Let’s talk about food and moving your body.
Recently I finished a book called “The Body is not an Apology,” by Sonya Renee Taylor – highly, highly recommend by the way. Especially if you are working on self-love and healing yourself.
She discussed topics like food and body imagine and what she said really struck me. She talked about children and how they love their bodies, like really love them. I was thinking back on watching my daughter realize she had feet. My lord, it was awesome, and she thought so too (Sonya brings this up in the book as well, which is what got me thinking). She was obsessed from that moment on with watching her little feet and realizing those were attached to her, she thought it was hilarious. She also marvels at standing and her legs and what they can do. It seems like everyday she discovers a new part of her body and just revels in her own tiny body.
What would the world be like if we could get back to that state of loving our beautiful bodies, it truly is miraculous. What changes in us that makes us stop marveling at our bodies and start to pick them apart? What switch flips in us that changes all of this? Is it our parents or society or just simply viewing ourself differently? Either way, I want to work harder to make sure my daughter keeps that love of her body for as long as possible.
I am also reading a book called “Food Mood Connection,” by Dr. Uma Naidoo. Which discusses so much about gut health and how that connects to brain health. It digs in to how we can heal our gut to also heal a plethora of mental health issues that are typically treated with medications (which are also sometimes necessary). It is fascinating and I highly recommend this one as well.
This combined with learning a ton about intuitive eating has me on a whole new track with how to approach food and movement. I have been tracking macros for several years off and on, I have started and stopped several workout programs, I have made calendars of what to do and how to do it and read up on so much regarding how to treat my body, lose weight, and be at my best. However, I am fucking tired. I am tired of trying to figure out what to eat to meet my numbers and push things aside to push myself through a workout I am not enjoying all to say I did it. It wears on me in a time where my mental health is fragile anyway, and makes me feel even less accomplished if I don’t follow everything exactly as I laid out. It makes me feel like I am failing, and that should not be the case ever when you are just simply trying to take better care of your body.
Then covid hit. It was rough, and not nearly as bad as it could have been, but rough. And I was feeling some pressure in my chest which made me super nervous for obvious reasons. So, I started to decide to come up with a plan that was tailor made for me and me alone. So, here we go and I hope you get some use out of this as well.
To start, these were all ideas incorporated from reading the above books and working on my mental health and therapy as well. Credit where credit is due.
I decided that I was going to start eating more intuitively and mindfully. I wanted to savor and taste the food that was going in my mouth instead of just eating to meet some sort of number. And play with foods that were great for my brain. If a healthy gut equals a healthy brain, well then, let’s get that going immediately. We need all the help we can get.
So far, eating more for my brain, I am having less brain fog (fucking hallelujah!), less drowsiness especially toward the middle of the day, less fluctuation of starving and over full. In fact, I am rarely over full at all. I am eating more foods that are fresh and they actually taste great, I am giving lots of things a new try or a try again (hi again, salmon, I missed you during pregnancy). I am learning mixtures of foods that taste amazing I never would have thought of before. And I am slowly eating and enjoying my meals instead of scarfing them down and moving on. What a beautiful thing. You can truly eat what you want and see how you feel after, if you feel great, continue eating that food, if you feel like shit, well, maybe limit that one. Some foods just taste amazing and make you feel shitty, remember that and limit those. It makes the whole process much easier, much more fun and enjoyable and less stressful. Food should not be stressful. If what you are doing with your meals is, maybe it is time to find a new system. You have enough stress, friend.
Also, movement. I was doing workouts I loved and some that I completely hated. Why? Why do we move our bodies in ways that are not meant for us? Now, I think trying new things is super important, but if you don’t like it, maybe try to find something else. Not all workouts have to be running, or lifting weights or following along to a workout program. They can be outdoors, or dancing, or playing hide and seek with your child. Figure out what makes you the happiest and do that.
I found that I love hiking and that means also being outdoors and is so so good for me, it makes me feel grounded again and clears my mind like nothing else does. Now, I cant go hiking every single day so I do find other ways to supplement that. But I love walking my dogs, especially first thing in the morning. I enjoy biking and yes, sometimes, I enjoy lifting weights. I am just no longer forcing myself to do one or the other just to check it off of my list and be acceptable to myself. Nope. That was just setting me up for failure, and not fun at all. So I am finding ways to move my body that fit in that day – and what I enjoy. Am I saying we have to enjoy every second of moving our bodies and that it is never going to feel like a chore?? No way. It might some days and you might have to push through it.
What I am saying is, let’s get back to the kid in us. Let’s eat what we enjoy and what makes us feel good instead of mindlessly eating whatever fits in to what we are currently doing to lose weight. And let’s move our bodies how we enjoy, let’s bring back the fun to being healthy! Let’s be kids again.
And if you have a program that works great for you and that you enjoy, fantastic!! I hope you stick with it and truly love it. For me, though, I am going to attempt to bring out my inner child (she needs to heal anyway), and learn to love moving my body again and eat in ways that brings me joy and fuels my body and heals my mind.
Happy eating and moving!
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