What Are You Truly Hungry For?
I write and speak a lot about healthy eating, cooking and nutrition and there is absolutely no doubt that food is one of the most important factors that determines our health. However, it would be a mistake to believe that the pursuit of health is simply rooted in food. I provide all my clients with a lot of life changing strategies around what to eat but optimizing nutrition is only one part of the equation for true health. And that’s because there’s more to life than health. Sure we all want to be as physically healthy as possible, that’s a super important goal – but the reality is that not all our health problems are solvable with the food on our plates.
In fact, even when we have all the information, all the fine tuned nutritional strategies, even when we have had our share of breakthroughs with our weight issues, we still might find ourselves falling back on bad habits and old ways of being when life ‘s stressors get the best of us. I know you know what I’m talking about, we tell ourselves that I should have figured this out by now, we get stuck (again), we self-sabotage, then we turn on ourselves and so the vicious cycle of self-neglect continues. Unless, that is, we make the internal changes required to make the positive behaviors stick. In other words, what if we saw our frustrations as an indication that something deeper needs to change.
The integrated approach to health that I practice also considers other “foods” that nourish us at the soul level — those that give us the joy, meaning and fulfillment, those that make our lives worth living. These so-called Primary Foods are all those things that feed our true hungers. They include our relationships, spiritual practice, career, creativity, home environment, education, recreational activities etc… And when we pay enough attention to our Primary Foods, we’re more likely to not have so many of the challenges that we do with our Secondary Food – i.e. the food at the end of our fork.
So if you find yourself with insatiable cravings for sugar, carbohydrates or caffeine, or if you are struggling with fatigue and have to peel yourself out of bed every morning, or if your dealing with digestive issues, find yourself all too often in a fog, or easily irritated, think about what your body may be trying to tell you: Is it a need for secondary foods like more nutrients, vitamins and minerals, or is it more Primary Foods like serenity, purpose, support, connection or acknowledgment. The truth is that many of us lose sight of the things that truly feed us. Our interests and desires get buried as we do our best to get through the stress of everyday living. But when we broaden our definition of health in this way we can decide to care for ourselves in a more attentive, pro active and soul centered way. We can shift to making choices that honor what we truly need and start to create a life on our terms once and for all.
This soul-centered approach to health is the underlying theme of the women’s only weekend retreat in November that I’m co-leading (if you missed the big announcement you can check out the juicy details here). Lorna and I so excited about the women who have already said yes and the women who we know are on their way to joining us.
Do you want to feed your true hunger?
Join us for the retreat. Do it for yourself. You will be so glad you did, because there really is A Different Way. Click here for details: http://www.thereisadifferentway.com
