Today’s LiveWell Focus
Multitasking is overrated.
I’ve heard it said that we’ve traded quality for quantity when we multitask. Yes, we may be getting more completed but that it is all not as good as it could have been. I may have gotten the laundry folded while catching up on my current show but I did not pray for the one whose shirt I was folding.
As we step out of diet culture that is very true.
We’re moving toward a very unfamiliar future and if we rush into it headlong, we can end up very frustrated, hurt, and disillusioned. It’s like going down a trail in Pennsylvania. There are roots and rocks everywhere.
In this journey, the roots and rock are our own preconceived ideas of what is healthy, people’s opinions of what we’re doing, and all the ‘experts’ out there telling us how and when to eat.
I’ve created a very simple checklist to help us as we move forward. You’ll want to print this off and have a few magnets on hand.
Free Printable Checklist: https://mailchi.mp/9f823289d7ee/todays-lw-focus
Click here for a corresponding video https://youtu.be/ihjImXju1-Y
There are 10 goals which I have identified as important and once this is on your refrigerator, just pick one to focus on for a few days. Mark it with a magnet and once you feel a level of progress, choose a different one. This is not a linear trip, more like scribble art if you’re anything like me. But the practice of working towards each of these big picture goals in daily steps will get you there.
Task #1 - Remember That Diets Don’t Work. Three years in and I still have to remind myself of this. It is so ingrained in our culture but diets are the number one cause of weight gain! Yet we still want them to work. If you’re not sure, google the success rate of diets long term. And I highly suggest reading Intuitive Eating by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch.
Task #2 - Eat When I’m Hungry. It is hard for us to admit when we’re hungry if we’ve been told “You shouldn’t be hungry now.” or “It’s not time to eat.” or “But you just ate a bit ago.” For a long time, hunger made me feel guilty. Admitting hunger and feeling free to satisfy it was a huge step for me.
Task #3 - All Foods are Permissible and Morally Equal. Many people bulk at this one. And I understand. The statement is not saying that all foods are equally nutritious but that they are morally equal. In fact, they are morally neutral. Eating a salad does not make me a better person than eating a donut does. Scripture tells us that food does not make us clean or unclean but is simply digested, used, and wastes eliminate. It is what is in our hearts that defines us.
Task #4 - Recognize And Challenge Diet Culture’s Messages. Do a virtual scavenger hunt. Tune in to all the subtle and not so subtle ways we are told to lose weight and that smaller is healthier. After you become good at this, it becomes almost laughable. Except, of course, that there are so many that are still held captive by the lies.
Task #5- Relax and Enjoy My Food Choices. The Japanese have a practice of engaging all 5 senses when eating. We can too!
Task #6 - Acknowledge My Fullness. Just this weekend I bumped up against this one again. I realized that saving a few of the “best” bites of my meal for last encouraged me to overeat. I now will strive to start with the best and stop when I’m feeling done. This does not mean we MUST stop at the first sign of satiety, but rather to simply notice it and make a decision.
Task #7 - Be Kind to My Emotions - Emotional Eating has been vilified. I’ve come to see that soothing emotions with a favorite food is totally normal. The crux is that we admit that the issue still needs to be dealt with after the ice cream or macaroni and cheese is gone. Cultures all over the world use food to comfort.
Task #8 - Appreciate All That My Body Can Do. None of us has a perfect body. We live in a fallen world and seeing the blessing of what our bodies can do now, today, will give us greater joy.
Task #9 - Move Just For The Fun of It. Do you enjoy walking? Walk. Do you enjoy cleaning? Clean. Do you enjoy gardening? Garden. Do you enjoy lifting? Lift. Do you enjoy hugging? Hug! You get the idea.
Task #10 - Fuel My Body Well. I just saw a post which encouraged us to exchange the word ‘eat’ with ‘nourish’. “What will I eat today?” becomes “What will I nourish my body with today?” That sounds pretty different.
This is pretty overwhelming at first. That is why I encourage you to pick just one. The one that seems easiest or most fun will be a good starting spot. And as you begin to change the way you are thinking about food and your body, you will see the trajectory of your health shift.
I promise.
To print this for your refrigerator: https://mailchi.mp/9f823289d7ee/todays-lw-focus
