12 Shvat, 5773
The lovely imagery of what we can learn from trees (and other plants) fills the holiday of Tu B'Shvat. It's a very pro-health message.
Trees are teachers.
Trees affect daily life; the health of the planet and even our spiritual realities. Think back to Sunday school. Who goofed by eating the wrong food, then made things worse by pointing fingers of blame? Worse, why DID those two people WANT to eat that food?
There's an interesting answer to the question. Here it comes: Tu B'Shvat and the First Couple.
Here's a excerpt from my forthcoming Comfort Foods Cookbook, which teaches readers how to tame their inner over-eater:
THE COMFORT FOODS
COOKBOOK 411: DO WHAT WORKS FOR YOU! AN OVERVIEW OF BASIC PRINCIPLES
Chomp
a carrot or some unsalted hot-air machine
popcorn while you read these opening lines.
That’ll
take care of some of your stress and
Keep
you safe from too many calories.
The
book will be safe from popcorn oil stains, too.
You’re done with diets and it’s time to celebrate;
you’re grounded in reality! So many diets don’t help humanity. They don’t address our
rushed lives, the overwhelming advertising messages messing with our minds nor
the peer pressure we must finesse as we eat differently from everyone around
us. Who the heck wants to listen to anybody
telling us not to eat things that taste good - as if distasteful do-nothing diets haven’t made you feel
finished with future weight loss efforts already?!
Whew,
take a breath. If one diet plan worked for everybody, bookstores wouldn’t be
selling so many types of diet books. The key to weight control is to find what
works for you and to keep doing that. You do not have to make a sudden
overwhelming change to the way you live, eat and think. You only make little
changes, one at a time, to the way you deal with food.
The news
gets better: this book is not about things you cannot or may not eat; it’s
about making a menu that works for you! The Comfort Foods Cookbook is designed to help you past several
problems, which is clear in the confidence-building Table of Contents. There are proven strategies for dining well
while losing or maintaining weight. Here are a few to take you through the day:
1.
Don’t
Drastically Destroy Your Meals
You still need carbohydrates. Not in excess, but
in moderation. Enjoy some wholegrain breads that can help to curb your
appetite. Indulge in high-nutrition wild rice, brown rice and basmati rice.
They make sold underpinnings for delicious sauces and a bouquet of
body-building vegetables.
2.
Love
what you do in life.
If you don’t yet love your life, make it lovable.
Don’t let your weight-control efforts dominate your thoughts. You risk
losing the enthusiasm for minding your table manners. Indulge in hobbies you
enjoy, relationships you cherish and simple pleasures. Let raindrops fall on
your tongue, do happy dances and smile as much as you can. Take on each day
sunshine or rain. Rest when you need to. And do something nice for yourself –
including the people important to you.
Less stress will lower your snack reaction;
nobody shoves food in their face when they’re content. Reduce the stress in
your life in as many directions as possible. Delegate tasks, lower your demands
(not everything in life needs to be perfect), and shut off the noise. That
includes turning off anything digital. The toll on your heart and brain will
lighten up, as will your perspective on life. You know the story of the
character who fished for a living. He prayed to be this or that, and then
achieved those goals. Each venture cost him dearly in terms of peace of mind
and financial security. So he prayed to have a stress-free livelihood and
VOILA! He became a fisherman again and never lost his perpetual smile of
relief.
Need a different motivational thought to keep
your control? I hear you. Some of us mortals use food as an escape, a safe
haven from some sort of pressure (Deadlines, in-laws, outlaws, bills, budgets, name
it). Let’s look at life philosophically, and a bit spiritually too, a moment. We are descendants of the first man
and woman. Want to correct the mistake of how and why the first couple ate the
forbidden fruit? Adam and Chava (Eve) used food to escape GOD's sovereignty.
Food is not an escape. Food is for nourishment so we can live with optimal
health, happiness and to serve GOD with decency. Food brings us pleasure and
health. That leads to happiness. Clarity about what food is for equals a
measure of emotional freedom.
Decide what sort of person you want to be and make yourself behave that way (Do-overs are allowed. Some days you can simply chalk up mistakes to dress rehearsals). Run your own life, you slimming and trimming CEO! Eating is supposed to make you feel happy. This book does its best to get you grinning again, looking slimmer and trimmer. Seeing yourself smiling back from the mirror can make your day. Give yourself a thumbs-up with a meaningful wink each time you head out the door.
When you’re indoors, and even outside, nourish
your soul. Listen to soothing music, wear and decorate in colors that
make you feel well. Feel that smile coming into your face? Make the most of it.
Dab some lavender oil under your nose or on your pillows. It’s a calming scent.
Guys, use some peppermint if you can, or your fave aftershave lotions and
potions. Feeling calm makes the munchies seem like distant memories.
Walks can do wonders for calming shattered
nerves. Watch the world go by as you take interesting detours and
refreshing hikes. Use the bicycle instead of the car to run errands. Your
improving muscle tone will speed up weight control efforts. Admiring glances or
compliments will do wonders for you. So will boosts in your sagging
self-esteem.
If you can, invest in an indoor water fountain or
easily maintained aquarium. Watery images and sounds soothe savage minds. Tea
lites in every corner of the tub make for one very soothing soak. Draw the
curtain and bask in the warmth as your cares ooze out of your pores.
3) Put some spirituality into your mealtimes.
Make this a new mantra: We
don’t live to eat, we eat to live! Keep
your priorities straight, not muddled in your mind. Focus on feeling grateful
for having body-building foods before you. Say a prayer of thanks to The One
Above that you have such food, and that you are wise enough to make smart
choices. Consider how much happier you’ll be for strengthening your health,
not actively ruining it with poor choices.
Consider how excited you’ll be to watch the pounds melt away and never
return.
And when those really awful, messed up days come your way (ALL of
us have them), remember to care compassionately for yourself. You’re going to
be tempted to shove food down your throat and punish yourself with the
consequences all around your too-tight clothes. Is self-discipline important to
you? Is better health a priority? Is a slimmer you important? Remember this
saying that applies to much of our stressful lives: “Decide that you want it more than you are
afraid of it.”
Fill the comments box with your thoughts about that.
Pretty please?
Pretty please?
Buy E-book or print edition EMPOWER Yourself to Cope with a Medical Challenge to put your medical and emotional health priorities in order, today.
The Comfort Foods Cookbook will go on sale at a future date, GOD willing.
Face Your Medical Problems with Dignity. Face Your Future with Optimism.
Feed your soul and body nutritiously.
