Beginning this written piece with my eating and drinking adventures of the past weekend, I feel somewhat hypocritical in the act. But, I redeem my behavior as the piece reads on. Balance is key my friends. Balance is my savior. Cheers to balance!
On Thursday, November 15, I attended the Gourmet Food and Wine Expo at the Metro Convention Center and I enjoyed myself to the utmost. Indulging my happy little foodie me, with foods like Scallop Ceviche, 21 day aged beef, Russian Sturgeon Ossetra Caviar, Pulled Pork Sandwiches, Sliders, Samosas, Spring Rolls, and Fois Gras Ice Cream! “Sampling”, if you could call it that, more like “Sipping” from some unorthodox vendors, I still found myself in heaven with wines from Niagara’s Winery of the Year ‘Southbrook‘ to Australia’s Peter Lehmann’s Clancy’s Legendary Red to the ever so popular Kim Crawford‘s Malborough Sauvignon Blanc.
I continued living the life of a foodie as the weekend continued with great company, great wine stories over wine, and great food the way foodies do. I shall cut my losses here and redirect with my bigger picture, out of the box, don’t want to hear it but know it’s good for me, Buddhist approach, style of writing blog post.
Below are my thoughts on diet and nutrition as a response to my classes’ brief discussion and query on my views to this sensitive and complicated topic.
Dieting is very personal. I am not a registered dietitian nor a certified nutritionist, but only an expert within my scope as a successful Kinesiologist/Fitness Coach. I too have experimented on my own body with my highly active lifestyle and it has enabled me to do above average things. You have heard me speak about vegan-ism and vegetarianism as a key player of success in my running. I may have told you about my green smoothies and super-foods approach to a holistic approach to supplementation for high dosage of nutrients. I may have spoken to you about my gluten-free, dairy-free, red meat free diet that I have been upholding to deal with my eczema skin disorder. I have experimented with my own diet to great depths but do not expect the same experimentation out of you. We are all different. We must do what is right for ourselves, but we must know what is right. Hence we must know thyself.
Eat not based on how you want to look but on how you want to feel. Eat to fuel what you want to do not what you want to be. Eat not just to survive in life but to perform in life. Feed yourself what you would feed your loved ones.
I provide advice on diet to those I believe are in need of habitual reassessment. We all have good habits and bad habits. We are not born good eaters and poor eaters. It is not nature but nurture that determines our dietary habits. We are influenced by our environment. Our dietary habits are simply a reflection of who we are, what we do, and how we want to do. We need to be able to identify triggers, behavioral indications, symptoms, and changes. Let’s be proactive rather than reactive. Let’s read into our past, act on our present, and write out our future.
I look as food as more than just fuel but a joy in life. I eat to live AND I live to eat. I make sure I understand the difference, and also balance the two. Along with balance, I look for alignment. Food must complement my work-life balance. It should give me confidence to work hard and live life as fulfilling and meaningful as possible.
You must simply ask yourself two things:
1. What is a better me?
2. Am I eating my way towards a better me?
Change is a crucial element to our health, fitness, and wellness. Sustainable change happens very slowly, hence we must be patient with ourselves and our environment. But we must also be consistent, persistent, and focused. The best way to answer these big questions are sometimes with a new perspective:
- Try for many small wins instead of one big win.
- Try adding good instead of subtracting bad.
- Try a new recipe instead of an old recipe.
- Try losing inches instead of losing pounds.
- Try substituting here and there instead of changing altogether
- Try packing lunch instead of buying lunch
- Try shopping grocery store perimeters instead of aisles
- Try: “If you never try, you’ll never know”
Cheers to good eats,
Julian