Dying happy

Who hasn't heard someone say--or said it themselves--about the food they choose to eat: At least I'll die happy.

(Cinnabon Caramel Pecanbon cinnamon roll,
1080 calories--info and photo from Cinnabon.com)

Will you really? Death is inevitable, but would you like yours to be a consequence of the food choices you make? Obesity is now the #2 cause of preventable death in the United States (Journal of the American Medical Association). Millions of people suffer from the debilitating effects of poor nutrition and fitness decisions. Does that sound HAPPY to you?

On the flip side, I know so many people who have decided to make HEALTH their decision, and they are truly happy. They enjoy and savor the food they eat, but it does not dominate the spectrum of joy in their lives. They are able to enjoy a full life, facing no limits because of their health.

My family is on this path, and I'm so glad we've made the decision early to find THIS kind of happiness. It's never too late, though! Sign up for my newsletter to hear about my 83-year-old grandfather who chose health and is enjoying life more now than he did when he was 80!

We're all toddlers at heart

A friend was pleading with her blog readers to help her figure out how to tame her picky eater, and so I went to my go-to book about feeding children to see if I could find any tips for her. I stumbled across a reminder of why we're all like toddlers. The author talked about how a toddler needs 15 to 20 exposures to some foods (vegetables in particular) to learn to like them.

I am not sure adults do much better.

But since vegetables are one of the best foods for weight loss and continued health (source), what is a person to do? I mean, no one is there cooking every meal for you, offering bite after bite of brussel sprouts (which I have recently discovered, and love, btw).

That's why I love being a health coach. Because of the simplicity of this program, I have seen people transform their attitude toward food. I love watching as people expand their palate and discover the yumminess that was missing because they had not even considered the possibilities that a lot of vegetables offer.

So open your mind to the possibilities and try a new veggie dish today. You might be surprised! Here are links to a few of my recent favorites:

Simmered leeks

Butternut squash and bean tacos with green salsa (recipe on EatingWell.com) I modify a few things to make it a little healthier and suit my tastes, like using whole grain wraps instead of tortillas and no cheese, but the recipe is already pretty healthy as-is.

Roasted Eggplant Spread--an Ina Garten recipe that doesn't have a pound of butter in it :)

Eggplant and Pepper Parmesan Sandwich I didn't have goat cheese or the tapanade (not regulars in my pantry...) but this was still incredible. Roasted veggies are amazing!

The REAL breakfast of champions

Veggies are amazing. So amazing that I want my family to have them with every meal, including breakfast! An easy way to do that is by making green smoothies.

I've been messing around with my green smoothie recipe to get one that Daddy Badger would actually enjoy and not just endure (Baby Badger and I are easier to please when it comes to smoothies, I guess). This is the latest and we all drink it happily for our breakfast. We usually have some nuts and some toast to round it all out.

1 15 oz can no-sugar-added peaches in water
Three [very] large handfuls of fresh spinach or kale (it should nearly fill the blender)
1 banana
1 cup plain fat free yogurt
1 cup of ice
As much milled flax as you can handle ;)

Pour the peaches and liquid into the blender, puree. Add greens and puree until smooth, about 30 seconds or so. Add in banana, yogurt and flax; blend briefly to mix. Add ice and puree until smooth.

Super quick and easy, so incredibly healthy, and super tasty. If you have family members who might gag at the sight of green liquid, you can add a cup of mixed frozen berries instead of ice, which gives it a nice purple tone (but ups the price tag).