“Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food” -Hippocrates

I feel like I should start out by saying I work in the medical field. In fact, I went to college for seven years to learn about medicine. I work full time as a pharmacist, each shift evaluating peoples medicine profiles and disease states. Also, I want to tell you that I currently take medication for depression and sleeping. I am not pro or anti medicine. I am pro healthy living.

My most recent food discovery started on Easter, when I decided to flirt with paleo. I felt better as a result of this eating this way.  I am amazed at how food truly is medicine for our bodies.

Then I began to cheat (or as I like to say “treat myself”) and the cheat days came closer and closer.

The craziest part about all of this is that I knew the food I was putting in my body was making me feel worse, yet I still did it.

You see, during this food discovery, I was finding that grains and dairy were causing me some (um) uncomfortable gastrointestinal distress. Bloating, gas, heartburn. Even more, an achy body had become a norm for me (one in which I thought was just “old age” setting in at 32). Upon researching the internets and reading books, I decided to try cutting out those possible culprits and I found relief.

So why did I keep going back to these offending foods?

I rationalized. Like many of you, I wanted to believe that “everything in moderation” was a good theory. After all, I was trying to eat whole real foods, the way God created them.

But my research told me otherwise. And so did my faith.

You say, “I am allowed to do anything” – but not everything is good for you. You say, “I am allowed to do anything” -but not everything is beneficial. 1 Corinthians 10:23 NLT

On this point, science and faith came together. Let me try to explain.

I wanted to believe that whole grains and dairy were created by God. Believe me, I think God did say “it was good” after a fresh warm slice of whole wheat bread from the oven. However, the grains we eat are not the same grains that existed in Bible times. Like so many things, man got involved, and screwed them up. When I ate things like animal protein and vegetables, I feel better. I find that I do better sticking with the things man has not modified and messed with.

Many have asked me about the specifics of paleo. At its simplest level, it’s is eating a diet with no grains, no dairy, no sugar, and no legumes. A simple google search on paleo will bring you a plethora of sites and recipes! I have had a bit of a struggle adapting to this style of eating – it’s not without issues of its own. But if this is something you think you’d be interested, start researching and asking questions (feel free to ask me even).  Here are my posts on my personal blog about my paleo journey to get you started!!

Now I’m not saying Paleo would work for everyone, but I’m finding it working for me!!! All I want to do is to encourage you to find a lifestyle that works for you…not a diet….a lifestyle. The writers of MLG and the MLG community are not fitness or diet experts, we are a community of women that are trying to get well, and are sharing our experiences with one another to encourage.

What can you find freedom from? Are there foods that make you feel particularly good or bad? Do you need to look at food as fuel rather than reward or punishment?

Read It:

See it:

Mandisa is one of my biggest role models for weight loss. I appreciate her transparency and honesty. She found something that worked for her and shares much about her weight loss journey on her own site. This song is one of my favorites for staying on course.

Do it:

 
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