The perfect diet - does it exist?

If you are on a quest to change your body composition or boost your health, you may find yourself overwhelmed by all the different dietary approaches. 

Traditionally, the word "diet" describes how you eat. However, over time it has evolved to mean "restriction" or "elimination" - often in attempt to lose weight. 

To help you out, I want you know that the perfect diet doesn't exist. There is no one "best" diet that works for every person around the world. Every human being is different - different genes, lifestyle habits, nutritional needs, emotions, activity regimes.....and so much more. 

While there are several universal nutrition principles that have consistently shown to improve health, reduce risk for disease, maximize longevity and to help with weight maintenance, I'd like to offer a different way of thinking about food. In other words, if you are on a quest to improve your health or change your body composition, there's much more to the diet formula than searching for the pieces of a perfect diet. 

• Your diet should not only keep you alive, but it should help you thrive. 
  
• Consume the highest-quality (nutrient density) of food that you can afford within your budget. Consider it an investment in your health. 
• Your diet should supply your body with a wide variety of nutrients to support all body processes. 
• Your diet should be financially feasible. 
• Your diet is consistently evolving. Work on a good, better, best system. 
• Prioritize food that comes naturally from the Mother Earth. 
• Your diet should be sustainable, flexible and enjoyable. 
• Your diet should have a positive environmental impact. 
• Eat for your activity level. 
• Your diet should leave you satisfied. 
• Your diet should not be socially isolating. 
• Changing your diet won't fix body image issues. 
• Achieving a specific look, number on the scale or size of clothing from your dietary choices will not ensure long-time happiness. 

Diet rules, lists and labels are used to control your eating. They tell you exactly what you should and shouldn’t eat in order to lose weight, improve health or change body composition. The diet rules make you believe that if you follow the “good” food list and avoid the “off-limit” foods, you will achieve certain results. (This doesn’t apply to medical, ethical and religious reasons for avoiding certain foods or food groups).

Extremes and absolutes are never healthy. Strict and restrictive eating can run and ruin your life, health and emotional well-being. Often times, it can create disordered eating patterns.

If you don’t diet, you can never cheat, break, mess up, feel guilty, fall off the wagon or have a bad day of eating.

Your eating choices belong to you. If you choose to reduce, minimize or avoid certain foods for ethical, medical, religious, health or personal reasons, your diet should remain simple, flexible, varied and nourishing. 

Your personalized style of eating is constantly evolving. 

Keep it practical, enjoyable and sustainable. 

It’s not a fad, it doesn’t require meticulous calculations, there are no strict rules, and it should never cause guilt, stress or worry.

Anytime Blueberry chia pancakes

Food Freedom. 

It's a beautiful thing. 

When you can eat what you want, when you want and feel better after you eat than before. 

Food freedom means not obsessing about the right time or the wrong time to eat something or having a permit as to the only time to eat something. 

Food freedom means removing the pressure to eat a certain way and not criticizing yourself for "messing up". It means not terming food or bashing the body but instead, enjoying the variety of foods that fuels your lifestyle and nourishes the body. 

I absolutely love pancakes and pizza and many other foods that perhaps, are on the off-limit food list for many people. Certainly I do not enjoy these foods on a daily basis for if I did, I would not yum over them when I occasionally have them. Also, there's a special way that I eat food - all kinds- in that I make sure that when I eat, I am accountable of what I put into my body and I always make sure I portion what I eat so that I feel better after I eat than before. 

There's no guilt, regret or uncomfortable feelings when I eat, regardless if it is a veggie filled salad or warm, fresh baguette.

Food freedom means enjoying pancakes on Monday morning just because it is Monday. Because pancakes taste great every day, why not eat them on a Monday? 

No long workout is needed to justify a pancake reward and by being in control of how my food is prepared, I have the opportunity to indulge and nourish my body, however I like, whenever I like.

It's a great feeling to have food freedom and to love food.  

I invite you to welcome food freedom into your life. To start loving cooking and meal time. 

Learn how to maintain a healthy relationship with food and the body so that you can let food enhance your life and not control your life. Create a diet so that the food you eat energizes your body so that you can work hard for your goals and dreams in life. 

Now, I can not promise you that my delicious "Anytime pancake" recipe will change your life but perhaps you can enjoy these scrumptious pancakes without worrying about calories, fat or carbs and just yum because well, they just taste good and make the tummy happy. 

For many people, accomplishing this may be a life changer. It is incredible special to be able to eat food and love the taste, smells and presentation. This doesn't happen overnight, especially in a very food and body image obsessed society.  But, this is something that is achievable but can be very difficult to achieve when numbers on on the mind (ex. weight, hours exercised, calories, fat, carbs, etc). I encourage you to work on this (or work with a professional who can help) because it is very necessary to develop peace with food and food freedom as you learn how to have a healthy relationship with food and the body. 

I hope you enjoy my latest creation which was fully enjoyed on Monday morning because well, anytime is a great time to enjoy pancakes. 

Anytime Blueberry Chia pancakes

1 cup gluten free all purpose flour (does not have to be GF)
1 tbsp chia seeds
1 tbsp sunflower seeds
1 tbsp coconut (unsweetened, shredded)
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 cup blueberries
1/2 tbsp cinnamon
5 frozen strawberries (cooked in microwave for 20 seconds and then mashed to form a syrupy consistency)
1 egg
1/2 cup skim milk
Water to meet "pancake" consistency
Olive oil

1. Combine all ingredients in large mixing bowl.
2. Heat a non stick large frying pan to low/medium heat (in between). 

3. Drizzle a little olive oil to cover bottom of the pan (I typically use the cap of the olive oil)
4. Stir together all ingredients with a large fork. Add water in 1/4 cup amounts until you meet a pancake batter consistency (between slightly thick and not too runny)
5. Using 1/3rd measuring cup, slightly fill the cup until 3/4ths full. 

6. Pour batter on to pan and cook for 2-3 minutes or until edges begin to brown. Flip and cook for 60-90 seconds.
7. Drizzle with (real) maple syrup and a dollop of butter. 

(Makes 7-8 pancakes)

Food Freedom: Anytime pancakes

Not too long ago I overheard a conversation with a personal trainer and his client at the gym. The trainer had been away on vacation and the client asked her trainer where he went and if he went to any good restaurants when he was away. As I was working my core on the captain chair, I couldn’t help but listen to this conversation about food.

I remember when I was growing up in Lexington Kentucky, there was a place downtown that had the biggest, most scrumptious cinnamon rolls that would put any cinnabon to shame these days. A cinnamon roll the size of my head and a belly that would get sick if you ate the whole thing (of course, speaking from experience). But oh were those cinnamon rolls the best…when my mom and dad would take me to get them for a treat once a year.

                    

(Source)

It wasn’t that the cinnamon rolls were off limit or “bad” food but instead, my parents would reward me after my piano recitals/competitions with a walk downtown to the cinnamon roll shop. I didn’t spend my entire year planning for the cinnamon roll or saving calories for the cinnamon roll but instead, we celebrated my piano recital (which was judged) with the cinnamon roll.  Relief that the hard work with my piano practicing was over and support from my parents as we all enjoyed the cinnamon roll.  If the cinnamon roll was consumed every day or even once a month, I just don’t think it would receive the same yum factor for it was extra special on a special day.

A few months ago, I took my first trip to Europe with Karel. With a bag packed of Marni friendly travel food for me and Karel, once we stepped foot in Czech Republic, the bag wasn’t opened until we flew home 10 days later. I welcomed my trip abroad with Karel to enjoy his country and we 100% lived like a local. Even as a vegetarian and Karel’s mom preparing some of the most long-awaited not-so-vegetarian foods for Karel, I didn’t consume a single food brought from the US the entire time when I was away…and I survived just fine. And because I don’t know Czech, I couldn’t read any food labels... and I survived just fine. All I needed was Karel’s “ok” that a food didn’t have meat in it and it was complete food freedom to put all that hard work to understanding how to eat mindfully to good use in another country and to be able to maintain my active and healthy lifestyle abroad.

Riding our bikes to Retz Austria 

Enjoying (real) coffee and pastries mid morning. 

When it comes to creating a diet that works for you, we shouldn’t forget that there is no diet “staple” that you have to follow but you do have to figure out what works best for you. Yes, all diets should be plant strong as the research strongly supports a real food, balanced, whole food, plant strong diet to improve longevity and reduce risk for disease, but in terms of figuring out your style of eating, that all relates back to your goals in life and how food can enhance your lifestyle. And for the extra stuff like treats, desserts, sweets, large portions, fattier options, etc. sometimes you have trust your diet enough to know that even with an occasional treat you are not going to become “unhealthy” or for many, “gain weight.”

Although Karel and I don’t have a working scale at home, we left Czech feeling clean, light and healthy and I confirmed to myself that my diet enhances my lifestyle. I love to train, travel and use my body to make memories and for me, that means understanding what foods work for me and my body. No time am I eating for calories or a body image….somehow it just all works better that way.

Prague, Czech Republic

So if you are someone who is currently working on the diet, remind yourself that food freedom is the ultimate goal. There will be a day when you can 100% enjoy something occasional and feel absolutely great about it. Hopefully that day is sooner than later. What you can also look forward to is the day when you start eating for fuel, for health and for pleasure but in a way that improves your quality of life. So right now, eating out with your co-workers every day for lunch may not be ideal if you are trying to figure out the best foods to help control your blood sugar, to fuel your workout routine and to meet your nutritional needs. In other words, right now you may need to be in control of your meals to figure everything out. But, what you don’t have to worry about is being in control forever. As scary as it sounds, food freedom means not having rules or a strict routine but instead, knowing what works and being able to apply that “style” any day, no matter where you are in the world. Eventually, there will be a time when you eat out, enjoy that meal of foods not typical in the daily diet and feel absolutely great about. Although now I can help others with learning how to eat for fuel, for health and for pleasure, I spent a good 2-3 years learning how to have a healthy relationship with food and my body and figuring out what works best for me as an active, health conscious individual, who loves to race for 140.6 miles, is a 20 year vegetarian, is married to a Czech cyclist turned triathlete who will eat anything and works as a clinical RD..oh and is also a doggy mommy.

Oh, so what did I hear from the personal trainer that inspired me to write this blog????

The trainer told his client that he didn’t eat out at all on his trip because he didn’t want to get fat and gain 10 lbs so he hired a personal chef to deliver 6 small meals a day of chicken and veggies to his hotel room and then when his wife and kids were playing at the pool, he would go upstairs, eat in the room and then head back outside to spend time with his family.

In honor of food freedom, how about we all enjoy pancakes for breakfast, lunch or dinner, anytime during the week without “deserving” them after a 3 hour bike ride, a 15 mile run, a hard spin class or because it is Sunday.

Happy eating in your happy kitchen!

Pear and carrot muffin-inspired pancakes

Makes 7 pancakes (1/3 cup serving) - So delicious, I wish this recipe made more!

½ cup rye flour (you can use any flour, I like the consistency of rye and soy flour – a bit lighter than whole wheat)
1 egg
½ cup skim milk
1/8 tsp iodized salt
1 tbsp honey
1 small pear shredded (about ½ cup packed)
1 large carrot (peeled first) shredded (about ½ cup packed)
1 tiny mini box of raisins (I keep these in the house for on-the-go snacks or traveling)
4 large strawberries – sliced (if frozen due to season, defrost for 30 -60 sec and then slice)
1 tbsp sunflower seeds
1 tbsp chia seeds
Olive oil (1 capful per 3-4 pancakes)

1. On large skillet, heat to medium heat (just above low). Drizzle with olive oil.
2. With all ingredients mixed in a bowl (I mixed with a fork), use 1/3 cup to portion each pancake and press down with bottom of the measuring cup for a flatter pancake.
3. Cook for 3-4 minutes on one side, flip when firm and cook additional 2-3 minutes on the other side.
4. Repeat until the batter is finished (I always make a mini pancake to taste while cooking  ;) 

In the Trimarni kitchen, we don't ever speak about bad or off limit food, fast, diet or cleanse. I eat to reduce risk for disease. I fuel the body and I love the food that I put into my body. The Trimarni kitchen is a happy place filled with food freedom and creativity.