It’s been a long and exciting year. One of recovery, redemption, and regaining solid footing on my two feet underneath me (literally and figuratively). There’s a lot for me to be thankful for right now, and Thanksgiving is the perfect time to stop and reflect on those things. Continue reading
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I meditated (almost) every day for a month straight. Here’s how you can too.
Last month I participated in a 30-day meditation challenge.
The idea was simple: Meditate 10 minutes every day for one month.
If the word “meditation” carries too much baggage for you, think of it this way – I was challenging myself to find 10 minutes every day to sit still and just be. This would involve finding the time and space to sit down, close my eyes, and turn off my mind. I could focus on my breath for guidance, but was supposed to let the seemingly constant noise of regular thoughts come and go, without dwelling on them.
When I saw my friend Steve post this challenge on his Facebook page, I knew I had to dive right in. I’ve been wanting to incorporate a regular meditation practice into my daily routine for a while now, since the benefits of skillful relaxation that meditation are hugely appealing. Less anxiety, better moods, feeling calmer in the face of stress and adversity. Who couldn’t use more of that?
Plus, if I couldn’t find 10 minutes every day to prioritize something as simple as being still and shutting up, then there were bigger issues I needed to address. Continue reading
Bringing “Real Food” to the Masses
image source: http://www.crowdbabble.com/blog
Last week I wrote about the Nordic Food Manifesto, and how Denmark created a strong “real food” culture largely from an intentional effort led by Claus Meyer. It wasn’t political lobbying or public petitioning that resulted in food reform, but rather a grassroots effort led by citizens with the power to actually implement and follow-through with change.
I ended the post alluding to one question: Why is it so hard for us to do this ourselves, as individuals? If an entire country can implement and spread a common view towards food, why can’t we?
There’s nothing really stopping us from mimicking Denmark’s success. The problem is, we’re inundated with so many messages about what we should be eating, and how we should be living, it’s hard to know where to start. So rather than following successful frameworks that have been shown to work (like the Nordic Food Manifesto), most people jump from diet craze to diet craze, trying to find the “right way to eat.”
But how did Claus Meyer succeed? What was the secret sauce that helped the Manifesto take hold? And is it reasonable to think we can apply those lessons to our own lives? Continue reading
3 Rules For Cooking With Fats
Protein. Carbohydrates. Fat. Calories. That’s how we’ve been taught to think about what we eat. If we can only find the magical mix of macronutrient percentages, we’re told, we can achieve the health and aesthetic goals we’re after. Provided, of course, we stay within the upper bounds of our caloric intake limits.
There are many problems with this thinking, and I won’t address them all in this post. What I want to point out is how thinking about the individual nutrient components of our food (Nutritionism, as Michael Pollan likes to call it), removes eating from its context. Continue reading
Feeding Your Demon
The feeling starts inside my chest. It grows slowly, molding itself into a tightly wound knot the size of a tennis ball. Its redness burns, inflaming the chest cavity. The tightness consumes my upper body, making it hard to breathe. Continue reading
The One Food Principle To Rule Them All
Times couldn’t be more confusing for someone trying to eat for better health.
Marketing messages from Big Food companies, health and fitness practitioners, and supplement peddlers crowd the marketplace. The government and food industry lobbyists pass guidelines serving their political and donor interests (that is, the bottom line rather than your waist line), Continue reading
Live on Purpose
Live the life I want to live.
That’s my big goal these days. When so many things are taken away from you, even for a relatively short period of time, it changes your perspective and makes you realize how important it is to be true to yourself. Continue reading