A couple of weeks ago, I was invited to attend a Health Starts Here tour at Whole Foods and my interest was immediately piqued.
Since I no longer live near a Whole Foods, I figured I wouldn’t be able to attend and was quite bummed since Ryan and I used to love Whole Foods events when we lived in Orlando. (We attended a number of restaurant cooking demonstrations and had a great time at a Greek cooking class! I know I’ve mentioned Whole Foods events on the blog before, but I highly recommend them for fun, inexpensive date nights!)
When I responded to the invitation, I happened to mention my travels to Jacksonville for my sister’s bridal shower last weekend and we were able to set something up since there is a Whole Foods in the area. Woo!
The Health Starts Here tour is free to everyone and I met up with Heather Olsen, the Jacksonville Whole Foods healthy eating specialist, for my tour in the late afternoon. Heather gave me a ton of information about the Health Starts Here program, which I never knew existed at Whole Foods until our tour began!
Health Starts Here is a mindful approach to healthy eating that’s rooted in simple ways to build better meals. The program is essentially an in-store guide that you can use to choose the healthiest foods.
Fun fact I learned from Heather: The average American cycles through the same 10 fruits and vegetables!
The Health Starts Here program includes the following Four Pillars of Healthy Eating:
- Whole foods: Health Starts Here foods only use recognizable ingredients in their purest, unprocessed forms.
- Plant-strong: Plant-based foods are the foundation of Health Starts Here.
- Healthy fats: Health Starts here foods does not use any extracted oils or processed fats but included healthy fats from natural sources including nuts, seeds and avocados.
- Nutrient dense: Health Starts Here meals contain a rainbow of nutritious whole plant foods with high Aggregate Nutrient Density Index (ANDI) scores.
As Heather escorted me around the store, she pointed out Health Starts Here logo stickers that can be found on a number of food items within the store that follow the four pillars of health.
If you’re visiting the Whole Foods salad bar, hot bar or prepared foods section and noticed the Health Starts Here logo, you can be sure that the food you are eating is a healthy choice. It’s a great way to take some of the guess work out of healthy eating!
The program also offers a grocery list for stocking your pantry the healthy way and tips and tricks for cooking fast and healthy meals using quick-cooking whole grains, canned no-salt-added beans and frozen vegetables and fruit.
I left very impressed with the Health Starts Here program and know I’ll be looking for the logo as I select foods from the hot bar and salad bar during my next trip to Whole Foods!
Whole Foods Giveaway
When I said I’d be writing about this tour on my blog, Whole Foods was kind enough to offer a giveaway to one reader for a $50 gift certificate to Whole Foods. Since I know you guys get just as excited about food as I do, I have a feeling this one may interest quite a few of you!
To enter this giveaway, simply comment below and tell me about one healthy food you’ve recently started incorporating into your diet or a favorite healthy food that has been a staple in your diet for quite a while.
I will randomly select a winner on Friday.
Good luck!
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Your protein pancake recipe has been such an inspiration and treat. Just this weekend I experimented with a cacao + cinnamon + protein powder & blueberry protein pancake. Delicious, nutritious, and packed with protein. Thanks!
Coming from a South Asian background, stuff like beets and yams and parsnips were never a part of my diet as child or cultural stock of recipes, but I’ve recently started loading up on root veggies. Made my first beet smoothie this morning!
Whole Foods is the best! I go there a lot just to eat a healthy dinner sometimes. I’ve been into using quinoa lately to make some delicious meals 🙂
I eat a Granny Smith apple in between breakfast and lunch every day
One healthy food that I cannot get over is spaghetti squash. So many different recipe ideas and a great alternative to pasta!
I’ve recently jumped on the Spaghetti Squash band wagon and I don’t plan on getting off any time soon! Boy do I love that stuff! 🙂
I’ve been trying so many new products since Whole Foods came to my area! Most recently, I’ve been trying protein powders and having them for smoothies and for making my own ice cream. I love the organic avocados, and have made a great tortilla soup with it, trying to copy a vitamix demo. Soo good! I try to learn as much as I can about all the new products I try and then incorporate into my diet. I’ve taken as many classes as I can that they offer, too. I like to adventure down different isles every week and discover items I’ve never heard of before, and give them a whirl! It is so exciting!
They aren’t new to me but I’ve been maying chia pudding again after taking a break and I’ve fallen back in love with it! I love that I can throw it together the night before so it’s ready in the am. 🙂
I just made baked oatmeal and it’s so amazing…it’s pretty cold here it the midwest and the baked oatmeal has been such a nice warm way to start my day.
I love the versatility of chia seeds! I’ve been putting them in so many different things, from yogurt to smoothies.
I have started incorporating PRASNIPS! and I love them, i add them into my other root vegetables, and sometimes blend them into soup. They are peppery and sweet and so delicious.
Whole Foods is the best! I bought some kale this week and I’m excited to try to cook it for the first time tomorrow night 🙂
I went on a tour of Whole Foods last year and loved it! they have so many great things to offer!
I have been loving 2 ingredient pancakes banana and a whole egg plus almond butter 🙂 i lovee whole foods
Mostly by sticking to Paleo foods in general, and making sure I have a ton of veggie’s and some fruits in my daily diet.
I was recently told that I have allergies to soy and gluten and it has turned my world upside down. Whole Foods is a place that has been there for me by carrying products for people like me who are in desperate need of alternatives! Recently, I have become the queen of Epic Bars, a protein bar that fits all of my dietary restrictions. As a college student, I am so grateful for snacks that I can take on the go and know that I am taking care of my body.
I have just started making protein pancakes for breakfast and they are delicious!
I’ve been trying to eat more healthy grains! I absolutely love topping my salads with a nutty flavor and find that grains like farro, barley, brown rice, and quinoa are great options!
My husband and I love green smoothies for breakfast! It’s a great way to get some veggies in early in the day!
I’ve been enjoying putting chia seeds in my overnight oats or baked goods.
I recently started buying cacao powder and I really love it! Healthy foods that are a staple in my diet are flax seed, chia seeds, and quinoa.
I used to live near a whole foods and I didn’t know how good I had it! I miss it now that we’re far away 🙁 I always try to stick to a pretty healthy diet, but recently I’ve been loving clementines (possibly a pregnancy craving?). So good!! 🙂
Salad! Everything and anything can go on a salad and the more you pile on, the better!!
I have recently fallen in love with sweet potatoes. I have them almost every morning with egg whites. Delicious, clean and satisfying.
Carrots have always been a healthy staple in my diet. I usually eat them raw, but I roasted them this week to change it up!
I am starting to incorporate a lot more nut butters into my diet!
I have really gotten into spaghetti squash recently. It is a great base for any dish!
I have always enjoyed Greek yogurt and Kale and I just recently added chia into my diet!
spaghetti squash! I’ve been using it forever, love it!
How cool! I’ve never heard of something like this before! I LOVE Whole Foods (I just wish there was one closer to my house)! My favorite healthy food is probably spinach. It’s just so versatile. I actually haven’t gotten behind the whole green smoothie thing yet, mostly because it’s like 4 degrees here and the thought makes me shiver, but I am looking forward to trying them this summer!
I love baking with coconut flour!
I love whole foods and love just browsing around on my days off! One food I have recently started using alot is quinoa to replace rice. Its delicious and filling and is a great base for many ingredients!
I’ve been loving fennel, blackberry and avocado salads lately with spinach! It comes lots of yummy and healthy foods.
I have been obsessed with spaghetti squash…love how easy it is to make and so versatile!
Just recently tried hemp seeds and love them!
I love incorporating Greek yogurt into recipes that call for mayo or sour cream. It makes them tasty and healthy!
I’ve been a “green smoothie” girl for years but last summer my mom gifted me with a Vitamix and life changed. My word. I didn’t change my recipe much but have added lemon and fresh ginger and chia seeds since the Vitamix pulverizes them. I love the freshness of the ginger and lemon and chia helps lots too.
Great giveaway!
I LOVE Whole Foods! I have been incorporating chia seeds into my diet more lately, and I go through tons of spinach for salads and smoothies. I’d love to branch out into other greens too!
I’ve just gotten into overnight oats, and I love them!
Hi Julie,
I love you blog so much & I am actually a UCF Alumi as will! Go Knights!
My favorite healthy food that I’ve been using for a while is spinach. It is so versatile, you can add it to smoothies, saute it, or even make a salad with it
A new vegetable I’ve tried recently is parsnips, I made roasted parsnip fries and they were amazing! You should definitely try them out.
I;ve recently started incorporating chia seeds into everything! I have always loved asian sweet potatoes and pears.
I got a vegetable slicer for Xmas and just experimenting with zucchini ‘noodles’ and it’s so good!!
Spagetti squash has become one of my favorites! 🙂
I’ve recently started loving roasted brussel sprouts!
I made the switch to unsweetened almond milk and haven’t looked back! I actually think it tastes better than regular milk and use it in smoothies and lots of other recipes! I’m also loving fresh leafy greens for salads, juices, and side dishes lately!
I recently tried tempeh!
Recently, I’ve been roasting asparagus, zucchini, and eggplant. I love eating them with hummus, adding them to salads, or just popping them into my mouth plain!
I just tried figs for the first time recently and I’m in LOVE!
make my 3 year old toddler twins mashed sweet potatoes, lentils and frozen spinach daily for breakfast….they love it! makes me happy they are starting the day on a healthy note!
So interesting to read that the avg. american cycles through the same 10 fruits and veggies. Couldn’t be more true- I guess we all get in our routines! But this will make me think twice getting the same veggies next week! Thanks!
I usually shop at our town’s farmers market to get our local produce, and this week I picked up a spaghetti squash– hadn’t had that one in a while! So good!