How I made my husband enjoy a healthy diet

Are you having a tough time changing the health habits of your significant other? Almost ten years ago, I met a great guy who is now my husband. When we met, we had the love of the outdoors in common, so our dating process was filled with kayaking, hiking, mountain biking and camping in beautiful British Columbia. 

So we had the outdoors and traveling in common, which was fantastic, but when we decided to move in together, it wasn't an easy ride at first.

Because I enjoyed cooking, I was in charge of grocery shopping and meals preparation. And because he had an office job that required him to dress up, he was in charge of laundry and ironing (yes ladies: it's true, I don't do laundry!).

When we first dated, I was shocked at his fridge supplies: orange juice, milk and ketchup: that was it! He ate out every day, fast foods, hitting the Food Court at work, and a quick coffee in the morning: yikes! No fruits, no veggies! He also was allergic to dust, animal dander and every spring, had hay fever. He was covered in rashes on his legs and had one bowel movement every week (Oh my!). 

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So when we moved in, I decided to turn his health around. It was tough and I had to make small changes weekly because, let me tell you, I came across a lot of resistance.
He used to say to his friends: "There is no food in our house", while our fridge was full. Because no junk food meant no fun to him. He used to say: "What is that? Bird food? It looks funny" at every meals during the first year.

I took it slow and Each week I changed only one thing:

1. Introduction to meatless dinners
2. Fresh Fruits salads for snacks 
3. Almonds and dark chocolate for hiking 
4. Tasty salads with goat cheese, walnuts, olive oil and balsamic vinegar
5. Spaghetti squash Ratatouille Lasagna
   
6. Plain yogurt with stevia and organic strawberries
7. Broccoli with shaved Parmesan and a drizzle of olive oil 
8. Quinoa with coconut milk, seeds, and cinnamon for breakfast
9. Grilled fish, asparagus and mushrooms with rosemary and seas salt
10. Sweet potatoes Gluten Free Thai Chili
11. Summer smoothies after a sweaty tennis game

I never bought junk and made his lunches and breakfasts: he saved money (which he was very happy about) and in spite of the resistance, he ate it all, admittedly with some complaint at first, but soon realized his health was improving. I also added supplements and acupuncture to his regimen. 

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Today, he has no allergies, his skin is rash free, and has a daily bowel movement. He probably will be embarrassed I'm mentioning his daily bathroom ritual (Dr. oz opened a whole new world to us since he talked about poop). He's never sick with the flu and hasn't miss a day of work in years. He loves healthy foods and actually will request my brown rice stir fry dishes, grilled asparagus, quinoa salads and smoothies. Of course bad habits die hard. He still likes fast foods and will enjoy it once in a while, but at least not every day and keeps telling me, he owes me his health. So it's all worth it!

When you find it difficult to keep your kids or partner on a healthy path, remember that in the long run, they will thank you and appreciate the effort you made on their behalf. Just do it slowly, incrementally and with love, the reward is so worth it.

And for the record, I brought health to my hubby but he opened up a new world to me,  and now I really enjoy reading the news and watching science fiction movies with him. In the past ten years, we have grown from each other and our relationship is stronger each year because of it. 

Here's to health, family life, and constant growth.
Clara Cohen
Port Moody & Coquitlam Acupuncturist
Healing Cedar Wellness

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