Eating Things.
I didn't intend to have any food or cooking content on this site. Being fickle, I changed my mind. I added 'Food' to share my nutrition/healing adventures. In this section, I'm posting recipe links to favorite cooking and healthy eating sites. Eventually, I want to add a video blog.
I had a run-in with a serious illness in 2011 and I'm learning how to improve my health and avoid relapse. One of the most important parts of that is taking control of my food. I made a pledge to view food prep and planning ahead as a daily necessity instead of an infrequent treat. I spent the first half of my working life pulling long hours springing back and forth between being overwhelmed, racing to meet pushed-up deadlines, and waiting for the next command, waiting for HD space, waiting for media, waiting for someone to show up, etc. I was paid for a forty hour work week, but I worked closer to seventy. Add this to working under heightened nonstop stress, lack of sleep, continually being threatened with my job (we all were) and being surrounded by junk food at all times. Being whipped to perform and pumping your body full of cortisol makes you want to eat fat and sugar. Eating fat and sugar makes you want to eat more fat and sugar. Processed food ingredients like high fructose corn syrup, monosodium glutamate and other additives amplify that urge even more. Combine that with lack of sleep due to scheduling, caffeine or energy drinks, stress and work politics, and lack of exercise due to poor diet and exhaustion. It's a fast track to being sick, overweight and dying a miserable death.
I had a run-in with a serious illness in 2011 and I'm learning how to improve my health and avoid relapse. One of the most important parts of that is taking control of my food. I made a pledge to view food prep and planning ahead as a daily necessity instead of an infrequent treat. I spent the first half of my working life pulling long hours springing back and forth between being overwhelmed, racing to meet pushed-up deadlines, and waiting for the next command, waiting for HD space, waiting for media, waiting for someone to show up, etc. I was paid for a forty hour work week, but I worked closer to seventy. Add this to working under heightened nonstop stress, lack of sleep, continually being threatened with my job (we all were) and being surrounded by junk food at all times. Being whipped to perform and pumping your body full of cortisol makes you want to eat fat and sugar. Eating fat and sugar makes you want to eat more fat and sugar. Processed food ingredients like high fructose corn syrup, monosodium glutamate and other additives amplify that urge even more. Combine that with lack of sleep due to scheduling, caffeine or energy drinks, stress and work politics, and lack of exercise due to poor diet and exhaustion. It's a fast track to being sick, overweight and dying a miserable death.
My health wasn't the only factor easing me out the door. It is tougher to work in TV because CEOs want more money for themselves and they get it by running studios on peanuts. This means slashed resources, departmental consolidations and staff cuts. I watched three layoffs over a six year span and I couldn't come up with a reason I cared to stay. I made a decision to do something radically different. I picked a profession which forces people to operate in a nearly opposite dynamic. I talk with people who are happy to see me and they're even happier when they leave. I can't spend a shift staring at a computer screen anymore. I have to move and use my physical stamina throughout the day. While I still had my diagnosis, I firmly believe the decision to change careers kept it from being far worse. My new profession gave me physical demands which helped me gain muscle and lose some weight. New demands also meant accommodating my body's nutritional needs. Instead of grabbing whatever is quick because I only have five minutes to choke it down, now I make an effort to give my body actual food. If I don't eat properly, that ultimately affects my quality of work.
Folks, our eating habits are killing us. In order to survive and maintain a decent quality of life, we must turn completely away from convenience foods, Monsanto, GMOs and factory-farmed meats. The West has access to the world's most advanced medical technology and we use it as an excuse to let ourselves become helpless fattened milk-fed calves. Just because we believe a safety net is in place doesn't mean it's wise leap into chasms without looking. We do that every time we shop without checking where our food came from, how it was raised, what's in it and what was done to it. When we live on junk food, TV dinners and fast food, we jump with a concrete slab. The word 'healthy' is slapped on a majority of items which simply aren't. That's deceptive advertising. It has nothing to do with benefit to our bodies. The government isn't here to save you, so don't pin your health on the USDA. If you care about your health, it's your responsibility to look after it. Cooking from scratch is a big part of that. It is also economical, delicious and satisfying. Once you make your own homemade soups, you'll never eat canned or dehydrated soups again.
One of the challenges society faces is budget vs. food prices. If you're willing to compromise your health, you can find several inexpensive frozen dinners and other mass-produced meal options which are stripped of any nutrient benefit. Find a TV dinner with a mechanically separated meat patty. Pair that with some GMO corn and a clot of dehydrated mashed potatoes. Never mind that everything is cooked with hydrogenated fats. It's also loaded with salt and MSG, but that's okay. Blood pressure isn't important. No matter how cheap it is, you're still being ripped off. Your body will get more milage out of dry beans boiled in broth, than many discount convenience foods.
Want to stand up to this kind of thing? Practice time management and cook for yourself. You'll find that even if you make the same dinner from scratch, you'll still come away healthier. I know people run out of time. I do too. I know it's easier to toss a frozen pizza in the oven than it is take the extra time to make a salad, or steam brown rice or vegetables, but this is what we need to start doing. It's time to make friends with your crock pot, steamer, herb garden, salad spinner and spice rack.
One of the challenges society faces is budget vs. food prices. If you're willing to compromise your health, you can find several inexpensive frozen dinners and other mass-produced meal options which are stripped of any nutrient benefit. Find a TV dinner with a mechanically separated meat patty. Pair that with some GMO corn and a clot of dehydrated mashed potatoes. Never mind that everything is cooked with hydrogenated fats. It's also loaded with salt and MSG, but that's okay. Blood pressure isn't important. No matter how cheap it is, you're still being ripped off. Your body will get more milage out of dry beans boiled in broth, than many discount convenience foods.
Want to stand up to this kind of thing? Practice time management and cook for yourself. You'll find that even if you make the same dinner from scratch, you'll still come away healthier. I know people run out of time. I do too. I know it's easier to toss a frozen pizza in the oven than it is take the extra time to make a salad, or steam brown rice or vegetables, but this is what we need to start doing. It's time to make friends with your crock pot, steamer, herb garden, salad spinner and spice rack.
While we're here, I also want to say that I am not writing from high holy ground. I used to work in healthcare, but please note that I am not a doctor, nurse or fitness professional. I don't wear a size two. I don't spend three hours a day doing CrossFit and I don't have a degree in nutrition. If I don't know the answer to something, I have to look it up or ask someone who knows more about it. I also check multiple sources of information. I think everyone should do that. If we took more time to examine things, our society wouldn't be in the collective health crisis we're in. But look... I learned my lesson and I still screw up sometimes. I like beer. I like Ben & Jerry's ice cream. I still think Doritos kick ass. I can guarantee I won't leave them alone if I'm around an open bag. My goal is to eat less of them; not live to eat them.
I don't care about being thin. Don't scoff. I truly don't care. I come from a long line of people who are still bulky even when they're healthy and fit. 'Emaciated waif' is not a body type I'll ever achieve and I don't stay up at night crying about it. I'm not here to impress anyone. What I care about is being able to maintain a high level of physical performance in my present career. I'd like to make it through my senior years without requiring an oxygen tank and a Hoveround. I want to stop feeding bloated medicorps and big pharma by not shoveling $500+/month on drugs and medical care. I want to continue to fit behind the steering wheel and drive my car without having the seat altered. When I walk into a department store, I want to try clothes off the rack instead of limiting my fashion to catalogs and specialty plus shops. I am doing this for me. If anyone else gets benefit from it, that's a bonus.
I don't care about being thin. Don't scoff. I truly don't care. I come from a long line of people who are still bulky even when they're healthy and fit. 'Emaciated waif' is not a body type I'll ever achieve and I don't stay up at night crying about it. I'm not here to impress anyone. What I care about is being able to maintain a high level of physical performance in my present career. I'd like to make it through my senior years without requiring an oxygen tank and a Hoveround. I want to stop feeding bloated medicorps and big pharma by not shoveling $500+/month on drugs and medical care. I want to continue to fit behind the steering wheel and drive my car without having the seat altered. When I walk into a department store, I want to try clothes off the rack instead of limiting my fashion to catalogs and specialty plus shops. I am doing this for me. If anyone else gets benefit from it, that's a bonus.
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Please note that any information or advice found or interpreted from this site is to be used at your own risk. I am not responsible for ideas, decisions or actions taken by site visitors regarding food/nutrition, health, disease/diagnosis, legal, wealth, debt, investing, safety, writing or any other aspect of your personal, physical, professional, financial, spiritual, or otherwise, lives.
You are in charge of your own self, whether you accept responsibility or not.
These images were legally purchased for use on this site.
Please note that any information or advice found or interpreted from this site is to be used at your own risk. I am not responsible for ideas, decisions or actions taken by site visitors regarding food/nutrition, health, disease/diagnosis, legal, wealth, debt, investing, safety, writing or any other aspect of your personal, physical, professional, financial, spiritual, or otherwise, lives.
You are in charge of your own self, whether you accept responsibility or not.