Food Lessons from Europe.

I recently took a 2-week trip to Portugal.

Lately, I have been extremely lenient with my nutrition.

Ironically, at this moment, I am leaner than I was in the early summer when I was the most strict with my nutrition.

I've simply had so many other things going on in my life, that I simply had to reduce the effort I put towards eating a perfect diet all the time.

On top of that, it's impossible to maintain your domestic diet when traveling abroad. You'll be miserable if you try to hang on to everything you do at home when you travel.

When I went to Portugal, I learned a few precious lessons about food, alcohol, and lifestyle that have changed the way I view the world.

1. Quality over quantity.

2. Smaller meals are better.

3. Walking is king.

This week I'll dig into these topics and also explain why Americans are at a severe disadvantage vs. Europeans regarding staying fit and healthy.

Let's get into it.

Quality over quantity.

The majority of food in America is sourced from large corporate farms. This has a tremendous impact on the quality of the food.

Corporations are primarily concerned with maximizing production and minimizing loss. Plant and animal products are grown with growth hormones, antibiotics, pesticides, and other harmful chemicals that cause human disease.

It's obvious that the healthcare system in America is set up to profit off of sick patients. Treatments address symptoms, not root cause. Insurance is expensive.

The majority of food in Europe is sourced from smaller local farms subsidized by the European Union.

Farmers get paid more, the food is not saturated with harmful chemicals and ingredients and the citizens of Europe are able to purchase high-quality produce, dairy, and meats at much lower prices.

The healthcare system in Europe is set up to protect its citizens from becoming ill.

Toxic foods and ingredients are banned from the EU, high-quality food is available throughout the continent at affordable prices and the healthcare system lowers its cost by keeping its citizens healthy. Insurance is cheap.

I spent time in several regions throughout Portugal.

The cost of food was so low, it blew my mind.

Here's an example:

This much pomegranate for €1,50. Unbelievable.

OR this much pomegranate in America (half as much) for $7.99.

Also unbelievable...and pathetic.

So inherently, Americans are at a huge disadvantage.

Lower quality food for 5-8x the price.

Smaller meals are better.

One thing I learned about Europeans is that nobody gives a shit about counting calories.

Why?

Because they don't need to.

Every single meal I was served was about ⅔ the size of the same meal in America.

On top of that, they are only using quality ingredients like olive oil, grass-fed butter, pasture-raised eggs, locally sourced produce, and so on.

If you want to lose weight the easy way without tracking calories, eat smaller meals. Simple as that.

A rule of thumb I discovered:

• Fit your meal on a small dinner plate, not a large one.

You can go a little bigger than that, but this is a good ballpark.

Almost every breakfast was served with a small salad.

The pastries are fresh, and not laden with chemicals and preservatives.

The food quality was incredibly high.

I ate like this for 2 weeks.

The most expensive 4-course meal (Drinks, Starter, Meal, Dessert and Coffee) was €55 for 2 people.

See the difference now?

On top of this, I drank beer and wine every day, throughout the day.

At the end of the trip, I lost 5 pounds...

So how the heck did I lose 5 pounds eating and drinking like a king for 2 weeks?

This brings me to my final point...

Walking is King.

My wife and I walked an average of 18,000 steps a day every day.

While America is built for cars and driving, Europe is built for pedestrians and walking.

We walked everywhere:

• Cafes

• Beaches

• Markets

• Rivers

• Restaurants

• Praças (Plazas)

The list goes on and on...

Again, Americans are at a huge disadvantage because driving is a prerequisite to get anywhere. Walking sort of becomes the means and the end.

In Europe, walking is a part of the day to day life.

If you want to get somewhere, you need to walk. This is why it is so much easier to rack up huge mileage and burn big calories while walking.

What are you going to do about this?

1. Buy less groceries. Focus on quality.

2. Eat smaller meals. ⅔ the normal size.

3. Choose walking whenever possible (going to the corner store, going to the park, etc).

   1. Walk upon waking.

   2. Walk before lunch.

   3. Walk after lunch.

   4. Walk before dinner.

   5. Walk after dinner.

   6. Walk before bed.

You can enjoy your food. Just don't go crazy.

You don't need to be a maniac calorie counter (that's an unhealthy relationship with food).

Keep it really, really simple.

That's it for this week.

Ciao ciao.