Today I thought I'll
start with some basics. What do I have to eat everyday? Which food
groups should I avoid? How many times a week should I consume meat
and fish? These are the questions circling our mind when we start to
engage with Nutrition. Or at least these where my questions!
So I think that
every body has seen or heard of the Food Guide Pyramid at least once.
If not don't worry...now is your time! Basically the Food Guide
Pyramid shows us how often and how much to eat a specific food group
like fruits, meat, eggs,...
As you can see at
the base are all the liquids. Now every box equals a portion.
So 3 portions water,
2 portions tee and one portion juice per day. My advice...just drink
as much as you can. What I always say is, if you are thirsty it's
already too late. Your body is already dehydrated. I can't really say
how much because every body has a different daily rhythm. The average
is at least 1,5 l per day, but if you work out or it is a really hot
day you should drink up to 3 l, because your body loses a lot of
water by sweating.
Moving on to the
second row we have the fruits and vegetables. For this category there
is only one thing you shouldn't forget and just engrave it in to your
mind! “5 A Day” Just remember that. It is very important for us
to eat 5 different fruits & vegetables each and every day! If
you want to get more specific, the picture tells us 2 fruits and 3
vegetables, of which one can be replaced with a liquid form, e.g.
tomato juice.
And then there are
the carbs! :) We all love them, because they are very easy to
prepare. I will write a more specific entry on carbs, because there
is a lot to say. For now just know 1 portion of each for the day is
enough. And try to eat them as soon in the day as possible.
The
4th row from the bottom pictures the 3 dairy products (yogurt, milk &
cheese), all oils and nuts. They have to be consumed 1 portion each
per day again. Yogurt and milk can always be combined with oats and
fruits for a great breakfast. Olive oil is better used uncooked in
salads or for final seasoning while serving a dish. Otherwise it
loses all of its nutritional benefits.
Now we are going to
a different level. The next row tells us how much to eat per week! 2
times fish, 3 eggs and 1 time low-fat meat. - Here I want to include
that even eggs in a cake or in other desserts count. - And yes I said
one time meat. I know it's hard. I know you wanna eat your bacon for
breakfast, but try to reduce it. As soon you'll do that, you'll
notice the difference. It's OK to eat a good steak every once in a
while, but sausages, beacon...it's just not necessary! I myself am
not a vegetarian for the very simple reason: I freaking love meat.
But it's just sooo disgusting to find ½ kg steak meat at the
supermarket for 2-3€! It's just wrong...you don't even wanna know
what's in there anymore. Believe me. Just save your money and go eat
a good grilled steak! It even tastes better.
Enough said about
meat. The last 2 rows depict all the fat, chocolate and candy. The
three last boxes should be consumed rarely. It's OK to treat
yourself, just not too often. Every time you feel the urge to eat
something sweet just try eating an apple first. After that you can
treat yourself, because this big urge will be stilled and you'll eat
a reasonable portion of sweets.
Yup so that's it! I
myself am still working on it, so don't worry if you are not
perfectly intact with everything. Everything takes time and
discipline and thank God you have me, because my next post will be a
totally delicious and healthy recipe, that I enjoy eating a lot.
Hope you liked my little "interpretation" today. Feel free to leave comments and suggestions.
Keep Smiling
M
