New Decade New Food

I don't know about you, but I felt utterly inundated with decade countdowns over the past few weeks that I welcome the new year and new decade with fresh and open arms. Speaking of fresh, it always feels great starting a new eating regime at the beginning of something; whether it's a Monday or the 1st of the month, or even the 1st of the year, it just feels easier. Maybe because it's easier to forget what happened before that fresh start to keep you moving forward with your plan of healthier consumption. Or maybe it's because you're once again inundated with media ploys to reclaim a "healthier you in the new year." You can't escape it.

My personal effort to maintain a healthy path during meal times began last night when I committed myself to making lunch and breakfast everyday. It's too cold out to attach myself to rabbit food (aka raw veggies) so I opted for items such as yogurt with granola, hot oatmeal, easy homemade sandwiches, vegan soups, and frozen vegetarian burritos. I have had this habit of getting though my day by gripping a mug of coffee and maybe sneaking a couple M&Ms from the bosses desk. But then I get home and feel like a stranded mountain [wo]man who hasn't seen real food for weeks.

I like to think of eating as breathing. We need it to survive, yes. Sometimes it happens without even thinking about it. But what most of us mistakenly do is hold it. When you hold your breath, then finally gasp for air, an exasperated, overwhelming and uncontrollable feeling overcomes us. But if you're consistently taking life in on a moderate and manageable basis, you're never going to end up suffocating. Just like the air with breath, what you eat should happen one at a time, little by little, all while fully appreciating what goes in.