Eat crappy, feel crappy. Eat healthy, feel healthy.

We have all been there. We are starving, we grab whatever is in front of us. We are craving some Ruffles (my weakness), we give in after adding some lime and Valentina sauce. Next thing you know you ate the whole bag. Guilty as charged.

Why do we do this to ourselves? Because we are human, we are not perfect and because it is hard to maintain the course. This is why it is called a JOURNEY. There will be triumphs and there will be setbacks.

But we are here to help.

The first step is to recognize you are about to fall off the wagon. Second step would be either put that not very healthy food away while you ask yourself: “Is this food helping me move forward to better health and improved energy – or backward to feeling unhealthy with a spike-and-crash depleted feeling?”.

Best-selling author Karen Salmansohn suggests to re-name dishes and snacks as “forward food” or “backward food”. I will add to make a list of those and put it on your refrigerator and pantry. It does help that you stop buying those tempting –and nasty- items. We know they are full of sugar, salt, additives, and ingredients we can’t even pronounce.

So you know what to do next time. It is not about being strong, it is about being mindful and keep making healthy choices. Eat that apple. Grab the granola bar and go. Choose a salad with protein instead of the enchiladas plate. Buy organic. Cook from scratch.

May we all start chewing to move forward in our journey to health. Can you recall anyone ever said “I really regret eating healthy today”?

Me neither.