French fries vs. Almonds

I'm a busy body...I like to keep my plate full. What's life without adventure?...exactly...a collection of uneventful days strung together.

So, I guess you might think I eat a hearty breakfast to keep my energy up during the day, right? NOT! Ever since I could remember, breakfast and I have not been on the greatest terms....if I eat too early, my stomach hurts for the rest of the day. Am I alone with this problem? Probably not.

My key to sustaining throughout the day...SNACKING! I snack all day long. Yesterday, I think I had probably 6 snacks throughout the day. I had a peach, a kiwi, a handful of grapes, kettle chips, wheat thins/laughing cow light Swiss cheese and a Twix.

I know what you are saying..."Eww yuck!...She eats so healthy! (well, minus the Twix)...Certainly not the case! I try. All I can say is...Practice makes perfect. If you had asked me my snacking habits two-three years ago, french fries, would have definitely been in the equation daily.

While, french fries are my all time favorite, they only make the list once every other week. The key is to slowly introduce those healthy snacks in your daily routine. If you go cold turkey...you are bound to fully relapse to unhealthy snacking. You will be amazed at how your palate changes and you will start to crave those healthy snacks!

Now...instead of running to the nearest fast food restaurant for french fries and can get my snack fix right in my lunch bag....those tasty almonds are just as delicious!

Check out this information reported by CNN Health on Snacking

Please eat with your hands and lick your fingers after you finish

So we are having family dinner, we are all seated around the table. Grilled fish, garden salad, saffron rice and ice chilled lemonade. I look over and my little sister is eating her salad with her hands. I say, "Ewww yuck, that's so nasty" "Use your fork!" She replies, "but it taste better like this and it's easier to pick up!"

Not until today did I realize she was right! Any food we typically eat with our fingers is ALWAYS delicious. Think about it...chicken wings, nachos, pita with hummus, veggies and dip...but then there are those foods we, as "westerners,"

wouldn't dare eat without the aid of a fork, knife or spoon. Ironically, in other societies eating with your fingers is the norm. So, what's our problem?

If you look at our anatomy, we are fully capable of eating without these simple machines. The opposable thumb, canine teeth, all enable us to consume all types of food. Most of us struggle at the table using that darn silverware anyway. Trying to cut that piece of meat into acceptable bite-size pieces....what a pain. And how about trying to get the last pinch of corn kernels that keep falling through the teeth of the fork or won't go on the spoon? DOUBLE pain in the tooshie. Eating with your hands allows complete control of your food...so why not use them?

And now to the most important part...FOOD IS MORE ENJOYABLE WHEN YOU EAT IT WITH YOUR HANDS! I can not explain this phenomenon and won't try. The proof is in the pudding. Just think about it.

The added benefit of enjoying your food is usually better digestion and complete satiety, which leads to a better functioning body. So, tell me again why we don't eat more foods with our hands?

To help you begin the switch from metal to flesh, I have included tips to properly eat with your hands in public (when you are at home, just go at it...I know I do):

Tip 1: Wash your hands...no really wash your hands well...with SOAP!

Tip 2: When eating bread, tear off a piece that is no bigger than two bites worth and eat that before tearing off another. If butter is provided, butter the small piece just before eating it.

Tip 3: (using Indian etiquette) When eating rice like foods, eat with your right hand and only with your fingers, never the palm. Use the thumb to catapult the food in your mouth.

Tip 4: (using Kenyan technique of eating ugali): When eating a sauce or stew, tear off a piece of doughy bread , shape it into a scoop by making an indentation with your thumb, and scoop the sauce or stew with it.

Tip 5: Always lick your fingers after you finish ( be prepared for stares of disgust but who cares...the most important thing is enjoying your food.)

Well, I'm off to eat my homemade brownie ala mode...with my FINGERS!

Check out other hand eaters:

http://jamfaced.blogspot.com/2006/04/eating-with-your-hands.html

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/eat-with-your-hands/

The Food Court: Danger, Will Robinson

So earlier today, I took a day trip with my little sister, her friend and my mom to the art museum and to the movies- btw Toy Story 3 was awesome! We started off the day around mid morning and after approximately an hour and a half of oooing and awwing at funky new age furniture designs at the museum we were completely famished. We headed to the nearby mall to grab lunch and an afternoon movie. Sounds innocent...right? WRONG! The prospect of Lunch at the local mall placed me in imminent danger of going against all my NEW eating philosophies...the grease, the preservatives, the filth. URGH! Had I packed a lunch or eaten at home, I would've had a nice turkey sandwich with a couple of kettle chips, a hand full of grapes, maybe 5-7 almonds and a nice bottle of Crystal Springs water. Unfortunately, that was not the case; Sbarro, Great Wraps, Chick-fil-a and the Mandarin Express all beckoned me a once. I stood there imagining red pepper flakes in the midst of the puddle of grease collecting around the pepperoni on a nice slice of pizza. I drooled over the prospect of twirling lo mein noodles around a small plastic fork with a piece of orange chicken stabbed at the end. Even more vivid was the image of a Kid's Meal 4 piece nugget from Chick-fil-a with an Icedream instead of a toy all for $3.52. What to do? What to do? I've been trying so hard to rid my body of these nasty toxins...saturated fats, veggies cooked to the point of no nutritional value and brain cell killing preservatives. Now to each of these food establishments' credit, they did offer healthier alternatives to what I described above. However, who in their right mind would prefer a bland chicken wrap or a pitiful ceasar salad that will undoubtedly be unsatisfying in comparison to the other not so healthy alternatives? Not Me! I caved! A small order of fries from Great Wraps (curly, whirly and delicious) and a small order of orange chicken (no comment)! Yes, yes, I know, I know ...I am supposed to promote fun and healthy living. The point is yes, I must maintain focus and be very disciplined to stand the course of living a healthy life but jeeze...it sure would be a lot easier if the junk was not readily available. Are they trying to kill us or do they just not care?