Podcast - Nutrition Made Simple For A Sustainable Lifestyle

When it comes to health and wellness, you’ll probably agree that there is no more confusing area than the field of nutrition and the best foods to eat for longevity and vitality. Here, I want to help you keep your approach to nutrition simple so that it is sustainable!

Nutrition is a field where there are so many different pathways, diets and conflicting expert opinions. And therefore, it can be tough to know what’s best and to cut through all the information and distil it down to a simple framework to follow that is right for you, your body and your lifestyle - because the reality is, different foods and diets work differently for different people.

So here, I want to simplify everything into an easy framework to follow from everything I have studied, learned and experimented with myself – and you can adapt this to any kind of healthy eating plan that fits your beliefs.

You see, despite there being many different types of diets, the common consensus as to what constitutes a healthy diet comes down to 2 things:

1. High vibration foods

2. Low inflammation foods

This essentially means, you need to follow the outer perimeters of your supermarket and avoid the centre aisles as much as possible.

And if you simply follow these basic rules, you can really raise your consciousness around the foods you eat and find what works for you.

The problem is, if you jump social media, follow some guru online, or buy the latest best-selling book (all of which I do regularly), you only really end up confused and overwhelmed – because there is so much conflicting information out there that makes it so hard to follow.

Think about all the types of diets that are pushed as the best to follow – Vegan, Vegetarian, Raw Food, Paleo, Ketogenic, Carnivore, Mediterranean, Calorie Controlled…the list goes on.

Then there’s the topic of fasting – the ancient wisdom around extended fasting, time-restricted eating or intermittent fasting, gut health, macros, gluten-free, lectins…so it seemingly never ends!

So how do you keep nutrition simple and how do you find the path that is right for you?

1. Experimentation – you need to be prepared to different foods to find out what works for you and your body

2. Sustainability – your approach to nutrition needs to be sustainable not a temporary fad so that it doesn’t impact your life

3. Framework – basic set of rules that fits you and your lifestyle that you develop for yourself based on your experimentation and your desire for sustainability.

Step 1 – Treat Your Diet As A Lifestyle -  A diet is a way of life it is not temporary.  In other words, simply ask yourself, is this something I can do for the rest of my life.  If the answer is no then don’t do it

Step 2 – Focus on whole foods – A whole food based diet means one that contains minimal processed food.  No refined sugars and grains, no artificial colours and sweeteners, no preservatives.  Does it that mean you need to be vegan?  

Absolutely not.  In fact, I know many vegans and vegetarians whose diets are laden with insulin – elevating, gut harming ingredients who think they are eating a healthy diet – when the reality is it is a recipe for disaster.

So, “whole food” means food in its natural state – seasonal fresh fruit and vegetables, wholegrains and animal products (if you’re not vegan or vegetarian) that are hormone-free, preservative-free and pasture raised when it comes to eggs, meat and dairy, as well as wild caught seafood.

The point is a “whole-food” based diet is the best type of diet because it contains high vibration and low-inflammation food.  And then it’s simply up to you to experiment and to find what works best for you: plant based or a combination of plant and animal foods.

So, this is how I treat my diet – as a whole food – based lifestyle where I get to choose what to eat based on how I’m feeling.  I yin and I yang and I zig and I zag.  

I also believe in the 80/20 rule…it’s what you do 80% of the time that matters most.  If you’re anything like me you want to still enjoy life…and not have a set of rules so rigid that you can’t bend the rules from time to time. 

Remember, the key to good, robust nutrition is all about choosing to eat “high vibration” foods and “low inflammation” foods, which basically means a variety of fresh, whole food! 

And when you keep these principles in mind, it gives you the scope to fill your diet with a variety of foods that will give you nourishment, energy and metabolic flexibility.

And the good news is, these principles can be applied to just about any type of eating plan or diet you choose – whether you are fully plant-based or you eat a blend of whole food plants and animal products!

So, if you do nothing else other than cut these inflammatory foods out of your diet and focus on whole plant and animal products with nothing processed or artificial added…and throw in the 80/20 rule so that you can let your hair down without stress from time to time, you will simplify your diet and you’ll find a common sense approach to nutrition that works best for you.

I hope you got value from today’s blog and thank you for reading. 

Stay strong and live well!

ZT.