Learning to Eat Better for Your Long-term Wellness

Nowadays, there is so much information online on healthy lifestyles, nutrition, fitness and so on. It is incredibly easy to become overwhelmed and give up on improving your habits before even trying. It seems like everyone has a different opinion and they tend to contradict each other as well. Truth is, each person has its own nutrition requirements based on what works best for them and of course, any medical condition they may live with.

What a group of people may view perfectly fine, to others it could cause some serious health complications (talking about celiac and diabetes). Therefore, it’s crucial to understand these specific topics and if it doesn’t apply to us, then we must educate ourselves in what we are consuming in order to improve our eating habits. You will be delighted to know we don’t have to change our menu drastically but we can find better alternatives.

Eating with purpose

If your goal is to simply eat healthier then the most common advice you will find is:

• Stay away from heavily processed food: Referring to food that has undergone serious processing like pre-made frozen meals, packaged snacks and soft drinks.
• Limit the intake of alcohol: This may discourage some, but in the long run you will definitely appreciate cutting short these highly toxic drinks. Although having a drink or two every now and then shouldn’t cause bigger havoc.
• Instead of frying the food and using oils, try roasting, boiling, grilling or even stir-fry instead. Again, this can vary from person to person and limiting doesn’t necessarily mean quitting completely.

Considering you are aiming to lose or gain weight, experts suggest that you consult with fitness professionals and dietitians that are capable of recommending a balanced meal plan based on your needs and nutrition requirements. If you follow just about any diet or challenge seen online the results might be detrimental and set you back.

Finding recipes that are appropriate for “Just trying to eat better” might seem more difficult than what it actually is, so I will leave you with a great variety of recipes to start out your meals in the most fun free-of-guilt way: olivieri.ca/gnocchi-recipes.

If you deal with diabetes, worry not, I bring you an alternative to include in your catalog:

Red sauce Gnocchi

Cooking for diabetes can be thought of as tricky or “too elaborate”, however that is quite far from the truth. What we must be conscious of is the volumes, portions and measures. Take a look at this gnocchi recipe to happily indulge in some delicious comforting food.

Here is what you need:

• 100 gr of skim ricotta.
• 2 eggs.
• 100 gr of flour.
• 1 ½ cup of tomato purée.
• 1 tbsp. of olive oil.
• 1 tbsp. of oregano.
• 1 or 2 cloves of finely diced garlic.

Instructions:

1. First, lay out the flour, egg and ricotta. Use your fingers to mix them together until you create soft dough.
2. Stretch the dough making a long cane-like shape and cut it in small squares.
3. Shape the gnocchi by applying light pressure with a fork. Once you are finished, set aside.
4. In a pan, stir fry the garlic for a few seconds, making sure you don’t overcook it. Add the tomatoes purée and oregano.
5. Cook in low heat for 5 minutes.
6. In a pot with abundant boiling water cook the gnocchi and turn the heat off once they float to the surface.
7. Take the gnocchi out of the water and mix with the red sauce. All done.

Pro tip: serve while still hot to enjoy the steaming flavor.

Ultimately, cooking while being attentive to diabetes doesn’t have to be like walking on glass. We must learn to prevent sugary foods, consume more fiber, use less salt while cooking, avoid high sodium meals, eat smaller portions and drink less alcohol.

Eating healthier (when not dealing with any condition) will definitely take time to get used to. We should not try to turn our lives upside down overnight, otherwise it can lead to binge eating and the guilt could be even worse.

Be patient with yourself to understand where your cravings come from, if you are more of an emotional eater and finally, don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need to.