Do you struggle with healthy food “rules”?
January 25, 2013 -
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Hi all! Hope you’re having a great week!
It’s been a very positive week with some of us bloggers really sharing our stories with you all & thank you to my girl Meg for giving me a high five today on her site!
I’ve had this blog for almost 2 years & that was the first I’ve really opened up into all of that detail. Here is a MUST READ from my girl Zandra aka the freckled lifter.
She opens up about Orthorexia – something else that I think a lot of people struggle with.
Orthorexia is an obsession with healthy food.
Now, I think being healthy and eating clean are very important to our overall health – but sometimes I think people can take it too far. I’m not a big fan of posting a days worth of my eats on my blog – only because I don’t want others to compare their eats to mine. Not because I’m afraid of being judged – but I’m afraid someone will think they are doing something wrong if they don’t eat like me. I think sharing recipes & eats is a great thing if we can all learn to embrace & not judge or compare to be like someone else.
This is an issue I think in the fitness/healthy eating world we are a part of. I think there are so many positive stories out there, but also so many people trying to be like somebody else and almost feeling “guilty” if they do something that the person they look up to wouldn’t do.
For example, I saw something the other day about someone struggling with having a piece of fruit after a hard workout because they didn’t want the carbs. Now, someone who maybe isn’t educated on why this person is doing this, may take that to the extreme and instantly think “OMG I ATE A BANANA AND I MAY GAIN 100 LBS RIGHT THIS VERY SECOND.” All because they saw that that person didn’t have fruit. May sound crazy – but guess what, I can admit that I’ve eaten something before and then thought to myself that body fat was going to just pile on out of nowhere. This may sound extreme for some but, this is also a big issue that people deal with. You can ask my friend Christina about her experiences with this & how she found her “Happy diet”.
For some reason fruit can be an issue for people and I’ve dealt with this before. Therefore, this week I challenged myself to eat fruit every night in my night time snack (also, because CrossFit has been later and I’ve been starving when I get home at 830pm) So, all week I added fruit to my mini “powerbowls” and guess what –no weight gain?! I know I know, in one week it’s not like I expected to gain anything nor would I know if I did because I don’t weigh myself, but if anything, I felt better and this HELPED ME get over that little fear that still lurks inside of me sometimes!
lots of protein powder frosting, healthy chocolate sauce,
sunflower seed butter, bananas, pom seeds, & cacao nibs!
Um, can you say delicious???
From being through what I’ve been through with my eating in the past, I have come very far & I am proud of that. I’m happy that I can challenge myself to prove myself wrong.
There can be times when we make up “rules” and “regulations” in our lives and almost feel like we’re sinning if we don’t abide by them at all times. But, in reality, who is making these rules? A lot of times, it ourselves that put rules onto our own lives. We make up rule books to live by & can feel guilty if we stray from these rules.
Do I think I sometimes struggle with some orthorexic thoughts? Yes.
It’s the “control” that I still deal with but I remember my girl Heather always saying “let me get out of my own way.”
Meaning, let yourself get out of your own way because you’re the only one holding yourself back. With so many things with my business being out of my control right now (in good ways), I tend to look to food to have that sense of control in my life.
My point here is that I’m admitting that I’m not perfect.
Eating clean and healthy has changed my life and my digestive issues are seriously 10000000% better than they were before,
but, do I think I need to work on “enjoying” life more & turn my focus on other things?
Absolutely! If you get a chance, check out her story.
Also, I ordered this book as well and took this quiz which really helped me help myself.
I hope this helps others as well!
Try not to compare what you eat or do to someone else’s eats,
instead let’s embrace each other & appreciate their eats and creative recipes!
Everyone is different – remember, BE TRUE TO YOU!
Also, Next Friday the SECOND PLANT POWER CHALLENGE STARTS & I am so excited for round two!!
My next post will be all about poop & plumbers – yup, that’s right.
But, until then, I am enjoying my weekend with my boyfriend & taking a little computer break to really focus on us.
Being healthy is so great – but once it starts to take over, we need to learn to take a deep breath & a step back and focus on our family, friends, and other things that make us happy. There are so many positive things we can focus on in life and eating healthy can be a great addition to our balanced lifestyles!
Enjoy your weekend!!
Have you ever heard of Orthorexia?
ps. Orthorexia & any eating disorder is a very serious situation –
if you think you have a problem and need someone to contact feel free to contact me
or look to find a local therapist near you. Getting help is not a weakness!!