Day 29 — My Food is Better Than Your Food

When I make a change in my life that I see as a dramatic and drastic improvement, it’s hard for me to not want to impose it on others. If I start exercising more, I feel like saying “c’mon everybody…let’s go to the gym at lunch!” If I’m eating better, healthier foods, I can’t help but notice what other people order in restaurants or put in their grocery carts. I don’t comment out loud, but there definitely is some dialouge going on in my head!

Cutting processed sugar and sweets from my own daily routine has made me hyper-aware when other people eat those things. Today I couldn’t help but notice one person’s giant bakery bagel, both halves, slathered with A LOT of jam…someone else’s slice of leftover ice cream cake…or the sugary concoction a friend ordered at the coffee shop. I think I notice because I’m still attached. I broke up with sugar, but he’s still hanging around, haunting me with his tempting sweetness.

When I’m able to just go through my day eating the things I choose without making notes of other people’s choices, then I’ll know it’s really over between us. Right now it’s like I’m at a party with my ex, and his hot new girlfriend. He’s over me, but I still have something to prove!

Day 22 — Blog Love: 100 Days of Real Food

Today I wanted to share one of my favorite blogs, 100 Days of Real Food. Essentially a chronicle of one family’s efforts to cut out processed food, the writer Lisa Leake was highly inspired by Michael Pollan’s book In Defense of Food. She decided to reduce her family’s intake of processed food, at first drastically for 100 days (hence the title), and then in a way that is sustainable long-term.

I love how she shares the ups and downs of the initial challenge, and other challenges including doing the whole thing on a strict budget, along with tips, menus, recipes and encouragement. Plus really beautiful photos that prove “healthy” food can look beautiful and delicious. I particularly like her posts about how how challenging it is to make healthier choices in a world filled with processed food at every turn. Lisa challenges her readers, encouraging them to take small steps–try cutting something out for a week, or even just a day. Her frank, straightforward and honest style has kept me reading every post since the day I discovered her blog about a year ago.