WYSIWYG Grazing – How to Eat Simpler, Cheaper, and Healthier

Please allow me to share the nerd side of me for a moment. 

In the website building world, there is something called a WYSIWYG editor, meaning, What You See Is What You Get. When you edit content on a website, like text and images, the WYSIWYG editor shows you what it will look like on the screen, instead of the fancy HTML code that’s behind the scenes.

Lately I’ve noticed that one hinderance to losing weight has been my lunch. In the corporate cube world, lunch usually means going out to a local restaurant with your coworkers. Not only was I spending an exorbitant amount of money on lunches, but I was also eating food I wouldn’t normally eat, like soda, fries, burgers, or full meals like meatloaf with casseroles at the local southern diner.

Food started to get really complicated.

Something had to change, but lunches are tricky. I don’t always have leftovers from the night before for lunch the next day, and I never make the time to make a sandwich or salad the morning of. So for about 2 months now I’ve been “WYSIWYG” grazing.

WYSIWYG food is just what it sounds like: What You See Is What You Get. No hidden ingredients I’m not aware of, like chemicals, preservatives, or evil high fructose corn syrup. It is what it is. Some folks call this “whole foods” or just REAL food, but I’ll stick with my nerdy acronym so I’ll remember it. I’ll eat this food all throughout the day, usually every few hours, resulting in 5-7 small meals before I leave work at 5pm.

Examples of WYSIWYG Food in my Lunchbag

1. Banana
2. Hard boiled egg
3. Clementine
4. Mango
5. Piece of grilled chicken
6. Avocado
7. Celery
8. Roasted nuts
9. Greek yogurt
10. Blackberries and raspberries
11. Applesauce
12. Tomato with salt and pepper
13. Green pepper
14. Chicken salad with Greek yogurt
15. Plum
16. Baked sweet potato
17. Boiled, ready-to-eat beets
18. Carrots
19. A few crackers with very little ingredients
20. Kiwi
21. Spinach salad with olive oil and balsamic
22. Dried cherries
23. Prunes and dates

Benefits to WYSIWYG Grazing

1. It’s easy to pack in the mornings. Just throw it in a bag and go!
2. I’m never hungry.
3. My blood sugar is normal all day long.
4. I know what I’m eating.
5. It’s cheaper than going out.
6. I can work through lunch and leave early from work.
7. It’s much, much healthier.
8. I don’t crave the evil food as much.
9. I appreciate/respect/taste the food more.
10. Less digestive issues

You may have to get over the fact that people may look at you funny if you’re sitting there eating an avocado right out of the skin with a spoon, but that’ll pass. At your desk, in your nearby break room, in your lunch bag, or in your kitchen, keep a sharp, small knife, a spoon, a fork, and  maybe some extra seasonings like salt and pepper or all-purpose seasoning like Adobo with you.

If you’re at home with kids, this is a perfect way to keep them fed and healthy all day long. Rachel Marie Stone, author of Eat with Joy, says that kids (and adults!) should be choosing from a preselected variety of healthy foods all day long to help self-regulate their hunger, as they’re naturally created to do. We were created to be grazers, not gorgers!

This doesn’t have to be just for breakfast and lunch like I’m doing. Use this method wherever you need simplicity in your meals. You may find that this small change will help simplify your life and revolutionize your health like it’s doing for me!