Pretty grim way to start a post about nutrition and health, I know, however for some reason the line from this scene kept playing over in my head as I was conjuring up my words, "Noble in thought, weak in action." I think we all can admit that we often think that we can do better when it comes to diet and exercise but always seem to fall short when it comes time to act upon our highest values.
Today, I touch on diet; not diet as a means to losing weight, but diet meaning the choices we make towards what we put into our bodies. Your body is truly a temple, inside that body holds the key to life and existence. Inside yourself is where you can find the answers to all life's problems. Do you want to house your spirit in a shack built of grass, in a hut built of wood, or a castle built of solid rock? When the body is weaker it is easier for illness to creep it's way in. Any health problems or mental problems can be fixed or avoided if you build a fortress around your inner core protecting it from all negative outside forces. The key to happiness and longevity is nutrition, therefore it is the place to start if one desires a positive life.
For the last 10 years of my life, taking an active approach to eating well has been daunting and even useless. It seems as if even adapting the healthiest foods into my diet had it's downfalls. "Eat more veggies and fruits" they say, then go on to explain all the harsh pesticides and chemicals that are crawling around on all the produce. These so-called healthy foods are genetically modified so even they seem to have a crippling effect on your health. They say to buy organic but for some reason it is hard to even believe that organic really is organic. With chem-trails and acid rain we have become powerless to what we are exposed to; our only power left is to build a impenetrable immune system.
For those who have been using meat replacements such as soy, all the studies that have come out lately have shown that soy has been a big scam from day one. What a slap in the face to all those folks who've been trying to live a healthier lifestyle. In this one article (there are many) soy is referred to as big business, that it was an advertising scam to make money off a product that is now being linked to many illness' such as brain damage and breast cancer.
Recently I have been introduced to Quinoa (pronounced keen-wa) and how it is a complete protein and I have been opting out on rice and reaching for this wonderful superfood instead. Within months this article pops up exploiting the economical implications that North Americans consumption of quinoa is having on Bolivia and it's people. At this point, I was like "good grief" what is good anymore?
It can be very frustrating and confusing finding not only the best food for you but the best food that does not harm people half way across the world. What does one do? Well this is my answer:
Do your best.
Do the best that you can do given your circumstance. Speak up and ask questions, question where your food is coming from. Educate yourself and spread awareness. A warning: do not go around shouting at a dinner party that what you are being served is unhealthy or inhumane; use your discretion and common sense. I find that trying to force people to do what you think is better has the opposite effect. The best way is to start with yourself, be selfish and get your self on track and then sit back and let people ask you what you are eating. Let people come to you for the recipes and share instead of lecture.
Do not expect that your local grocer is going to pick out the best crop to sell to you. Do not expect that your government is going to pass laws that are to put your health above big business. Take responsibility for your health into your own hands. All the information you ever wanted and needed is at your fingertips, and here you are looking at pictures of boobies and kitties. I'm not suggesting that you stop looking at the things that bring a smile to your day, a momentary happiness; I am suggesting that you try and hold onto that happiness for longer than a fleeting moment. Howabout insuring today that happiness can go on forever? Health = Happiness
Starting with your diet first will bring upon a domino effect to your life. When you eat better, you look better, then you feel better, then you do better. I do not believe in sacrificing the things that you love however if something you love is clogging your arteries, slowing down your energy, making you grumpy, then you must love yourself enough to love the things that lift you up rather then what brings you down. Love yourself enough to chose to let go of those things that no longer serve your purpose.
Everyone is different and will go about their life differently and I am not here to ever throw stones at anyone. All I can do is speak from my own experiences, and in that my formula has been to quiet down the noise in my head and truly listen to what my insides were telling me. Finally, not denying what was so obvious. In my early 20's, dairy starting upsetting my stomach, so I limited dairy but never quit it. I notice that whenever I drink milk, especially before bed, my chest gets congested. What is my body telling me? That milk causes me congestion and tummy aches; that milk is not good for me. After all these years of negative responses, I have finally taken to omitting cow's milk from my diet.
Back in the day I tried to make a switch to soy milk and I could not acquire a liking towards it, even the chocolate flavoured soy milk left me gagging. However, 15 years ago I did not have the alternative choices that I see now on the grocery shelves. There's rice milk, almond milk, and coconut milk! A few week's ago I made my very own coconut milk and boy was it worth it! So I now have a substitute for my black tea and coffee! I will be honest here, I will not give up cheese, that is my treat, periodically, maybe for giving up milk if I need an excuse.
Truly, I do not need an excuse for treats, because I am not on a diet nor am I trying to punish myself with not allowing certain foods. I am eating what I like. I prefer food that makes me feel good and that doesn't give me diarrhea when I'm sliding into first and feeling something burst.
Note: One should not just change their diet over night, it would be a shock to your system. Even when you change your dog's food, everyone knows to start mixing it in with the old stuff, phasing it out seamlessly. Rather, listen closely to what your body is telling you and start by making adjustments. Not every healthy lifestyle choice is for everyone. For me, being vegetarian for 4 years left me unable to even do so much as a sit up, so I started eating meat again and there goes the last 10 years of my life where I've been noble in thought but weak in action. Omitting meat out of my life entirely did not work for my body.
I know now that for me I find it to be problematic to set limits. Labeling myself a vegetarian just put me in a box where people could throw stones at me. I would much rather not call myself anything so that no one glances at me if I eat some chicken wings every now and again, it is my choice and mine alone. Also, I do not want to miss out on the good things in life, so I refuse to say that I specifically won't eat anything. I just happen to eat pretty damn healthy most of the time, that is all.
Ok, SO, simple adjustments that I found easy to make in my everyday life are as follows:
POPCORN --> That microwave shit has so much chemicals added to it that it is a joke on humanity. Do you know how simple it is to pop your own and also how much cheaper it is? Put a little coconut oil in a BIG pot, drop in half a cup of kernels (kernels can be bought at le grocery store for a buck or two), shake the pot a bit and tip the lid to let a little air in, and watch the popcorn dance!
Speaking of COCONUT OIL --> I have made the switch to make this my number one cooking lubricant and I am never going back. I understand that some do not enjoy the flavour of coconut so all I can say to that is, sucks to be you. I love Extra Virgin Olive Oil but to know that as soon as it is heated it loses all of it's nutrients and becomes a trans fat has made me opt out on it for cooking and heating. However, straight from the bottle, EVOO is still packed with all it's goodness. I use it for salad dressings, bread dippers, drizzled over pasta, and of course in my hair as a deep conditioner.
Speaking of conditioner: I am in the process of switching all of my beauty products over to natural products. I cannot wait for my stupid shampoo and conditioner to be finished so I can start testing out natural versions! I would like to develop a line of beauty products in the process, to be able to one day be able to offer an alternative lifestyle to those who care about such things.
TOOTHPASTE --> I made my own toothpaste, rather I should say we made our own toothpaste. I do have a secret edge on this healthy lifestyle, until I am ready to touch on that topic we shall just refer to him as a great influence. Easy toothpaste recipe: coconut oil, baking soda (magnesium free can be found at bulk barn), a bit of rock salt (to remineralize) and some drops of essential peppermint oil. I prefer this toothpaste than any store bought ever in the history of the world. There are probably better toothpaste recipes out there but for now, I'm pretty content with my simple version.
I LOVE NUTS --> Lucky for me I'm actually not a big fan of potato chips. I enjoy a good crunch but I can get that from so many other things. I actually love nuts and prefer to eat them and cannot really understand why I wasn't eating them regularly before. I think we just get used to eating chips and candies as a snack and things like nuts get shoved into a "special" category that we eat periodically. Well forget that, I now like to go to bulk barn and stock up on walnuts, brazil nuts, and seeds like pumpkin and sunflower (because they are a bit cheaper). I love dried cranberries. I think they are way tastier than any candy out there, so I have decided to stop torturing myself and I grab a big bag of dried cranberries for my munching pleasures every few weeks!
I LOVE JUICE --> From now on, whenever I say "juice" I am referring to my juicer and all the stuff I find in the fridge to throw into it and turn into a juice. The best part about juicing fruits and veggies yourself is the family bonding time. At my house, we all huddle around the juicer and watch the carrots, cucumbers, celery, apples, ginger, kale, lemons, beets, watercress, etc. turn into the best nutrient filled drink out there. We take turns preparing and washing and as far as I am concerned, it is much more worth it to pull out the juicer when more people are involved to share in the experience. Talk about an amazing energy booster too! Red bull? You ain't got nothin' on the punch that freshly juiced veggies and fruits give AND juice tastes better so put that in your hashpipe...
Lastly, I will speak of "organic". As far as I am concerned, organic is subjective so my advice to that is: I think that it is most important to just eat produce period. So start there. If it is simple for you to find and purchase organic then by all means, chose organic. But do not opt out on not getting your produce because it is not organic. Organic will come with time as the market continues to make changes and when we chose to take a stance towards what is best for us. By May 24th weekend, have your plans for your new garden ready, because that is when planting begins!
It is time we all learn the basic fundamentals of survival:
Plant a Garden
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