My REAL Journey

A Food Journal is a great tool to track what I’m eating. When asked I say, “I know exactly what I’m eating.” But if I’m 100% honest and write down every single thing that goes in my mouth, there are times when I surprise myself by seeing that I’m conveniently forgetting that I have a couple handfuls of chips throughout the day. I don’t beat myself up for straying off the path but by journaling I’m much more aware of the foods I choose.

Those of you that know me, know that I struggle with nasty headaches. The kind that make it hard to function-where my head literally feels like the pressure could not possible get any worse, and then it does. I’ve tried various avenues to try to relieve them and to this point in life, I haven’t found the magic answer. Currently I’m seeing a Dr that is having me keep a food journal, which I think is always a good idea. It’s nothing time consuming, nothing fancy. I took a simple spiral notebook and each day I write the time of day and what I ate. I’m also making little notes for myself about how I’m feeling. If I had a headache that day, if I was tired, etc etc. I don’t know if I’m going to find the science of these darn headaches but I will learn a lot more about my personal eating habits.

I have a very strong set of beliefs; which aren’t necessarily in line with everyone else’s, but I stand firm in what I believe and I am convinced that what I eat has a direct effect on how I feel. Does that handful of chips have an effect on my headaches or my overall health? ??  It has to have some effect because my body is using that food as nutrition.  I’m just not sure to what degree it affects me. To tell myself to ‘eat healthier’ sounds like such a simple task but it can become such a gray area with difficult sections to sort through. “Eat more fruits and vegetables” is a phrase I always hear. This is an area that I feel I do well in. As I sit here at the computer and look around the kitchen I can see apples, peaches, bananas, cherries, cantaloupe and tomatoes; not to mention the watermelon, carrots and celery in the fridge. The gray area comes when no one mentions all the insecticides and fertilizers producers use to get those fruits and vegetables to the stores in record time before they spoil. So am I doing as much good as I think I am when eating these? Does it help to peel the fruits before eating them? Does it help to wash them first? Does washing them really get all the pesticides off the skins? How do you scrub a strawberry without turning it to mush? Gray areas leave too much to chance. They make you think and rethink every decision you make. I’d like to have it black and white.** Food A= good for you   **  Food B=eat at your own risk    If only it were that simple.

*Thought for the day*

You don't have to be perfect to be better