How to Indulge Wisely To Feel Better Every Day

Everybody eats. And hopefully, you enjoy doing it! I know I do!! But recently, I’ve heard a number of people, one of my own kids included, confess to me that while they do like tasty food, they would rather take a pill every day to meet all their nutritional needs (if such a pill existed). Why? What is at the heart of this frankly bizarre attitude towards food? After talking to these people in a little more depth, I came up with a hypothesis.

It’s all about your relationship with food. Do you like eating? Do you feel good after you eat, or do you feel you have overindulged or chosen the wrong food? Do you feel stressed when thinking about making food decisions? Does feeding yourself quality food seem… hard?

I would like to propose 3 tenets that may help re-frame your relationship with food indulgences so it’s less stressful and more fun.

Indulge Smartly

If you are like most people, you probably enjoy a delicious dessert every now and then. And you should treat yourself to something tasty. Desserts are delightful. You’re absolutely worth it. Treating yourself well is a form of loving yourself, something that can help those who struggle with low self-esteem. That being said, a prepackaged sleeve of cookies from the grocery store may satisfy a particular craving at the moment, but it will leave you feeling sluggish and thinking that you should have chosen something else entirely.

So what should you do? How do you indulge without sending your brain the wrong message?

Indulge in foods that taste decadent, but are made with healthier ingredient options. When you’re hankering for something yummy, bake a pan of chickpea brownies. Or, make this dairy-free ice cream. Personally, I like to treat myself to this easy dairy-free chai latte panna cotta. You get the idea. Search for recipes that use natural sweeteners, use healthier oils, or contain nutrient-dense ingredients like pasture-raised eggs. Think about how to add nutrient-rich food to your diet instead of focusing on taking away the “bad” stuff.

Grocery Shop After Eating

You’ve probably heard this before. But it works! Do not shop for groceries on an empty stomach. When you do, you are more likely to buy unhealthy snacks that will only make you feel guilty later. This tip will not only help you indulge in healthier options later, but will also save you money!

Or, you could be like me and get your groceries delivered. You may think the added delivery fee and tip add too much cost, but I’ve found it actually saves me money because I’m not tempted by store displays to add last minute unnecessary purchases to my shopping cart.

The trick here is to only bring healthy, nutrient-dense food options into your home. That way every food you reach for at home will be good for you, so you need not feel stress, anxiety, or guilt over any of your at home choices.

Pay Attention to Nutrient Density & Portion Sizes

No one wants to hear that they need to eat less. In fact, most of us don’t need to eat less. That’s not what this tip is about. The problem is that we eat too many empty calories — food that is calorie rich but nutritionally empty (like sodas or chips). This may fill us up, but our bodies get hungry again quickly because we didn’t actually feed ourselves the nutrients we need. Thus, we indulge in bigger and bigger portions. And that adds up. The trick isn’t to eat less, it’s to eat well.

As frequently as possible, add nutrient-rich food into your diet. I break this down more in depth in my series Healthy Foods: What to Buy. But whenever possible, add in an extra teaspoon of grass-fed butter, snack on nutrient-rich food like hard-boiled pasture-raised eggs or fresh or pickled veggies, etc. Sneak in the more nutrient-dense option whenever and wherever you can, and you’ll notice you start to feel full on less! And you’ll naturally eat less crappy food!