Food for Thought
Friends,
I had the most incredible trip to Oaxaca, Mexico with my Bestie. 4 days of laughing, touring, EATING, and taking in the culture and sights of this most incredible city. Did I mention the EATING?
7 course vegan tasting dinner menus, pastries at breakfast (I’m normally gluten free), lunches in small artisanal villages and some of the BEST coffee I have ever had. Brought several pounds home for my honey. ;)
Home in the nick of time for the Thanksgiving holiday and then I took my kids into NYC for a dose of Christmas and the Radio City Spectacular which is truly a feast for the senses.
So begins the holiday season.
Without an ounce of guilt at all my indulging, instead I feel joy and gratitude at the ability to have such abundance, savoring each day and morsel. Confident in my ability to seek balance and nourish myself.
It wasn’t always this way.
I was anorexic and bulimic at the age of 14. Living in the grips of eating disorders and dysmorphia for well over a decade, I used food as a way to control my life, my emotions, and to punish myself and my loved ones.
Looking back now, it may have been the catalyst that set me on the path of wellness and nutrition.
Now, studying to be an Ayurvedic Health Counselor, I have learned that how you eat, is as important as what you eat.
According to yoga and Ayurveda, there are 3 mental energies (Maha Gunas):
Sattva is the energy that is purity, clarity, balance and expansive.
Rajas is the energy of movement, change, creativity.
Tamas is the energy of lethargy, dullness, heaviness.
We need all three and they are always shifting. We can choose foods to balance rajas and tamas and cultivate sattva.
The how you eat, when you may be over-indulging in the “what”, can also encourage a sattvic mind.
Some basic tips as you embark further in the holiday festivities…
1. Eat only when you are hungry. If you “check in with your body” you will begin to have better interoception and communication with your self.
2. Slow down and sit down. It’s important to sit down while you eat so your digestive organs can relax and prepare to do their job.
3. Don’t eat and drive. I was guilty of this for years with small kids always wanting a snack in the car. It’s amazing how much better I feel once I stopped this mindless eating habit.
4. Consistency. The mind/body respond well to a routine. Try to keep mealtimes the same and avoid snacking in between, if possible.
5. Enjoy your food! Eat with friends and family. Gathering around food makes it a celebration/ritual and has enormous benefits on how that food is assimilated.
6. Have an attitude of gratitude. Pause and say thanks for the meal you are about to enjoy, knowing that you are nourishing yourself on every level of being.
7. Stop punishing yourself. Indulge with purpose and joy!
I wish you all a wonderful holiday season.
In health and happiness,
Kari