Since I completed a three-week detox just over a year ago, I’m much more mindful of the food that I eat. I learned then, and have reinforced many times since, that I am what I eat — when I eat junk, I feel like crap; when I eat good food, everything’s easier in my life, including getting up with a positive attitude.
My wife – while still cherishing the occasional pork chop or hamburger – has essentially adopted my eating habits, and we’ve recently gone as long as four weeks without going to a grocery store. How do we accomplish that feat? Well, we find everything we need at a local produce market.
I read some articles recently that used several new terms to describe the way I’ve been eating for the past fifteen months:
- One-ingredient foods
- The Label-free diet
- The outer circle diet
These all describe the same concept: Choose only foods at the grocery store that have 1 ingredient (this means that eggs, fruits, vegetables, meats/fish (from healthy animals raised correctly), nuts, seeds, and other 1-ingredient foods should comprise almost your entire diet (except for occasional cheat meals — and dark chocolate).
It’s also called the Label-Free diet because you only eat foods that do not require an FDA nutritional label (see above — what’s in eggs? Eggs! What’s in a peach? Peach! no label required).
And it’s also called the Outer Circle diet because you can do all your shopping at a typical grocery store by starting in the produce section (almost always in front corner of store) then steer a circle around the outer wall of the store — meats, dairy, etc. In the middle of the store are all the processed foods with extensive labeling that you must read to even know what you are eating.
Obviously there are exceptions to the above, and there are foods you can buy with more than 1 ingredient still qualify, e.g. guacamole and hummus being two examples of foods made from several 1-ingredient foods and no additives/fats/sugars. And oatmeal (ingredients: oats) is still in the cereal aisle.
I’ve written before about how my diet — which dramatically reduced my intake of caffeine, sugars, and glutens — has totally eliminated my afternoon sleepiness, the mood swings I used to experience from the sugar buzz/crash cycle, and the frequent heartburn that made me very crabby and unable to concentrate.
This shift has also dramatically heightened my awareness of how my body and emotions respond when I stray too far from what’s good for my body — I get shaky, dopey, irritable, tense, uncomfortable, distracted, and sometimes even downright mean when I eat poorly!
This may be difficult for many people whose bodies are addicted to processed foods… but give it a try for a week. when you next shop for groceries, try to make sure that you only put in to your cart 1-ingredient/no-label foods.
I’m willing to bet you’ll feel better for that next week! And a BODY that feels better has more opportunity to experience happiness.
Happiness is Eating Healthy!