What do cake, fish, and Canadian bacon all have in common?
Answer: No clue, besides all being a part of the macronutrient STOP LIGHT .
“Is this healthy?” the most vague and unrelenting question I receive as the resident “healthy” (and yes certified nutritionist) server at my restaurant. Yes, I do meal prep a wide array of colorful, nutrient dense, lean meals for myself in and out of work. However, I’m also not afraid to treat myself to bourbon ice cream with bacon between two waffles when the mood is right. I love food, all foods, that’s why I went into nutrition after all.
My philosophy on what is healthy comes down to what I call the macronutrient STOP LIGHT. I will fully discuss what macronutrients are in an upcoming article so that you can better understand the breakdown and why they are important, but for now, you just need to know that macronutrients are the three categories into which all major foods fall into—fats, carbohydrates, and protein.
I don’t know about you guys, but if you tell me I can’t have something I want it more. This was totally true when a Dr. told me I may have a nut allergy and my first thought was nah…. I can’t not have nuts… so three days after my epi shot I ate a handful of walnuts…and had a pine nut pesto…and almond milk... and thank God that was not the source of my allergic reaction. The point is, the more restrictive you are in your diet the more likely you are to fail. The stop light philosophy allows for an abundance of whole foods to fill your diet, with some leeway in enjoying those that should be less incorporated in your day to day diet.
The macronutrient stop light means green foods are a go, full speed ahead, eat these whole foods! Some examples of green light foods would be lean proteins like chicken, bison, fish and plain Greek yogurt or minimally processed foods like quinoa, sprouted breads, as well as nuts, avocados and fruit.
The yellow stop light is the one you slow down to, these foods tend to be more processed than their green counterparts—such as flavored yogurts, or deli meats and cheeses, and nut butters with added oils and sugars, and should be less frequently appearing in your diet than your green light foods.
The red stop light is the one you stop at… and observe…and then proceed if we’re talking Philly red lights—Ya know the one where it turns red but you make the quick left to get onto the 95 ramp because if you don’t you’ll be stuck at Vine street for another 20 minutes waiting for the green arrow. Totally acceptable, but how many times can you make this illegal left hand red light turn before it gets you into trouble? These are the red light foods; the fried foods, hydrogenated oils, highly processed pastries and sodas, most “fast foods”, along with plenty of other sinfully delicious treats that we eat on autopilot. As I said, treating yourself to foods like these every now and then is totally fine if the majority of your diet consists of green, and lightly yellow foods. However, a diet that consists of only red light foods has been shown to contribute to high cholesterol, high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, and plenty of other life altering health conditions.
The stop light is about balance, because life is short and burrata cheese and bourbon ice cream should be a part of it, but to continue enjoying these foods in the future, it’s the green light that gets you there. Maybe the question isn’t what’s healthy, but what should I be eating more of?