Real Self-Care: Green Food

This post is part of a month-long series on Real Self-Care for world-changers. It’s about the experimentation: figuring out what works for you and following your heart. Simple, messy and everything in between. Self-care should be custom, intuitive, feasible and kind – to serve your actual life.

Green Food

Okay, I’m not a nutritionist, but the scoop is this: green food makes me feel awesome. You don’t need to go full spirulina smoothie (though I find them delicious), but think about adding some fresh or cooked greens to whatever meal you’re making next.

Whenever I’m meal-planning, I plan for greens to take up one third to one half of the plate. Every meal has to answer the question:

What greens are we having? And while they’re a constant side dish, I also include them in the main event. They’re great in soups, omelettes, quiche, stirfry, and more.

If it’s cold out, I’ll go with cooked greens instead of salad.

If it’s warm out, I opt for green juices and lighter salads (like arugula).

Whatever I’m cooking, though, always involves some sort of greenery so that my meals are always packed with nutrients.

If I’m traveling, I take little packets of instant wheatgrass juice for the times when being a picky eater isn’t appropriate. That way, I can take care of myself and be a gracious guest.

I noticed a marked difference in the vibrance of my health when I started making greens a constant on my plate about nine years ago. While I still indulge in plenty of treats, greens do a fabulous job of guarding my health.