The Pharmacy Inside You – How Much Does THAT Cost?

As coaches we have heard it a thousand times… “Eating Healthy Is Expensive!”

I would suggest it is a matter of perspective. You see most of us tend to be very “short term” in our thinking, and perhaps our focus can be narrower than it could be.

We go to the grocery store, we make our purchases, we see the bill, and we marvel at how expensive it can be to “eat”.

But what else is in that cart, and why?

Nancy and I were talking about this very subject, and she brought up something I hadn’t thought of (smart lady, that Nancy)

What don’t we buy now that we are healthier?

It’s a fact – the human body does not work very well when we are feeding it pizza, cheesburgers, sugar, saturated fat, cereal, bread and pasta. It really doesn’t know what to do all that highly processed food you are jamming into it – pretty much anything from a box or a bag. Chemicals, fillers, preservatives and artificial coloring are, well, artificial to your body, and it reacts in some pretty nasty ways. Even a lot of the “healthy choices”  we think we are making can elicit a pretty nasty response. If you have ever eaten a low-carb “nutrition” bar sweetened with a truck load of sugar alcohols, you know what I am talking about.

You should feel good after you eat, and I am not just talking about Moose Tracks ice cream making you happy.

Here’s the rub – when it doesn’t feel good, we medicate it – sometimes with over the counter meds, and sometimes with prescriptions. We cover up the symptoms, when in reality the majority of the time it is our nutritional habits that are causing them! You weren’t born with a Prilosec deficiency – you earned that one all by yourself!

So back to what we don’t buy now that we base our nutrition on protein, produce and water:

• Pepto Bismol
• Mylanta
• Lactaid
• Tums
• Metameucil
• The Tylenol bottle in the cupboard had an expiration date in 2007 – oops! Guess we don’t use as much of that anymore either.

When I was 270+ pounds, those things went in the grocery cart all the time. How much does that eat into the “grocery budget”?

Take it one step further:

How much is your monthly cost for blood pressure and diabetes meds? We have had clients who take 7 or 8 different types of medications  (that ain’t cheap) that are now saving hundreds of dollars because they don’t need them anymore, and can now apply that cash to the grocery budget. Or how about the allergy meds that might be avoided if we would stop eating pro-inflammatory foods, or maybe get off some of the most common foods people are allergic to, like some dairy and wheat? It’s your choice!

So Now Is The Time To Take Action – What’s two items you can remove from the grocery cart so you can put something healthier in?

Let’s hear your thoughts, and then let’s…

Make It Happen!

Coach Dean