These are NOT for your average person — but IF applied, they will improve digestion and health.
I don't do all of these every single time I eat, but I try to do most of them as often as I can!
Some may call it obsessive, others simply committed to maximizing health — use these tips as often as you wish!
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Chewing everything until it's a complete liquid. The better food is broken down, the better it’s absorbed. You can do this with your teeth or pre-digest it by cutting everything into small pieces before chewing. Some will even purée their meat using a machine before eating it. The more saliva, the better. Additionally, chew before swallowing smoothies, as they are food too!
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Chew before you swallow water. Gulp down a glass of water and see how you feel. Then, sip slowly, ‘chewing’ each mouthful and letting saliva mix with the water before you swallow. You’ll notice a palpable difference, and it’s clear the water sipped slowly and ‘chewed’ is absorbed more quickly. If you actually want to hydrate, slow the process down.
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Never consume anything that's colder than room temperature — especially cold drinks. Food and drink need to be heated by the body before they pass from the stomach. Cold foods also solidify fats, making them harder to digest. I also avoid microwaves and let food warm up naturally in the sun. Definitely avoid cold drinks with meals.
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Only eat one type of food at a time. The simpler, the better. A bowl of potatoes will digest better than potatoes and meat. Just potatoes and meat will digest better than potatoes, meat, and a creamy sauce, and so on. This works well by having separate courses over a larger time period (say, if you're eating at home). For example, eat a salad first, then wait 30 minutes before having your main meal.
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Pray over your food. Food contains water, and water holds energy. When we intentionally direct energy into the water molecules of our food, we can shift the energy inside it, which then goes into us. Why do you think Grandma’s cooking is so healing? Because she has encoded love into the water molecules during the process. By praying and being intentional before eating, we can increase the nutrition and energy we intake. This also offers a calming moment of deep breathing before a meal, activating the parasympathetic “rest and digest” system.
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Bring your own olive oil to restaurants. You can’t always trust that a restaurant uses good olive oil, even if they mean well. Bringing your own small bottle has saved me many times and enhanced otherwise plain meals.
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Drizzle raw honey over everything. A powerful way to aid digestion, increase calories, and boost enzyme intake, this requires carrying a jar of raw honey with you. Honey goes well with everything, especially raw meat, making it a delicious, health-boosting tip.
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Fast instead of eating a subpar meal. Some people will settle for a fast-food burger on the road, thinking, “I needed the protein.” You won’t lose gains by pushing your body a bit further and waiting until you can have a proper meal. Eating garbage just because you couldn’t handle hunger is never the right move. I eat real food — I don’t eat poison.
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Only eat raw animal products. Cooking or heating degrades nutrition, alters nutrients, destroys enzymes, and creates carcinogenic chemicals, making food harder to digest. For elite digestion, eat only raw meat and raw dairy. Does it look odd to cut up a steak and eat it raw instead of grilling it? Maybe, but it’s also primal, which is fun.
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Prepare and bring your own food ahead of time. Did I look strange eating my homemade meals at pre-drinks? Some people thought so. I didn’t care. I ate my healthy dinner out of a glass container and then enjoyed some vodka lime sodas — that’s how I did it in college. Prepare, and you’ll stay consistent. This applies to any event, not just pre-drinks (which I don’t recommend for health).
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Always eat your meals outside with bare feet on the ground. Whenever possible, eat outside in the sun, even if it’s cloudy. Your food is better metabolized when natural sunlight hits your skin and eyes, compared to artificial blue light in an office. Making the effort to go outside for meals also breaks up the day and increases your outdoor time.
These are some of the things I do that people may find odd, but I know they’re helpful. If you’re willing to be seen as 'the health freak,' go for it and watch the incredible shifts in how your food impacts you and your life.