In any case, you’ve got an awesome body so why not rock it? Can I get an amen?

Check out the post below and let me know what you think.

7 Ways To Love Your Body Now

By Dr. Ali Binazir for the Huffington Post

The following is one of the best pieces I have read on relating to your body healthily. My good friend Christine Mason McCaull wrote it and was kind enough to let me include it in The Tao of Dating for Women. She is a truly remarkable woman: entrepreneur, CEO, yoga teacher, artist, environmentalist, TED organizer, writer, and mother of four amazing children. Many of my readers have found this piece useful, and it’s so eloquent and empowering that I really can’t improve upon it. I hope you find it useful, too.

1. Wherever you are, love your body as it is right now. I mean now, not when it achieves some desired future state or as it was at a reminisced point of peak fitness. I mean now, not when it is ailment-free. It’s a magnificent machine, and does wonders for you everyday.

Maybe it only gets your spirit from the bed to the bathroom, or maybe it allows you to have babies, or peel a banana or walk to the store or dance Swan Lake or hold a handstand. Whether it is fat or tall or small or imbalanced or polished or bearded or wispy or unpredictable — just love it for what it does for you. Appreciate all the elements and miracles that allow you to live — strong legs, ample hips, the crook of the elbow. The fullness of the heart-beating, veins-throbbing, stomach-growling you!

2. Decommoditize yourself. Your body may be valued in the abstract by the culture at large for its sexuality, its reproductive and productive capacity, its creative capacity — or any number of other things. Don’t allow yourself to be commoditized! There is no cookie-cutter beauty, sexuality, age, or attractiveness. These are cultural constructs, and there is no need to accept these constructs or support their ongoing existence. If you were born in a different place and time, the rules would have been different. They are not real!

Plus, realize that a lot of people make money by trying to convince you that you should be different. They take your resources and power by trying to trick you into thinking you will have more resources and power or love by investing in a stereotype of beauty. Imagine what would happen if the scores of hours and all the emotional and intellectual energy that went into counting calories or self-berating actually went into living! Take a cue from artist Stefan Sagmeister, who says: “Trying to look good limits my life.” Derive your value from being most fully alive, from the times when you are intimate, compassionate, caring, creative, engaged — not from the outward projection.

3. Decommoditize others. Stop praising other people for the values of the commodity-body culture, and start calling out those qualities that make them most themselves, approachable, reachable, human! Begin to notice and compliment people when they embody values that are more to the point: for their humor, intelligence, flair, originality, intensity, focus. Tell them “I love it when you smile — you light up the room!” Even better, take the time to pause and look into people’s eyes and lift the veil that separates you. Check your own judgment at the door and try to see the person behind the body.

Click here to continue reading »

Body Mind Mastery by Dan Millman

And some words from Brian:

Dan Millman is a former world-champion athlete and gymnastics coach at Stanford and UC Berkeley. He’s also a really cool, wise guy.

If you’ve read his classic, semi-autobiographical book, Way of the Peaceful Warrior (that was recently made into a cool movie starring Nick Nolte as Socrates), you know how Dan brilliantly weaves Western and Eastern thought into a practical philosophy for our modern lives.

This book is all about integrating our Body and Minds to create a deep sense of wholeness.

Click here to view the embedded video.

If you want more information on this book, you can check out its Amazon page » Tons of reviews there.

And as always, what’s your BIGGEST Aha! moment from this Note and how are you going to implement the wisdom from today into your life? Drop a comment and let the discussions roll!And twitter users, don’t forget the #50days Also, because lots of people are joining in on the Challenge a few days late and in case you miss a day or two, check out this page » We’ve listed every Note that will be discussed (on which day) along with links to the discussion posts.

Can’t wait to get the discussion going on today’s Note. Talk to you guys tomorrow and if you haven’t got your 100 PhilosophersNotes yet, you can grab them here »

American obesity rates are skyrocketing and portion size definitely has been a factor in this downward spiral of health.

Just check out the article below as it compares portions of different foods from 20 years ago and now. The next time we go out for food it might be wise to take this into account. Or at least grab a doggy bat at the end of each meal.

Portion Size, Then Vs. Now

By Liz Monte from DivineCaroline.com

Over the past few decades, portion sizes of everything from muffins to sandwiches have grown considerably. Unfortunately, America’s waistbands have reacted accordingly. In the 1970s, around 47 percent of Americans were overweight or obese; now 66 percent of us are. In addition, the number of just obese people has doubled, from 15 percent of our population to 30 percent.

While increased sizes haven’t been the sole contributor to our obesity epidemic, large quantities of cheap food have distorted our perceptions of what a typical meal is supposed to look like. These portion comparisons, adapted from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute’s (NHLBI) Portion Distortion Quiz, give a visual representation of what sizes used to be compared to what they are today.

Two Slices of Pizza

Click here to read the rest »

It’s proof that age is just a number and no matter how old or young you are, there’s tons of amazing things you can do. 65 is no longer the mandatory retirement age and in fact tons of people 65 and older are making huge goals, starting businesses, going back to school, and changing their lives.

I was at Tony Robbin’s Unleash The Power Within a few months ago and was amazed when I saw an 80+ year old woman say she was here to change her life!

Check out this video and see for yourself. Drop a comment and let me know what you think of this new “ageism”.

If this sounds a little ridiculous, it’s not. Your body is designed to be a runner. From your skin to your big toe, your entire body is made to run.

But then why do people consistently injure themselves while training or running long distance? Sadly, it might have something to do with our obsession with the latest high-tech sneakers.

Check out this article from the New York Times on the beauty and brilliance of the human body.

And after you’re done reading, feel free to stand in front of the mirror and admire yourself

The Human Body Is Built for Distance

By Tara Parker-Pope from the NYTimes.com

Does running a marathon push the body further than it is meant to go?

The conventional wisdom is that distance running leads to debilitating wear and tear, especially on the joints. But that hasn’t stopped runners from flocking to starting lines in record numbers.

Last year in the United States, 425,000 marathoners crossed the finish line, an increase of 20 percent from the beginning of the decade, Running USA says. Next week about 40,000 people will take part in the New York City Marathon. Injury rates have also climbed, with some studies reporting that 90 percent of those who train for the 26.2-mile race sustain injuries in the process.

But now a best-selling book has reframed the debate about the wisdom of distance running. In “Born to Run” (Knopf), Christopher McDougall, an avid runner who had been vexed by injuries, explores the world of the Tarahumara Indians of Mexico, a tribe known for running extraordinary distances in nothing but thin-soled sandals.

Mr. McDougall makes the case that running isn’t inherently risky. Instead, he argues that the commercialization of urban marathons encourages overzealous training, while the promotion of high-tech shoes has led to poor running form and a rash of injuries.

“The sense of distance running being crazy is something new to late-20th-century America,” Mr. McDougall told me. “It’s only recently that running has become associated with pain and injury.”

The scientific evidence supports the notion that humans evolved to be runners. In a 2007 paper in the journal Sports Medicine, Daniel E. Lieberman, a Harvard evolutionary biologist, and Dennis M. Bramble, a biologist at the University of Utah, wrote that several characteristics unique to humans suggested endurance running played an important role in our evolution.

Most mammals can sprint faster than humans — having four legs gives them the advantage. But when it comes to long distances, humans can outrun almost any animal. Because we cool by sweating rather than panting, we can stay cool at speeds and distances that would overheat other animals. On a hot day, the two scientists wrote, a human could even outrun a horse in a 26.2-mile marathon.

Click here to continue reading »

“He who has health has hope and he who has hope has everything”

- Arabian Proverb -

And you better believe it. The world’s leading medical specialists are more and more saying how having a predominantly vegetarian diet has the potential of reducing a string of heart problems, fights cancer, helps induce fat loss and generally improve your health and wellness…

But there’s more to it than that.

My Journey To Healthy Living

My name is Mohana Gill and I was born in Burma, spent many years of my life in Melbourne, before settling down in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. I was never an overtly unhealthy person – I enjoyed the multitude of foods available down under and especially here in Malaysia and was never really concerned all that much about what I put in my body.

I have three sons, Sanjeev, Anil and Rakesh. In our family food has always played a significant role. From the time they were babies food was always prepared  at home. My husband and the boys enjoyed a variety of food and were very discerning in their tastes.

Of all my children Sanjeev was the one who was most passionate about food and relished each and every meal. It was fun and heartwarming to see him devour food laid before him. During holidays from boarding school in Melbourne and later from University he would approach each meal with relentless fervour. Our many friends enjoyed taking him out because he would enjoy all genres of food, from hawker stalls to fine dining. I was constantly thinking of ways and means to satisfy his wide ranging appetite.

One day he told me “Mum you are a good cook, but for a gourmet palate like mine I need more exotic and exciting cuisines like venison, partridge and such”. So for me it was fun thinking of different things to feed him, be it in Burmese, Indian, Malaysian style or any other preparations.

One day at the age of 24, for spiritual reasons, he decided to become vegetarian, a strict vegetarian forgoing eggs, gelatin or any food item containing animal products. That was a very challenging time for me, I still wanted him to enjoy the variety of food that he was used to, but at the same time I had to make sure that the food did not have any animal products. I learnt to read labels in all the food items I bought and I realized that a lot of chocolate had lecithin, biscuits had egg white and a lot of food had gelatin.

Baby Steps: Experimenting With Ingredients

I started to experiment with different types of food and learnt to cook food free of animal products.

When I went to live in Australia, I would visit the markets, pick an assortment of vegetables that I was unfamiliar with and experiment. At the end of the day I was always rewarded with “That was tasty Mum”.

To add to this challenge very soon I was faced with yet another. My husband, a doctor began to take a keen and serious interest in healthy living and wellness. Although we had always cooked food I thought of as healthy, it now dawned on me that healthy food could be prepared without compromising taste and variety.

My second son Anil soon became a willing convert to a healthy lifestyle. Accordingly his food preferences changed. I ensured the food laid out on the table met with these high standards of nutrition, variety and taste. This was another phase in my life where I started to pay more attention to ingredients, method and flavor. I wanted the food to be exciting, interesting, tasty yet healthy. I discovered that all I needed was a little imagination, time, a little effort and love and the food was enjoyed by all. I hope that my youngest son Rakesh will follow the path of healthy living, wellness and longevity by adopting these ideas.

Vegetarianism, Taking The World By Storm

Globally, vegetarianism is on the rise, no longer exclusive to parts of Asia and the Indian subcontinent. This ‘green’ revolution has taken place subtly over decades and continues to gather momentum, its pace quickening into the 21st century.

Today the growth of vegetarianism is a matter of choice, primarily a decision based on health. Health researchers have long advocated a reduction in the consumption of meat with many going so far as to recommend a complete cessation of meat. It is widely accepted that there are a host of health benefits associated with meat reduction. Amongst these benefits are a reduction in cholesterol levels and consequently heart disease, reduction in blood pressure levels and reduced risk of cancer and diabetes. While these are just some of the more published benefits there are many others.

The definitive answer to optimal nourishment is the consumption of a variety of produce from the three main food groups i.e. fruit and vegetables, legumes, pulses and seeds and dairy. Each of these food groups and its components has a unique combination of nutrients that work together effectively in providing the mechanism for the smooth operation of the body.

The assortment of vegetables available at the markets of Malaysia to the bazaars of Turkey and beyond is bewildering. These vegetables present themselves with descriptive expression in hues of green, red, yellow and an unrelenting riot of colors. The rich colors and textures of vegetables nourish and protect the human body from not only common diseases and illnesses but are a defense against infection, as they bolster our immune system and fortify our body’s defenses.

Packed with vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients, they combine to offer us nature’s miracle anti-oxidant, far more potent than any single medication and completely without side effects.

Save The Vegetable, Save The World: The Environmental Benefits Of Crops

In terms of sustainability, the amount of land that we need to clear to grow vegetables is so much less than what is required to raise cattle.

Whereas a field of crops could feed a small village, the same field used to graze cattle could maybe only feed a fraction of that. What’s more, you have to consider the potential food that is wasted as you have to grow feed for the cattle to eat.

Did you know the total amount of grain that is consumed just to raise animals for food is enough to feed the less fortunate of this world?

Secondly, you don’t have as big a carbon footprint when you choose not to contribute to the resource depletion that is caused through the slaughtering of animals for food. It is becoming increasingly popular to choose to become a vegetarian because people object to the harsh treatment of animals that are slaughtered for food.

“A 400-page United Nations report from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) states that cattle farming is responsible for 18% of greenhouse gases. The production of cattle to feed and clothe humans stresses ecosystems around the world, and is assessed to be one of the top three environmental problems in the world on a local to global scale.” – [Wikipedia]

How Eating Vegetables Can Help You Live Longer

It has been documented that people who eat an entirely vegetarian diet, or for those who eat more vegetables have been shown to live an average of 10 – 15 years longer than those who do otherwise.

Additionally, the National Cancer Institute estimates that roughly one third of all cancer deaths may be diet-related.

Vegetables have been shown to:

• Reduce the chance of heart disease
• Reduce the chance of getting cancer
• Help people with diabetes

I feel we really need to take care of our bodies’ right from the beginning. Your body is like your home, the house that you live in.

If you build your house with good cement, bricks and mortar, it will stand strong for a long time. Similarly, whatever we put in our bodies, our bodies will become. All the health gurus are singing by the same tune, in that you need to increase your intake of fruit and vegetables.

Some ingredients that have been shown to fight cancer:

• Tea (green and black)
• Ginger
• Garlic
• Broccoli
• Onions
• Carrots
• Papaya
• And the list goes on and on…

Thumbs Up To Your Karma

When you choose to eat a vegetarian diet, you choose life — as nothing needs to die for you to get your meal. The amount of cattle that is slaughtered every month is astounding; at 4.12 billion pounds in the month of July!

In the bigger scheme of things, we’re only on this Earth for a short time and during this time, what do you want to be remembered by?

One Day May Be All You Need To Change Your Life

The question that is asked of me the most often is:

“Is vegetarian food hard to prepare and how do I start implementing it into my life?”

My answer is always the same in that vegetarian food is not difficult to prepare, it takes less time than meat dishes as meat requires more time to cook through, and you can have a full meal ready in less than 5 minutes.

And for those who need some help in implementing more vegetables in your diet, try the following 1 day meal plan, it’s easy to follow yet wonderful for your body:

BREAKFAST

•    1 glass of fresh juice: Any type will do, but try and add some vegetables such as celery or cucumbers blended in with your fruit juice as well.
•    1 bowl of cereal: Add berries or nuts into your cereal to give it a healthy kick. Use multigrain cereal for added goodness.
•    1 serving of papaya or banana

LUNCH

•    1 small bowl of fruits: A small bowl of apple cubes or pears before your lunch would be ideal
•    1 serving of salad with your normal meal: If you like eating pasta for lunch, try a wholegrain pasta with a side of salad. Reduce the serving size of the pasta to accommodate the added vegetables.

DINNER

•    Try the simple recipe below from my cook book Vegemania! (page 118)

Zesty Peppers & Garbanzo Beans

Garbanzo beans or chickpeas are the most widely consumed legumes in the world.

Ingredients

• 1 can garbanzo beans/ chickpeas
• 1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 stalks celery, cut into small pieces
• 1 medium red and green bell pepper/ capsicum each cut into small pieces
• 1 red onion, sliced
• 1 tsp garlic, minced
• 2 tbsp fresh coriander, chopped
• Juice of one lemon, or to taste
• 2 tsp freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Method

1. Chill the serving plates to keep your salad crisp longer
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the beans, celery, peppers and onion
3. In a separate bowl, mix together the rest of the ingredients and pour over the bean and pepper mixture
4. Stir to combine and chill to serve
5. Optional garnishes: tomato-, cucumber.- and lemon wedges

Preperation time: less than 10 minutes!

The New Millenium of Wellness

In this new millennium, the key words must be wellness and healthy ageing. The population all over the world is ageing and more and more people are celebrating their hundredth birthday. However studies have shown that not all these people are ageing well.

The populations with the highest expectancy and longevity are those found in the Mediterranean and Okinawa, Japan. What is their secret? In the Okinawa study, it showed that it was the rich diet of fruits and vegetables that helped promote longevity. All current research has proven that persons with a rich diet of fruits and vegetables live longer and suffer less from chronic disease and disability.

“Thy food is thy medicine and thy medicine is thy food”

- Hippocrates–

It’s not that hard for you to take that first step in eating a better, vegetable and fruit filled diet, very much like I did so many years ago. With these baby steps, you can truly make a profound change in your life, or even the lives of your closest loved ones.

I’ve always said to my family and friends, ‘your fate is on your plate’ which to me delves straight to the problem yet highlights the solution all at the same time. It really is as simple as that, but you have to make the conscious decision for change…

And what better day to start than on this lovely day?

With that I leave you,

For healthy living, longevity and wellness,

- Mohana Gill.

Click here to download the FREE “Cancer Busting Miracle Foods” Special Report from Mohana Gill (comes with 5 cancer-smashing recipes that are fun and delicious) »

Nobody likes to be told that they’re unhealthy (least of all me) but at some point you have to come to terms with what you’re doing to your body.

After all, it is a temple, isn’t it?

So if you’re ready to have a health check, then step up and take the How-Healthy-Are-You Quiz. While it won’t give you a detailed medical opinion of your health, it’ll give you a rough idea of where you stand on the health-o-meter.

After you finish answering these 7 short questions, scroll down to see your results.

It doesn’t end here though. Next week, we’ve got a special treat for you guys (healthy or not) that’s going to be really fun.

Your Scores!

If you said yes to only 1 to 3 questions…

…Then you’re probably not getting enough fruits, plants, and grains and are eating too much high-calorie, high fat foods. But don’t fret. All that’s easily changed.

And if you think you’ll never get used to the taste of spinach, whole-grains, and fruits, you’d be surprised. Try a healthy, well-balanced diet for just 2 weeks and you’ll be surprised at what your body craves at the end.

If you said yes to 4 or 5 questions…

…Then you’re on the right track to having a highly balanced diet. There are still a few things you could improve on but it won’t be as hard as you think. Take the time to re-evaluate what your current diet is and where you can make improvements.

Try writing down everything you’re eating everyday for 1 week and from there you’ll be able to see what areas you can work on. And if you’re not getting enough exercise, try walking to work, taking public transport, or even just going up the stairs instead of using the elevator.

If you said yes to 6 or 7 questions…

…Then you’re pretty much on the path to perfect health. Of course there’s always room for improvement but don’t beat yourself up on it. You’re already doing a great job.

Keep up the good work and maybe improve your health with some more exercise like running a half-marathon or even a 10-k. If you’re already physically active, then think of delicious creative meals you can share with your friends and family so that they can get addicted to healthy living too.

Thanks for taking the quiz. See you next week with a healthy and fun treat that you’re gonna want to share with your friends and family.

And for good reason. It doesn’t matter if you’re doing it for religious reasons or health reasons, fasting can be a way to rejuvenate the body, mind, and soul.

Enjoy these 5 benefits and if you’re currently fasting or will be in the near future, drop a comment. I’d love to hear what your reasons were for your decision.

1. Retune your digestive system

Not many people know this but fasting can be a way for you to give your digestive system a tune up. According to Dr. Naomi Neufeld, an endocrinologist at UCLA, “You re-tune the body, suppress insulin secretion, reduce the taste for sugar, so sugar becomes something you’re less fond of taking.”

What happens is that the body eventually uses up the stored sugar (glycogen) so that less insultin is needed to help the body digest food. And that gives your pancreas a rest.

2. Reduce your intake of free radicals

Mark Mattson, a scientist with the National Institute on Aging, has reported that fasting can reduce your intake of free radicals, which can cause cancer. In fact, according to Mattson, “These free radicals will attack proteins, DNA, the nucleus of cells, the membranes of cells. They can damage all those different molecules in cells.”

Even just reducing your calorie intake can have the same effects as a fast. In a study amongst rats and mice, it was noted that those who were fed very little and restricted in their food intake had a reduction in disease compared to those who were fed normal daily diets.

3. Speed up your journey to self-discovery

We are all creatures of habit. And eating, just like smoking and sleeping, is a habit. What happens during a fast is that by taking away such an essential part of your daily routine, you mess up your whole schedule. This sounds bad but it’s not. It’s really a time to reflect on your routines and give you a pause to think about how you want your life to move forward.

By fasting, you become more conscious of yourself and you can take the time usually spent eating to meditate, journal, or do any other form of reflection.

4. Increase your gratitude

How could you not be grateful to break your fast? And after each day when you do break fast, it’s a celebration. A celebration for a completed day of fasting, reflection, and persistence. So rejoice and celebrate your success! Show gratitude to yourself and others.

And when you break your fast, you will be very very happy to taste food again. And contrary to some beliefs, you won’t binge on food. In fact you will be more conscious of what you allow into your body and feel gratitude for the food you receive.

5. Launch yourself into your ideal life

Sounds like a pretty big benefit for something as simple as fasting. But it’s true. When you begin your fast you can take this time to break old patterns, examine your current situation, and use it as the starting point for a whole new life.

What really makes this possible is that by fasting you are exhibiting control over yourself and your situation. And controlling your eating habits may be one of the hardest things to do. For each day you complete a successful fast, you condition your mind into to believe it can and will do anything. You are training your mind to be successful. And after days of a successful fasting your mind will be neurologically conditioned for success.

So the next time you set a goal for yourself, it’ll be easier to attain!

There are tons more reasons why fasting can be good for you and before you begin a fast, check out some resources for the safest and best way to do so.

Researchers have been studying online insomnia treatment programs and the results are pretty interesting. Most of the test subjects have responded very well to the online treatments and are noticing a huge improvement in their sleep.

Not to mention how convenient it is to have their treatment over the Internet versus having to go out for an appointment.

Check out this article on this new wave of therapy that’s sweeping the net.

Online Treatment May Help Insomniacs

By Amanda Schaffer

You can do almost anything on the Internet these days. What about getting a good night’s sleep?

It might be possible, some researchers say. Web-based programs to treat insomnia are proliferating, and two small but rigorous studies suggest that online applications based on cognitive behavioral therapy can be effective.

“Fifteen years ago, people would have thought it was crazy to get therapy remotely,” said Bruce Wampold, a professor of counseling psychology at the University of Wisconsin. “But as we do more and more things electronically, including have social relationships, more therapists have come to believe that this can be an effective way to deliver services to some people.”

The first controlled study of an online program for insomnia was published in 2004. But the results were hard to interpret, because they showed similar benefits for those who used the program and those in the control group. The two new studies, from researchers in Virginia and in Canada, advance the evidence that such programs can work.

In the Virginia study, called SHUTi, patients enter several weeks of sleep diaries, and the program calculates a window of time during which they are allowed to sleep. Patients limit the time they spend in bed to roughly the hours that they have actually been sleeping.

The goal is to consolidate sleep, then gradually expand its duration — the same technique that would be used in face-to-face therapy, said Lee Ritterband, a psychologist at the University of Virginia, who developed the program.

Stella Parolisi, 65, a registered nurse in Virginia and a patient in the study, said sticking to the restricted sleep schedule was hard, “but toward the end, it started to pay off.”

“Before, if I was exhausted, I would try to get to bed earlier and earlier, which was the wrong thing,” she said. “It just gave me more time to toss and turn.”

But after using the program, she began to sleep for at least one four-hour stretch a night.

Click here to continue reading »

There’s a lot of truth to that and when you think about how you eat as well as what you eat, you might be surprised at what it says about your personality.

It’s more than just counting calories and fat content.

Check out this article as it goes through the 7 core aspects of eating. How do you relate to each aspect and what can you eat to improve that area?

Eating with Soul: The Ultimate Seven Steps to Complete Nourishment

From ExploreYourSpirit.com

“We are indeed much more than what we eat, but what we eat can nevertheless help us to be much more than what we are.” – Adelle Davis

Eating is an act that no human being can truly escape. We eat throughout the day, many times per day, taking in thousands of pounds of food on every year. One way to view eating is simply an act that provides the body with energy. Another aspect is what we eat and how we eat are anchored more deeply into providing insight as to what in our lives needs healing. Even though I am a nutritionist that has been trained to look at food as calories, what I have discovered is that foods and eating are vehicles to our personal growth.  When someone tells me about their eating, I immediately see the connection to the rest of their lives.

This concept may seem far-fetched, but let me give you some examples:

•    Jean eats convenient foods and can’t find time to prepare meals. A common theme in her life is that she is always on the run. She never has time for anything she really wants to do, including something for herself.  She started to heal after taking a look at what she was running from – and asking the question: where does my focus need to be, and what do I need to make time for?
•    Jim binges on sweet foods. He also talks about how his life feels lackluster and that he never quite “gets around” to having some joy and fun? Looking from the outside in, maybe his life doesn’t seem so “sweet” so he needs to get it from other places. He also feels that he can never make sweetness last in his life – something always stands in the way – ultimately leading him to binge.

Since we eat so often, it becomes only logical that our food choices and eating practices start to intermingle with our lives. Therefore, to get some insight on your life, you can begin by looking at how and what you eat. There are seven main areas of our lives that may require healing, and we can jumpstart the process by altering our foods and eating:

(1) Survival: Do you have some “fear” around eating – whether not wanting to eat because you don’t know what to eat, or distrusting your bodies’ messages about eating ? Do you have difficulty with family traditions around eating and struggle with being able to eat in the presence of a community? By letting go of protecting ourselves with food or of any fear of eating, we open up our ability to trust and feel safe. Eating with others in community is healing for this part of us.

Foods for grounding and protection: Protein, minerals, root vegetables, edible and medicinal mushrooms, red-colored foods (apples, pomegranates, etc.)

To continue reading, click here »