Grocery shopping when you are trying to get a grip on how and what you eat can be overwhelming. You are changing ingrained habits, you are taking a lifetime of behavior that has led to weight gain and you are trying to break the cycle. That is not easy, and anyone who tell you it is, is lying to you. There is no magic pill, there is no silver bullet, and there is no perfect grocery list that can be put together to fit every single person out there. What exists are tools, lots and lots of tools to help you make better choices at the grocery store. Information is key and we load you up with it! We’re not going to give you a list and say “here you go, just eat only the things on this list and NOTHING else!” Would it work? Maybe. Is it realistic to ask you to limit your food choices to a tiny list? Not in the long term. What works in the long term is changing our behavior, changing how we grocery shop and what we do with those groceries we buy.
We spend a lot of time talking about what to eat, why you should eat it, and how much you should eat at our fitness camp, but we also take you out in to the real world and help you use the information to make better choices so you’re not standing in the middle of the grocery store panicking when you get home! Here is a handy check list to print out for the next time you go grocery shopping, try it today!
Plan Ahead for Success- A Checklist
When planning consult guidelines of
MyPyramid.gov to make sure you are
including all the foods you need for good
health
Fill your carts with plenty of fruits,
vegetables, whole grains, diary, lean meat,
fish, poultry, beans and nuts
Think Variety (instead of white potatoes,
choose sweet potatoes; baby spinach instead
of iceburg lettuce
Tips to Make You Supermarket Savvy
Produce
Choose the rainbow!
Breads, Cereals, and Pasta
Choose the least processed foods that are made with whole
grains (whole wheat bread and pastas, brown rice, quinoa, bulgur, barley)
Meat, Fish and Poultry
AHA recommends
2 svgs fish/week (salmon). Choose lean
cuts of meat (round, top sirloin, and
tenderloin)
Dairy
Excellent source of bone building
calcium and vitamin D (yogurt, milk,
cheese)
Frozen foods
Buy frozen fruits and
vegetables (without sauce)
Canned foods
Keep a variety on hand to
toss into soups, salads, pasta, or rice dishes
Olive oil and Canola oil as part of healthy
pantry
4 Simple Shopping Rules
Shop the perimeter of the grocery store where
fresh foods like fruits, veggies, dairy, meat and
fish are located. Avoid the center aisle where junk
food lurk.
Choose “real” foods, such as 100% fruit juice or
100% whole grain
Stay clear of foods with cartoons on the label
Avoid foods that contain more than five
ingredients, artificial ingredients you can’t
pronounce
