reading time: 5 min
Most of us have made their resolutions for 2017 at the beginning of the year. How many of you plan to go to the gym at least once a week? How many are determined to quit eating junk food? How many want to make a change this year? As noble and great as your resolutions may be - most of us take on too much at once. Instead, commit to something more realistic. Such as an adaptable easy, but healthy and cruelty-free diet.
The best, most ideal (for the human species) diet is a plant-based, low-fat, low-sugar, whole food diet (basically: grains, greens, beans, and a smaller amount of fruits). I call it a "diet" but it's not something temporary. It's a way of eating and living - for life. And it's not as scary as it sounds, I promise ;)
Here are some tips on how to eat healthy long-term, and what I eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner on a regular basis.
The best, most ideal (for the human species) diet is a plant-based, low-fat, low-sugar, whole food diet (basically: grains, greens, beans, and a smaller amount of fruits). I call it a "diet" but it's not something temporary. It's a way of eating and living - for life. And it's not as scary as it sounds, I promise ;)
Here are some tips on how to eat healthy long-term, and what I eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner on a regular basis.
How to Be and STAY Healthy
1) Come prepared.
I do understand that it can be difficult to stick to healthy food choices when you're at a (birthday) party or eating out. However, this problem can be easily solved by simply being prepared. Meaning: bring your own healthy food (such as yummy brownies, burger patties, nut truffles, banana bread, snack cookies, or homemade sushi and hummus) to parties, that way you also know what you're actually consuming. As for eating out, check with the restaurant/place beforehand to make sure they have a vegan/healthy option for you. Being prepared can also mean to cook in advance to ensure there's already something ready to eat when you get home from school or work starving.
2) Cook in big batches.
Along with cooking in advance, cooking in big batches for several days (my boyfriend and I usually cook food for 2 days in a row) also helps with keeping on track. Find a weeks worth of recipes, buy the needed ingredients and stick to your meal plan, more or less. That way you only need to cook once, and you will have food ready to eat for a couple of days. This will prevent you from making poor food choices when you're lurking around the fridge in search for something to eat. There are many great recipe books and blogs to draw inspiration from!
3) Use nutrient-rich sources.
Yes, white bread, oreos and dark chocolate are vegan. However, they are far from healthy. So instead of eating empty calories from processed food, stick to food that is high in fibre and high in vitamins, minerals, carbs, healthy fats and proteins such as lentils, beans, organic potatoes, quinoa, brown rice, all sorts of vegetables, nuts, seeds, fresh fruits... Focus on nutrition, not restriction. Don't think about calories, food combination, time of day, amount... Instead, look at all the nutritious foods you can eat! That make your skin glow and your tummy happy :)
4) Eat until you are satisfied.
Similar to the point above, forge about what you should or shouldn't eat. Listen to your gut (literally), and eat neither much more nor less than what makes you feel comfortably full. Just make sure you eat enough calories (as whole plant-foods are lower in overall calories than refined foods and animal products) by adding more nutrient-dense carbs, proteins or healthy fats to your meals.
5) Let your taste buds adjust.
Yes, it's true, our taste bud receptors do change with time! Making us more sensitive to different flavours such as salty, sweet, sour, bitter or even fatty (yep, you read right), meaning we are able to reduce the amount of sugar, salt and fat we add to our food. If you want to know more about this topic, I suggest you take a look at Dr. Michael Gregor's article on taste buds.
6) Most importantly - Enjoy!
Honestly, no diet / lifestyle change will last unless you feel good about it. Now, don't start by saying "well, I certainly won't enjoy cutting out meat, dairy, sweets etc from my diet, so stop bothering me", but that's just a lazy excuse if you haven't even given it a chance. Write down your motivation to start a plant-based life (health benefits, fitness, weight loss, fighting calorie restriction of a past eating disorder), give it a try, and see how it makes you feel. Eat a little bit of unhealthy things, to keep the balance, enjoy, have fun, live in abundance :)
5) Let your taste buds adjust.
Yes, it's true, our taste bud receptors do change with time! Making us more sensitive to different flavours such as salty, sweet, sour, bitter or even fatty (yep, you read right), meaning we are able to reduce the amount of sugar, salt and fat we add to our food. If you want to know more about this topic, I suggest you take a look at Dr. Michael Gregor's article on taste buds.
6) Most importantly - Enjoy!
Honestly, no diet / lifestyle change will last unless you feel good about it. Now, don't start by saying "well, I certainly won't enjoy cutting out meat, dairy, sweets etc from my diet, so stop bothering me", but that's just a lazy excuse if you haven't even given it a chance. Write down your motivation to start a plant-based life (health benefits, fitness, weight loss, fighting calorie restriction of a past eating disorder), give it a try, and see how it makes you feel. Eat a little bit of unhealthy things, to keep the balance, enjoy, have fun, live in abundance :)
What I Eat In A Day | My Staples
My typical day begins with a bowl of warm or cold oatmeal and/or ripe fruit (bananas, mango, papaya, melon...) for breakfast, depending on the season. In winter I will definitely live off of warm porridge, while during the hot summer season I'll most likely eat more fresh fruit and nicecream.
Oh, and my boyfriend and I have the tradition that each Sunday we make something special for breakfast: often times that's pancakes, waffles, sweet buns, rice pudding, or whatever else we are in the mood for :)
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| Warming oatmeal with soy milk, raisins, ginger powder, cinnamon and cardamom |
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| Oats with buckwheat, vanilla soy milk, strawberries, peanut butter and chia seeds |
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| Banana oatmeal pancakes with blueberries |
Lunch
For lunch, I usually eat a big batch of steamed, baked or cooked veggies and grains, sometimes homemade burgers or falafel wraps, sometimes just a big colourful salad. Of course, this also depends on the season.
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| Homemade burger with green spelt patty and a whole grain bun |
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| Raw tacos with homemade curry hummus |
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| Pumpkin puree with basmati rice, arugula, sunflower seeds, cinnamon, turmeric & pepper |
Moroccan Lentil Stew (with red lentils, canned tomatoes, green bell pepper and & basmati rice)
Dinner
At the end of the day my boyfriend and I eat together, and since we both love curry and stews, that's what we'll usually have :)
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| Indian dhal (lentil stew) with basmati rice and homemade naan bread |
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| Polenta pizza with lots of veggies and kidney beans |
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| Peanut Green Thai Curry with basmati rice |
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| Chili non carne with homemade tortillas |
Snack/Dessert
Last, but certainly not least (!), I always need some healthy snacks at hand for those down days or PMS, or when you're just craving something sweet. While I usually don't use much fat in my meals, my desserts will be a little more on the decadent side.
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| The best banana bread |
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| No bake Almond Butter Blondies |
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| No Bake Black Bean Chocolate Brownies |
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| 5 Minute Chocolate Truffles |
For a detailed list of my shopping staples check out my Grocery List!
You can also get the PDF version of my grocery guide to save or print by clicking here:
So yeah. I do not eat meat, wheat or dairy (I'm intolerant to wheat). That sounds very intimidating, but it's really not. When meeting new people, I don't go broadcasting my plant-based veganism. I don't want to be labelled as "the vegan" aka "the rebel / the preacher / the saint". Nor do I want to burden anyone with my personal life choices, or make others feel like they have to be "healthy" around me, or justify their lifestyle. Because I don't want to have to justify my lifestyle either. In my opinion everybody should know what's best for them, and live the way they feel best. That's what I try to do anyway.
I
have tried many different diets over the years, including RawTill4,
Fully Raw and 80/10/10. For a detailed pro/con list on eating fully raw,
please check out my Review on Raw Food!
As of today, I'm
not raw till 4 or 80/10/10 or any of that. My goal is
to be 100% vegan and
100% plant-based. So basically, I eat plants in every shape or form - of course, that includes pancakes, pasta, pizza, cake, brownies, ice cream etc from time to time !!
However, due to my past of disordered eating, i do feel most attracted to a high-raw, fruits and vegetable based lifestyle. For me, this means abundance and vibrancy, living life at its rawest, fullest, freshest :)
However, due to my past of disordered eating, i do feel most attracted to a high-raw, fruits and vegetable based lifestyle. For me, this means abundance and vibrancy, living life at its rawest, fullest, freshest :)
Thank you so much to Pili for featuring me over at the Sweet Inspiration linky party - I'd love to be your cook!! :)
♥
Maisy
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