Instead of focusing on “good” or “bad” foods, try to make your choices just a little bit better.
The Food Spectrum Game
For the next while: Forget about “good” or “bad” foods.
Think of food on a spectrum from “better” to “worse”.
Some foods add health (better) . . . some foods take away health (worse).
To play the game:
Look at your food choices today.
See if you can put each choice on the food spectrum, and figure out why you’d put it there.
The point of the game isn’t necessarily to always have “better” choices. (Although that’s always a good goal.)
The point is to understand WHY, and to make your choices conscious and purposeful, rather than random, accidental, or “I don’t know”.
Ask yourself:
- How is this food made?
- What’s in it? (Or not in it?)
- Do I know what all these ingredients are?
- How does this food affect my body? How do I feel physically after eating it?
- Does this food, fundamentally, nourish me? Does it add or subtract value?
- What would this food choice need in order to be just a little healthier?
- What’s the alternative to this food?
- Is this the best available choice under the circumstances?
- Do I find it easy or difficult to eat this food slowly, to 80% full?
Here are some pictures that give you some examples of the spectrum of “better” to “worse”.
See if you can figure out where your food fits today, and why.
What to do today
1) Play the Food Spectrum Game.
- Where are YOUR food choices on the “better” to “worse” spectrum?
- Why?
2) Consider each food choice you make today.
For each choice, ask yourself:
- What’s the alternative?
- Is this the best available choice under the circumstances?
- How could this choice be just a little bit better?
Could you improve your choices slightly?
3) Consider the foods you previously considered “bad”.
Could you find a way to make them more healthy?
(This can be a fun cooking challenge!)
4) Complete the assignment field below.
- Name ONE food you consider “unhealthy” or “bad.”
- Describe ONE way to improve this food to make it a little bit “healthier.”
- Explain WHY that improvement would make that food “healthier”.
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