Oh those holidays!

On one hand one needs them desperately, on the other, they throw everything off whack.

This however is how human beings are. Through evolution we are built for change, that is why we are so successful as a species. Darwin often gets misinterpreted as ‘the strongest survives’, the reality is: The most adaptable survives!

We are an incredibly adaptable species, we can gain strength, we can become more enduring, we can store nutrition in form of fat for future use, and we can endure severe famine. The problem is that our lifestyles don’t allow us anymore to develop the intuitive feeling that our forefathers had: How much nutrition to eat and when.

The joy of eating and the cravings when we see or smell certain foods is built into our systems. In the olden days we needed to be prepared to eat vast amounts of stuff when it was there; either because it was the season, or a hunt was successful. Nothing could go to waste as the next dry spell was likely to be around the next corner. Occasional overeating made sense back then.

... just that now there are no dry spells anymore and processed foods have destroyed our natural sensors.

We always admire people who have found their balance, always look the same, do their exercises like machinery, and are enjoying this lifestyle. I however believe we don’t admire them for their looks, or their determination. We admire them because they have it ease; they actually have no determination as they don’t need any. It is how they are. Their sports lifestyle is as easy for them to achieve, as it is for us to have a sloppy one.

We should admire the people who find ‘the middle way’; the ones who have learned again the skill to take it when it is there, and to stop when it is not needed. We have to create our own ‘dry spells’. In religious circles they invented fasting, a rather dramatic form which I find overrated.

Alternative medicine took on this concept and when I was at homeopathic school I fasted twice, properly, as described in the books. The first time round was ok, I lost a lot of weight, could even train a bit, but the second time round my body started to rebel, and since then I am getting stomach cramps when I am badly hungry. And it doesn’t have anything to do with keeping a balance.

Famine is the worst of nutritional environment a person can be in, and even in the olden days, tribes had ways to preserve food during good times and had some resources during the bad ones. Famine should actually not happen when we manage ourselves and our environment well.

What I mean is keeping the balance between nutrition overflow during seasonal events, and basic nutrition to just keep your body going during the daily activities you have chosen to tackle.

We need to find that switch that puts us quickly from one mode into the other. We need to accept our heritage and acknowledge that the aim doesn’t have to be ‘building the perfect person’, but creating a lifestyle that enables us to enjoy the moment we live in’. Be it the a rest during Christmas meal or the holiday indulgence, as well as the morning run or the gym session including the food that is best for us then.

The aim is a life free of guilt! Humans are incredible creatures, and many of our creations were inspired by people who live the moment.

Don’t just feed your body; feed your soul as well!

Nutrition equals Nourishment

I deliberately called this blog 'Nutrition' and 'Food' but not 'Diet', although 'diet' would be a perfectly fine term to use. All this term does is to refer to the food plan one has; that could be fast food or cooked from scratch. It actually depicts the subject nicely. Unfortunately the word is miss-used for a 'losing weight' form of diet and hence I am trying to avoid it.
This blog is not about getting slim, it is about finding out what the parameters are that we can influence to find and use the food items that do us good - in regard to body and soul... sometimes it just has to be the chocolate, and sometimes it just feels good to know that one is not alone in this game.

As if things weren't complicated enough: The entire matter is usually dealt with in very opinionated ways. Fat people are frowned upon, thin people are looked down at, and the ones who are just right are envied and hence despised. This indicates that one cannot win by focusing on the opinion of others. One has to find an own point of view and gain the confidence to stick to it!

For me the only common ground for any body type is health. However, even there the opinions differ. The body can be entirely fine and one still is not happy, or the body may be a bit on the weak side but its owner is still a cheery character and enjoying life.

There are boundaries, nevertheless. When I was younger and I overheard older people wishing each other health I thought that a rather commonplace expression and not a real sentiment. Now I see this very much differently. The theme that billows through the ILP blogs goes along the lines of: confidence, happiness, achievement, success, and back to confidence and content; one enforces the other. One however can't achieve and be successful if the health is not the best possible. For me good health means that at any given age, with any given disability one should be able to use to the full effect what is medically possible; and that starts with feeding the body, and the soul, with the right stuff!

Over time I have come from food junky, via health food convert, to moderate food user. I have a few rules though:

• no ready meals - they have too much sugar, salt and usually the wrong composition of nutrition
• stick to a few good basics - I know how much they cost me in calories and it helps me control my weight
• treats - not sticking to my basics, whether at home or when going out, is a treat and has to be considered accepted exceptions
• do not feel guilty - guilt doesn't help, don't level your calories per day but per week, or even per month
• do not use scales - or at least not more often than once a month, and especially not if you do sport
• be patient - the body needs at least three weeks to get used to a habit
  

I have come a long way and my nutrition needs still work in a very wavy pattern governed by hormones, time of the year and social activity. I needed about three years to get to a stage which allows me to balance things out rather quickly, meaning that I now recognise bad influence faster and that I can pull the breaks earlier. During the same period I found my rhythm for sport and one thing led to another. I am now eating what I like, meaning I like what I eat. I love my food, although there are some absolute favourites that had to leave my kitchen. However, after a while I stopped missing them and recently I even noticed that I don't like them anymore... which brings us back to patience!