Eat Not That Which is Processed

One day I wanted to discover HOW MUCH processed food I was consuming without being aware of it. So I thought to myself: Let's start with processed things in my freezer, and then break down further by meals in the day. I opened up my freezer and found the following: Hash browns, breakfast sausages, bacon, orange juice, frozen waffles/pancakes, and frozen whipped topping. Awesome. Almost my entire breakfast plate is processed food. Interesting. Let's move to lunch and dinner...this must be a bit better... opened the freezer again: prepared frozen entrees for lunch, prepared frozen vegetables (like green giant peas or brussel sprouts, frozen chicken, fish sticks/fish fillets with seasoning/sauce. Ok, so let's say 60% of my lunch and dinner are processed. How about snacks? Frozen wings, hot dogs, hamburgers. How about dessert? Icecream, cheesecake, popsicles.

At this point I hadn't even gone into my pantry/cupboards that are filled with canned soups, instant noodles, packaged snacks like popcorn, pudding powders, twinkies, etc.

So once this enormous realization kicked in: that I have inadvertently made processed foods the foundation of my meals, I got into a self-directed battle to remove processed foods from my diet while not feeling deprived. It was a slow process but it's not just about NOT BUYING processed items. It's also about being in the mindset that maybe I don't need to eat hash browns everyday. Foods prepared more simply can make the bulk of my diet and more complicated home-made treats can be for special occasions.

So, when I want to have hash browns, I buy a potato, chop it into small pieces, pan fry it with spices and some oil and voila. I know all the ingredients that are in my meal. Unlike the times when I'm eating frozen hash browns, I am not trying to guess what's been done to what tastes faintly like potatoes in perfectly shaped cubes, that probably have components that won't exit my body until I turn 98. This realization of wholesome potatoes feeding my body Feels Good.

I don't like eliminating things from my diet. I like eating. But there are some things I've decided are just not worthy of human consumption. Hot dogs are one such item. You can read up all about it online or just read the list of ingredients in a hot dog packet, but here's a video that took all my love of hot dogs and made it vanish.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAn0PBjhwW4