The American food writer, Michael Pollan, came up with the following rules for healthy eating:
Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.
I love the simplicity of this, and the way it cuts through the mire of confusing nutritional advice we’re bombarded with on a daily basis.
In a similar vein, although less succinct, here are the Natural Born Fitness Food Principles:
- Eat real food, not the mass produced snacks, breakfast cereals, ready meals and processed food found in the middle aisles of the supermarket
- Eat a predominantly plant based diet i.e. a diet based around plenty of vegetables, fruit, legumes, nuts, seeds and grains
- Limit your consumption of meat and dairy. Whether you decide to eliminate them completely is more of an ethical and environmental issue, rather than a health issue, unless you have an allergy or intolerance
- Eat SLOW food whenever possible – Seasonal, Local, Organic, Whole food
- Cook your own food as much of the time as you can, that way you know what you’re eating
- Fast food is OK – as long as you make it yourself
- Avoid soft drinks – stick to water, tea, coffee, herbal teas
- Everything in moderation – including moderation. There’s nothing wrong with eating out, getting takeaway and having cakes from time to time – just not everyday. However, most people tend to find that the healthier their diet, the less they view these sort of things as treats and the less inclined they are to want to eat them.