Power Up Your Run

When working as an RN Case  Manager in Connecticut, I came across a pamphlet from the American Cancer Society called: " Eat Your Colors".  I copied this many times, shared with patients over the phone and  via email the holistic advice to feed your immune system as an adjunct to fighting Cancer the usual ways.  So often a patient would tell me they had done all the doctor had told them, made all the chemo infusions, radiation treatments, and took meds as ordered.  Now what? They wanted to know what THEY could do to improve their results.   I had researched many ways to find some advice.  I shared it with so many  I remember it by heart.  Foods that are good for us are brightly colored.  We are supposed to see and like to eat them.  The pamphlet advised us to eat our colors daily.

"Colors"refers to the brightly colored foods you find in the produce areas of the store are and such as strawberries, carrots, yellow red and green bell peppers, deep purple cabbage, eggplant, broccoli, raspberries, blueberries, watermelon, oranges, sweet potato, tomato, greens, radishes, peas....colorful foods that include vegetables and fruits.  One sweet lady called me one day and said she had followed the pamphlet I had sent her, gone shopping, stocked up on colorful foods, fresh, frozen and dried, but she could not eat them all everyday.  She tried!  She had felt empowered and encouraged there were things she could do to improve her outcome to medical treatment. It is not possible to eat them all everyday!    I don't remember her name, or diagnosis, but will never forget that conversation.  The goal is to fill your pantry and frig with the healthiest nutrients and use a variety of them daily to boost health.  If you cannot consume them before they begin to wilt, you can freeze fruits to pop into smoothies later on. Vegetables can be frozen and pulled out later to add to soups, stews or steam.  Frozen fruits and vegetables are just as good for you as fresh.   Vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, fiber.... all good things are found in them. They are naturally low fat, high nutrient content, and full of good things for each of our cells.  It just makes sense.  Studies have shown that low fiber, high fat diets seem to follow many cancer diagnoses.  It makes sense that better nutrition before one is ill, during treatment and after can only help us all  live better.

Yesterday my husband was reading Runners World online.  He asked me if I knew what made up the best diet for a runner.  I guessed a well balanced diet including healthy fats, like avocado, nuts, fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains,  dairy and low fat protein such as in fish and chicken.  Thats what I try to follow for us. We both think we feel better and stronger when we follow a well balanced diet.  He told me that sounds good, but the focus of what he was reading was colorful foods: greens, citrus, berries, sweet potatoes, green onions, eggplant....etc.  Sounds familiar!!!!   If you are working out, if you are fighting a disease it only makes sense to try to give your body, all of your cells, the very best nutrients we can, every single day.  It is a daily battle to turn our backs on pretty pastries, colorful cakes, sparkling sodas, crispy french fries and other temptations that are not on the lists of foods for health.  We are bombarded by ads for fast food and sugary treats.  We also can learn to find the perfect colorful fruits just as tempting without that crust, whipped cream and sprinkles on top.  It becomes a choice.  Now and then as a treat or special occasion a reasonable amount will not hurt us, but the tendency to reach for what is fast easy and appealing is just too easy.   When I was in New Zealand, during breaks at school, I was shocked to see teenagers reaching for oranges to peel and enjoy the sweet sections during recess, rather than a pop tart or a bag of chips!  Fruit was the snack of choice there much more than I had seen at school at home.  We can relearn this too.   Our health may depend on it.

My husband and I went to shop for this week, and in our shopping cart there was bell peppers in red, yellow and green, eggplant to bake with parmesan cheese on top, quinoa, rice, greens, green onions, mushrooms, blackberries, chicken and fish, sweet potatoes, avocados,mixed nuts,  olive oil, eggs, yogurt and some other things.  This is not that unusual, but the mindfulness that went into the cart was of a higher awareness.  I like to think that God made our food supply, He colored brightly the things that he wanted us to eat most of, or to seek out and know the sight and taste would draw us.  He did not make artificial colors and flavors.  People did.

While we are running and working out this week, we will also watch our portions, be mindful of good nutrition in all we eat, and be sure to have colors on each plate.  Whether trying to lose weight, work out and train, or wanting to support better health, what we eat, everyday is important.  We are what we eat!