I love food. Seriously. I love it. I. Love. Food.
I do not just love eating it. I love shopping for it, preparing it and learning about it.
The learning bit is one of the best parts – mostly because it is endless.
From food quality and sources, to knowing about different nutrients, I could spend all day on a nerd safari on my computer and be happy as a clam.
This may come as a surprise to people who do not know me well, but if I had not become a Chiropractor, I would have become a chef.
I spent a lot of time when I was in university working at restaurants. I was a waitress and bartender, so I got to know my way around the kitchen pretty well. If you spend enough time with ‘industry’ people (self-proclaimed foodies willing to experiment with anything in a fryer) you will become obsessed with good food and good wine. It is science. That is how foodies are born, kids.
Over time, cooking became my outlet. Anytime I was stressed during school, I would ditch my books and go whip up some massive dish (yes, my roommates loved me.) There were even a few rough patches during Chiropractic College when I considered throwing in the towel and enrolling in culinary school instead.
Fortunately, I did not do that because I love being a Chiropractor and can still cook for fun. It does not really work the other way around. You cannot be a chef and dabble in Chiropractic. There are laws around that.
By now, you may now be wondering why I am telling you this story.
“Cool, Dr. Justine, you love food. We get it. It makes sense, you doing the whole Eat By Design Coaching thing and all.”
The point is that I often have people tell me that they could never Eat By Design because they love food too much.
I had this exact conversation with my sister once:
Sister: “I could eat healthy like you, but I love food too much.”
Me: “What? I spent half my student loans on food! You eat Kraft Dinner!”
You can imagine that conversation did not end well.
Since then I have learned to be more tactful in discussing people’s emotions around food. It is okay to love Kraft Dinner with ketchup and hot dogs.
Back to the point: I am not disputing that other people love food and love to eat. But seriously, if love of food was a real barrier to eating By Design, you would not be reading this blog. This blog would not exist.
Yes, bread is delicious, pasta can be a work of art and sugar tastes awesome. But the same is true of steak, cheese and bacon.
Yes, there are lots of non By Design foods that I choose not to eat anymore.
Yes, sometimes I stare longingly at pastries. But I do not eat them.
What I get in exchange for ‘giving up’ those foods is a better life. A happier, healthier and more positive experience of everything that matters to me more than smashing back a pizza.
If not eating a baguette means that I have more years to play with my grand kids at a quality of life that allows me to enjoy it, I am ditching the bread. Every time.
I am not saying that you have to make the same decision. I just want to put things in perspective. What do you love more?
I know in the moment it is often hard to see what you are trading for food that is not By Design. Especially since everyone else is eating it, and not dropping dead or instantly suffering from some debilitating illness.
Everyone has at some point rationalized eating unhealthy food. The ‘doing-it-once-won’t-kill-me’ thought is not uncommon. So I think it is time to reframe the way that we think about food. As long as we keep talking about our unhealthy choices as ‘treats,’ ‘guilty pleasures’ and foods that we ‘love’, we are never going to be okay with cutting them out of our lives.
There are people who will call this an exaggeration, but smoking one cigarette will not kill you either. Yet, most people recognize that they have to give up cigarettes to be healthy, even if they love them.
People recognize that cigarettes are poison. So is bad food. I said it. Bad food is poison.
I am a true, whole-hearted lover of all foods. Real foods. The rest is just poison.
For more simple By Design recipes why not pick up your copy of the Eat By Design Cookbook. I’ve created it in the form of a 28-day meal plan (plus grocery lists!) so you don’t need to think about what’s for breakfast, lunch or dinner for the next month. Or you can grab the first 7 days FREE by clicking here.