Mirror bestselling author Luke Jaque-Rodney on healthy eating and living naturally - FIV

Healthy eating as the key to greater well-being and a better quality of life? The good old saying: “You are what you eat” is no coincidence. However, a healthy change in diet does not mean starting a new flash diet and torturing yourself by giving up your favorite snacks. It is also a misconception that healthy cooking means standing in the kitchen forever. Healthy, quick and delicious cooking are not mutually exclusive!

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Healthy Living – advice, recipes and more

Minimalism on the plate?

Cook quickly, cheaply and healthily

Fruit and vegetables are must-haves in the household

Eat naturally, live naturally

Intermittent fasting and alternative eating habits

Healthy Living – advice, recipes and more

When it comes to healthy eating, Luke is definitely the right person to talk to as a nutritionist. On his YouTube channel, the Spiegel bestselling author of “100 werden” shares all his knowledge on topics such as minimalism, sustainability and, in particular, a healthy and conscious lifestyle by presenting shopping hauls and giving tips on healthy eating habits.

Minimalism on the plate?

FIV: You talk a lot about minimalism on your YouTube channel, do you also practise it in your diet?

Luke: Hehe, yes and no. Difficult topic. On the one hand, yes, because I only have what I eat at home. Just a few days ago, I donated all the food I had at home to the food bank because it was just too much. Back then, when I didn’t have any money, I always dreamed of having everything.

I only have what I use.

I wanted to have every oil, every puree and every legume at home. I fulfilled my dream until I realized how much stress the whole thing was actually causing me. I completely lost track of everything. I now only eat 30-40 foods and only have what I need. That’s very minimalist.

The reason why I also answer “no” to this question is because, although I only eat a minimalist amount of food, it has to meet the highest quality standards. Accordingly, they don’t cost little either. I sometimes spend weeks searching the internet for the best product, going to farms, talking to farmers and writing emails. The only thing missing is that I also send things to the laboratory. But for me personally, that’s minimalism. I generally have very few things, but what I do have is always high quality. I prefer to buy less, but buy well.

Cook quickly, cheaply and healthily

FIV: What do you think about healthy “fast food” – do you think fast and healthy cooking are compatible?

Luke: I think that’s very easy to do. Look at this. You take a good loaf of rye sourdough, spread avocado on it, steam some broccoli, add a few walnuts and make a lamb’s lettuce salad with a balsamic-honey-olive oil dressing. Anyone can make this in 15 minutes or less. … and there’s plenty of green in it too

FIV: Many people assume that healthy eating means higher expenditure, do you think that’s true?

In my opinion, the money thing is not true. Of course, if you want to do what I do, you can spend a lot of money on healthy food if you don’t want to cut back. But you can also eat very healthily with very little money. I used to be a student and always had an excellent diet. Dried pulses, frozen berries, whole grains, frozen peas and brown rice – it all doesn’t cost much. It doesn’t always have to be fancy.

My body is the only thing I have.

As far as time is concerned: difficult. I think the problem lies more in the fact that we no longer take the time to look after our bodies because we are caught up in everyday life. Whether it’s “a lot of time” if you spend 40 minutes preparing your dinner is, I think, very subjective.

My body is the only thing I have. The only thing I have left. The only thing that enables me to do everything I do. So I look after it as best I can. Almost no time is too precious for me. I think it’s often (not always) a matter of priority.

Fruit and vegetables are must-haves in the household

FIV: What do you think is a must-have in a healthy household?

Luke: Wild blueberries or any kind of berries! I also eat green foods. I eat salad and herbs like basil every day. Omega 3 is also necessary, I think. Walnuts, sockeye salmon, a good algae oil and flaxseed are very high quality sources.

I forgot the most important thing: Cocoa. I am a huge cocoa fan. I like to buy unroasted cacao nibs, grind them into a coarse paste and make my homemade 100-become-chocolate in a pot together with coconut butter, raw honey and a little olive oil. So, if you manage to eat very high-quality organic cocoa, ideally in raw food quality, you are doing yourself a world of good.

I am also a sweet potato fan. In every color and shape. Preferably really pristine, with scratches, quirks and holes. Just the way they grow in nature, unsprayed. I eat them almost every day with high-quality raw milk butter or the coconut, garlic and chili oil from our store.

I think this is very easy to do. Take a look. You take a good loaf of rye sourdough, mix avocado on it, steam some broccoli, add a few walnuts and make a lamb’s lettuce salad with a balsamic-honey-olive oil dressing. Anyone can make this in 15 minutes or less. … and there’s plenty of green in it too.

Eat naturally, live naturally

FIV: In your opinion, what is the be-all and end-all of a healthy diet?

Luke: I always say: take the food as it grows on the bush, tree, field or in the water and mix it with nuts, seeds and oils in raw food quality. In other words, don’t eat anything that has been over-processed by industry. Nature has developed its “products” for our health, the food industry mostly for profit.

Natural foods also trigger natural reactions in the body. Conversely, this means that most illnesses are caused by highly processed and isolated products because they trigger unnatural reactions in the body. Chips, sugar. Soft drinks, cookies and sweetened yogurt are not natural. Nature did not intend it that way.

I know it’s not directly related to diet, but exercise is almost more important to me. Move. All very old people moved a lot in their everyday lives. Moderately, but a lot. Be it the sheep farmers in Ikaria, the farmers in Bulgaria or the Okinawa Japanese, who are active in their community well into old age.

Intermittent fasting and alternative eating habits

FIV: The current trend is intermittent fasting – can you recommend this eating habit?

Luke: Yes and no. I think women in particular should take intermittent fasting with a grain of salt and listen to their bodies. Intermittent fasting can have great effects, which is why I like to recommend it. But it can also throw some people off balance. If you notice that your cycle is becoming more irregular, your hair is falling out or your inner balance is out of kilter, intermittent fasting is not the right thing to do.

If you do sport, you don’t need to fast as much anyway, as sport is an autophagy in itself. Autophagy is the process that occurs during fasting, i.e. cell renewal. In my opinion, 13-14 hours is enough, especially if you exercise in the morning on an empty stomach.

It’s never one size fits all, which is why I always say in my videos how important it is to listen to what your body is telling you!

FIV: We’ve learned an incredible amount today, thank you for sharing your knowledge with us, Luke, and all the best for you and your healthy life.