Eating Freely

The worst part about getting healthy is usually the diet part. I suppose for some people it's the exercise part, but I actually enjoy exercise. Not every day do I enjoy it, and not every type do I enjoy, but enough to push through and do it until the enjoyment takes over.

For the last 10 months I've been exercising consistently. 30-45 minutes a day 5-7 days a week. And I haven't lost a pound. Well, truth be told, I've lost a few, found it back, over and over. But after working hard for almost a year, I'm at the same place I was a year ago.

This is because I haven't gotten my eating under control. Oh, I do on occasion. I do really well, then I hit a bad day, or a party weekend, or a buffet. Or boredom. I know this is where I need improvement and have committed to do better countless times. It just never seems to stick.

Now, I eat healthy stuff. I do pretty balanced and get my 5-7 servings of fruits and vegetables in almost every day. The problem is, I eat a lot of other "stuff" too.

Sweets, even if not a lot of them, are around and available too much. I don't have a lot of control over this (currently living in someones else's house who happens to love to bake.) I do have control over what I pick up and put in my mouth however.

It's not only sweets, though. For Lent I gave up chocolate for 40 days and for the last two weeks, gave up all sweets. I didn't lose any weight. Because I like to eat. I actually enjoy it and am sure there are pleasure chemicals that release in my brain when I eat.

However, I'm eating for myself and my fleshly pleasure, not for life to sustain and maintain this body I have.

One of the things that I don't want to do, and have found doesn't work for me, is restricting a certain category of food. I believe God has given us a great variety of food for a reason. We see this gift of abundance very early on in scripture.

And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so.
Genesis 1:29-30

God has given us a great amount and variety of food to eat. The problem is much of what we eat today in our culture isn't really food. I know this in my head, yet I quite often still shove this taste-bud-tantalizing, brain-chemical-releasing stuff in my mouth. All the while knowing it is no good for me.

That's why my first goal in eating healthier is to try to eat real food. To reduce the processed, no-good-for me stuff that our grocery shelves are stocked with. I'm not unrealistic enough to believe I will completely avoid all processed foods for the rest of my life. Some may be able to do that, but it doesn't feel doable for me. At least for right now.

Reducing it, however, I think will be of great benefit. As I pray over what I eat (see post here), I aim to remind myself to be grateful for the food God has blessed and given to me to eat. That will hopefully keep real food going into my mouth, instead of what has no benefit.

I'm grateful for the reminder that food for sustenance and health is a gift from God. He has given us everything we need to take care of His temple. I know the acknowledgement of this, and reminder that food isn't for pleasure, but to be life-giving, is a great place to start.