Losing the Weight of Your Emotions

When I begin working with new clients and I hear from them that they have tried every diet known to man with no “success,” I always know there is something deeper happening than their desire to lose weight. Of course their desire is valid, but usually it’s not just about the weight that they are carrying and they want to shed. They’ve struggled with yo-yo dieting and cleansing and many other avenues that they thought would get them healthy and lean, but they ended up back where they started or even further back.

The reason I became so interested in food and nutrition, is because I have struggled most of my life with emotional eating and a distorted body image. I must say, it hasn’t been an easy road at all and I have done so much work around deeper healing and looking into why I have this “issue”. Some days I have intense feelings that keep me up late into the night obsessing over the bag of rice chips I ate, or the ½ pint of coconut ice cream that I downed when I wasn’t even hungry.  I can also tend to obsess over body image issues…that my jeans are tighter today than they were yesterday, or my belly is not as flat as it was the day before, or if every calorie I put in my mouth is going to make me fat.  These times come much less frequent these days and I am not going to say that I have totally healed, but I have definitely dug into deeper parts of myself to see what is running these parts of me and learned how to give myself what I really need in those moments to move through them much more gracefully than in the past.

Eating is something we need to do to stay alive. It’s not like other addictions where we can give up said substance and still survive, even though it may feel like we are going to die without it. Food is our nourishment, our vitality, our life. If we don’t know how to relate to food and our bodies in a healthy way, then we will have issues with weight, overeating, under-eating and so much more. I think you get the picture.

Our emotions and feelings play such a big role in our lives. It’s so important to look deeper into these feelings we have around our body, eating and food as they will give us messages of what our bodies and our souls really need. It’s not about the next quick fix diet, or cleanse or fast. It’s about really going inward and asking your body what it needs, or asking your soul what it needs and most of the time that answer is – Love.

Loving ourselves is such a huge part of learning how to live with emotional eating. I don’t think this “addiction” ever fully goes away, but the more we learn to love ourselves, the more this little, or big, monster will calm down and take the proverbial back seat. I know that some of you may be thinking that you are not ready to look at what it is that is driving your overeating, or emotional food choices or body image obsession, but I am here to tell you that the only way out of this, is through this.

If you struggle with any of the things that I have mentioned, seek out help with a professional, start to write in a journal, begin to really get in touch with “WHEN you are eating, WHY you are eating and WHAT you are eating.” Start to notice what you put in your mouth and why. Is your body really hungry or are your emotions screaming out to you for something else? Are you craving love, attention and affection? If so, how can you give this to yourself? Maybe you could call a friend, or stop and take a few deep breaths – whatever it is that will help you really tune into what is going on internally, before you fill your mouth with an unhealthy food that will not nourish you in any way except to feed your “in the moment” craving for something else bigger.

Begin to really notice those moments when you have a craving and see if you can stop, take a breath and check in with yourself. Do you really want that sugary donut, bag of chips or chocolate bar? Or do you really want a hug from someone?  So many of our food cravings are brought about by memories of comfort when we were kids. So it’s normal to want certain foods if we are feeling down or sad, but the wise thing to do in a situation like this is to skip the food and find a way to comfort yourself. I know this sounds strange, but the love we give to ourselves and feel for ourselves is the most important love of all. So where and how can you start to love yourself more so that you don’t become slave to your emotional eating, which can lead to extra pounds, depression, shame and self-loathing?

Just one small, positive action can start to break the cycle…what will yours be?

Labels: Do They Help Us or Hurt Us?

I have been a vegan for quite a while now and I am also a vegan chef, so being vegan is part of my livelihood and I believe in it. For most of my life I have gone back and forth between the labels of vegetarianism and veganism. For a long time, these labels fed my ego and helped me to feel “powerful” in a sense. I felt better and “smarter” than others, because I was doing the “right’ thing. I was making healthy choices and saving animals at the same time. I would even go to the extent of preaching to others how they should be vegetarian and I judged them if they weren’t or if they ate unhealthy.

But, what I am finding now, as I live a healthier life and work closely with others to assist them in finding a healthy lifestyle that works for them, is that these labels do not matter and in a way, I am discovering that they can actually hold us back. When we label ourselves, we set ourselves up for minimal growth and also scrutiny from others.  I cannot tell you how many times I have been scrutinized by people when I eat out or when I make a decision to eat an egg, and listen to my body vs. following my label of vegan.  And, how many times I have looked over my shoulder to make sure no one sees me eating an egg or a bite of goat cheese! Our ego needs to give almost everything we do a name, and most of the time that doesn’t serve us. Think of any kind of label, even designer labels. Some people will spend thousands of dollars more on a designer label so that they can get attention or feel good. I personally know people who are addicted to designer labels and feel unworthy if they are not donning some expensive purse or piece of clothing. I am not saying this is a bad thing, yet it’s definitely an ego-based decision and doesn’t seem to allow for much internal growth.

When we live in a world of black and white, right and wrong, good and bad, I can understand labeling, but if we want to grow as a society and in our own personal lives, labeling leaves much to be desired.  Labeling can pigeonhole us into ONE way of being and thinking. Even political labels can do this. Yes, we all have our beliefs and there is nothing wrong with that, or, in fact, even right with that, they are just beliefs. And as human beings we get to make new choices and have new beliefs any time we want and that is the beauty of free will.  I have found that labeling myself a vegan has, at times, brought me much discomfort in the eyes of others. I understand that this discomfort is my own, and I also understand that I get to call myself whatever I want without buying into the judgments of others.

To me what matters most is that I am healthy, energetic and I am eating whole, plant-based, unprocessed foods and listening to my body by giving it what it needs. Also, that I am being of service to the world no matter what my label. For me veganism was a choice for many different reasons, which started with health reasons. As a kid I suffered from allergies, digestive issues and the like, yet it was also a natural progression that happened as I started to care more and more about what I put in my body and how I wanted to feel. The cleaner I ate and the more I cut out the processed foods, the better I felt. But I could’ve just cut out processed foods and continued eating meat, yet for me, my body really didn’t like it. Honestly, it grossed me out and I just didn’t want it anymore. So I decided to become first, a vegetarian and eventually a vegan.

What I realize now is that I don’t want to label myself as a vegan anymore. I know how much it means to me, but if I am following the “vegan guidelines” of how to be a “proper” vegan, I fall way short. Why? Well, because I still eat honey (something vegans frown upon), I still wear leather (and I am mindful not to buy new leather products), I will on occasion eat an egg if my body wants it, or even have a bite of creamy burratta mozzarella when I am in Naples, Italy where Buratta originates…When in Rome. I don’t want to be under the scrutiny of the vegan label anymore, and that doesn’t

mean that I won’t still claim I eat vegan, cause I do, but what I am leaning toward now is that I am a person who loves vegan food. I am a person who loves to eat plant-based, whole foods and I am a person who cooks vegan food for others and teaches others how to have more plant-based foods in their life.

Vegan, Vegetarian, Flexitarian, Ovo-Lacto Vegetarian, Pescetarian, these are all just labels that we use to describe the way we eat. One thing to know is that these descriptions of eating lifestyles don’t necessarily mean that we are healthy! And they definitely don’t always mean that we know what our bodies need or want. The key is to listen to what you really want and what resonates with you in your heart, not what others do. It’s about your own wellbeing and no one else’s.

I have learned that the way to teach is to lead by example and not from a place of preaching and self-righteousness, but from a place of my own authentic experience and how it has changed me for the better.

And on another note, I love, love, love animals and don’t think that they should be mass produced as they are and killed for food. I love the Earth and I know how the meat and dairy industry negatively affects the earth.  I became a vegan chef so that I could do my part and teach people how to eat healthier, while helping to save the planet as well and I am also aware that preachy vegans or people who judge others for their choices are not helping themselves or others. Everyone has to find their own path in their own time and we get to give them the dignity of that!

Planning – A Key to Happiness…

AS SEEN ON….There is a little old saying from a funny looking guy with specs, and I mean that in the most loving way, that goes something like this, “If you want to make God (or the Universe) laugh, tell Him your plans.” How many of us have planned something for months, days, weeks or even years only for it to turn out completely different than we wished or hoped?? I think that’s what Woody was talking about when he came up with those very clever words. As much as I agree with Woody on so many levels, I also think there are specific arenas in our lives that are very important to make a plan, and healthy eating and taking care of our bods is one of them.

As a wellness coach and nutritional educator, I teach my clients to plan their meals, plan their eating, plan their workouts, plan their cooking, plan their shopping, etc.  When it comes to health, Planning is the Key. You can’t be healthy without a plan. Well you could, but it would be hard and take a lot of work and you’d eventually get frustrated and give up.

The most important thing planning does for us, is gives us a structure which most of us need when we are learning anything new. Actually it even works when we aren’t learning anything new. It gives us a schedule – a way of being with ourselves that is committed. If you really want to eat healthy but don’t know how or where to start, planning will be the way to get you there. Of course pretty much anything new we try out has a learning curve, and eating healthy is no different. It’s about a commitment you make to yourself and your family, if you have one, to lead a healthier and happier life.

As I lead my participants through 30-day Vegan cleanses, I tell them that their key to success is PLANNING and it doesn’t just end with the 30 days, it’s a lifestyle choice! If they don’t do this, they will be stuck in the middle of the day with nothing to eat and then they will make an unhealthy choice. How many times have you done that??? And this doesn’t only apply to my cleansers, this applies to anyone who wants to eat healthy and take care of their temple that they have while being on this earth. It may not come easy at first, but aren’t you worth it?

Some people tell me it’s too much work. What? Too much work to take care of your health? They’d rather go through a drive-thru because it’s quick and convenient than make a choice to plan out their meals for the week. Well, let me tell you, the first choice will lead you to sickness, disease and possibly a heart attack.

This is not to say that you have to keep this plan for the rest of your life, in fact, it will eventually become habit. Just like driving through that greasy drive-thru became a habit when you’ve had nothing to eat. Keep in mind that all habits, good or bad, are created on our own. Some in childhood where we were taught to make certain choices, and some in adulthood out of pure laziness, convenience and not caring about what we put into our bodies.

This is about creating NEW, HEALTHY habits that will last you a lifetime and you need a plan to do that! I still do it, I plan out my food on the weekend that I will cook for the week, then I go shopping and buy the food and spend a couple hours in the kitchen, listening to some cool tunes, sipping some tea and chopping my veggies, not all simultaneously of course. This has become a way of life, and it’s a way of life that produces happiness. I look forward to it. Why? Because I’m healthy, I have no illness, I have no disease, I have energy, I have vitality…are those good enough reasons for you???

So when I say that planning is A Key to Happiness, I certainly think that all the benefits you get from healthy eating and the time you take to make sure you do so will bring you a happy belly, a happy body and in turn, a happy life!

What change will you make today to make a NEW plan for your healthy life??

White Bean & Sweet Yam Soup with Kale

This soup is hearty and perfect for a cold winter’s day. It’s a delectable combination of savory and sweet and so nutritious too!

 

INGREDIENTS

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 celery stalks, diced
• 2 large garnet yams, peeled and cubed
• 3 cans white beans, drained & rinsed
• 1 tsp dried sage
• 1 tsp thyme
• 6 cups veggie broth or 3 bullion cubes with 6 cups water
• 2 cups lacinto (dino) kale, finely chopped
• 2 tbs nutritional yeast
• sea salt to taste

In a soup pot over medium heat, sauté onion, garlic and celery in oil until soft. Add sage and thyme and stir to combine. Add yams, white beans & broth. Bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer. Cover pot and simmer until yams are soft, about 20-30 minutes. Add kale and cover to let it wilt. Stir in nutritional yeast and add sea salt to taste.