Pic taken by Darrin Hackney
Every day I help clients who want to lose weight, eat better, and live each day more healthfully. We discuss their goals, options for moving our bodies more, healthy foods (I HATE the word DIET!!!!), and how to live what they love through daily wellness.
Well, I've had to recently coach myself when it comes to my eating style...
If you're one of my loyal followers, you know that I struggle with
chronic pain and have written about it many times. My pain is my kryptonite; when it strikes, I completely shut down. I don't want to be my normally social self...hide me away in bed!! I also have spouts of walking depression; the days become instantaneously more gloomy. To soothe my pain, I all too often reach for the comfort of my precious carbs--that's right: I'm a carb-fanatic. On a
normal day, I crave bread, crackers, and pasta occasionally, but when my legs are crippled with pain, look out.
I'm a crazy carb-navore.
I used to justify it with the notion that my pain needed to be comforted by the carbohydrate's sweet yumminess. What's a little bread here and there going to hurt? These handfuls of crackers will make it go away. If I'm feeling sad, I'll just eat some delicious pasta!
I'm a huge advocate of eating whole, real foods--BALANCE (i.e. moderation) is key. I'm not against eating anything; in fact, I've been a previous vegan, meat-lover, college student (enough said), and most recently, a vegetarian. For me, health is priority #1 and all eco, social, and financial benefits are bonuses. As a vegetarian, I thought I was doing everything right for my body. I got plenty of plant protein, kept my calories in a good range, cholesterol low, fat at a normal amount, and I enjoyed eating.
But not when carb-navore came out.
I found myself stuck in a vicious cycle of pain--carbo-loading--fatigue--more pain--more carbs--even more tiredness--constant pain--constant sadness.
What the heck? How could I be helping people physically and emotionally feel better for my job when I was consistently laying around in pain, gaining weight from all of the carbs and sugar, and feeling sad?
As a coach, I am extremely self-aware so I knew that something had to be done, and fast! But what? I was sure that my eating was fine. Maybe it was in my head?
After much analysis (and dumb excuses), I decided to get serious about examining my eating lifestyle. I started researching the heck out of inflammation (what gets my pain really going),
my sacral chakra and foods to heal it, and all things veggie, meat, carbs, etc. I spent over a week researching and finally came up with a new, experimental (to me) way of fueling my body.
After 3 years,
I've decided to drastically change my eating and start eating meat*** again!
Crazy, I know! But through all of my research, I realized that I am not only a carb-o-holic, but a sugar addict because of it! YIKES. This realization sucked to be honest with you. I was like, "I'm not a sugar addict: I barely eat desserts!" As most of us in the wellness industry know, it's not straight-out sugar that we need to be weary of: so much sugar, in our American food system, is hidden within breads, processed foods, drinks, my beloved crackers, and more. And I had never correlated sugar to carbs and to my pain.
With further research, I discovered that inflammation is highly reactive to sugar, carbs, and gluten--ALL things I love. Crap.
I needed to make a decision and although I'm not a huge fan of "cutting" things out of our eating style (limitations=shut down of willpower), I knew I needed to do something drastic. Instead of eating my plant-based meals, I now eat lean animal proteins, fruits, veggies, and some legumes including nuts and black beans. That's it. Seriously. Not going to lie, it's not been easy, but it's been SO worth it.
I no longer feel hungry or
HANGRY all of the time--YES: overdosing on carbs/sugar can lead us to be even more hungry during the day. I also stay fuller longer and honestly have had lots more energy. I COULD NOT BELIEVE IT
as I was so skeptical after not eating meat for so long.
But this whole episode solidified a theory that has been brewing in my brain for a while:
Everyone is an individual; we are each unique and have unique bodies. Thus, each one of us needs to take necessary actions and experiment with the eating style that works best for each of us. This is the thought of bio-individuality.
AH-HA! It totally makes sense! What works for me may or may not work for you. I know lots of vegan and vegetarians who get plenty of protein and keep their sugars at a normal level. And I know people who have a super balanced way of eating with meat, veggies, carbs, fruits, fats, etc who love it! But each one of us has unique needs: mine is dealing with chronic pain. Maybe yours is a food-addiction. Or perhaps struggling with iron-deficiency or diabetes.
Whatever our needs are, we need to feel free to experiment with our eating styles to figure out which combination of eating enables our unique body to function at its highest capacity.
You're thinking, "that's great for you, Rhonda, but I've tried so many things and still can't figure it out". No worries, my friend. Here's some tips to get you started on the right foot in your experimental eating journey:
1. Take an inventory of health obstacles you struggle with. Include mental issues as our brains and bodies are one!
2. Research via the internet, books, magazines, etc all of the health obstacles you face.
3. Make a list of at least 5 eating styles you could try (or combination of eating styles; i.e. maybe you like the thought of eating the way I am right now, but want to also throw in whole fiber/grains a few times a week). And make sure you're excited to try them!
4. Who in your life do you know lives, what you would consider, a healthy lifestyle? Ask them what works for them. Talk to your co-workers and friends you trust and get tips. Consult your doctor and get some new literature.
5. START EXPERIMENTING. Don't limit yourself to traditional ways of eating; there are hundreds of thousands of theories on eating out there, so try some and make them work for you. If you don't like a certain way of eating, stop it. And then try something else. The key is to not get frustrated and give up! Our bodies are super complex and it might take some time to figure what works best for yours. The time you spend investing in YOU will be worth it, guaranteed!
I want the best for you, so here are links to some of my fave sites on eating. Again, keep an open-mind and try new things. Your body will thank you!
Kris Carr's Crazy, Sexy Kitchen
Kris has an incredible cancer-survival story and she totally inspires me to eat to eliminate inflammation with my eating style!
Oh She Glows
Angela has been a long-time favorite of mine. She's vegan and her food always looks so scrumptious. I've tried several of her recipes and they are delicious!
Dr. Andrew Weil
Dr. Weil is a thought-leader in holistic health. I love him and what he has to say about eating for a better life.
Gotimetraining.com
Kalene and Shannon are local favorites of mine! They have a great story and are so good at what they do...I see their happy clients around town! Read their blog for great tips, recipes, and workout ideas. (PS-They can even train from afar, for my distant readers:))
I want to hear from you! What eating style works best for your body? What have you done in the past? Let's chat in the comments below!
Happy eating and experimenting!
***My husband and I believe in sustainable food systems, so we try to buy locally, naturally raised meat as often as we can.
Sign up for my FREE e-coaching newsletter (filled with insider tips, free give-a-ways, and inspiration), click here: http://eepurl.com/qpH6f
life coach, life coaching, wellness, wellness coaching, newsletter, happy
Hello! I'm so glad you're here! Check out my 
Posts
