When we think of the phrase “healthy lifestyle” we think of diet and exercise. For exercise, people equate to going to the gym or picking up an active sport or exercise routine – easily done! Food is complex though. People start to think of diet fads, keto, vegan, etc…
I encourage people to think of what you are eating and where did it come from. Easiest item to remove from your food supply are processed, sugary foods to begin with. Before you think of removing, plan your alternate supply making conscious and educated decisions. Also being aware of the different seasons and the seasonal produce available in your local area is helpful to build a conscious diet.
For example, in the fall/ winter season, this is known as the vata season in the Ayurveda science. Just like the attributes of winter, warm one day, cold the next, rainy/snowy the next, then dry for a period, you will notice your skin and body reacting to this season’s changes. Your skin becomes drier, you may become constipated, your hair and nails become brittle. During this season, it is important to reduce the tastes of bitter, pungent, and stringent and favor sweet, sour and salty. These tastes/food are naturally more densely nutritive and will add moisture and a feeling of grounding to your body. Think of heavy moist foods such as soups, stews, gravies. Eat more protein in the winter months. Use heating spices such as cayenne, hot chilies, nutmeg, cinnamon, etc. Include squashes, root vegetables, pumpkin, potatoes, beets, garlic, ginger, sweet foods, ghee, avocados, avocado oils, sunflower oil, sesame/toasted sesame see oil, eggs, fish, nuts and seeds, whole milk, kefir, cottage cheese, honey, maple syrup, molasses, tofu, mung beans, rice, quinoa, warming teas.
When I switched my diet to vegan when I turned 50, I began experimenting taking my favorite meat dishes and switching the meat out for tofu, jackfruit, oyster mushrooms, portabella and just about any mushrooms. Then I started to search on Pinterest for recipes with the macros listed above and it was encouraging to know there were so many resources available. To get you started I have shared my Vegan recipes board on Pinterest here: (https://pin.it/1l7mpEF) – Note credits go to the respective recipe owners. Normally, as I begin making the dishes, I can feel the food and I will add my own twist to meet my palette. I encourage you to try your own.
It does take some grit in preparing your meals, but this is where the power of meal planning comes in. Recipes are individual to one’s palette, hence I encourage you to experiment on your own with the macros and put your own play on the recipes. Some of my favorite are include on the website in the RECIPES section.
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