Come, in this accepted hour;
Bring Thy heavenly kingdom in;Fill us with Thy glorious power,
Rooting out the seeds of sin.
C. WESLEY.
Day 4 Of Simplifying
Food
I've had a love affair with food all of my life. I ate whatever I wanted and didn't gain an ounce. I gave birth to four children and had no problem losing the weight. Gaining weight was never an issue and the word diet was absent from my life. Looking at me now, that may be a hard pill to swallow.
When I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer almost 16 years ago, I knew my life had to undergo a major change whether I was ready for it or not. I gained quite a bit of weight which to this day I still haven't lost. It wasn't until four years into having cancer that I found out it was a reoccurring type and would be coming back until it finally killed me. That realization changed everything. Suddenly eating healthy became more appealing and a necessity. If I could prolong my life by maintaining a well-balanced diet of nutritious eating, then I'm all for it. At least, my body would be ready, being strong and healthy, in between remissions.
When one thinks of simplification, one hardly considers food as part of it. How does that fit into that category? Well, simplification involves reduction, organization and getting rid of, doesn't it? Looking at food in your life as an elimination of what isn't good for you makes a huge difference to your well-being. What that looks like only pertains to you. We all have different health issues and our diets reflect that. What works for you may not work for me.
Since my daughter is a pescatarian it made sense to join her. The fact that she is also a great cook is another plus. This past year, we have taken it a step further in simplifying our food. We make almost everything from scratch: sauces, breads, pasta, you name it and my girl can make it. By doing so, we have eliminated a lot of the unnecessary preservatives one can find in prepackaged food nowadays. We choose what goes into our food and our bodies.
The same goes for our beverages. We do not partake in drinking or buying soda of any kind. Although, I have been known to cheat. Instead, we have tea, juice, milk, and plenty of water. Every two days I fill up my 96 oz. of water and take it to work with me. I still enjoy coffee every morning and occasionally a glass of wine on the weekends. We would love to be able to can our own fruits and vegetables along with perhaps a dehydration process in place. That's still a little ways off, but definitely on the agenda. Food sustainability is the ultimate goal.
The best part of our lifestyle is that our grocery bill has gone down dramatically. We buy in bulk as much as possible, especially the basic ingredients like sugar, flour, seasonings, butter, and eggs. People are surprised that we use sugar and butter at all since they consider that not healthy. The amount of sugar that we add is a lot less than what is in prepackaged goods. As for butter, when it comes to baking, one needs butter, but there is a huge difference between real butter and margarine.
We now certainly feel much better physically and have more energy by choosing to live this way. Even though I still need to lose some weight, all my blood levels (sugar, cholesterol, blood pressure) are fine. I've had cancer four times already and when in remission I take no medication whatsoever. When in treatment, everyone compliments me on how well I look.
Now, believe me, we are far from perfection when it comes to food and what we eat. There are still many binges and treats and food overdoses (occasionally), but I do feel that the changes we made had a lot to do with my health results. I'm sure there are plenty of things we still have to learn in regards to eating healthy. Heck, we even make bad choices once in a while, especially when our hormones are raging. We are women! Still, at least we know that we are doing the best we possibly can to prolong this life of ours.
Have a blessed day everyone.
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