The 8 foods you should eat every day

Thank you all so much for your positive comments on my "Tooting my own horn" post. I am extremely happy with my post-baby weight loss, and your sweet comments made me feel that much better!

So now I'm kicking things up a notch.... it's time for a nutrition overhaul!

My main motivation (besides continuing with a safe and healthy weight loss) is my baby girl. In just a few days, she'll be 6 (SIX) months old. Gulp. But with this golden age comes the time when most pediatricians recommend babies should begin eating solid foods.

Even though I'm excited that she's taking this huge leap in her development, part of me really worries about it. Until now, all she has ever gotten is breast milk. So I know for a fact that she's getting the exact nutrition that she needs, and taking a look at her chunky thighs, I know it's been more than enough to sustain her ;-)

But now that she'll be eating "people food" it is completely up to us (me) to ensure that we instill healthy eating habits for life as part of our family philosophy. With childhood obesity at alarming rates, I know I am responsible for taking her down a healthy path early in life.

One example I always use is pop (or soda, depending on what part of the country you're from, ya'll). My dad never let us have pop when we were younger. He never bought it, and never served it at lunch or dinner. As such, I have literally zero affection for any kind of (soda) pop. If you ever see me drinking one, which is *maybe* once per year, it's because I am dead-tired and there's no coffee within a 50-mile radius. I've also never had a cavity, which my dentists swears is because I don't drink pop. Anywhoo, I am grateful I never developed a taste for it, and I think the same principle could work for Emerson. If I never give pop to her, she won't want it..... right?!?!?!

(Right now, I am just picturing how long it will take me to eat my words on that one some day).

With this in mind, I decided that I need to put my money where my mouth is. And my mouth where the good food is. You see, if I'm going to give my daughter the healthiest food possible, I should be doing the same for me, right???

I came across this article by the author of Eat This, Not That about a year ago, and when thinking about giving Emerson solid foods, I remembered how easy it seemed. The author lists 8 foods that are considered nutritional powerhouses, or "superfoods" that should be eaten every day. As he says:

How can you make good nutrition as certain as death, taxes, and The Fast and the Furious spinoffs? Here's the simple answer: Just eat these eight foods--along with a little protein such as salmon, turkey, or lean beef--every day. And relax.

On the website, he lists each food, why it's so good for you, healthy alternatives for each food, and ideas for how to fit it into your every day diet. Here they are (with the alternatives that I may end up using in parentheses):

Spinach (Romaine lettuce)

Yogurt

Tomatoes

Carrots (Sweet potato, Yellow Pepper)

Blueberries (Strawberries)

Black Beans

Walnuts

Oats (Quinoa)

My challenge for this week is to eat every single superfood (or its alternative) every single day. If it goes well, I may try another week, but I want to set small goals when I'm just starting out.

Here's what I have on today's agenda:

Breakfast:
Greek yogurt with blueberries and walnuts

Lunch:
Audra's "Santa Fe style" quinoa with black beans and tomato salsa; Side of carrots

You have to admit that this looks pretty darn tasty!

Dinner:
A friend is coming over for dinner, so I'm making Vegetable Lasagna with spinach salad.

See???? One day in and I'm already kicking so much @$$!!! Bahahahaha! I'll let you know how it goes, because I know you're all so curious....

;-) Happy Monday!