A personal trainer explains her weekly food shopping essentials
To be completely honest, to begin with I’m not really a fan of the title of this blog, as I would prefer it to be is “Market Basket Essentials” but I cannot always get to our local fresh food market.
Anyway, we all have to rely on the big chain supermarkets at some point and this is what I stock up with on a weekly basis. These are my top tips for shopping trolley essentials:
- Green leafy vegetables – one of nature’s most nutrient-dense foods yet really low in calories. Eaten in abundance these wondrous veggies will positively impact every system in your body. From improvements to brain health, anti-aging qualities and positively influencing your heart, green leafy vegetables are ticking all the right boxes.
- Coconut oil – high in fats called medium chain triglycerides, which are metabolised differently than most other fats. These special fats are responsible for many health benefits including increasing good HDL cholesterol, significantly reducing appetite, which may assist in weight control and boosting ketone levels which have an array of therapeutic applications. If you’d like to learn more about coconut oil, please see here.
- Fresh oily fish – the majority of Australians could do with a boost of the anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids, which happen to be present in fatty fish. These fats will significantly decrease your risk of heart attack and stroke, two of the leading causes of death in the world today.
- Fresh berries – nature’s sweets. These colour fruits are packed full of antioxidants, fibre and an array of nutrients protecting our bodies cells and adding delicious sweetness either as a dessert treat or with yoghurt and nuts for a whole food breakfast. And if you’d like a recipe for a nutrient-packed smoothie, chock-full of berries, please see here.
- Macadamia nuts – these tasty nuts are high in monounsaturated (healthy) fat and have been directly linked to reduced risk of heart disease. They are creamy, crunchy and highly satiating making them the perfect snack. If you’d like an easy recipe for a nutritious Overnight Oats Recipe, see here.
- Pink Himalayan salt – a minimally processed salt with no additives and contains several minerals such as magnesium and potassium, which is not found in regular salt. This combination has got to be better for us.
- Avocados – a unique fruit high in fat (rather than carbohydrates as is most other fruit) and loaded in nutrients. Research has shown avocadoes have benefits ranging from improving heart health and cholesterol to relieving symptoms of arthritis and aiding in weight loss. Being so easy to incorporate in your diet, why wouldn’t you include them in your weekly shopping trolley.
- Eggs (free-range) – eggs are one of the few foods to contain a little bit of almost every nutrient we require! Gone are the days of limiting egg consumption, in fact eggs for breakfast has got to be the best way to start your day everyday. Enjoy eggs in abundance.
My top picks are real food options. Enjoy these in abundance.
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