*Drink 1/3 of your water needs 1st thing, before tea or coffee. Our body uses lots of fluids in the night to rebuild and repair cells, so we wake up slightly dehydrated.
*Eat within 1 hr of waking. Get the metabolic engine roaring early and it will operate more efficiently all day. Don’t like breakfast? Start small, even 1/2 an apple and nut butter will do the trick.
*Eat Heaviest to Lightest. Breakfast should be the most substantial meal of the day, and dinner the lightest.
Or as my teacher Miranda Barrett says :
Breakfast like a Queen/King
Lunch like a Princess/Prince
Dinner like a Pauper.
* Go with protein, greens and essential fat at lunch for optimum afternoon brain function. Think chicken or salmon, greens and a little avocado..It is easier for your body to digest protein earlier in the day, and then it can be used by your body and brain in the afternoon to keep you energized. Eating vegetables + maybe a small amount (3 oz or less) of protein at night will help you sleep.(Have you ever had a steak late at night and then not been able to sleep?)
*You will notice that most of my snack recipes involve protein + a vegetable or fruit + a small amount of healthy fat. This is the perfect combination for a snack to satiate you and provide a slow burn of energy thru the day. You should eat 2 small snacks per day, in between breakfast and lunch, then in between lunch and dinner.
*Remember to drink as much as you want between meals, but with meals, very little to no water, and no iced drinks w/ meals. Iced drinks solidify fat in our food and make it harder to digest. (So a cheeseburger and a soda are about the worst combo ever!) Aim to reduce alcohol if you drink daily.
*Allow 2.5-3 hrs (preferably 3) between each meal or snack. You should start feeling a little hungry 15-30 minutes before you eat. Grazing is not healthy, it never gives the organs a moment to rest.
* If you have digestive issues, you may want to write down everything you’re eating for this week and any symptoms that occur and observe foods that give you gas, bloating or an upset stomach.
* *Stop eating 3 hrs before bed. This is a hard one for some people, but is one of the single greatest healthy and beauty secrets. Your liver and colon will thank you and you will see the weight loss and skin benefits very quickly! Its ok to be a little, teeny bit hungry as you go to sleep. How to do this?
* Start w/ stopping eating one hr before bed and work your way back a 1/2 hr at a time per night if you are a pre-bedtime snacker. Bed time tea w/ a little almond milk and 1/2 tsp raw honey is okay, but limit it to 1 cup. Yogi tea has a great “Soothing Carmel Bed Time Tea” that helps w/ evening sugar cravings.
* Eat at a table whenever possible. Take the time to honor yourself and your food. Avoid eating while watching TV, reading, talking on the phone or browsing the web. Avoid eating while driving. This improves digestion and studies have shown that we eat 25% more when we multi-task. That’s probably the exact 25% more calories that we don’t really need.
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