The word diet pisses me off! This is probably because I have tried my fair share – I have always struggled to keep weight off and trying different diets meant that I might lose some weight here and there, but it was always with negative consequences. Cut out the carbs and I was tired, grumpy and felt like shit. Then I went onto the system where you count up your food 'points' – that was good for a while, but then I wanted to live normally again without counting points and the weight went back on within weeks. Then there was the 'I couldn't give a damn' diet! It consisted of drinking wine most nights and gorging on comfort food. That went well until I grew out of all my clothes – something I hadn't done since I was sixteen, except this time I wasn't growing up, I was growing out!
So at that stage I realised I had to do something: the only diet that had ever made sense to me, a diet that has been around for thousands of years, was the Healthy, Balanced Diet. The last time I checked, the word 'diet' in the dictionary is defined as this – 'the food and drink that a person or animal regularly consumes'. Nothing about Atkins, nothing about counting points, nothing about cutting out a main food group. So that is why I am now living my life according to a healthy, balanced diet.
At the end of the day, what we eat and drink determines our state of being. Food and nutrition are crucial to health, not only for the body, but also for the mind and the emotions. Many ailments, sicknesses and diseases can be caused by an unbalanced diet – junk food, takeaways, preservatives, additives, too much salt, sugar and animal fat, too much alcohol and, of course, tobacco – which I know doesn't come into food consumption, but it does suppress hunger and does get in the way of a healthy, balanced diet. Now I'm not preaching off the top of my head: all of the above, with the exception of smoking, used to be a part of my life – I literally am speaking from experience.
Changing my eating habits was the best decision I have ever made – no downside, no repercussions, no negatives. It has led to a healthier body, weight loss (in a healthy way), a healthier mind and a much happier Paul. The way I see it is this: if you have a car – and most of us do – well, that car won't function properly if you don't put the right stuff into it. How far would your car go without the right fuel (carbohydrates), the right oil (protein), the right brake/clutch fluid and power steering oil (fats) and the right coolant (water)? Now I'm certainly no mechanic, but I do know that without the correct type and the correct amounts of all of these you will not have a fully functioning car. The only difference is that a car needs to be serviced once or twice a year – our bodies need to be serviced on a daily basis – a few times a day in fact.
The modern diet has us eating things that are convenient, (unnaturally) colourful and perfectly shaped. Why? Because that's the way society says and thinks it should be. Society needs a good kick up the arse! Walk into a supermarket and take a look at the vegetables on sale: they are all evenly sized, evenly shaped, evenly coloured – now go to a farmers' market or grow your own to know that this is not the way they should be. We are being fed bullshit ... figuratively of course!
So what if a carrot is bent and has a side shoot? So what if peas are not all the same size? So what if some courgettes are plumper at the bottom than the top? It is nature and nature is natural. They all taste great: trust me – I plant, grow, harvest and eat them. Also the 'fresh food' that most supermarkets sell is often sterilised, as it is imported when it's out of season here. They sterilise the food in order to make it 'safe' and to prolong its shelf-life whilst in the store. This sterilisation kills the bad bacteria that would make the food go bad, but it also kills the good bacteria that are vital for a healthy digestive system, so that food is quite simply lifeless and of much less benefit to you. What I would suggest is, if you cannot grow your own fresh food, then buy at farmers' markets or as local as possible where you can.
A healthy, balanced diet has been around for thousands of years – it is not a new fad. The mainstay of a healthy diet should be carbohydrates and fibre. Foods like potatoes, lentils, wholewheat pasta, wholegrain bread, brown rice and cereals provide this. To these, protein-based foods like meat, fish, eggs or beans should be added in smaller amounts. It is not necessary to have meat or fish with every meal – not even every day. The other ingredients to be added for a healthy diet are essential fatty acids from nuts, seeds, oils and oily fish. And this, along with vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals found naturally in fruit and vegetables, is the basic template for healthy eating.
History tells us that this healthy template has been used worldwide in all cultures. Civilisations throughout history relied on this combination: in America they used corn and beans as their staple diet; in Asia it was/is rice and soy; in Africa wheat, millet, chickpeas or beans; in Europe wheat, rye, barley, oats, beans and pulses like lentils. They were traditionally used with a variety of fruit and vegetables (mostly raw), along with fish and meat when available. Then fermented foods like yogurt, curd, pickled vegetables, beer, cider and wine, all of which have beneficial properties for the intestine, were added through the ages. The diet is rich in friendly bacteria, fibre and nutrients, and helps balance and maintain a healthy intestine; it is a diet which is ideally suited to the human body.
For me, maintaining a healthy lifestyle is or should be common sense, of which having a healthy diet and watching what you eat is only a part. You can be getting the percentages right – carbs versus protein versus fats – and you can be eating very fresh produce too, but if you don't watch portion sizes and don't get up off your backside and do some exercise, then you will find that a healthy, balanced diet may not make you look and feel as good as it should. There is no point in me going into depth on portion sizes as everyone's size, metabolism rate and daily exercise routine is different ... it wouldn't be very accurate. Common sense goes a long way, but if you are really stuck then a dietician would be happy to create a plan for portion sizes taking everything into account.
5 key steps to a healthier diet:
• Cut down on convenience food and takeaways.
• Try replacing meat with oily fish more often.
• Reduce your intake of sugar, salt, coffee, fizzy drinks and alcohol.
• Make your diet as varied as possible.
• Use fresh ingredients as often as possible.
I fully understand that all this is not possible for everyone, but if we try and make even small changes to our eating habits, we will all benefit from it. Use the 'bads' in moderation and the 'goods' as much as possible.