The REAL truth about eating Wholefood

So this has been on mind lately regarding people's expectations about eating whole & real foods. This has led to me writing this blog to be brutally honest as to what it takes INITIALLY to begin this journey, not in the longer term.

You see, this is a way of life, essentially a new habit or a group of new habits that needs to be created and also follows the cycle of change.

Before I dive into the real truth, let me just clarify what a wholefood is, i.e. any food that is as close as possible to it’s natural state. By definition this rules out packaged and processed food.

The quickest way to identify how much wholefood you are actually consuming is to complete a food diary for 2-3 days. This way you can really get a true picture of how much “REAL” food is being consumed. You may actually surprise yourself.

I wanted to be upfront and say that eating a wholefood and real food diet is not easy initially,  however after time it just becomes a way of life. There are some bumps on the road until you can get into the groove. Over time you will find that it actually saves you time, creates so much more convenience and the cherry on the cake is how YOU will feel physically and emotionally. What I observe is that people try this “clean” eating for a week and give up after soon thereafter because it is all too hard.

I’ve identified 3 REAL truths that you just need to get comfortable and make peace with IF you want to achieve optimal health by consuming a wholefood diet the majority of the time. This is even more pertinent if it extends to healing wholefood.

THREE BIG TRUTHS

1. TIME

Depending how far you away from the concept of real food you are, it takes time to FULLY implement. Allow yourself a good 3-6 months to make small incremental consistent nutritional improvements to your family’s diet. It takes TIME for them to come on board. It also takes time for you to figure out what your favourite wholefood “go to” meals are that the whole family enjoys and in fact get into your groove.

Tying in with the concept of time is "EFFORT”. Food does not magically land on the table at breakfast, lunch and dinner (as much as we’d like the food fairies to appear) and it takes effort accordingly. I hear so much that I just don’t have the time. I beg to differ, we all have the same number of hours in the day. It really does not take the amount of time we think it does.

2.  ORGANISATION

Sometimes it feels like the word organisation is a dirty word. The harsh reality is that it is very difficult to consume whole and real food EVERYDAY without being organised. By organised I am referring to meal planning and preparation consistently so that it just becomes another habit like brushing your teeth. It’s not something you think about or debate, you just do it…..I hope so anyway :-).

It does not stop at menu planning though, you then need to prepare the lovely meals you have planned. Set aside time in your diary to do some bulk food prep so that you can create convenience, make better food choices, be more present, calm and in flow.

Tying in with the above truth of time, also give yourself time to get organised. Don’t come up with a bright idea on the weekend and decide you are changing the world on Monday. Instead allow yourself anything from 2-4 weeks to get yourself into gear and then make the changes.

3. Food wastage

Yes, initially there is plenty of food wastage whilst you adjust the family’s pallet as well as experimenting to identify the “new” family favourites. There will be some recipes that you make and the family will dislike, I like to think of this as feedback, instead giving you of an idea what their likes and dislikes are using real ingredients. Sometimes you do want to cry and just give up, but don’t, this is just a phase and it too shall pass. You just need to hang on and the food wastage will greatly decrease sooner than you think.

The truths above, are just part of the cycle of change. You first need to decide:

• What you want to achieve & why - this step is so often over looked, however is the foundation for making any lasting sustainable change.

• How are you going to get achieve this

• Set yourself a timeframe to do so, such as 6 weeks, 3 or 6 months. This really takes the pressure off and you are less likely to give up after one week when everyone hates what you have cooked. This does happen I am afraid to say…..so get comfortable with that idea now…lol

If you feel you need some support to getting you started on first step into the world of whole and real food and a plan to really transform your health, then book in a 90 minute Nutrition & Wellness Audit

Chantal is a certified and accredited Nutrition & Wellness Coach that helps stressed and overwhelmed mothers implement Healing Wholefood and Wellness transformational practices to transform the health of their family using a personalised step by step process.

Interview with Sally Gray - The IGNITE Quest

Is this you today?

• Life is just feeling OFF and you are not sure what to do next?

• You are consistently beating yourself up for not being a good enough mum, wife, sister, friend, employee etc.....Just not feeling enough, deserving or worthy?

• You are carrying so much baggage from the past, the shackles are so heavy on your back, you just cannot move forward?

Let’s paint a different picture – What if:

• You could live a life free of self imposed guilt, shame, embarrassment and anxiety

• You could have 100% control of your emotions, thoughts & actions and live the life you desire AND more importantly teach this to your children – PURE GOLD

• You could achieve more of what you want in your life, regardless of past challenges

• You could walk tall and BE in your authentic self EVERY SINGLE day and speak your truth with confidence

• You could face the crap & challenges of life with calm, ease and confidence, let’s face it – this stuff is still going to happen. The DAILY challenges and irritations WILL still be there, but it’s how you experience it.

I have the pleasure of interviewing my mentor, coach, primary health practitioner, friend and loving angel Sally Gray, founder of Real Healthy Kids.

Sally is a self confessed eternal student. She also possesses the most impressive credentials I know of which include:

• Naturopath,

• Herbalist,

• Masters Trained Nutritionist,

• Functional Medical specialist,

• EFT & NLP Practitioner,

• Jack Canfield Success Principles Trainer,

• Master Life Coach and

• Neuroscience Pracitioner.

So you are in the best hands here today.

Below is a brief summary of the video:

What is the mind, body connection?

• Quite often we are getting stuck in the physical doing, however science has proven that emotional well being and the brain is the single biggest predictor of our future and healing potential

• As mum’s our emotional set point is shaping our journey and that of our kids. Not an easy message to hear, but a necessary one

• Emotional well being is the REAL work that is needed if you are on a healing journey

• Doing the emotional well being work can save you years and not mentions thousands if dealing with a chronic health condition

How did you connect the dots that Emotional Well being is the key predictor for our health?

• From the personal journey of pain and crippling anxiety. Once the REAL work was done properly, the symptoms disappeared

AN overview of IGNITE:

• 15 years in the making of trying to find out how to marry Naturopathic practices with emotional well being practices such as life coaching, transpersonal counseling and human potential

• The purpose of IGNITE is to adjust your emotional set point and set you free

• It bridges the gap of where you currently and where you want to be

• Teaches the fundamental life skills

• 12 week LIVE online program, guided by Sally including additional Facebook Support

• Guided step by step frame work of weekly lessons learning how to harness the potential of the human brain

• Learn practical tips and tricks of how to put the information into practice

Sally’s overall message:

You are not alone on this journey of motherhood. We are ALL sista’s wanting the very best for ourselves and our family. You are not broken or need fixing, BUT we ALWAYS have a choice. A great life is only available to the courageous who are prepared to do the work

As mum’s we need to take back the reigns and create the life we desire. There is no such thing as perfection and we can walk our path the way we want to feel with confidence, self belief and a deep connection to our authentic self

My personal recommendation to join the IGNITE quest:

This work has really been the missing link on our healing journey. Awesome nutrition, whilst it yielded life changing results, was not enough. We can focus on perfect nutrition and supplements till the cows come home, but the results will always be temporary unless this INNER work is included as well.

I’ve always had an interest in personal development, but I’ve not had anyone teach me the way Sally delivers IGNITE. Not only do I stand up and take 100% responsibility for my life (the good and the bad), the message and concepts are taught to the kids, and man oh man, do they get this so much quicker than us. The journey is never complete and it is the work of life, but so bloody worth it!

The next round of IGNITE commences Thursday 22nd February

Click the button below to get much more detail on the program and join the IGNITE quest.

Added BONUSEs for action takers

• Join this week and get the first 30 days for FREE

• Access to the Wholistic Coach for 1 year FREE- valued at $564- this alone is worth the weight in the GOLD!

• A FREE private 1:1 "Breakthrough" Session for the first 10 to signup this week - valued at $250

That's nearly $800 worth of bonuses for saying YES to you!

PS - I'm not sponsored for this post, I just really believe in the work Sally is doing & her vision for mums just like you & me!

BONUS FREE TRAINING

Sally has been so generous and provided this additional bonus training. This one training and concept alone is enough is remove the shackles of life, set you free and become the captain of YOUR ship. Stop waiting and click on the button below to access this FREE training.

You can access that training by clicking on the below button

Chantal is a Certified Nutrition & Wellness Coach that has a special interest helping mum's transform the health of their families using Healing Wholefoods and transformational wellness practices. This is achieved using a personalised, yet proven step by step wholistic approach

4 Steps to Fill Up Your Child's Love Tank

So I am all about the food, but it's not all about the food. Have I confused you on the first sentence??

Let me explain myself. I believe with ALL my being that there is absolutely no substitute for eating a wholefood diet, NOTHING. To me, its job done, non negotiable and so I ask what is next to live a vibrant extraordinary life ?

To be truly healthy as described in this blog, you need the balance of both physical & emotional/mental health, so it’s equally important to be emotionally intelligent and physically healthy. This couldn’t be truer for our children today who are living in such a fast paced technology driven world who are experiencing unacceptable levels of anxiety.

 In my humblest opinion, it’s our job as parents to make our children feel loved, secured, confident and empowered and we primarily do this by filling up their love tank in a language they understand. After all, to feel loved is a primary human emotional need.

So let me introduce you to the concept of the 5 Love Languages.

I first became aware of this concept a number years ago when I started to take an interest in personal development. It was ONE of the BEST books I have ever read and believe that EVERY couple should receive a copy of this at pre-marriage counselling. Anyways, that is a topic for another day :-)

So the 5 love languages are different ways that people or children need to be communicated to in order to feel loved. There are 5 of these love languages and you would typically have 2 dominant ones that you need, a primary and secondary.

Let me tell you from personal experience in relationships with my husband, children and immediate family that this is GOLDEN. When you understand what their love language is and you communicate to them in the way that they WANT you to, you form the most beautiful bond and your relationship just goes to another level.

The Five Love Languages

1.       Words of Affirmation:

This refers to verbal compliments or words of appreciation. These are best expressed in simple sentences and obviously need to be sincere. Here are some examples:

• I love the effort you put into you that project

• I love you

• I really appreciate you helping me fold the washing

• You are so good at colouring in between the lines

• I love that you made a good judgment in X situation

• I love your smile

2.       Quality time:

This is quite self explanatory and literally means to give someone your undivided time and attention for a period of time. This all about being present and even better if you can initiate the time spent together

3.       Receiving Gifts:

A gift is something you hold in your hand and say “here I was thinking of you” It doesn’t have to cost anything. Gifts are just visual symbols of love. Examples of insignificant gifts are:

• Stickers

• Reading books

• Colouring in

• Their favourite game

• A T-shirt with their favourite character

• Stationary with their favourite characters

4.       Acts of Service:

This is all about having things done for them, not because they are lazy or can’t be bothered doing it themselves, but because they enjoy being looked after. Obviously you know when the mick is being taken :-). Examples are:

• Cooking their favourite food

• Filling up their water bottle for them when they could have done it themselves

• Putting the toothpaste on their toothbrush before they ask

5.       Physical Touch:

In the world of psychology, touch is known as a form of expressing emotional love. That may just mean things such as:

• Touching them whilst talking to them

• Giving them a back rub

• Random Hugs

• Offer to massage

Putting this into practice, I’ll give you examples of my two munchkins:

Son

He has 2 predominant love languages, that is Quality time and Gifts. This was very evident since he was a toddler. He just always wanted to be belly to belly, eyeball to eyeball He just loves spending time together doing exactly what HE wants. We could spend all day together at an outing or event, but within minutes of being home, if his needs were not satisfied, he would request to play a game such as uno, chess, lego etc. That's him expressing that he has not received enough 1:1 time. Sometimes that need is as little as 10 minutes to fill up the tank, it's all about the quality, not quantity...most of the time :-)

He also LOVES receiving gifts. This was and still is an easy one to use in a reward based system.

If I was to shower him with hugs (physical touch), he would get really annoyed, so I learned very quickly not to take this personally.

Daughter:

Her 2 dominant love languages are Physical Touch and Acts of service. As a baby, toddler and even now, she absolutely loved being held and cuddled. In fact, when she did something wrong, coming to give you a hug was the first thing she wanted to do, it was also her way of saying sorry. She adores being stroked and sitting on the couch having a cuddle watching her favourite show together.

She also really enjoys things being done for her such as, in the morning helping her put her gown or slippers on and will actually get quite upset if I forget. She is fiercely independent but loves to have little things done for her of HER choice.

How to do it?

Step 1 – Observe their spoken words and actions to determine their primary and secondary love language. You could even take a quiz here to help you identify their dominant love language.

Step 2 – Communicate to them in their desired love language, not yours. Be careful of this trap.

Step 3 – Watch them thrive emotionally

Step 4 – Repeat. As our needs and desires as adults change overtime, theirs will too, so it’s all about staying observant, flexible and adaptable.

I hope that gives a little insight into the 5 love language. I cannot encourage you enough to identify your loved ones love language and just watch them soar and thrive emotionally.

Chantal XX

If you are wanting to address your health or that of your family using nutrition & wellness principles, do not hesitate schedule your FREE Health Mapping Session here or here

Chantal is a Certified Nutrition & Wellness Coach that specialises in helping stressed and overwhelmed mums heal their children with wholefoods using a personalised wholistic step by step approach.