Most fad diets I’ve come across seem to be based on limiting what you eat. You may only eat X calories per day, cut the carbs, forget the fats, so long sugar, go away gluten, and Vegan means victory! OK, I took that too far. While all that sounds fun [sarcasm font] I decided to change my focus on what I should eat and not so much on what I shouldn’t. Given the overwhelming information, articles, news, and studies around “superfoods” I figured if I’d focus on consuming as many of these as I can and eat what I want if there was room leftover.
What is a superfood? Well, it turns out superfoods is not really a thing. It’s a click-bait header (see above) and a clever marketing tool, but like most other non-things, we’ve made it a thing. There’s even a TV show “Superfoods: The Real Story” that investigates superfood claims. There is no universal, global, national, regional, provincial, state, or municipal superfood association.
Therefore for the purpose of this exercise, I’ll define it for myself. Wiki says superfoods are “a nutrient-rich food considered to be especially beneficial for health and well-being.” Still pretty vague. To me, superfood is the above definition and can include anything from the basic, unsexy old school “eat your vegetables” like broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, onions, apples, bananas, and oranges to the nouveaux uber-sexy everyone-is-talking-about, check-out-the-latest-study foods like Açaí (pronounced ah-sigh-ee in uppity drawl), goji berries, cacao, hemp hearts, chia seeds, and the like.
I started my search for a master list through sources such as nutritionists, bodybuilders, boxing and MMA fighters, Four Hour Body book/blog, and a ton of Google searches where I would try to find the actual study and more important who funded it. There is a cool tool available call Snake Oil Supplements that links to evidentiary claims and studies. I tried to stay on side with evidentiary studies, but this is not an official scientific experiment rather than a personal one. Everyone has an opinion on nutrition and these are just some of mine. My mission for this list is to include some of these daily and the rest as often as I can. I’ve also listed meals that are rich in superfood goodness like salads and chilli.
When I die “I want to be buried to be snacked on by plants and animals as my life has been snacking on plants and animals.”
A few caveats: I eat meat. I try to get ethically farmed, organic meats. I take the supplements and vitamins which can be found here. My activity level is medium as I try to do something every day such as weight training or yoga. I also meditate every day which I feel is important to mention. My blood panel is normal except for a bit low on vitamin D and a little high, but still fine (and not medicated), LDL cholesterol. I take no medications. I don’t drink alcohol or do any recreational drugs, not that there’s anything wrong with that. I don’t drink sodas, diet or otherwise, except for the occasional Zevia. I don’t eat stuff from a can (man when did I become this person?), I eat pasta once every two weeks-ish, and I have an obsession with movie theatre popcorn with a lot of butter although I’m trying to limit it to once every two weeks as well.
Ok, here it goes. The Master Superfood List:
- Goji Berries (daily)
- Hemp Seeds (daily)
- Açaí (daily)
- Leafy Greens (daily)
- Cinnamon (daily)
- Coconut Milk (daily)
- Dark Chocolate (daily)
- Flax Seed (daily)
- Green/Red Peppers
- Carrots
- Avocados
- Sardines
- Bananas
- Greek Yogurt
- Quinoa (daily)
- Blueberries (and Other berries) (daily)
- Chia (daily)
- Oatmeal (daily)
- Green Tea (daily)
- Broccoli
- Salmon
- Eggs
- Nuts! Almonds, Cashews, Walnuts Pistachios (daily)
- Black Beans
- Apples
- Cranberries
- Cauliflower
- Pumpkin seeds (daily)
- Sunflower seeds (daily)
- Lentils
- Cacao Nibs (daily)
- Mushrooms
- Onions
- Rye Bread. Yup bread!
- Olive Oil
- Sweet Potatoes
- Green beans
- Spinach
- Beets
- Kale
The Recipe for Success
I start the day strong with the overnight oats that I make on Sundays for the entire week. I add 1/4 cup of steel-cut oats, tsp of chia seeds, hemp hearts, flax, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds,
quinoa, cacao nibs, walnuts, blueberries, raspberries and I fill it with coconut milk. I like it unsweetened, but you can add stevia as well. A couple of times a week I’ll add a slice of rye bread and banana. I do this with my morning coffee of which I have two and a third after dinner. I also get a green tea or two at the office.
Lunches are tricky at work, but I have access to a burrito place that serves burrito bowls and salad bowls each of which I get a chicken, beef or pork with peppers, onions, black beans, hot sauce, and guacamole. I do this about twice a week. Other lunches are either catered at work where I try to get garden salads with chicken or the same at any nearby restaurant. Ideally, I’d bring in prepared lunches, but I haven’t cracked that yet.
Dinners are a challenge as I suffer from decision fatigue (the struggle is real! http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/21/magazine/do-you-suffer-from-decision-fatigue.html) and I cannot decide at that time so a meal plan has to be figured out beforehand. We do have some staples readily available like chicken breasts. The sides are a mix and match type exercise and so I love beets and learned that canned beets have the same nutritional value as fresh beets although more sodium. We rinse the beets before serving which helps remove some of the sodium.
Salmon with green beans and broccoli or sweet potato. I also thought I would hate quinoa only because of a silly stigma I had in my mind about it, but it turned out to be delicious and incredibly healthy.
Chicken salad, which consists of romaine, red and green peppers, carrots, mushrooms, garlic, Italian spices, light olive oil and balsamic vinegar. If other veggies are around they get added too which may be broccoli, arugula, or spinach.
Steak! I’ve known my butcher for almost 20 years so I know the source of the meat plus it’s the best around. It’s worth the nominal extra cost. I eat steak with a Caesar salad (yes with croutons) and sweet potato or mashed cauliflower.
Roasted Rosemary-lemon Chicken. Pretty straightforward recipe. Roast a whole chicken seasoned with lemon (put the squeeze lemons inside), covered in rosemary and roasted with onions and carrots. Served with cauliflower and sweet potato.
Chicken breast with salad or sweet potatoes and green beans, or black beans drizzled in olive oil.
Chicken Fajita Bowl which is onions, peppers, mushrooms sautéed with chili powder and garlic and served on black beans with salsa, hot sauce and a dollop of Greek yogurt. Very tasty and satisfying.
Vegetarian Chilli is a great way to sneak in the superfoods you may not enjoy for example chop up some kale, add some lentils, black beans and you’re golden. I also add squash heat it up with some spice and great way to cover a couple of meals.
Snacks during the day or after work consist of a cup of mixed nuts and goji berries. This keeps the hunger at bay and contributes to Operation Consume Superfood.
Weekends are for dancing! …and eggs. A bacon, eggs, and rye toast breakfast has become our weekend tradition. Dancing is optional but encouraged. I tend to also have one or two “cheat meals” on the weekend which can be pizza, Chinese food, burger, onion rings, chips, cookies or a fast-food drive-thru. I’m not a big dessert person, but I do love my after-dinner coffee, and what goes better with coffee than chocolate? A piece of dark chocolate a few times a week is really enjoyable and a part of the master list. Also, a couple of times per week I have a bowl of Greek yogurt with berries and honey.
Maintaining a healthy diet can be challenging and I believe, for me anyway, that the secret is in the planning and deciding before you’re faced with the choices. At the end of a workday, something easy and comforting will always prevail and is arguably when we need healthy options more. I have found having healthy options more available in those times has a huge impact and helping us make the right decisions.
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This post was previously published on Medium.
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