There are many posts out there of individuals showing what a nutritionist eats during the day.

I have seen some extremely bad examples lately, from people who are very well known in the industry, yet have a diet that I, as a Registered Holistic Nutritionist, would coach them on to change (and cringed to read, and then felt really bad for the people who follow that advice). In their own posts they admit to being stressed, hungry and have no energy – yet provided expert examples of what someone in the health field eats on a given day. The lack of connection to mind/body is getting a lot of people into trouble where their health is concerned, so in this post I aim to cover both.

Let’s start with my breakfast:

I start my day always with a glass of lemon water. Before I put any other food in my body, I knock back one of these babies. It helps me rehydrate after my overnight sleep, helps me flush out the toxins my liver tried to get rid of overnight, it stimulates my appetite so that I have a decent breakfast. And it keeps my immune system strong and give me skin that glows so hard you can see it from space.

And yes I have coffee. Of course!!! But I choose organic, fair trade. Coffee is highly sprayed with pesticides, so having conventional coffee first thing in the morning is basically adding toxins on top of a stimulant. I add milk and coconut sugar to my coffee. 

Because today was a busy day (and since most of us have busy days) I had oatmeal. If I were being perfect, I would have made a beautiful pot of steel cut oats, but that didn’t happen, so I cracked open a package of organic oatmeal. One thing to note here – check the sugar levels of your packaged oats. Ideally you want a ratio of fibre to sugar to be 5g to 5g or less respectively. Most packaged oats have 5g fibre, but like 10-18g sugar. So bear that in mind. No big deal, just don’t have a shit ton of sugar for the rest of the day. 

I top my oats with hemp seeds for added protein and omegas to help keep me the smartest person in the room.

If I had more time, I would have done eggs and toast, or avocado on toast, or a smoothie.

Once I arrived at my desk I did have a second cup of coffee, but this time it was swiss water decaf, organic. This is more out of habit than needing a second cup. For my second cup I usually only add milk or cream depending on my mood. I will be honest here and say I am not a fan of almond milk or coconut milk in my coffee. I’ve tried it, but don’t like it. And since I am fine with dairy, and only have once in awhile, this is fine for my body. 

I also fill that water bottle with 1/2 boiled water and 1/2 filtered water and will drink around 3 of these throughout the day. Sometimes more if I workout. Most days I’ll add lemon too since the bottle has a handy lemon juicer in the bottom! Just a wee reminder here that coffee will not hydrate you. And if someone told you otherwise, don’t listen to them. And yes, you will pee. But that’s a good thing – you’re detoxing.

At around 10.30am I had my morning snack of yogurt and added a sprinkle of my trail mix I made (almonds, pumpkin seeds and of course chocolate chips). I also had a banana. Listen to your body. If it’s hungry, feed it.

Other options are fruit and Greek yogurt or cottage cheese, hummus and veggies, green smoothie with either 3 tbsp of hemp seeds (for protein) or a protein powder. Hell, even toast with peanut butter.

For lunch I dined out with a girlfriend. 

Yes there was wine.

So what? It was a lovely Cab Sauv from J Lohr and it was good.

The lunch menu was a little weak on “healthy” appies, so we went with garlic shrimp, but they doused it in cheese. While it was of course very good, I would have personally preferred not to have cheesy shrimp.

I opted for a tuna taco for lunch – notice it’s not breaded and deep fried? 

It is totally possible to eat healthy while dining out. If I were being SUPER good, I would have had veggies, but I opted for fries today because the only time I eat them is when I dine out – which isn’t very often these days, so I go for it. If you however dine out a lot, and usually order fries, I encourage you to switch it up and order a side salad or veggies instead. Your bod and waistline will thank you. Not to mention the energy you’ll have for the rest of the day.

My lunch usually consists of either leftovers, or I’ll opt for a nice salad with some sort of protein, either chicken, sometimes beef if I feel like it, or chickpeas. I’m not a huge fan of canned tuna (just the taste, not because there is anything wrong with it) but that works too. You want to make sure you’re having protein at every meal to stay full, and help you shed the pounds.

Other lunch ideas: 

Loaded sweet potato, Buddah bowl, leftover dinner, greens topped with shredded carrots, tomatoes, edamame, some chickpeas or chicken. Even a burrito wrap. Anything.

So 3-4pm is usually when people get slumpy. I no longer do (just sayin). But what helps, instead of that 4th coffee (or red bull) is a green smoothie. For real. This shit gives you energy for days. Not to mention a hot bod and clear skin. You could also just have a snack here, trail mix would do, or veggies and hummus.

Healthy Swap Up: well, first of all, eat a better lunch so you’re not hungry 1 hour later, and have maybe some fruit like an apple, pear, berries. Maybe some nut butter to go with it. Cheese and crackers even. Guacamole and (preferably GMO-free) corn chips or veggies.

And lastly, dinner. Something simple – chicken, baked cauli and a simple side salad with just cucumbers and tomatoes.

So that’s that. I always make sure I have lots of water, veggies, fruit, protein and I eat every few hours. It’s how I stay slim, stay hydrated, stay sharp, and keep my moods steady throughout the day. If I get stressed out it’s because of an environmental thing (person, circumstance), and not because I’m starving or hopped up on sugar or caffeine.

It’s true, some nutritionists are far out there, demanding you eat farm fresh eggs raised by chickens who learned to tightrope, grass fed beef from cows that have personal massage therapists, 10lbs of kale a day through a straw; with no gluten, dairy, or baby unicorns. The pendulum swings too far each way.

Let’s wake up and learn about our bodies, how balancing out our hormones with whole foods and protein (think: chicken, fish, eggs, organic tofu, nuts) will help us be able to cope with our day and not crash out in a pool of our own spit at 4pm, sucking back yet another cup of dreadful decaf coffee for energy.

Tell me in the comments below what you do for your food throughout the day.