I'd like to talk about food for a little bit. Food has been on my mind constantly. When I'm at work I think about food. In the middle of a yoga class I think about food. Perhaps I'm not eating enough. Yesterday was a coworker's birthday and I ate two pieces of cake in 10 minutes. What is wrong with me?
My indulgent tendencies sometimes take over which results in a grievance period for the rest of the day. Needless to say, after inhaling those pieces of cake, I was feeling pretty guilty. I walked into the yoga studio, and told a friend I was determined to burn calories. She said, "You know what? I wish everyone could just enjoy things like that instead of feeling guilty about them. You are quite beautiful, and I think you'll be just fine." I said, "You are right. I should just enjoy the cake. It's not going to kill me!"
Altering my mindset about indulging is something that is gong to take a lot of time. Honestly, who knows if I will ever be able to enjoy some foods without feeling guilty. Maybe I'm being too mindful.
Now one food I feel comfortable enjoying (in moderation) is Sunbutter. Oh my gosh. Forget peanut butter. Sunbutter is a substance made with sunflower seeds that looks like peanbut butter, but tastes BETTER. Another bonus is that it doesn't contain hydrogenated oils. I've only found it at Whole Foods.
I love you, Sunbutter. Thanks for making my bagels AWESOME.
i learned something kind of awesome in a nutrition seminar at my studio (one of the teacher's is certified in ayurvedic nutrition)...
ReplyDeletewhen you stress about what you eat you raise your body's levels of the stress hormone serotonin. serotonin is the hormone released in stressful situations to help you escape quickly--so it goes to your arms and legs as a defense mechanism. when all this attention moves to your extremeties and away from your digestive tract you have a much harder time properly digesting food and that can lead to weight gain.
crazy right? i hope i explained it the right way. don't quote me on anything, but that's the basic concept anyway. :)
so you're dead on that you should take joy in food and not stress out and feel guilty about anything.
Wow! I had no idea that serotonin had effects on your digestive system! I will keep that in mind, but not let it be an excuse for eating whatever I want!
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