Health and nutrition

You are what you eat! There is so much truth to that statement. There is so much nutritional ignorance and misinformation out there today. Fast and processed food makes up a lot of peoples diets. It never ceases to amaze me when people complain about their health or the aesthetic attributes of their body, Yet the correlation between diet and exercise doesn't click. Alcohol is a major obstacle when trying to manage weight and or get fit. Take for instance one can of light beer has 110 calories. Depending on your age sex and weight it takes approximately 30 to 60 minutes of exercise to cancel out the caloric impact of just one light beer! 

Trying to eat healthy can be a daunting task especially if you're used to salty, high sugar and starchy chemically enhanced processed food. I started eating healthy when I had my first child. I read an article in Men's Health magazine that warned me of the dangers of partially hydrogenated oils. This oil is used in lots of stuff you will be amazed once you start looking for it how many products have it as their main ingredients. 

Walking is underrated! A healthy diet consisting of mostly whole food and daily walking can manage weight. You don't have to go out and do these long strenuous exercises to be fit and healthy. Controlling portion sizes abstaining from alcohol and high caloric processed food is enough for the average person to meet their health goals.

Fruits, vegetables, fish, chicken, beans. The less the food is processed by a corporation the more whole and nutritious it is and readily to be accepted by your body converted to essential fat, nutrients and insulin and used to energize and sustain life. The faster a food is digested and processed the better. Slower moving food only ties up precious energy and needless strain on your internal organs. 

It's never too late! It's never too late to start eating healthy don't get discouraged. If you make a mistake or fall off your path just get right back to it and never give up. We all enjoy guilty pleasures but the goal is to slowly eliminate foods that are slow moving and unhealthy while replacing them with fast moving energizing life sustaining food choices. I'm not going to go on a tirade of foods I think you should never eat because each individual needs to determine that for themselves. The research is out there for people interested in educating themselves on nutrition. I will however end this with a recipe for red lentil hummus. 

2 cups of red lentils, chic peas. (bring four cups of water to a boil add lentils set to low check and stir occasionally until a paste. chick peas won't turn into a paste and need a powerful blender and more water possibly to thin them down also you can get canned chic peas ready to go with no cooking.)

I divide into 2 half's but if you have a big blender you can do it in one.  

1/2 cup organic sesame tahini 

12 garlic cloves ( less or more adjust to taste.) - Chop and roast garlic in a pan w/olive oil before adding.

teaspoon of roasted cumin 

salt/pepper to taste

2 tablespoons of water

4-6 tablespoons of fresh juiced organic lemon juice (the more lemon the more tangy!) 

Combine all ingredients and blend! 

I usually roast some more garlic, red pepper and pumpkin seeds if I do a topping to make it look fancy. 

This is basic garlic hummus that packs more protein and other essential vitamins/nutrients than meat! You can add toppings of just about anything from more garlic, peppers, seeds etc. Enjoy!