16 Weeks to Better Health - Moderation

Let me start by apologizing for the late post.  Will try and get Wednesday's Health & Wellness article up by early morning in weeks to come.

Today's topic, a noted principle within the Kohawk Tennis community - moderation!  I start with this to set the tone for our take on nutrition (and many/most everything else in life).

I was in the Coe bookstore today and picked up a nutrition book; briefly glanced through it and a given phrase caught my attention.  Thinking of food as either "medicine or poison" for the body is an unhealthy approach.  For example, blueberries (due to antioxidants) will protect me from disease, where as cookies will kill me.  Yes, you should probably eat more blueberries than cookies, but eating cookies (or chips, or drinking beer) in moderation is perfectly fine.  Despite the likely perception, even I eat more than just SuperFoods.

Think through the unhealthier foods that you most crave or consider an indulgence.  Those you can go without, give up.  The rest, treat yourself to here and there.  Restricting yourself all together would be deemed a "diet", and most of you know my take on dieting.

Yes, I am starting my 16 week message by encouraging the consumption of fountain Coke (my own greatest weakness), Oreo Cookies, ice cream, etc.  A perfect nutrition plan, or even near perfect, is largely impossible.  That is exactly why diets fail.  Instead, I am asking you to approach or think about food/nutrition in a healthy manner.  Food is fuel.  The more nutritious or higher the quality of fuel that you put in your body, the better you will feel (about yourself, state of energy, productivity, etc).  I assure you of that.  However, periodically treating yourself and 4 year old to Dairy Queen can be quite rewarding to your overall health also!

In general, I ask that you eat healthier.  More SuperFoods than not, Blue Zones approved foods, etc.  I hope that the articles and recipes posted will assist you in doing so.  As a start, once weekly, prepare a dinner that is in strict accordance with these principles (or Clean, etc).  For example:

Buy slaw mix (carrot, broccoli, cabbage) and put on WHOLE Wheat Tortillas.  Spread the following sauce (derived from Clean) over the top.  I ate two of them, and had the glass of wine pictured.  Wine at 5 according to Blue Zones, right!
1 T almond butter
1 t grated fresh ginger
1/2 lemon juiced
1 t apple cider vinegar (I use just a dash; otherwise overpowers in my opinion)
1 clove garlic
1 t nama shoyu or wheat free tamari (you can get the latter in the health food section at Hy-Vee)
pinch of cayenne (additional spice if desired)
Blend together all ingredients.