I talk about this a lot but I believe in eating health foods for your Mental Health. Not for weight loss or weight management, pure and simply, to help you be happy and keep on top of your mental health.
Crazy I know? I know because if I eat healthy and wholesome food that makes me feel good, I feel indestructible, beautiful and powerful. I also have more energy, easier to think positive and my skin is radiant. When you eat healthy, you glow.
What do I mean by healthy eating?
Eating food is such a complex subject and it is filled with emotional triggers, I know it is filled with trauma so I hope to explain this in a chill and scientifical way!
By healthy eating I mean eating food that makes you feel good and that is good for you. Filled with nutrients, fats, protein and vitamins! We all know what I mean because we all think we should eat more of it. I am chatting about wholesome food and veggies, non processed food that was made in a factory. Cooking from scratch! That sort of thing.
Let’s talk Science. The ideal human diet that is perfect for us to thrive mentally.
I want to start with the basics, the ideal human diet is a grain, nut, seed and legume diet. Yes guys, I am talking plants! (Yaaay plants!) That is the "Ideal". A vegetarian diet filled with vegetables, legumes and nuts is what we are designed to eat. This is from a biological standpoint (Source). It is ideal for growing healthy cells and helping you live a longer and happier life. That Ted Talk is worth a watch. It is amazing. The fun thing about eating a wholesome diet is that it doesn't take long to adjust, when you experience the benefits of feeling lighter, healthier and happier, saying No to processed food becomes easier. I come from a family of meat munchers myself so if you are a meat muncher, as long as you eat free range, you won’t hear a peep outta me! You do you!
How is healthy eating biological good for your mental health?
Let’s chat about Gut Microbiology with my Top Fun Facts!
1. The gut has a mind of it's own, around the same cells as a brain does, they are both interconnected. When we say we make decisions based on our stomachs, it's scientifically backed. (For reals)
2. 90% of the serotonin created in your body is created in your gut. So your happiness hormone is primarily created in your stomach.
To cut a long story short, your brain health is dependant on the quality of food you put into your gut because the microbes in there, control everything. If you treat your stomach like a trash can, filling it with crappy foods with loads of chemicals, sugar and hormones. You Will Think Like Shit. (Source).
Instant Gratification vs Delayed Gratification
Alright I hear you, but snacks guys! Does that mean I can’t have them ever again? Of course not! It is your life! Your choice and I would never say don’t eat a delicious snack, we all know how fond I am of M&Ms.
Instant gratification- Instant (or immediate) gratification is a term that refers to the temptation, and resulting tendency, to forego a future benefit in order to obtain a less rewarding but more immediate benefit. (these are our sugary and fatty snackos)
Delayed gratification- Delay of gratification, the act of resisting an impulse to take an immediately available reward in the hope of obtaining a more-valued reward in the future. (saying no to the snackos for future mental health)
This is the eternal battle with sugar, having to say no to instant gratification to ensure a healthier future for yourself. This becomes a whole lot easier when you let go of the idea of restriction (but that is a whole other story over here). We are biologically programmed to look and crave high fat and sugar foods, and food industry knows this and uses it to sell you processed products. This products are not good for you which is why delayed gratification is so important, questioning the impulse and saying no is good for healthy eating. But please read the article on restriction, this will help you so much with assisting with making healthier choices. What you eat today affects your mental health tomorrow. That is how I see it. That doesn’t stop me having a pizza night because I know I can always come back to healthy eating and feel better. And I can enjoy myself so much more when I have the pizza.
How to work out what food is healthy and what isn’t for you
This is purely a go by how you feel thing. People have different bodies and digestive systems which means, it is different for everyone which means.. EXPERIMENTATION TIME!!
I know for example, that I cannot tolerate bread, I love bread but it makes me feel awful. Bloated and nauseous.. Which is just heartbreak but I know it’s good for me. I also have learned I am highly intolerant to soy, which also breaks my little heart! I love tofu! We are all different to you have to see how you feel and go from there.
If you need a guidebook, try Michael Pollans food rules here! This was my starting point, it gave me an idea of what to eat and what to not eat. The most important thing to do is enjoy the food you eat. If you are eating boring, bleh healthy food, it is never worth it. Make sure when you eat healthy, it is spectacular.
How often should I be eating healthy? All the time?
Noo! Not all the time, again the choice is up to you. If you find you feel better eating cleaner, eat it more! If you want more snackos, eat more snackos. I am not here to tell you how to eat, I am here to hopefully convince you that eating healthy is good for your overall mental health and brains!
Benefits of healthy eating
Better Skin. Glow from the inside out.
Reduced risk of diseases (source)
Improved gut health which leads to overall better mental health!
More energy!
Better Sleep!
Compliments. People will be like Oh My You Are So Healthy and you get to go, Yah It’s The Best Way. #SmugRights (hahaha)
There are so many more! But I think if these don’t sway you, then I don’t think I will be able too!
Finally, need some Inspo?
Now, I have a Salad making PDF in this blog if you want it! But we need some real inspo so here is what I do!
Open all your cookbooks and get marking pages
Get on BBC good food and google by category of meal!
Ask 10 of your friends for their top recipes! Mine is this! 9 to go!
Play Take Away Recreations. They taste so much better than the originals.
Follow 3 blogs and watch their posts each week!
I love eating healthy because I love being happy. Eating healthy makes me happy. Biologically thanks to all the seratonin and emotionally thanks to a rich and fulfilling diet of strawberries!