Films Worth Seeing

Today I'm recommending a few documentaries:

1. No Impact Man documents a family on a one year experiment of working toward having no negative impact on the environment. From eating local to creating zero waist and surviving without electricity this family does it all. After watching it I felt inspired, moved and called to action. If I value the earth and believe we should be depositing less waste, then I should take action in my day to day life to support that. I can't wait around for government officials to legistlate on these issues for things to change. I believe that was my biggest take away from it.

2. Deconstructing Supper is a very informative film on the different views on genetic engineering and the very sophisticated farming techniques used around the world, some of which are completely organic. I was left curious and hopeful about the farming practices in India. Through this story I felt the importance of a reverence for our earth and the bounty that it provides. There is something sacred about the fruits of the earth and this has helped me to understand why some people feel nutrition and spirituality go hand in hand. The documentary wasn't about spirituality at all, but observing the Indian farming drove that home in my heart.

3. Super Size Me was very popular when it first came out. I saw bits and pieces of it back then, but I never really got into it enough to watch it from end to end. This week I decided I would watch it in full. I can't even begin to describe how upset I am that McDonald's is marketed at food. This documentary made me solidify my understanding that proper nutrition is vital for a healthy and vibrant body. Over the course of my life I hadn't really understood food as fuel for my body. I didn't know much about what food and specific nutrients did for my body. I ate because I was hungry. End of story. I'm glad I have developed further understanding in this area. I'm no longer an unconscious eater just listening to the messages of mass marketing.

Clarity

I attended a workshop this week on nutrition and emotional health. I was curious about it from both a nutritional perspective and a lifestyle perspective. The entire arena of nutrition and natural medicine has grabbed hold of my attention and simply will not let go! I haven't found passion for a pursuit of knowledge like this since I was in my teens. Needless to say I was very hungry for information and seeking to continue the forward momentum and inspiration that has been fueling my pursuit of healthfulness the past couple of months.
I'm sad to report that it was a very disheartening experience. I'm not sure what I expected exactly, but I know that I hoped to walk away feeling empowered and inspired. I have been looking into a few different diploma programs in pursuit of beginning a career in the nutritional consulting field with an emphasis on using food as medicine. I hoped that this workshop would give me further insight into the profession by listening to a professional that was speaking about exactly that. Unfortunately, the facilitator of the workshop was not a very encouraging or empowering speaker. She assumed everyone there ate "garbage from McDonalds" and had coffee and doughnuts for breakfast. She also assumed that everyone in attendance was there because they were clinically depressed. Neither of these things were a prerequisite for attending, I might add. She was very disrespectful to participants in front of the whole group by cutting them down and being sarcastic. Overall, she seemed like a very unhappy person and didn't appear to practice what she was preaching about.
After walking out of the classroom feeling very upset I decided that I had to find the learning in the situation. I asked myself, why was I meant to attend this workshop? what did I learn today?
Answers came to me quite quickly. I learned first hand how vulnerable people are when they are seeking knowledge and understanding about how to better care for their bodies. We only get one body, which means we really only have one shot at doing our best to take care of it. I also realized what kind of person I would like to be in the role of nutritional consultant. I want to have my clients feel excited, empowered and encouraged. I want them to feel like they have a plethora of opportunities in front of them when it comes to self care and nutrition. I want them to feel like they can make changes and that every little change makes a difference. I learned that I will not condemn certain foods when teaching about nutrition. I don't think it is helpful to simply say something is garbage and produce guilt and upset in the people I'm trying to encourage and teach. I hope to change people's understanding about what food does for their bodies and help to create positive relationships with food.
To sum it up, this woman taught me what kind of teacher I don't want to be. For that I am grateful. Clarity is always a good thing, and I guess I have to accept that sometimes it doesn't come from positive experiences.

A Shout Out

Not too much to report today other than a nice trip to the farmers market and a fridge full of glorious greens!
I thought I'd share the link to this wonderful blog I've been getting most of my recipes from. I'm finding her recipes super easy to follow and scrumptious to partake in once cooked :) Hope for Healing will make you realize the possibilities in front of you if you are eating a gluten free diet. I know I feel blessed to have come across her inspiring recipes and I hope you find inspiration too!

Growing Greener

Historically I have not had a green thumb. I've had several plants over the years that have died on me. I have never been taught how to actually take care of plants, so in my defense I don't really think it was entirely my fault.

As I've mentioned before, my husband and I are working on eating all organic foods, and local as much as possible. How much more local can we get than eating right out of our own yard? I've decided to plant a herb garden. We are currently living in a condo which limits our space to our patio, but I figure I should do the best that i can with the space that we've got! I know a herb garden isn't a huge deal, but I would really like to take baby steps in learning how to garden and grow foods myself. We are listing our condo very soon and if all goes as planned will be in a house by the fall. I'd love to get a greenhouse and plant a garden in our yard. I've got a ton of learning to do, but luckily I have someone close to me that just completed an agriculture and gardening diploma that will be happy to help me out :)

I feel like I'm starting to take hold of my heart song and letting the music play everyday!
Blessings to you!

Good-bye Gluten

I'm having mixed feelings about going gluten free. I'm worried about social situations that will become more difficult, but I'm also worried that I don't have the will power to do this. I guess the thing that is different this time is I'm changing my eating habits for better health, not to get skinny. I'm guilty of yo yo dieting over the years and I'd like to put an end to that once and for all. I'm starting to change my entire attitude toward food and starting to see it as fuel and medicine. I'm not even sure what I thought food was before. All I do know is that I wasn't understanding how what I was eating effected my body and now that I'm beginning to understand it more, I absolutely want to change the way I eat.
Along with gluten I'm also not eating any refined sugar. That may end up being harder than the gluten, or not I guess. I use to love the occasional cupcake...mmm so good! I was thinking a couple of days ago that maybe I could have one last cupcake before I make this change. I immediately shot down that idea. How often do I say, just one last time...and then it ends up being about a dozen or more times before I actually stop the behavior. I'm not waiting for my health anymore. I am choosing health today, and everyday of my life.
I deserve to live a healthy and vibrant life!

Success!

I had a fairly successful day on the food front. It is going to take us a while to know where to go to find what we want at the best prices. I didn't pick up everything I wanted to get today, but it just leaves another adventure to have with my son over the next couple of days.
Today I tried two new recipes and I was thrilled with the results. One of the difficulties with a toddler is making sure they eat enough greens. Today I made Kale Chips and my son LOVED them! He couldn't get enough of them. (My husband and I really enjoyed them as well, which is another win!). They were slightly too salty so I think I will use half as much salt next time I make them, but seriously these are delicious!

 

The other recipe I tried today was to make frozen fudge banana bites. I used carob instead of cocoa and coconut milk, coconut oil, peanut butter and maple syrup. There are definitely a sweet treat, but don't contain any dairy, sugar or gluten so yay! These are a perfect bite sized snack for when those ice cream cravings pop up, as we know they will.

Overall, it was a yummy day! :)

So Delicious

This past week has been an information gathering week for me. I'm realizing how much I still have to learn about health and nutrition. I've decided to work toward eating gluten free. I've been reading a lot of recipes for gluten free goods and I'm realizing that the alternatives to wheat flour may actually contain more nutrients and healing properties than simply using wheat flour. I'm going to try to make some quinoa coconut blueberry muffins this week, and perhaps also a banana pound cake. I would like to go gluten and dairy free, but for now I'm just focussing on the gluten. I don't actually consume much dairy aside from yogurt anyway as I currently use so delicious coconut milk alternatives. So Delicious Coconut Milk can be found at Thrifty Foods, Planet Organic and Red Barn here in Victoria. If you are curious, I would encourage you to give it a try. (It is approx $4 for 2L depending on where you purchase from)