2014: TIme to Clean it up!

It's 2014, the beginning of the year and a great time to clean up the house, purge through and recycle out all the "stuff" you don't use anymore to start this year off with a clean slate.

I'm sure many of you have started your New Year's resolutions with new exercise regimes and maybe even a "Cleanse" to also get your body started off right for this year.

So, let's take this cleaning idea one step further: Have you cleaned out your fridge and pantry?  OK, I'm not just talking about wiping down all the shelves and throwing out the rotting fruits & vegetables or the moldy leftovers.  I'm talking about purging your fridge and pantry of all the food that is truly not good for you or your family.  We all live very busy lives and often it's tough to make a nutritious meal for ourselves, let alone our families, but if you stock your fridge and pantry correctly you will at least have some more healthy options that will start you on the right track for a year of better eating habits.

Get rid of the obvious stuff first, sugary snacks, overly salty crackers and chips. Left over holiday treats.  Then take a harder look at what you have.  How many fresh fruits and vegetables are there for you to snack on?  Or did they just rot while you ate chips and salsa again last night as a snack.

Then take a look at the not so obvious stuff: processed foods.  The packaging may say "Gluten Free" "Sugar free" "Low Calorie", but if you can't even pronounce the list of ingredients on the packaging, then it is most likely so processed that any health benefits may be negated by all the processing that they used to bring that product to your store shelves.

I know for some, it's not so easy to just get rid of food, so consider donating some of the items to a food bank or shelter.  If you can't do it alone, have a friend come over and take a look at the fridge and pantry together.    Or, call a professional (Personal Trainer, Nutritionist, Dietician) and have them walk you through the process of what to keep, what to throw out and what to buy.

Finally, educate yourself on what you should have in your fridge.  Below are a few links that can help you in the process:

best-foods-to-stock in your Fridge from Parents.com

Dr Oz Fridge Makeover

Food Consumption Graph

Food Labels from Precision Nutrition

Have a great week and hope to see you for a workout soon!

Barb