Fruits + Veggies First

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend and are excited about the holiday season.  Happy Hanukkah to all of my Jewish friends!  We had our first snow here the other day and it is so fun to see all of the pretty lights sparkling in the trees and around the homes.

This time of year, many of us are blessed with opportunities to eat lots of tasty treats, cookies, candies and pies.  I thoroughly enjoy them, especially the gluten-free vegan ones!  One way to stay balanced and continue to give your body the nourishment it needs, is to consider the crowding out concept.

The idea is to eat healthy foods like fruits and veggies first, in order to crowd out and avoid eating as many unhealthy foods.  For example, drink a large smoothie before having your coffee, eat a huge salad before having any pizza, have some carrot sticks with hummus before eating the corn chips.  By doing this, you often learn to love the nutrient dense foods and may not even have room or interest in the less healthy or more processed foods.

Ken and I enjoy the special seasonal drinks like a peppermint mocha or a chestnut praline latte (even though I still can’t taste coffee, it is delicious and tastes like eggnog to me).  Before I enjoy my special hot drink, I’ll savor my yummy green juice!

If you try this concept out and it is helpful to you, please let me know.  Have a wonderful day!