What Makes Healthy Foods "Healthy"?

What ARE "healthy foods"?

"Oh, so you can finally eat real food?" someone might ask as they see me put away a bag of tortilla chips.

"Chips are in no way 'real food'," I said. "I've been off of processed foods for about two years, so I thought I'd experiment a little bit and see what they taste like now. But compared to some fresh, non-GMO, organic corn with a little squeeze of lime, a hint of raw butter from grass-fed cattle, with just a pinch of sea salt... Compared to that, these corn chips taste way too bland, far too salty, and just...bad. This used to be one of my favorite foods, but now I don't even want it anymore."

Processed food has become "natural" for our culture. What's more, if you've turned on your television in the past couple decades, you've seen that we're trying to fix the problems of processed foods WITH processed foods, like:

- Cereals which are loaded with refined sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, refined wheat, artificial preservatives, colorings, and flavorings... Yes, even the ones touted as "healthy foods".

- Granola bars and protein bars that are more like candy bars.

- Pasteurized milk and yogurt from a sick factory cow that causes far more harm than good...ESPECIALLY when the fat is "skimmed".

- "Whole wheat" bread that is secretly loaded with the same nasty goodness as white bread, only it has a better PR agent.

It's like we're so far in denial, we've lost sight of what food really is. In my opinion, food is a cultural experience that interweaves taste, texture, and life-giving nutrients and fuel to energize the body and keep it physically fit.

Working out on a crappy diet is like taking a crowbar to a Ferrari and then trying to cover up the damage with paint. It's real, whole, natural foods that either come from the ground or have a mother that

- Boost your testosterone and growth hormones

- Lower insulin levels

- Increase your energy for workouts, and

- Help you get out of bed every day not wanting to kill that poor shmuck who comes between you and your morning donut.

And even though donuts are pretty much "the mother of all processed foods", they do not count as healthy food for obvious reasons. And neither do their little baby donut holes.

In this section, we'll look at the foods our ancestors were eating before we were a twinkle in our great-great-grandpappy's eye. Feeling energized, strong, and "at ease" (as opposed to "dis-eased") are just some of the benefits that come with eating healthy foods.

Bon appetit!

How to Maximize Your Water Intake - Space your water intake throughout the day for increased benefits. Understand the healthy way to maintain a good electrolyte balance.