grocery shopping

The healthiest way to shop for groceries is to "shop the perimeter" of the store. The perimeter is where the veggies, fruit, meat, eggs and whole foods are. The deeper we find ourselves into the store, the deeper we get in processed & high-sugar convenience foods.

To my suprise, permimeter shopping has actually cut down on our grocery bill. Whole, clean foods keep you full for a longer period of time. Hence, you don't eat as much garbage. I am not big into calorie counting...more so healthy choices. If you are making good choices while eating and your body needs a snack--get a snack. Focus more on your food choices than the calories consumed. For instance, nuts are higher in fat and calories than a high-sugar breakfast bar---but the body metabolizes the nuts much better. The body has a hard time metabolizing foreign man-made foods. This leads to gastro-intestinal issues that are no fun! Help your body function properly by making smart choices.

As mentioned in other sections, so much of our crops are sprayed with pesticides that are very harmful to our bodies. This is the reason I recommend buying organic when possible. If this is not an option, make sure to get a non-toxic fruit & veggie wash and makes sure to wash well. Some of the most toxic produce items are apples and berries.

The reason why purchasing free range & grass-fed meat, eggs and dairy are so important is because most of our livestock is not treated appropriately for human consumption. The diet, artificial hormones, antibiotics and pesticides many animals receive are detrimental to our health. Farmer's markets are great places to get clean meat along with whole foods, local health food grocers and Trader Joe's.

If you have to be selective on your organic purchases, at the very least buy grass-fed or free range meat, diary and eggs.

Below is a sample of what my shopping list looks like for the week if you are interested. I will layout some of my daily meals as well. I do most of my shopping at Trader Joe's. I buy most of these items organic:

-almonds
-big container of organic mixed greens
-cucumbers
-red and green peppers
-tomatoes
-avocadoes
-onions
-garlic
-sprouts (although I want to start making my own)
-apples (lots)
-berries (fresh or frozen)
-zucchini or asparagus
-beans
-Ezekiel bread/English muffins (Love the cinnamon raisin)
-whole wheat bread/bagels for hubby
-raw cheese, organic milk, organic Greek yogurt, half & half
-free range eggs
-organic whole chicken, free range ground beef/filets, organic chicken drumsticks
-nitrate free turkey
-dark chocolate covered almonds (love the TJ's kind)

Staples to have at home:
-organic mustard
-organic or home-made mayo
-EVOO- I use a lot of this
-Coconut oil- great for cooking in place of EVOO
-butter (the real deal)
-red wine, balsamic & apple cider vinegar (to drizzle on salads)
-butter
-organic coffee (I love TJ's breakfast blend and I add cinnamon to the grounds and it is yummy!!!)
-raw honey, stevia (natural sweetener)

With the foods above, here are some meals I eat during a typical day. Breakfast- hard boiled or scrambled eggs with veggies, avocado & tomato, berries and coffee
snack- almonds (easy to have on hand)
lunch- green salad (this is the easiest way for me to incorporate enough veggies) with tomato, peppers, cucumber, avocado, broccoli drizzled with EVOO & vinegar with fresh ground pepper. I usually top this with whatever I have left over from meals (steak, chicken, chicken salad, hard-boiled egg). I will usually eat an apple too (with either sliced cheese or almond butter)
snack- I like to snack...visit the meal planning section for more ideas
Dinner- grilled meat, chili or soup/stew with lots of veggies and a small serving of whole grains (brown rice, lentils)

So---What about dessert? Here is my opinion on this. Although anyone who knows my past sugar addiction will not believe my new revelations on sugar...here it goes. A treat is called A TREAT for a reason. Sugar is not meant to be consumed the way we eat it in America.

If you are looking to change your diet because of disease or sickness...I would strongly suggest cutting out all added sugar for 40-days (this is in line with the Maker's diet). With this, I would also cut out all white flour, starchy veggies (potatoes) and most grains. If you cannot make it though the day without craving sweets (I was at that point 30+ days ago)...it's time to re-balance your insulin levels. For me, I also had an overgrowth of bad bacteria. Sugar feeds these bad bacteria.

Restricting and limiting sugar, white flour and starchy foods (if done correctly) can reverse many adult insulin-related diseases and severely reduce the risk of many cancers. Check out this article below by Dr. Mercola (leading holistic health expert) for more info on the subject.

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/01/26/Sugar-May-Be-Bad-But-This-Sweetener-Is-Far-More-Deadly-Part-2.aspx

I am not saying you won't see me eat treats. You just will not see me eat them like I did before. I no longer have Mike & Ike's in my car, skittles in my purse, or tubs of ice cream in the fridge (well...sometimes :)