Eat the rainbow
why eating the rainbow is something you need to know about!
When was the last time you ate in full-on colour? I’m going to put my hand up here and say that we’ve really fallen down here in our little fam when it comes to how we are eating.
With Covid, the constant sickness, winter and a perhaps bit too busy schedule the rainbow has become a little, well beige… I don’t feel too bad here because there was a period there where it was more survival than wellness. It’s important to know that it’s ok for there to be cycles. We live in cycles, us humans. Sometimes it’s easy, we float through and wellness doesn’t have to be thought about too much. Other times, it’s an all out fist-fight to make space for the things that we know will make us feel healthy and ‘well’. One of the big things in my coaching is to roll with this. Just as in mindfulness, we are aiming for awareness, this then flows through to our every day. Perfect is never the thing to strive for. All you need to do is notice once things have become a little derailed and make small, consistent adjustments until things feel like they are a bit more in line. It’s taken time for me to learn this, I'm very much one of those all or nothing type personalities and that often gets me into trouble.
Wellness isn’t a race. It’s small, everyday things that all add up - and it’s hard to make all the changes at once so please, just go for little steps! The other thing that I find helpful is knowing why I’m doing things, so here are my top tips and things to know when eating the rainbow (also, doing this in Spring / Summer is waaaaaay easier isn’t it! Embrace the seasons!).
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
What we eat is foundational in how we will end up feeling. Both physically and mentally and filling your plate with a wide variety of beautiful, bright produce is one of the most important ways to you to get a diverse array of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and phytochemicals.
Over the years “Eat the Rainbow” has become one of my foundational Pillars of Wellness. When I start to notice that I’m not feeling that great, that things are a little off, it’s food that I’ll look to first. Often it will be what I’m eating that is the root cause of how I’m feeling.
A clever way to stay on top of this is to eat as wide a range of colours as possible. I was listening to a fantastic podcast with Michael Palin and how he summed up his philosophy…
Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.
- MICHAEL PALIN
What I like about this is it’s simplicity. It’s not saying no to meat or making judgements and if we take it how it is meant, it’s a fairly balanced way to look at it. Of course, this doesn’t take into cost or ease of doing this - that is a whole other conversation - most definitely worthy but a different conversation!
WHY EAT THE RAINBOW?
Luckily, it’s colour coded! Each color has its own benefits. Here’s a really quick overview - there’s a lot more to it but this is a great place to start!
IF YOU ONLY WANT THE HIGHLIGHTS
🔴 Red - Will help with inflammatory response + liver function
🟠🟡 Orange & Yellow - Will supports vision + immunity
🟢 Green - Supports healthy weight management
🔵🟣 Blue & Purple - Have wonderful antimicrobial effects
⚪️ White - Can help prevent cardiovascular diseases
WANNA GO A LITTLE DEEPER
RED = LYCOPENE
This is a rather potent antioxidant that is known for helping with inflammatory responses, liver function and neurofunction.
YELLOW / ORANGE = BETA-CAROTENE
Is a natural pigment that the body converts into vitamin A, which is hugely important for immunity.
GREEN = CHLOROPHYLL
This is my go-to when I’m burnt out! It’s an anti-inflammatory compound that helps to improve resistance to oxidative stress. It also supports healthy weight management.
BLUE / PURPLE = ANTHOCYANINS
These are a group of antioxidants with anti-diabetic, anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory and even antimicrobial effects.
WHITE = ANTHOXANTHINS
This is a type of flavonoid pigment that can help prevent cardiovascular diseases.
As I’ve mentioned, this isn’t to get you thinking about what perfect looks like. I’ll share something that I do. I pick on meal - something that I know that I have a little space with and not too much stress. I will then make that again regularly until I get comfortable with it. I did this with a savory kale porridge. I did it on the weekend, got used to making it, then added more good stuff into it! You don’t need to overhaul your whole menu. It’s tiny steps!
Choose fun, lightness and vibrancy in all aspects of life that you can! What is one meal that you could swap? What’s one thing you’ve always wanted to try? Instead of changing an entire meal - what is one that you could adapt?