Getting back on track
Ever just know exactly what you are supposed to do but your mind won’t submit to your soul or body’s will? Yeah, that’s exactly the struggle I’ve been dealing with for the past 6 months.
Back in January I followed a 10-Day Detox to ‘clean up my act’, so to speak. Detoxing does a body good. Seriously. I felt so good that I repeated it again in March. Then in June I led a 21-Day Live (Raw) Food group – my second in a year. The results have been nothing short of amazing!
During the raw foods program I drank a daily green smoothie and one to two raw (uncooked) meals made up of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, avocado and sprouted beans and grains. Despite eating less than half of the usual amount of food, I rarely felt hungry and had loads of energy. Mentally, I felt extremely sharp and focused. And only occasionally (towards the end of the second week actually) did I even think about or desire cooked foods.
The program ended eventually, and over the past few weeks I found myself gradually returning to mostly cooked food. In that short time, my allergy symptoms have returned, I feel less focused, my eczema is beginning to flare up, and I’ve gained back 3 of the 13 pounds I’d lost. Needless to say, I don’t feel as good as I did eating raw. But the most unexpected outcome is that I feel hungry almost all the time. I eat breakfast and an hour later, I’m hungry. It’s the same with lunch and dinner.
This experience has brought me to a greater awareness of how easily the body is satisfied by the high level of nutrients it gets from the raw foods. Once I returned to cooked foods, the nutrient quotient was reduced and the insatiable hunger followed.
What’s a girl to do? Well, I’ve been working with a business coach recently. The funny thing about coaching is that working on one area of your life usually impacts other areas of your life. Breakthroughs are not limited to the area you specify because life’s lessons are universal. During coaching I was reminded that I need to put myself first … work hard for my dream first … pay myself first … care for my needs first … love me first. It’s very simply really: Me. First. Hmm.
So, the new plan is to return to what makes my body feel better and more satisfied. I’ll eat raw foods most of the time and have some small amounts of cooked foods when I feel the urge to. I’m not limiting myself to raw foods only, just including more of what feels better and reducing what doesn’t.
For years I imagined myself as someone who walked their talk – stringently living the very same healthy lifestyle I encouraged others to follow. And even though I knew what was good for me, I didn’t always do that, especially with food. These days when I stand in line at the market and survey the contents of my cart, I don’t feel guilty about my food choices. In fact, just recently, at the New Seasons Market checkout stand, the cashier commented, “Wow! It’s good to see someone who eats so well!” as he rang up my assorted groceries. It was an external validation of an internal decision to listen to my body and honor its requests, while leaving some room for occasional indulgences. No more guilt.
How are you getting back on track?