10 Steps Towards Traditional Eating
Tackling an area you want to change or improve can be overwhelming, especially when it comes to food. Food is something we often have emotional ties to. If we were raised eating a Standard American Diet, it can be hard to make the changes necessary for improved health. Where does one even start?
That was my story. I grew up on McDonalds and Froot Loops. When I became interested in the food industry and nutritious food, I had no idea where to start. I gathered a little bit of information here and there and slowly made changes in different areas. After many ups and downs, trial and error, I have been happily eating a whole foods diet for over a year now. Sure I still have a treat here and there, but becoming fully nourished in my daily life allows me to feast without guilt. My body is able to make up for the mistakes that I make because I am giving it the nutrients that it needs to function optimally.
A return to real food is meant to free you, not burden you. Keep in mind that this is not a new diet fad or a checklist of perfection. You have the power and the freedom to choose the areas you want to start with and implement in your life. A nourishing balance is the goal, not restrictive perfection, and you get to choose what this looks like. Here are a few areas for your consideration:
Cook from scratch
What are some things that you purchase from the store out of convenience that you could switch to making yourself instead? Pancake or waffle mixes, cookie dough, cake mixes, or frozen fries are a great place to start.
Use grassfed butter, local lard from pastured pigs, avocado oil, olive oil or coconut oil
Canola, soy, and cottonseed were never grown for human consumption until they realized how incredibly cheap it was to make a buck off of them. But because these crops were never meant to be food, that means the seeds have to go through an incredible amount of processing, bleaching, and purifying before they are even reminiscent of an “oil”. Seed oils are high inflammatory and are contributing to the rise in heart disease, cancer, and other modern health issues. Instead of margarine and vegetable oil, use real, high quality saturated fats.
Switch conventional processed foods to organic
While it would be best not to consume any processed foods at all, that is not always possible (or even desired…I enjoy crackers too!) The good news is, there are now many organic alternatives that are at least protecting your body from glyphosate, GMOs, and many toxic preservatives. For example, if you love Goldfish crackers, try Annie’s Organic Cheddar Bunnies instead.
Bake bread at home
Store bought bread often has enough ingredients to make your head spin! Bread should be just a few simple ingredients— flour, water, salt. Maybe some honey, oil, or egg on occasion depending on the type of loaf. Traditionally fermented sourdough is ideal for optimal digestion, however even just a simple homemade yeast loaf is a much better option than prepackaged bread from the store.
Make bone broth instead of buying boxed broth
This is an excellent way to save money and increase nutrients in homemade meals. Bone broth can easily be made with collected bones from any whole chickens you roast and vegetable scraps. You can also check your local farms to see if they sell beef bones and chicken necks and backs. Bone broth can be frozen or pressure canned for long-term storage.
Use real organic unrefined cane sugar, maple syrup, and honey
Sugar is not the enemy, but it’s important to recognize the difference between sugars. Unrefined cane sugar, maple syrup, and honey are natural and nourishing when eaten in moderation. However sugar from genetically modified sugar beets, stevia, splenda, or other artificial sweeteners are best to be avoided.
Buy animal products locally from regenerative agriculture farms
This is a great way to ensure you are eating real, nourishing meat. You can ask the farmer directly how the animal is raised and sometimes even visit the farm to see! Grass-fed and pasture raised are some of the key practices you want to support. Feedlot (factory farm) animals not only live sad, unethical lives, but they are fed unnatural diets and cast-offs from the processed food system. You are what you eat eats. If the animal you are eating for dinner ate genetically modified grains and was pumped with antibiotics and hormones, you are now eating all those things as well.
Count chemicals, not calories
Counting calories is a diet culture myth and is more detrimental to our emotional and mental state than beneficial to the body. Our goal should be pro-metabolic nourishment, not hitting or sticking to a certain number. What is more worth our attention is the chemicals in our food that have been normalized or ignored.
Crowd out, don’t cut out
Removing foods without having anything to replace them with can leave you feeling helpless (and hungry). This method can also lead to eating disorders and a general unhealthy mindset around food. Instead, choose an area or two that you want to improve on and crowd things out. For example, do you usually cook with canola oil? Well the next time it’s on your grocery list, grab an avocado oil instead. Do you usually eat out for lunch? Try meal prepping a few homemade options for during the week. Slowly build up your arsenal of recipes you enjoy and replacing your usual products with healthier alternatives.
Properly soak nuts, seeds, beans, and grains
God specifically created grains so that they would store well until the time of their germination. Phytic acid, enzyme inhibitors, and proteins that can be hard to digest are all present in these foods to keep them naturally “shelf stable". We also eat these food groups in larger amounts nowadays than necessary (1 cup of almond flour can contain up to 90 almonds!) Proper preparation through soaking, sprouting, and fermenting can lend to better digestion and absorption of nutrients.
Are you looking to learn more in-depth information about these areas and more? This list only skims the surface. My ebook Traditional Eating provides more information, encouragement, and a masterlist of resources at the end so you can do your own research and decide where you want to begin. Hopefully this can be an encouragement to you. Let me know if you have any questions!
A return to nourishing and properly prepared foods
Traditional eating is a return to our roots, a revival of forgotten ways. With the rise of convenience culture and politically-motivated health advice, we no longer know how to recognize real food. Our ancestors knew how to eat, that’s for sure. A return to their ways includes rich saturated fats, pastured meats, raw milk, ferments, and challenges everything we’ve ever been taught about food.
In 23 pages, Kaetlyn covers 12 main areas of traditional eating in an engaging, easy to read format. The guide ends with an incredible masterlist of further research, resources, and recipes.
