Whole Foods Lifestyle - new to whole foods- guidance would be lovely :)

hi everyone!

after a 8 month plateau I got a personal trainer who recommended to me going more along the whole foods way. Following their guidelines, i've managed to shift the scale down almost 2kg from the bottom of my plateau fluctuations which is amazing.

I could just do with some advice on what is considered whole and what wouldnt be. I've read through some threads which has been really useful. But would you consider things like honey, hummus, whole grainy crackers as whole?

I had more questions but i forgot >.<

Have you read through the stickies?

The superfoods RX list isn't complete but it is pretty good to get an idea of some of the best foods for you to eat:
http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/whole-foods-lifestyle/90444-superfoods-list-sidekicks-superfoods-rx-pratt-books-1-2-a.html

I would consider hummus a whole food but I would say preferably to make it yourself. It generally tastes better if you do and is cheaper and fresher. I consider whole grain breads with minimal and recognizable ingredients to be a whole food but I don't eat them much. So some crackers may be whole foodish although they are still processed and not really a whole food while others would totally not be.

There's no black and white definition. I mean, olive oil is most certainly not a "whole" food but most would consider it a mainstay. I always try to think in terms of always moving in the direction of more whole foods, rather than trying to define it and do it 100% *now.* I think the biggest, most important steps to whole foods are lots of produce, getting rid of refined grains (or making them a very small part of your diet), and getting rid of processed, commercial convenience foods.

Personally, I don't try for 100% whole food perfection. I try to make good choices. I want to be able to easily live this life forever, which means nothing too extreme or difficult to maintain. I would say I'm probably 80% whole foods.

For example, if I wanted to snack, I consider store bought hummus/whole grain pita an okay snack. Much better than a Starbucks muffin or a bag of chips or whatever.

I love whole wheat tortillas, whole wheat bread - they might not be considered "whole foods" but they are a healthy part of my what I eat.

I don`t aim for 100% whole either, but I avoid anything processed, e.g. no ready meals and fast foods, whole grains over white flour, nuts and fruit over sugary sweets, etc. I cook everything from scratch and get a weekly delivery of organic fruit and veg. No ready sauces froma glass either - too much sugar, salt and other additives. I however use canned tomatoes a lot and flavour them with herbs and plenty garlic and black pepper.

thanks for all the input, it really cleared up a lot :D