Does this sound like you?
You recently turned 40 years old and began experiencing weight gain, exhaustion, and sleepless nights. You research what you can do to alleviate the situation and learn that eating a more whole-food-based diet can naturally balance your raging hormones, help you lose those unwanted pounds, and help you sleep like a baby once again. So, you head to the grocery store with your list of superfoods, gut-healthy foods, and antioxidant-rich foods with the intention of discovering your fountain of youth once again.
But, to your dismay, these so-called healthier meals have left you feeling more weighed down, bloated, and constipated than ever before. You find yourself eyeing the clock at work each day in anticipation of being able to finally get home and change into the leisurewear that provides you with more room for that newly distended stomach, which makes you suddenly look three months pregnant. How is this happening you wonder? Shouldn’t the whole-food meal plan make your feel better not worse?
You could be creating meals with the wrong combination of foods!
Have you heard of the food combining rule? Basically, this means that carbohydrates, proteins, and fats require different types of digestive enzymes, different environments, and different time frames to fully break down. Proper food combination has been shown to help aid in digestion and absorption, and, therefore, help with weight loss, energy, and mood.
General Food Combining Rules to Follow:
• FRUIT: Fruit digests itself, passing through the digestive system within 20 minutes. By eating fruit alone, you avoid fermentation occurring in the belly. Fermentation can lead to gas, rob you of energy, and slow down your digestion.
• EAT STARCHES AND VEGETABLES: Foods such as baked potatoes, sweet potatoes, or sweet corn should be eaten alone, with a vegetable, or with a small amount of fat. It is advised to eat starches {carbohydrates}, such as quinoa, buckwheat, brown rice, millet, or amaranth only with vegetables as starches require different digestive enzymes than proteins.
• PROTEIN AND VEGETABLES: Unlike starches, proteins require an acidic environment for ideal digestion, so it is best to eat protein with vegetables and healthy fat. When you add starch, you force your body’s natural enzymes to compete to digest your food.
Following these guidelines can be a step in the right direction when it comes to a healthier gut and healthier you!