Make it Easier to Eat Healthy: Kitchen Makeover How-To

The easiest way to create a healthy lifestyle is to create a healthy living space. A good place to start: the kitchen. This post is Part 1 of the Kitchen Makeover Series, where I’ll walk you through throwing out the junk and replacing it with healthy foods and a supportive atmosphere.

If the food is there, someone (you, your partner, your kid, your friend), will eventually eat it. That’s true if the food is an apple and that’s true if that food is Cocoa Puffs. If that food doesn’t support your health or your lifestyle, why keep it?

The point of a Kitchen Makeover is to get rid of the foods that don’t support your health and nutrition goals so that they aren’t a possibility, never mind a temptation. Replace the dusty holes they leave on your shelves and in your fridge with healthy, nutrient-dense foods that support your goals.

Step 1: Sort it Out

The first step of your Kitchen Makeover is to sort through the food you currently have. Grab a garbage bag and a couple of brown paper bags and clear a space on your kitchen table/counter tops. The garbage bag is for, you guessed ,it, garbage. The brown paper bags are for anything that you don’t need in your kitchen but can go to a food pantry. The space on your kitchen table is to sort through foods that you want to keep before you clean the shelves and reorganize.

The Obvious Junk

Some foods are obviously junk and it’s time for them to go. Before you berate yourself for wasting food, read a couple of ingredient panels. Ingredient panels on processed foods don’t contain a lot of real food, so technically you’re not even wasting food.

• Candy
• Milk chocolate
• Chips
• Crackers
• Soda
• Sweetened drinks
• Instant foods
• Pretzels
• White pasta
• White flour
• Sugary cereals
• Processed back goods (i.e. Mini Muffins)
• Most frozen dinners
• Processed fats
• Processed meats

The Not So Obvious Foods

Once you’ve tossed the obvious junk food, it’s time to dig through what’s left. Unfortunately, we live in a world where labeling isn’t always honest. When manufacturer’s take a once-good-for-you food and add and subtract from it’s natural form, that food become less-good-for-you.

• Granola/cereal bars
• Sweetened yogurt and frozen yogurt
• Store-bought smoothies
• Fruit juices
• Instant oatmeal packets
• Breadcrumbs
• Spreads
• Store bought dressings and sauces

When in doubt, read labels. The first red flag is that it requires a label. Look for preservatives, added sugars (that are labeled under various aliases), and processed fats. Look for the number of ingredients; the fewer the ingredients the better. Can you pronounce all of the ingredients? Do you know what they are? Would your grandmother?

These lists are entirely inclusive, but they should give you a good idea of what to look for and how to make an educate guess at what stays and what goes.

>> Healthier Eating Food Choosing Guide

>> New to Healthy Eating? Start Here.

Step 2: Restock

Now that it looks like a pack of famished teenage boys ransacked your kitchen, it’s time to restock. Remember, “If the food is there, someone (you, your partner, your kid, your friend), will eventually eat it”.

If you want to quickly restock your kitchen in an organized way, download my Healthy Eating Grocery List. You’ll notice most foods on this list don’t require nutrition labels. That’s a good thing.

Pick your favorite 1-4 foods in every category. Circle them. Take this list with you to the store and restock!

For example:

• Fruits: apples, strawberries, grapefruit
• Veggies: spinach, carrots, peppers
• Protein: eggs, Greek yogurt, chicken
• Healthy Fats: almond butter, avocado, walnut oil
• Beans/Whole Grains/Potatoes: black beans, oats, red potatoes
• Breads, etc: Dave’s Killer bread, corn tortillas
• Dairy(ish): almond milk, Feta cheese
• Sweeteners: maple syrup
• Flavor Boosters: hot sauce, mustard, vinegar

*Remember, your kitchen won’t be entirely empty. You should still have your basic spices, an oil or two, some grains, fruits and veggies on hand (right?). So don’t worry about starting completely from scratch!

FAQ

What can I do instead of throwing away food?

Any food that you don’t want in your new kitchen but is still within it’s expiration date and hasn’t been open you can donate to a food pantry.

What about the snacks and sweets that my family loves but don’t support my goals?

If you aren’t going to eat it because you know it’s not healthy, do you really want to food it to your family? Find alternatives to the food you think your family can’t live without. Fresh, frozen and dried fruit instead of fruit bars, fruit roll ups and fruit snacks. Roasted chickpeas instead of snack mix. Homemade granola instead of sugary cereal. Plain Greek yogurt with berries and nuts instead of fruit-on-the-bottom yogurts.

Am I really never allowed to eat these foods again?

Of course not! The point is not to eliminate these foods from your life completely but rather to make your home your sanctuary – a place that is supportive and conducive to your reaching your goals.

These are simple steps will help you take your kitchen from nutrition nightmare to Unsung hero in less than a day.