I know we have a section about this on the website, but i wanted everyones opinions/ideas.

Let's face it, the American diet sucks. What makes it worse is that with the lifestyle we lead, its difficult to eat like they do in the Mediterranean! With that said, I want to try my best to eat like they do.

Does anyone follow that kind of an eating habit with a busy work schedule? Does anyone follow it at all? This post is open to anyone in the world, not just Americans (I can only use the American diet as an example because thats all i've lived with).

I would like to get some ideas on meals or snacks that you guys may use with your busy lives. Any information would be awesome.

Hi Joe

Are you of Italian heritage? If so, did you have the opporunity to spend time with your relatives?

As a baby until I was maybe 8 or 9 years old, I was with my Nonna or Zia, since my Mom worked. My Nonna & Zia taught me how to cook. Always simple food, pasta with tomatoe sauce and olive oil and fresh fruit. Sunday la centa, always a family affair would include some type of meat, along with pasta, salad and seasonal veggie and fruit.

We know today the health benefits of olive oil, tomatoes and fresh fruit & veggies.

I've been in Milano, five weeks today. We eat out occasionally, but for the most part I prepare dinner. The food here is so very, very fresh. I'm a pretty good cook, but with such fresh ingredients, the meals that I prepared makes it seem like I'm a much better cook!

A typical breakfast here is a croissant, they call it brioche but I'm not certain on how to spell it and a coffee drink. That doesn't strike me as a very healthy start to the day. My husband and I have cold cereal with soy milk (because of my milk issues) or cooked oats. Typical lunch here is two courses, usually pasta and a second and usually after 1 pm. I can't eat that much, so it's a panni or a small pizza. Dinner, la cena, here is late usually around 8 pm, and that's usually 3 courses! At our home, it's a main course, veggie, salad, bread and fruit for dolce and at an earlier time.

So how is a Milano diet healthy? I've been thinking about that a lot lately. Generally speaking, most of the Milanese that I see on a daily basis, seem fit and healthy. I think it boils down to how I was raised; olive oil, tomatoes, fresh fruit & veggies, for diet. But living in an urban area you have to add the change in lifestyle which is a great deal of walking, standing and avoiding landmines (doggie droppings) while navigating a sea of people.

I'd suggest, eliminate processed/refined foods, unhealthy fats, use more olive oil, eat less meat over all, and lots of fresh fruits and veggies. And you just have to make the time to get excersize. Perhaps something as simple as a walk before going to work in the morning.

Hope this helps,
ciao
Marie

I agree with you entirely. My late husband was Italian & we always & in fact still do, eat Italian. Its supposed to be the healthiest diet in Europe. When I visit Italy (every year) I meet several old people who are all in their nineties so that should tell us something.

I am of Italian heritage. I live at home with my parents, so my mother cooks everyday. Problem is that my father is a midwest meat and potatoes guy, and i'm the exact opposite (of course he wins all the time, even though he's the only one that likes that food!). Also, by the time i get home from work around 530, food is already on the table. Quite frankly i dont have enough time to cook anyways. I am taking night classes that will be twice a week, in which i wont be home til after 9pm. The days i dont, i try to go to the gym when i get home from work. This never entails to an appropriate meal or time to cook one. I guess my weekends are my only chance for a decent meal of my liking. I guess my real concern, is that with this lifestyle if anyone had ideas of what i can do or prepare to follow that type of diet. I don't mean diet as in, hey im going on the atkins diet or the south beach diet. I mean diet as a full lifestyle and eating habits change. Does this all make sense? I guess my difficulty is trying to get ideas on how i could fit it into such a busy, on-the-go lifestyle as i'm sure many people can relate. Thank you both for the information thus far. There was much useful information in your response that i will be sure to remember.

Anyone else have any ideas?

My big walk in food pantry is filled with Italian extra virgin olive oil.
I use it to cook with and sometimes drink it straight.(Sto scherzando
ma have done that prima.) I eat eggs for breakfast quasi sempre and fry
them with olive oil. Use olive oil on your whole grain toast instead of
butter. Io lo faccio. When I do fry potatoes I use olive oil.

Olive oil is very high in the antioxidants vitamin A and vitamin E, which
neutralize cancer-causing free radicals in our bodies. It is monounsaturated,
therefore it lowers the “bad” LDL cholesterol without reducing the “good” HDL
cholesterol. This results in improved circulation, lowered blood pressure and
less risk for heart disease. Recent research also indicates that olive oil may
be especially effective in preventing both breast cancer and osteoporosis.

Thee Italian diet is great , but I do not think you can blame the U.S. for the foods that you consume , everything is here ,it is up to you ! Also I noticed when I go to Italy everyone or should I say most, walk 10 times more than the average person in the U.S. / if we have to travel one block most will take their auto / do not short change exercise.

E vero Fred. While in Perugia I did more walking than had every done in la mia vita. Perugia
is one of those hill top towns so everywhere you go you're walking up hill or down hill which
works you more both ways than just walking on flat ground.

After the movie Super Size Me came out, many popular fast food chains started offering "healthier"
choices with grilled chicken salads and the like. Remember however that ice berg lettuce is not good
for you. You should eat romaine lettuce such as the lettuce used in Ceasar salads.
Actually it’s not that iceberg lettuce is bad for you; it’s that other lettuces are better. Compare
the nutrients in a head of iceberg lettuce to a head of romaine. Notice that the romaine has much more
fiber, protein, vitamins A and C, and the minerals calcium and iron. Romaine has more potassium, magnesium,
selenium, and other nutrients too. In general, darker green vegetables are more nutritious.

I agree everything is here, but with the way society is set up, we're so incredibly busy that its difficult to take the time out to be able to eat well. Thats why i'm trying to find out various ideas that some people may use for a busy schedule. And the reason we cant walk everywhere here, is because most of the US is not built around that method. Everything is miles away from your home unless you live in the middle of a major city. If i wanted to bike or walk to work, i'd have to start now to get there monday.

In the UK too most things are available, however not all is what it seems - the cuts of meat, though seemingly the same are butchered differently, many of the sauces and even tinned/bottled ingredients are (slightly) adjusted to suit the "taste" of the target market, and a few are either impossible to find or extremely expensive (in the UK at least - veal being a prime example). The walking part I would whole-heartedly agree with - we walk far more than we ever did in the UK, and given the distances in the US as compared to the UK and Italy, no wonder most people drive/fly!

Joe, given that many Italians have two or more hours for lunch, and work local to their homes (plus many live at home into their 30s and Mamma cooks), you have a hard task! If you cook, and I believe you do, cook at the weekend and try freezing some of the food to reheat in a microwave (la mia suocera e moglie do this and we swap dishes when we don't eat together - most tastes fine, but be wary of some vegetable dishes). Make ragu in bulk and freeze the extra - that way it's only the 6-12 minutes it takes to cook the pasta while the sauce is defrosted in the zapper.

Alternative is to give up work and move over here!

Garlic. Garlic's the thing. Lots and lots of it. It has been shown to have blood thinning properties, which is good for the blood pressure and I believe it has anti-cancer properties also.
Just be sure that whoever you are going to be kissing has eaten it too. Tangobunny