If you know me, you know I love food. I love how it looks. I love how it smells. I love the colours, textures and the pure beauty of it. Fresh fruit and vegetables are so colourful, and amazingly, none are quite the same. All unique, subtly different in taste, size or shape. My favourite place to shop is the farmers market - where food comes alive, a painted picture of goodness and sunshine, flanked by the humanity of the people whose hands turned the soil that grew them. One of my favourite things is that surprising feeling when you take the first bite into something, and it surprises you by surpassing your expectations. Mmmmmmmm..........
I have not always had such a comfortable relationship with food. For much of my life it was a chess game, dancing between desire and necessity. Fear of "bad food", eating too much, too little, carbs, no carbs, take out butter, wait! margarine is bad for you, low fat, no fat, homemade, store bought. Proteins and dairy and grains, oh my! Much of my life was dedicated to thinking about, obsessing over and hating either food or myself, depending on the day. This is not unusual in society today. We are inundated with information that tells us how to eat, what to eat, why to eat. But we have been eating and surviving for thousands of years before the advent of media. We are born with the ability to know exactly what and how much we need. Babies are the most wonderful example of this. Unaffected by social mores, they eat when hungry and stop when full. They eat enough to meet their needs and satisfy their hunger. Wonderful and perfect. Somehow we need to start trusting ourselves that we have everything inside us to eat the right amount of the right foods.
People often want to know what diet I adhere to. Truth is, nothing is off limits for me, but I try to adhere to an 85/15 rule of thumb. As I respect and love my body, I want to treat it well, and to keep it running with quality fuel. To me, this means fresh, whole foods - as close to nature as we can get. We choose local and organic produce, and free range, organic, local eggs and meats. Whole grains. Food with an expiry date. Unprocessed when possible. Then I fill my body with these quality foods - 85% of the time. The other 15% is free choice, baby - whatever I want! Baked goods (made at home or locally), "junk" food, fried foods - you name it. I try and choose these prepared in a healthier way when possible, but hey - a girl needs her fats as well! It's normal to have a variety, and to take the negative connotations off of all foods. There's a place for everything.
The result of this - I feel good. I have energy and strength enough to face each day and it's challenges. I can play with my kids, ride my bike, do my job, and maintain a healthy, balanced life. Life is good - and so is food!
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