Module 6

EATING HABITS, EATING OUT + ALCOHOL

 

Have you ever eaten in a restaurant and ordered the highly processed main course and chosen deep fried sides even though you know these foods leave you feeling bloated and uncomfortable?

Have you ordered and eaten so much food that you feel completely stuffed and uncomfortable?

Have you ever been satisfied and full from your main course but you still order and eat the dessert? 

Have you ever left a restaurant feeling like you need to lie down to digest your food and recover from your meal? 

Whether you’re at a restaurant or eating at home, you should stick to the same goddess diet habits that are going to leave you thriving.

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  • Avoid eating foods that you know leave your body feeling bloated or uncomfortable
 
  • Fill your plate with healthy fats, wholesome protein sources and lots of nutrients
 
  • Choose foods that pleasure your taste buds and that you enjoy eating but that also make you feel good.
 
  • Honour your body & stop eating when she’s full
 
  • Drink lots of water
  

Having full control over your food is where you gain your power. It’s where you will thrive. 

Here are some signs that you may be allowing food to control you: 

  • Seeing a night out / eating at a restaurant as a “cheat day” or “cheat meal”
 
  • Continuing to eat even after your body signals that she’s full 
 
  • Feelings of guilt, shame, or low vibration after eating
 
  • Feelings of “earning” your food by exercising first 
 
  • Seeing foods as good or bad as opposed to nutritious and non-nutritious 
 
  • Restricting foods and then over eating. This can be commonly seen in those who focus on calorie counting. Where they restrict calories all day to “save” calories so they can eat more when they go out to dinner
 
  • Eating foods even when you know they make you feel bloated or uncomfortable
 

If some of the above sound familiar to you, and you find that you sometimes give your power away when it comes to food, use these tips:

1. Eat when hungry, stop when full. Practice awareness to your body’s needs, and then practice honouring her needs.

2. Drink lots of water throughout your day. When you are hydrated your body is less likely to give you “fake” hunger signals. As a start, try drinking a glass of water every hour. 

3. Take a note of what foods or drinks trigger your gut or cause you to bloat and then try and avoid eating those foods. Food is energy, and you should always choose to fill your body with the good kinds. Become aware of what foods your body thrives off and what foods your body doesn’t react well with.

4. Be aware of when you get food cravings or feel an urge to binge. Sometimes stress and emotions trigger us to seek out comfort from food, and often causes us to over-indulge. Have you ever had a bad day and then gone out with the girls to indulge in lots of food and alcohol? Whether you realise it or not, this is a form of emotional eating. Have awareness and practice mindful eating. If you catch yourself in the start of an emotional binge, stop and instead try taking a walk, go see friends or family,  journal, listen to a podcast etc. 

All of the 4 points above ultimately come down to becoming self aware and listening to your body. Once you master self awareness and become in tune to your body, your goddess eating habits will naturally flow.

HOW TO READ THE MENU SO YOU CAN STAY IN LINE WITH YOUR HEALTHY EATING HABITS.

When choosing what to order from the menu, you should look at the food ingredients, but also look at how the foods are prepared.

A breaded chicken breast that has been fried contains 300 calories more than a chicken breast that has been grilled. Choosing fried foods not only increases your calories, but fried foods are also a huge common trigger for gut inflammation and bloating.

A lot of restaurant meals are loaded with sauces and oils, which again can add up in calories. 1 tablespoon of oil has 120 calories. A good idea is to ask for less oil or get them to put the sauce on the side when you order your meal.

TIP:  Creamy sauce usually has over 200 more calories than the tomato sauce so if you’re torn between the two, it could be better to choose tomato over creamy to keep calories lower. 

Restaurants also have a way with words on the menu to make their deep fried, processed meals sound healthier. Here are some key words you can keep an eye out for when reading restaurant menus.

DESSERT

If you finish your main course and you’re full, honour your body’s signals and stop eating. Don’t order a dessert for the sake of it.

Desserts are tasty and you should never restrict or deprive yourself from enjoying them, but if your body is signalling to you that she’s full, then honour her and stop eating. The dessert will always be there to eat at a time when your body is actually hungry for it.

If you know before ordering your main course that you want a dessert, choose to then eat something lighter for your main course that won’t fill you up too much. Eating a salad for your main course can then leave you with the space to fill with a dessert. 

LIQUID CALORIES

It’s not just food that makes up your calorie intake. Cocktails, sodas, fruit juices and smoothies also contain calories, and some can be just as high in calories as a meal. 

Be mindful when choosing your drinks from the menu. Stay hydrated with sparkling or still water with some fresh lime! 

ALCOHOL

Drinking excess alcohol regularly isn’t the best idea if you’re serious about transforming into a healthier, thriving you. Drinking alcohol excessively can lower your vibration & cause a huge decrease in your motivation to stick to your healthy habits. 

The quality of your sleep is decreased hugely when you drink alcohol in excess, which can cause imbalanced hormones and bring in cravings to binge on unhealthy foods. 

Lots of alcohol can also cause dehydration which can leave you feeling de-motivated, tired and sluggish. Being dehydrated will not leave you thriving. 

Alcohol in moderation is key. For a woman, this is estimated as one glass a day. 

If you consume lots of alcohol on a regular basis then this is where your results are likely to be hindered and overtime you will start to notice you’re not thriving in the way you’re supposed to.

Enjoying a night out drinking alcohol every now and then is absolutely fine, we all do it! 

So here are my drinking tips for those who enjoy drinking alcohol:

1. Choose the lower calorie drink options. (White spirits with soda or diet soda and some fresh lime, Prosecco, light beer).

2. Stay hydrated whilst you’re drinking alcohol. The more hydrated you are before you go to sleep, the less hungover you will feel the next day. For every alcoholic drink, have a glass of water. Give yourself a cut-off point in the night where you switch from alcohol to water. Place a bottle of water next to your bed & make sure you drink it all when you get home.

3. If you usually end up at McDonalds on the way home from your night out, prep something tasty but wholesome before you go out that you can eat when you get home instead. This can be overnight oats, pancakes, homemade burger.. anything that you find tasty that will provide you with more nutrients than a greasy, processed McDonalds burger.