Variety is the Spice of Life

Sorry for the break in posts, but between travelling, client consultations and adjusting to life with a 1-year old son who just started crawling; my blog tends to fall through the cracks! We actually don’t have another trip booked for a while so I plan to start blogging again on a regular basis.

With all the travelling we’ve been doing I don’t have a lot of time to try new recipes or healthy ingredients. When I have a few weeks at home between trips it’s all about catching up with friends & family, laundry and sticking to my easy, go-to meals. While this is fine, it’s left me feeling uninspired.

That being said, spring is here (except we had snow this morning! Canada seems to be the only country where you can get a sunburn and frostbite in the same week), and spring is all about fresh starts so it’s time to freshen things up and add some variety back into my kitchen!

Variety is the spice of life, but it’s also good for your health. When you include a variety of healthy foods, you get a variety of nutrients.  It’s also important to include variety to avoid developing food allergies and sensitivities as it’s possible to develop allergies to foods that you eat too often.

Here are some ways to keep it spicy!

Rotate your Fruit
If you always buy frozen blueberries for your smoothie, try a different frozen fruit next week like raspberries, blackberries, pineapple or mango. Don’t miss out on awesome vitamins & minerals that different fruits have to offer!

Raw AND Cooked Greens
While raw greens are really good for you, they can be difficult for your digestive system to break down. Take kale for example, if you always eat it raw in a smoothie or salad, try it sauteed or baked next time (have you tried Kale Chips yet?). Kale is one of the few veggies that retains its nutrients when heated (not when it’s boiled though).

Get a Little Nutty
There is a world of amazing nut butters out there other than peanut butter. Different nuts & seeds have different health benefits so I encourage you to try sunflower seed butter, pumpkin seed butter or cashew butter next time! Variety will also help you avoid developing a food allergy; it’s not a coincidence that peanuts are a common allergen!

One New Recipe, Once a Week
Pinterest is an amazing thing. It’s almost replaced Google for me in that I can search for healthy versions of my favorites, and save them as meal ideas for another time. Before you do your groceries for the week, get on Pinterest and choose one new healthy recipe to try each week. This will keep things fresh, improve your cooking skills and teach you about different ingredients and spices.

One New Ingredient, Once a Month
In the world of health and nutrition there are always new ingredients, superfoods and spices that are being talked about. Start reading nutrition blogs (Joyous Health, Motive Nutrition and Foodtrainers are a few of my faves) and healthy cookbooks (The new Oh She Glows, and Skinny Taste cookbooks are great!) and pick a new ingredient once a month to incorporate into your diet. Matcha powder, kefir and tempeh are on my list for the next few months!

Good luck keeping it spicy!

About Lauren

Welcome! I’m Lauren Follett. A couple years ago, while working in the corporate world of downtown Toronto, I decided to pursue my passion for healthy living and enrolled in the Distance Education program with The Canadian School of Natural Nutrition. I studied on my lunch breaks, after work, on the weekends, and while travelling through South America. The world of health & nutrition can be confusing. There are a lot of mixed messages out there when it comes to health: low fat, low calories, sugar-free, low-carb, gluten-free…leaving you confused, frustrated, and wondering where to start. That’s where I come in. As a Registered Nutritionist, my goal is to help you accomplish your health & wellness goals. I don’t believe in diets or quick fixes. I believe in living a healthy lifestyle, which requires you to get educated, and learn how to make healthy choices. I’m dedicated to working closely with my clients to teach & motivate them to make healthy choices, discuss healthy living strategies and create customized nutrition programs that fit with their life.

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