I just came out of a 15 day visit at my parents’ place. We had a great catch up overall.
The good news is that my Umma started to eat more of her traditional foods - rice, beans, vegetables (kimchi and ban chan), with some fruit; and less meat and ultra processed foods like candy bars. Because of that, she’s gotten her pre-diabetes under control and is now falling in a normal A1c range for her age. She did that by following the advice from the McDougall program - eat starch, vegetables, fruit, and no animal or oil products. (She didn’t follow the rules exactly but the important thing is that she did her best.)
Umma’s GP told her to eat “lots and lots of meat”, stop eating rice, and limit fruit to half or one piece a day.
Thanks to doctors like Dr. McDougall (doctors who actually reverse chronic illnesses for their patients) sharing his advice on how to treat diseases with the simple power of food, Umma went from being confused to confident - especially with her new healthy numbers - that her optimal food includes starch (rice, beans, potatoes, oats) and other antioxidant rich whole plants.
The men in the house on the other hand - my Abba (Dad) and Oppa (bro) - love eating meat. Their worlds do not include a vegetarian diet, and I know that’s okay, they just have to keep eating their whole plants.
Cryder calls me the food police. 🚨😅
I don’t judge - I know meat’s delicious but plants are too and we don’t need to eat animals to get our nutrients.
My advice to them…just make sure to keep eating those whole plants - anything that grows naturally from the ground. Those are the nutrients that activate and power all systems in the body like our immune system.
T Colin Campbell’s 8 Principles of Food and Health
PRINCIPLE #3: The highest quality food is in whole plant foods.
“There are virtually no nutrients in animal-based foods that are not better provided by plants.”
All the nutrients we get from eating animals come from the plants the animals eat themselves. There are many benefits in skipping the animal and going directly to the (plant) source - like eating less saturated fats and cholesterol which conveniently also decreases our chances of developing chronic illnesses.
We eat animals because they’re a “preferred” food since they’re high in calories, fat, and flavor.
I don’t tell people to never eat meat again.
I just say that we need to understand where our optimal nutrients come from. Get those into us and everything else is gravy.
Weekly High
I love having time apart because it’s good for our relationship but being reunited with Cryder was the best. I love that first kiss (now through masks 🤷🏻♀️) and being in Cryder’s strong embrace.
There’s nothing like that anticipated reunion at Pearson or LAX where we’ve had so many goodbyes and glorious hellos when we were long distancing. Oh the memories!
Low
When an old friend asked me how my family is and how things are at the house, I burst into tears. Oops, that came as a surprise!
It’s been a great visit but also an emotional one.
Lesson: Be open 🦋
Saying “let’s try” to experiences you’re feeling hesitant about may result in one of the best times you’ve had all year.
Best thing I ate this week
Feeling > flavor
Fresh greens from my Umma’s garden with a fresh edible flower from Micol’s garden (a floral farmer and my beautiful friend).
I’ve miraculously not succumbed to all the junk food and treats in my hometown. But I have succumbed to the deeply satisfying wines and cocktails. 🤩
What’s been bringing the joy is fresh food grown with love, clean air and clean water, and harvested literally just outside our doors. Incredible!
Week 17: Food & The City
This week we’re downtown Toronto and I feel like I’m back home, baby!
Since there are so many goodies to eat here, we’ll be starting our days off strong with my usual bs 😁 of steamed sweet potatoes 🍠 followed by hot yoga. I’ll be P.I.M.P.ing (potato in my purse) throughout the week and ready to be energized when I need it.
This meal plan is super simple and will be balanced with the variety that we’ll feast on in this glorious city.
Stay open ✨ let some magic in ✨and have an amazing week ahead.
JCR xo