The 12 fundamental principles of 'realfooding'

There is nothing mythical in the saying of "we are what we eat" Because, indeed, the food we eat daily has both a positive and negative impact on the proper functioning of our body and our physical appearance. Although the body needs fats, carbohydrates and proteins to be optimal, an excess of them can cause a totally opposite effect.

That is why it is very necessary to have a nutritional diet that is in turn balanced, nutritious and healthy, where the vegetables, fruits and cereals are the stars of the platewhile fats, sugars and processed foods are hidden behind the scenes. It is then that you begin to perceive a very positive impact not only on your figure, but on the way your body itself seems to fill up with more energy.

Pursuing these goals of health and healthy energy, the trend of ‘realfooding’ comes to the present, which seems to be the exact key for you to get an ideal diet and put aside the negative side of meals processed. In this article we will tell you everything you need to know about this trend and the principles you should follow.

• We recommend you read: "20 satisfying but not fattening foods"

What is realfooding?

Realfooding or ‘real food’ is a food trend created by nutritionist Carlos Ríos, which consists of choose natural and little processed foods to consume daily, in order to guarantee a healthier diet, through absorption of the nutrients and natural elements of these foods that are normally lost by the preparation industrial. This lifestyle seeks to make people aware of what they eat, what things are harming them and how they can counteract it.

Remember that many of the foods we eat are processed, that is, they have additives, preservatives, fats and artificial flavors so that they can last longer and at the same time have an attractive impact on the palate. The problem is that the more processed they are, the more they lose their natural qualities and therefore become harmful to the body, instead of being beneficial for it.

Being precisely that ignorance of not knowing what the food we buy contains, which gives way to multiple health, obesity or metabolism problems. That is the reason why Carlos Ríos, together with the ‘realfooders’ (people who have joined the movement), invites us to carefully analyze each thing we buy. For this it is important to ask ourselves if what we have is certainly healthy, if it provides some type of nutrition or if its flavor is real or artificial.

What is this movement based on?

How can we know that this eating trend is as beneficial as it claims to be? Many times we tend to follow diets, nutritional advice or eating routines that at first seem ideal, but end up having a rebound or harmful effect on our health. However, this lifestyle of realfooding invites us to focus on the properties of food and the quality that they offer us outside the limits of industrial processing. It's not about eating less. It is about what we eat is of nutritional value.

So it is important to review these 12 perceptions that will help us identify a real meal.

1. Goodbye to ultra-processed foods

There is a big difference between properly processed foods and those that are ultra-processed. After all, for a food to last long in kitchens, it must have an ingredient that helps keep it fresh and preserved. However, the food industry tends to go overboard with the additives and components that they add to their products, creating a result that is completely altered to what should be its original.

In this sense, ultra-processed foods are those that have been industrially prepared from other foods that have been subjected to a hydrogenation process (oils transformed into solid fats) and to which considerable amounts are added from refined sugar, fats, flours or oil, artificial flavors, colors and salt. So they almost completely lose their natural essence and, therefore, the nutrients that it brings with it.

• We recommend you read: "What is junk food? 7 products that affect health "

2. Yes to homemade food

Many tend to think that diets are restrictive (and most certainly are) and therefore are discouraged from try them since they know they won't be able to quell their hunger or feel full, which ends up increasing bad habits food. However, realfooding is not based on the premise of restriction, but rather on turning industrial foods into a healthy option and for this case, nothing better than homemade food.

There are thousands of tutorials where you can get various options to avoid resorting to junk foods, sweets, fried foods, etc. For example, make pizzas at home, prepare your own sauces, create ice cream with fruits, prepare low-fat desserts, among others.

This can even help save your pocket because instead of buying "special diet food", just you should focus on filling your pantry with more vegetables, fresh meats, fruits, seeds, cereals and vegetables. Nothing that is from the other world, that we have not consumed before or that is extremely expensive and difficult to find.

3. Grow at home

There is nothing healthier than growing your own vegetables, vegetables and fruits at home, this will allow you to know the origin of them and have the assurance that you will receive all the nutrition that these offer. So find a place in your house where you can grow your plants and get to work.

If you have a small space then find which plants are the most ideal for you, for example vines (like grapes), cherry tomatoes, bell peppers, chili peppers, garlic, seasoning plants, etc. can be good options.

4. Good processed

As we mentioned before, it is inevitable that the foods that are in the markets have some type of additive and preservative to maintain a long life. However, a good processing of these is one that is considered mild-moderate, through processing of 5 ingredients maximum, in this way their nutrients and quality are not seen affected. In this sense, foods such as quinoa, frozen vegetables, extra virgin olive oil, whole grain bread or cereal are some examples that you can take into account.

5. A new way of life

Maybe the biggest difference between conventional diets and this trend food is its presentation, since more than promoting better eating habits, it invites people to think of realfooding as a lifestyle where little by little the person put aside processed foods of their own free will, with the awareness of the damage they cause to the body and instead adopt more and more foods profitable.

6. Scientific facts

Another plus point is that it is supported by scientific studies that allow us to speak with confidence on the negativity of ultra-processed foods and the benefits of adopting a more diet natural. It is not private knowledge that much of the processed foods contain what are called "empty calories", that is, calories that do not provide benefits. to the functioning of organisms and that are very difficult to eliminate, unlike those that we can obtain from other sources such as fruits dry.

The problem is that these, instead of giving us energy, makes us feel more tired and in some cases they can even make us develop addiction (in the sense of wanting to consume more and more of the product).

7. Little temptations

Some may wonder at this point if these ultra-processed foods should be eliminated entirely. Although it is sought to replace industrial meals as much as possible, the idea is not a total and aggressive restriction, in this case the ideal is to change the percentage of processed foods that we consume to 10% of the diet, that is In other words, we can consume a small piece of candy in moderate quantities from time to time (maximum about two times a week). This is because realfooding is not an absolute guide to weight loss or a mystical remedy for ideal health.

8. Don't forget the exercise

As we have just mentioned, this trend is not a panacea and although it greatly helps to lose weight and stabilize the normal levels of the body, it is necessary integrate this lifestyle with physical exercise if you want to obtain more permanent results. Of course, as physical activity progresses, it is necessary to adapt the diet to make it more complete.

9. Take control

Something very important when starting this journey is that you know that you do not need to do it in one fell swoop, but rather it is a gradual but constant process until your body can fully adapt to the change. Why is it important to take it easy? Because this prevents the body from generating resistance to the new diet and abstinence from the usual food, so you can accept the change without any type of rejection, have control over what you eat and, above all, without having to suffer in it.

10. Don't focus on calories

Realfooding does not focus on the consumption of certain amounts of calories, proteins or carbohydrates, but which focuses on the natural quality of food and therefore is a great option to feed ourselves healthily. This is because when people focus on numbers they develop anxieties that lead to them to become unmotivated to continue with a healthy diet or that leads them to feel dissatisfied all the time.

In addition, many products focus on the amount of nutrients they have and therefore deceive us, they may not be rich in fat but sugars or low in calories but too many artificial flavorings, etc. It is not about whether it has more or fewer calories. It's about whether these calories provide nutrients.

11. Give free passage to creativity

Believe us when we tell you that there are thousands of tutorials and recipes that you can get on the internet that will help you replace these ultra-processed foods with more convenient options for your Health. So don't be afraid to research and experiment, create your own desserts and meals main ones, so you will have more control over what you eat and more organization regarding your diet, since you can customize it to your liking.

12. Pay attention to labeling

This is a critical step in the real food movement as we cannot completely rid ourselves of processed foods, so pay attention to what the food labels say food. In this sense you must look at the portions of sugar, fat, proteins and calories that they indicate to have, what ingredients they have and how much of it there really is.