{"id":1314,"date":"2012-01-22T03:59:11","date_gmt":"2012-01-22T03:59:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/?p=1314"},"modified":"2017-11-08T15:34:09","modified_gmt":"2017-11-08T15:34:09","slug":"imagine-your-way-to-a-healthy-eating-lifestyle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/imagine-your-way-to-a-healthy-eating-lifestyle\/","title":{"rendered":"Imagine Your Way to a Healthy Eating Lifestyle"},"content":{"rendered":"

The next step in the Imagination series . . .
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You may have heard of Nutrition Action<\/em>.\u00a0 It’s a great newsletter that has really opened my eyes to what is actually in<\/em>the processed foods we so merrily munch.\u00a0 A recent article was particularly interesting.\u00a0 It\u00a0 pitted the Top 10 Super Foods against the 10 Worst Processed Foods, providing the nutritional lowdown on each entry.\u00a0 Here’s an abbreviated version:<\/p>\n

\"Super
*From Nutrition Action Health Letter: http:\/\/www.cspinet.org\/nah\/10foods_bad.html<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As usual, I lapped up the dirt on all the fat, salt, calories and chemicals in foods like Marie Callender’s pot pies, Campbell’s Soups and the Olive Garden trio plate.\u00a0\u00a0 But I could only do that because I had imagination<\/em>, i.e., I can look at the list of 10 Super Foods and imagine a dozen alternatives to the Top 10 Worst that are not only scrumptious but health-giving as well.\u00a0 I don’t have to depend on Marie, Campbell or Olive for food, flavor and comfort at end of the day.<\/p>\n

For a lot of people, however, those foods are a main source of food, flavor and comfort, so it isn’t so fun to read the dirt on processed foods.\u00a0 Lacking the imagination to free ourselves from that trap, we look at the Super Food list and think, “Oh great, a dinner of salmon with spinach and brown rice plus fat-free milk to drink.\u00a0 Oh great, crispbreads with oranges for snack.\u00a0 Oh great, frozen butternut squash steamed with kale for lunch.”\u00a0 Faced with that kind of lineup, it’s hard to imagine healthful eating as anything but dismal!<\/p>\n

But what if the Super Food list were enhanced by a little imagination.\u00a0 Take a look my Super Food meal list from the past couple weeks:\"Super<\/p>\n

What you will gather from this list is that we face a\u00a0 translation problem.\u00a0 Each of the plain old super foods on the list actually translates into a delightfully delicious dish!\u00a0 But we often don’t know this–and very often can’t even envision it.<\/p>\n

Hence the need for need for revving up the imagination.\u00a0 If 2012 is your year to begin a healthy eating lifestyle, here’s a good starting point:\u00a0 Envision the Super Foods as the basis for hundreds of incredible meals that beat the heck out of Marie’s pot pies.\u00a0 You may not be able to picture those meals, and you may not fully believe that statement, but can you at least:<\/p>\n