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Photo Courtesy of PETA.org

Six months ago I didn’t know anything about food.  I did not have any real knowledge about how food was grown, raised, processed, treated, tested, evaluated, studied, scrutinized, labeled, packaged, distributed, or consumed.  I lacked a fundamental understanding of what I put in my mouth every day.  From birth to age twenty five I had trained myself to shovel food into my stomach as quickly as possible and in the highest quantity I could withstand.  I knew how to eat fast and I knew how to eat a lot.  It didn’t matter what was on my plate or how big the plate was, I could and would consume it, regardless of the consequences.  When it came to eating you could say that I was a meathead of sorts.  I exercised a little, which was enough justification in my head to eat what I wanted.  I made mental trade-offs every day.  I thought that if I exercised enough it would balance out any bad food that I might have consumed throughout the week.

When I went to the grocery store I would buy the same foods I always bought with little to no consideration of potential health benefits or risks.  I was on autopilot every week.  I ate the same foods for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and for each (more…)

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Photo Courtesy of ilovemypit (flickr)

What is a Green Smoothie?

In one word, Awesome!  It’s my new addiction.  Green smoothies have forced me to rethink my entire diet.  I also just finished the book, In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan, which thoroughly convinced me that I’ve been thinking about food completely backwards for my entire life.  A green smoothie fits right in with Pollan’s suggestions and even takes the convenience factor of healthy fast food to another level.  According to Wikipedia, a green smoothie is “a smoothie or beverage made by blending green leafy vegetables, such as spinach or kale, other vegetables such as broccoli, and fruit with water or ice. To balance flavor and nutrition the typical ratio in a green smoothie is about 60% fruit to 40% leafy greens.”  Essentially, it’s a healthy, nutritious, and tasty way to consume the stuff you may not get enough of in your normal diet.  If you’ve ever been to Smoothie King or even created your own traditional fruit smoothie at home, it’s essentially the same thing, only you eliminate refined sugars and add in fresh vegetables.

Here’s Why You’ll LOVE Eating Green Smoothies

1. Deliciousness

A few weeks ago I created my first green smoothie at home and it turned out much better than I anticipated.  I was nervous it would taste like vegetables did when I was a kid, really really gross and disgusting and yucky.  I was wrong.  It was delicious, thanks to the fruit.  Natural sugar does wonders for rather stale and bland foods.  Depending on your blender, (more…)

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Photo Courtesy of Trellina (flickr)

What does it mean to eat organic?  Can a person really eat 100% organic foods and is it worth it?  In my recent quest to become a healthier person I made the choice to eat more vegetarian and organic foods, without actually knowing what it meant.  I had heard enough news stories and personal accounts of the potential health benefits but I had never done the research myself.  Last week I started my adventure by buying as many organic and vegetarian foods as possible during my weekly trip to the grocery store.  You can read more about my shopping experience in my last blog post, Losing My Vegetarian Virginity.  I have bought a few books that others have recommended to encourage my growth in this area and I have watched a few documentaries.  The overwhelming message in American culture is that organic is good.  Organic is a buzz word; it’s trendy; it’s cool; it’s apparently helpful for someone, but who?  What does organic mean in real terms for the average consumer and is it worth my attention?  (more…)