8 Simple Steps to Healthier Eating

I often hear people comment that they would like to eat healthier foods, but feel they can't because they are too busy, it's too expensive, etc. Today I want to share some simple steps that anyone can take to make healthy eating a bigger part of their lives too. Because food is important! I hope everyone has the experience of eating food that is so wonderful that they declare, "THIS. This right here is proof that God loves us!" Or is it just me that does that? Ah well, no matter how loudly *ahem* your soul sings when you eat good food, it's an important part of each of our lives, and has the ability to influence our individual health and wellness, not to mention our mood and energy. So how can we eat delicious food that is good for us too? Well, read on friends! 

1. Don't buy it! 
If you don't buy something, then you won't eat it. Seems logical, right? This is probably the most important factor for me. By choosing not to buy food you don't want to be eating anyways, you are basically eliminating the need for self-control from the equation. You only need self-control in that moment in the store and then at home it's easy! It's not there to eat so you are not going to have that problem...

2. It's all about the snacks. 
I have written before about the importance of having healthy snacks around if you want to eat healthy. I find that it is usually the in-between times when I am feeling snack-ish that I crave things like chips or chocolate. I want some tasty morsel to munch on, and it turns out that frozen grapes totally hit the spot!

Fresh produce from the garden is the best snack ever! 

3. Read the label! 
Finding a healthy option can be as simple as reading the label on things you are buying. As a general rule, the smaller the number of ingredients, the better it is. Also, avoid unpronounceable ingredients. For example, apples contain....apples. But a box of good ol' KD? Not so much. The same rule applies when you are comparing brands. When you are buying applesauce, for example, look for the brand with the least ingredients. You should be able to find a variety with literally just apples, or maybe with a little citric acid (vitamin C) to preserve it.

4. Make Substitutions One at a Time. 
The easiest way to change your lifestyle is to make one simple switch at a time. So if you really love to eat crackers, look for a better variety of crackers such as brown rice crackers, or maybe try making them yourself. Then, switch something else the next week, like finding a more natural variety of yogurt. If once a week seems like a lot, try once a month or every other week.

5. Plan Ahead. 
When you walk in the door after a busy day, starving and with absolutely no dinner plans, you are more likely to order pizza or make the Mr. Noodles that are sitting in the cupboard (which I wouldn't have in my house anyways right? haha). Menu plans are a lifesaver for eating healthy, and saving the grocery budget. I don't make a daily plan, but I try to jot down a few meals that I will make when I go grocery shopping so I make sure I have the ingredients and so that I can refer to the list when I don't know what to make. If you think about what you are eating beforehand, you are also more likely to take things out of the freezer to thaw or actually have time to pack a lunch.

Valentine's Day soup...from my Instagram feed

6. Cook Extra. 
This is my saving grace for when I forget to plan ahead. Batch cooking is where it's at y'all. Especially as a university student. I can cook a batch of chili and get 8 meals out of it...one the night I make it and 7 for the freezer. I have a whole bunch of the 2-cup Pyrex containers that I can put in the oven/toaster oven (put it in a cold oven so the glass warms up slowly and doesn't crack) or the microwave no problem. When I have to pack a lunch, I just grab one of my little meals out of the freezer and it's even better than a frozen meal from the grocery store. I will also sometimes freeze larger batches for if I have company, or Wes comes over.

7. Pack Food and NOT Money. 
I learned this trick in high school. If you don't have money to spend on eating out, you are not going to eat out. The way to combat not having food is to just pack a snack! I try to keep some easily pack-able items in my cupboard like crackers, dried fruit, trail mix, a piece of fruit, etc. (grab and go items). I also like to keep an extra granola bar or something in my bag just in case (Clif bars and Lara Bars are my favourite for a treat). This way, I can just bring a couple dollars in case I am stuck and need the subway or an emergency tea (it happens folks!) and maybe my debit card (which I can't use at most places on campus). I have saved myself a lot of money and donuts doing this. I know, because I don't always heed my own advice and pay for it (literally) later.

8. Have a Water Bottle You Like. 
Most of the time when you are just feeling peckish and want a snack, it's actually because you are thirsty or even dehydrated. I find that having a water bottle that I like helps me to keep hydrated and reminds me to bring water with me when I am out. If you are feeling like you want chips but aren't sure you are really hungry, try drinking a glass of water first. Especially if it seems like nothing you eat is really satisfying. Your body may actually be craving water and not salt or sugar.

Greener Beans

I am here today to let you all know that University has not allowed me to escape unscathed (Escape? Who am I kidding...definitely still stuck there lol). No, I have fallen into the world of coffee. But see, I have a dilemma, which is that I don't completely like coffee. Oh, I like its effects, don't get me wrong. That stuff is liquid gold for an early morning class or wrangling kindergarteners. But the coffee flavour? Not so much. I can handle it if it's mild, but not just straight up coffee.

Enter, the latte. And Starbucks. You see, a latte still has the effects of coffee, without tasting like I'm drinking tar. 

Problem is.....that's a $5 commitment. One would think that my reasonable (ahem) self would consider this ludicrous, but no...sometimes survival comes at a price (as anyone who has had to PAY for school knows). 

Now, don't go freaking out and think I have abandoned my beloved tea, because that could never happen. My tea count per day has not changed (a LOT), this is simply an addition. Plus, Starbucks has tea too ;) But the point is that sometimes girlfriend's gotta have some serious caffeine and Starbucks kindly assists with that.

So what do you do about such a situation when you want to be kind to the planet and your bank account? Well, allow me.

You buy one of these!! Starbucks has started making these reusable cups and they sell them for...wait for it...$1. That's ONE DOLLAR. Yep. Annnnnnnnnd... when you use a reusable cup at Starbucks, you save 10 cents, which means the cup pays for itself in 10 visits (or 10 classes, depending on how you prefer to count). Actually, if we are really getting precise, they take the discount before tax so you really save more like 15 cents when they round it to the 5 (because they finally got rid of the penny), which would be 6 or 7 visits. But we aren't going to get that precise, because school just ended and there are just some things you need to recover from in life. So really, the money savings alone is a bonus if you ask me. 

On top of saving some cash...can we just all take a minute to think about how many cups AREN'T going in the garbage when you reuse your cup? I don't know how many other people have a Starbucks on their campus, but we have one glorious Starbucks and about 8 Timmies, among other coffee shops, and that is a LOT of disposable cups. In fact, at this time of the year (exam time) I would bet that the garbage cans are 90% full of just coffee cups. So I think a serious argument could be made for the benefits of reusing a cup. I mean, Americans alone throw away 25 billion styrofoam cups each year (source).

In case you need some other reasons, here you go: 

1. This cup is way more sturdy than the regular paper/plastic cups.

2. It looks just the same so you can still feel classy with your Sbux like all the cool kids. 

3. It's super light so it's no trouble to throw it in my bag in the morning on the way to class. 

4. This one is my favourite discovery. The cup is only in one size, and when you order a tall, the baristas tend to fill it up anyways giving you more bang (code for caffeine) for your buck. It's pretty much the most awesome thing ever. 

Now, I am sure you might be wondering why I didn't have a reusable travel mug before now. I did. But I broke it. So I was in line one day and and saw this and thought, what the heck, why not? And I realized this is something anyone, and I mean anyone, could do. Talk about a simple switch. 

Kinder than Neccessary

"'Shall we make a new rule of life...always to try to be a little kinder than is necessary?' What a marvelous line, isn't it? Kinder than is necessary. Because it's not enough to be kind. One should be kinder than needed...That line, that concept, reminds us that we carry with us, as human beings, not just the capacity to be kind, but the very choice of kindness...If every single person in this room made it a rule that wherever you are, whenever you can, you will try to act a little kinder than is necessary - the world really would be a better place. And if you do this, if you act just a little kinder than is necessary, someone else, somewhere, someday, may recognize in you, in every single one of you, the face of God."

Go ahead, read it again. I'll wait for you. All of you...go read it again. 

The quotation above is from the book Wonder by R. J. Pallacio, which I had to read for my inclusive education class this year. I definitely recommend it if you are an educator or are interested in inclusion and children in any way. Actually, you should read it just for the adorable story! I cried more than once. Which, if you know me and books is highly unusual...right? Okay, maybe not. But still. 

This was one of those books that had me sitting there scribbling down quotations the entire time. The one above has to be one of my favourites. So much truth packed into those words. What if? What if we made that our motto in life, to be just a little kinder than is necessary? I think every person in the class adopted those words as their own teaching philosophy by the end of the term. But this quote struck me for more reasons than just being a teacher. 

I think the idea of being kinder than necessary is so applicable to our lives. Now, let me clarify that this does not mean having no boundaries. Boundaries are good and healthy components of our lives. But just take a minute to imagine some of your daily encounters lived by this principle. Lately this has meant that when one of my kindergarten students came up to me with a scab on his finger and horrified expression on his face and said "ummm Miss? This came off of my body and now there is bloooood!" (yes, exactly like that YouTube video), instead of responding in frustration because I had only reminded him to stop touching his face a bazillion times, maybe taking a deep breath and giving a gentle and logical reminder that this is why we don't pick scabs would be a perfectly fine accompaniment to a natural consequence.

Or when that person in line at grocery store is rude to you? Why not just give a nice smile instead of feeling annoyed at them and your plight in the ever-horrible grocery line lottery of life. I could go on and on (and most of my latest personal reminders have to do with kindergarten), but I hope that this little quotation gives you too, some food for thought today. The choice is yours - you have the capacity to be kind. We all make choices regarding our actions and we each possess the ability to choose kindness. And just maybe, someone will see the face of God in you. Because isn't that what everyone needs?