I have more time and skip the pizza delivery altogether.

This way of eating does require that I pay attention to how much I am indulging because it is looser than having a designated free day but I’m finding as a foodie, it’s more enjoyable and the healthier way for me to go.

Now, I’m not saying I’m perfect and I never eat pizza or go to my favorite Mexican restaurant, I just know that when I do it’s a treat.