Inspiration Archives - EAT YOURSELF WELL

COVID Has Reminded Us: Health REALLY Matters

May 1, 2020 by Jennifer Silverberg Leave a Comment

I’d say I’m fairly aware of the value of my health … how it’s the basis of everything else in my life: the ability to move, spend time with friends, spend time with family – literally, everything else. But still, watching people grapple with COVID has made it far more vivid to me: you either stay healthy, or live at increased risk … and literally every food choice I make is either moving me towards health, or away from it.

Leave it to Emerson (below) to say it in words WAY better than I can! But I can say it in food 🙂 … the bean salad below is a mix of everything I had sitting in my pantry/fridge: white beans, garbanzo beans, limas, black beans, corn, carrots, green beans, diced asparagus, riced cauliflower, red peppers, diced tiny cherry tomatoes … tossed with a simple tarragon vinaigrette and topped with half an avocado. We enjoyed it for two days!

Stay healthy, safe, and strong through this Covid crisis, and beyond – Jennifer

Healthy Resolution!

January 7, 2019 by Jennifer Silverberg 1 Comment

For me, resolutions about what not to do have never really worked. Likewise when I’ve focused on “what” I will or won’t do, as opposed to “why.” However, the healthy resolution below, made to myself many years ago, has brought vibrant health, sustained energy, and incredibly positive ripple effects into other parts of my life. Set aside the time to thoughtfully prepare your food (it takes less than you think, particularly once you get going), and consciously consume it. Your health and your life will change.

Want a reminder?

– Buy a set of small votive candles to light each time you start a meal at home or at work – a gentle push to remind yourself to slow down and create and consume the food consciously.

– Post a reminder (maybe the graphic on this page?) on your refrigerator, in your pantry, in your car, or any other place where you are making food decisions.

– Keep a copy of your commitment with you in your wallet or purse, and re-read before you go grocery shopping.

– Make a family/couple game of it – resolve to spend a couple of minutes before cooking (or before eating out) talking about how you can use this meal to love your body.

– Remember that loving yourself with your food goes beyond just what the food IS – it’s also how it looks, smells, and feels in your mouth. A few minutes setting a table and plating the food consciously can make the meal MUCH more pleasurable!

– Enjoy, and happy, healthy new year to you!

Real Food … the Easy Way to Health

February 16, 2016 by Jennifer Silverberg Leave a Comment

This is one of my favorite bits of real food inspiration … because it has the potential to stop us in our well-worn tracks of thinking of food – particuarly healthy food – as time-consuming and complicated.

REAL FOOD

– Real food is a beautiful apple, sliced with love, and eaten one gorgeous slice at a time.

– Real food is a couple of farmer’s market carrots sliced into dimes and sizzled in a bit of olive oil until they caramelize.

– Real food is broccoli roasted until it’s crisp and brown, with simple sprinkle of salt.

– Real food is a half of an avocado, maybe with a squeeze of lime and a twist of black pepper … or not.

– Real food is parsley and mint, tossed with quinoa.

– Real food is a tomato, freshly picked from the vine and eaten while still warm with the summer sun.

– Real food is a mash of warm white beans, with a bit of roasted garlic.

Real food is simple, beautiful, and soul-warming. It can be mixed with other foods, but it is also complete unto itself. It demands to be eaten artfully and with attention, and returns this favor with flavor and health. Big thanks to the great Jamie Oliver for the reminder!

Less food – more satisfaction!

September 18, 2015 by Jennifer Silverberg Leave a Comment

If your meals leave you unsatisfied, it’s may not be insufficient food … it may be insufficient attention and time given to the overall process. Every aspect of the meal is part of the full cycle of satisfaction, and rushing through any of it can leave you dissatisfied and full of cravings for more. Maybe the secret to the slimming, healthy Mediterranean diet is less about the food itself, and more about the complete lack of rushing around the meal. Worth trying!

Happy Healthy Birthday!

September 6, 2015 by Jennifer Silverberg 2 Comments

So, today is my birthday – one of the ones that end in “0” and cause you to pause to take stock of where you’ve been and where you’re going with the time you have left. This morning, I’m taking a few moments to give HUGE thanks to the body that has somehow been able to withstand all of the craziness I’ve thrown at it for so many years, and has provided a healthy, strong place to live through it all.

Of course, the LAST thing I want to do to celebrate this milestone is to violate myself with foods that will gunk up the works and negatively impact my health … so I’m making my own version of this “fruit cake!”

Totally wish you all could be here to share it with me – but here’s how to make your own!

Healthy Birthday Fruit Cake!

Ingredients
– One large seedless watermelon
– In-season fruits: melons, blueberries, strawberries, kiwi, pineapple, blackberries, dragonfruit, cherry, apple, bananas, pears, oranges, figs … anything!

Lay the watermelon on its side. Using a large, non-serrated, sharp butcher knife, cut both ends off to form parallel straight edges. Turn the watermelon so that it is sitting flat-sides up and down. Carefully slice within the rind to remove it, leaving a round form. If you’re anything like me, there is still quite a bit of cutting to do to make it even, but all of the trimmings are delicious!

Pro tip: place two plates (slightly smaller than the diameter of the watermelon) on either side of the cake – one on top and one on bottom, and use the plates as guides for your knife. Voila – perfect circle!

Arrange whatever fruit is fresh atop the cake and around the bottom. To make shapes, use a cookie cutter, and then use toothpicks to affix them to the cake (be sure to remove toothpicks from fruit before kids serve themselves).

Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve (serve same-day). For serving, it helps to have an additional bowl of fruit so that you can simply slice the watermelon and spoon the fruit from a bowl.

We’re giving away two cookbooks – The Plantpower Way, by Rich Roll and Julie Piatt!

April 26, 2015 by Jennifer Silverberg 20 Comments

Rich Roll and Julie Piatt – endurance athletes, food influencers, lifestyle gurus, expert podcasters, and all-around amazing people – are releasing their incredible cookbook, The Plantpower Way, on April 28, and they were kind enough to partner with Eat Yourself Well to give away two copies!

To enter, simply comment below or on our Eat Yourself Well Facebook page. We’ll draw two names randomly on April 28 and announce the names on Facebook and via the blog (be sure to Subscribe here so you don’t miss the announcement)!

Also – don’t miss the Pre-order bonuses that Rich and Julie are offering – extra recipes, and more!

Gulping vs. Savoring

April 8, 2015 by Jennifer Silverberg Leave a Comment

A nice plan for all of life, not just eating, right? Love this quote from Gregg Krech’s book, The Art of Taking Action: Lessons from Japanese Psychology. Isn’t it interesting that how we approach part of our life becomes how we approach all of our life … gulping and cramming and acting thoughtlessly in any area tends to spill into others.

Conversely, acting thoughtfully, consciously, and with intention in one area also tends to spill into others.

Give yourself the gift of taking time to savor the day! Start with food, or start anywhere that makes sense for you.

7 Tips in 7 Days: Eating Consciously, Day 3

March 5, 2015 by Jennifer Silverberg Leave a Comment

This may be my favorite “eating consciously tip” ever!

When people say, “I’m trying to cut out (insert favorite junk food here)”, I remind them that thinking “I can’t have this treat” feels like punishment, but raising your food standards is empowering. Or to say it another way, what marketers have sold to you as a TREAT is actually a TRICK.

– posted by Jennifer Silverberg, Eat Yourself Well!

7 Tips in 7 Days: Eating Consciously, Day 1

March 2, 2015 by Jennifer Silverberg Leave a Comment

One of the first steps to healthier eating is to become more aware of what and when you’re eating.

For most of us (me included), mealtimes can devolve into a handful here, a handful there … and before you know it, you’re full and you don’t even really remember enjoying food at all! One simple step to help break this pattern is to commit to lighting a candle before taking a bite, any time you have a meal or snack. This one small change has helped lead many people to seemingly effortless changes in their habits … simply by bringing awareness and focus to the food in front of them.

This is Day 1 of 7 Days of Eating Consciously tip … don’t miss the next one – use the button in the upper right of this page to subscribe to the blog!

NOTE: If you love the sea glass candle shown in the graphic, click here to see how to make one.