What’s Food Got to Do With It?

Since my Foodie Fridays blog series launched back in January, I have mostly posted recipes that are considered indulgences or “bad” for you.  This may seem odd (and perhaps somewhat irresponsible) for someone in the health and wellness industry to do.  After all, fitness professionals are suppose to preach, coach and embody a healthy lifestyle all the time and, in doing so, encourage others to follow the same path.  But there has been a method to my madness.

What does food got to do with it?

The intent of these weekly posts is not a lesson in reckless abandon; to do away with the nutritional guidelines and swear off fruits and vegetables for good.  On the contrary! The primary goal is to pause for a moment, assess our needs and desires and work towards a more positive relationship with our food.  Because, frankly, society’s current methods of dieting – resisting, eliminating and depriving – are just not working.

Sometimes we scrutinize over every little thing we put into our mouths; so much so that we review our choices with a critical mind by counting every calorie, every fat gram and then reviewing where we went wrong when we decided to eat that piece of cake or that plate of fries.  Whatever it is, whatever that “bad” or “junk” food item is for you, we have come to the point where we are embarrassed by our obsession and possibly afraid of our food.  We’ve become uncomfortable and untrusting of our body’s ability to help us make the right choice for us in any given moment.  Food has become the enemy and our minds are at war!

We need to hold up the white flag and surrender.  Stop the struggle and let’s begin a truce with our food.  Once we’re able to sit at the table with all foods and explore our relationships with them, we’ll find there is a time and place at the table for even the seemingly “un-healthiest” of choices.  So, here is a crazy idea for you to try…

It’s called the Food Bag approach and it requires you to take a food that you feel you are at war with; that one food that seems to constantly be calling you and you just can’t seem to shake.

1. Carry that food with you for at least one week.  It needs to be easily accessible.
2. Give yourself permission to eat that food anytime you feel the need.
3. After a weeks time, journal your experience.  Does that food still have a hold of you? Do you feel more or less in control?

Sometimes giving yourself permission to eat that food whenever you want helps to release it’s “power over you”.

And that is what this blog series is all about! Finding a neutral zone with those foods that we once considered the enemy.  When we can make peace with food, we can explore the ways in which food can nourish us in a more positive way.

Foodie Fridays is a weekly blog series from Michelle Pitman, attempting to remove the stigma and the labelling of food that tastes good as being bad for you; to show how supportive choices can incorporate all categories of food and that balanced eating means you are satisfying your physical needs as well as the emotional ones.   Bon Appetit!!