I eat some of the most amazing food in the world, and I cook it all myself. This is something I would never have said let alone claimed, even just a few years ago. My delicious diet is forever getting yummier and yummier and so much easier, simpler and more fun to make. In fact, I made a meal this morning; it was super delicious food to eat and super yummy in the body. My food is nothing special, anyone can make it. Yet my diet is free of dairy, wheat (and other similar grains), alcohol, caffeine, chocolate, sugar, excessive salts, yeast and many other things considered ‘normal’ to eat. When I present the simplicity and yumminess of my food, people often find it hard to understand that my diet is free of almost everything (not quite, though 🙂 ) that you can buy at the supermarket. In fact, I often skip whole aisles at the supermarket because almost everything in that aisle has something in it I choose not to eat! It’s not the fact that my food is so super yummy that people find hard to grasp. Nope, it is the fact that I can make soups, curries, dips, crackers, pancakes, smoothies, roasts, salads and lots of other things from an ever expanding range of foods I cook.
FAQ’s ABOUT MY SUPER DELICIOUS DIET AND MY CHOICE TO EAT DAIRY AND GLUTEN FREE
When I have been asked what’s in my diet, what it is that I eat and why I eat the things I do choose to eat, I have often said, “Well, because I am dairy and gluten free”. I came to realise the other day that I have been using this as a way of ‘freeing’ (pun intended) myself from the responsibility of presenting the real reason I choose to eat the things I do. Most people who are ‘gluten and dairy free’ don’t actually want to be gluten and dairy free. Most of the people I talk to that are, hate it and think it is a curse. Many actually want to be eating gluten and dairy as part of their diet, when their body is clearly telling them that it is not OK for it when they do so.
As a society we tend to class people in a separate category, like in the ‘gluten and dairy free’ box, if they exhibit extreme signs of a condition as a result of being intolerant to gluten or dairy. We often don’t connect with the reality that maybe our bodies do signal to us the signs of gluten or dairy intolerance on a much less extreme scale.
For instance, in my experience gluten and dairy dulls the body. It makes me heavy, bloated and leaves me feeling very lethargic and not very vivacious. Not to mention the fact that for me now, food containing gluten and dairy just doesn’t seem to have the same yumminess as food I have come to make that doesn’t contain it at all. So by choice I do not have gluten and dairy in my diet. Simple. I could class myself as ‘gluten and dairy free’, but in truth a more correct way for me would be to say “My diet is free of dairy and gluten”, as it recognises the fact that my diet is based on a choice to eat foods I feel honour and support me and my body as I work throughout my day… resulting in a very simple yummy and delicious diet! My diet is so super yummy, not only because the food actually tastes so super good, but also because the food is what my body actually needs to support it throughout the entire day.
In my experience, dairy and gluten (not to mention the other things my diet is now free of, like alcohol), inhibits the body and its natural flow during the day. It does not support it but rather abuses and harms it.
Want proof of this? Well, have a pie, or cake or huge slab of chocolate. Enjoy the taste, sure. But feel the body afterwards. Actually stop and feel it. Be honest…
- Does your body feel racy?
- Does it feel heavy or bloated?
- Do you feel alive and ready to work?
- Do you feel that chocolate bar that was so super deliciously yummy supports your body going through the day?
Some people have asked me if I ever get tempted to have a treat day and binge out on those ‘bad foods’ I used to have, like chocolate. My answer: “Nope, never”. The reason: because my food now is so super yummy that there would be no reason to! And after all, why on earth would I ever go back to wanting to feel bloated, heavy, lethargic, slow, unproductive, abusive (to the body) and all the other symptoms I – and many others – get from eating foods that are clearly harmful to the body, let alone lacking in what the body truly needs to support it in its activity? How do I make my delicious diet of super scrumptious, delicious and divinely yummilicious food?… Not from a cook book per se, but from listening to my body. It’s that simple. Forever inspired by the work of Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine. By Josh Campbell, 20, University Student, NZ
I am listening to my body too Gill and I can tell that around 2:30 pm I start to crave sugar and I look at my watch and see the time it’s like an alarm going off. It’s around this time that most people start to crave sugar I heard it is something to do with our circadian rhythms it’s a low point in the afternoon. In the past I would have felt the cravings and had a cup of tea and a few biscuits or something with sugar to give me a spike of energy. Now I know what is occurring I do not fall for the temptation.
Thank you for this blog as it is written as an honouring to your body and how amazing it is when it is not feeling bloated or lethargic. We often eat without any thought to how our bodies will feel in fact I can honestly say I never stopped to consider the effects food would have on my body I just ate or drank because I could. I never stopped to consider the effects over indulging in alcohol had on my body. I knew I felt dreadful the next day suffering with a hangover but it didn’t stop me from doing the same thing again. Looking back I was so checked out of my body I was allowing another energy to run it one that had no consideration or compassion for me. It is a great lesson not to check out because I had no say in what was checking in!
Most of the time when people ask me why I tend to resort to saying “I get violent diarrhea” and the intention is to kill the conversation then and there and it does work. However, reading this has got me questioning this. Do I have to kill the conversation or can I just claim that I make different choices and be cool with that…
I love going into a supermarket and knowing that most things in there I would not eat, I head straight for the fresh fruit and veg – life is actually so more simple when we take away that which is not required.
The more aware we are of the effect different food has on our body the greater the awareness of the effect of the preparation, cooking and how and when we eat.
Love how you celebrate that not only is your diet free of gluten and dairy but you are free of the desire to consume these substances that have a negative impact on your body and instead enjoy your ‘diet of super scrumptious, delicious and divinely yummilicious food’.
Beautiful blog Joshua, I too have been listening to my body more and more. It is super sensitive and when it comes to food, I can feel tired if I eat too much yummy food, eat something salty, sweet or fried foods. It really is very simple, when we listen to our body it will guide us to eating in a way that deeply nurtures our body.
This is a work in progress for me. Yes I am also gluten/dairy free but I also find ways to eat food that leaves me bloated and dull. Some days I eat to nourish and other times I eat to numb. I know my body loves the nourish over the numb and I am working through the reasons why I choose to numb at times.
Most people would say for the best foods they have to go to a restaurant and eat out but, as you shared too, I do love the food I pepare and think it is my favourite! And it is all very simple without a recipe just from what feels true to eat that day.
I love your opening line and it made me reflect and appreciate how much more I honor myself through how I eat and how amazing I feel as a result. I have always been conscious of what I ate and how I felt to a degree but then I would knowingly override it and indulge in foods that made me feel unwell, persevering all the same. The more I began to honor my body and was honest with what I was feeling the less I wanted to pollute it and my diet and how I choose to nourish my body naturally changed to be one that supports me more to feel and live with far greater vitality consistently.
I agree with what you have shared Carola by wanting to honour what my body is telling me the tendency to eat foods that I now know will upset it’s natural rhythm is less and less. Its because the feeling I have in my body is so utterly gorgeous that there is no way I want to disturb it.
What I am experiencing more and more is that it is not only the food I eat that determines how I feel afterwards, but how much is influenced by how the food is prepared and what the conversation is during eating.
The more love and attention there were there during cooking, the better it tastes and the easier my body digests it.
Fascinating Monika, that how you feel when you have eaten is determined by so much more than just the food you ate. Im sure its highly likely that even the way we shop for our food has an impact as well. Great to be aware of all these other factors, and not blame it all on the food that we ate when we dont feel so good after we ate it.
‘Most people who are ‘gluten and dairy free’ don’t actually want to be gluten and dairy free. Most of the people I talk to that are, hate it and think it is a curse. Many actually want to be eating gluten and dairy as part of their diet, when their body is clearly telling them that it is not OK for it when they do so.’
So true, almost all the people I have met hate their diet, whereas when choosing to not eat certain foods because they don’t go down well in your body it is actually very empowering and not a curse at all.
A wise woman once said: eat light to be light. In the beginning they were just words to me, but now I can clearly feel what foods are heavy for my body and make me dragged, move differently with less bounce in my step and think more complicated.
Feeding ourselves nutritious healthy foods that honours our individual body’s needs makes so much sense, ‘My diet is so super yummy, not only because the food actually tastes so super good, but also because the food is what my body actually needs to support it throughout the entire day.’
Simple foods and a simple diet serves our bodies ability to heal its-self.
I agree Joshua, if people hear I am on a gluten free and dairy free diet they often feel pity or the need to commiserate, but I don’t feel I’m missing out on foods, because I’m not missing the awful symptoms both gluten and dairy gave my body.
I love the foods I eat, they are real, alive, not processed, or from a packet, ‘How do I make my delicious diet of super scrumptious, delicious and divinely yummilicious food?… Not from a cook book per se, but from listening to my body. It’s that simple.’
Our relationship with food as a civilisation has certainly veered very much away from being that which nourishes and refuels our body in order to be able to move with greater vitality, to that which seems to be focused on rewards, entertainment and escaping with flavours taking over from nutritional value and the impact of what we are consuming has on our body and being. Our bodies are an incredible vehicle that offer us the opportunity to live in connection to an awareness or intelligence that is ‘out of this world’ divine, and when this had been tangibly glimpsed we realise that the only thing that we are missing out on is living in connection to more of that awareness.
The more we nourish the body with food that is loving and supportive the more the body speaks volumes of the vitality we can live. Our choices are given in each moment to feel and fuel what is asked.
It is not rocket science but the simple science of feeling the body with what brings more Love to all we do.
There is eating for reward and then there is eating for the sustenance and nutrients that the body needs. And personally I find that eating for reward is satisfying at the beginning, but always leaves me feeling yuck at the end, which isn’t really much of a reward after all….
I agree – I never thought that I would be involved most days in the cooking of our food either but it is actually worth it.
What I find is that it is not just about what you eat but the quality that it is prepared in. Often now when I go out to restaurants rarely does it measure up to the quality of food that I eat at home. I used to be a serial fast fooder and my weight and health paid the consequences for those choices, now I love cooking and preparing food in a way that I know I love.
I agree – the hardest part of preparing really nice food in a supportive way is not to each too much of it.
Listening to ones body that will say it is full is more Loving than eating yuummmmy and nice foods. Hm I most take this onboard!
I am holidaying in Vietnam with my husband at the moment and the locals are amazed by the simple way we eat. Eliminating food from ones diet does not equal restriction, it actually opens up a world of true freedom.
Thank you Joshua, what a gorgeous blog – so real, raw, honest and straightforward. We need to approach our lives and choices with more honesty and see what it is we are actually feeding? Are we truly feeding the body in its purpose or are we entertaining the need of our greedy neediness of our spirit?
Love the way you back yourself Joshua. True yummy food is not the party-in-the-mouth that we think it is, but eating just what your body needs. Then the yummyness spreads so it’s not just in the food but in yummy you.
When we start feeling the effects certain things have on our body and remove them from our diet and cut out things like salt and sugar it is quite amazing how simple foods start tasting pretty amazing. I was just munching on some lettuce a while back and couldn’t believe how sweet it tasted whereas in the past I would only eat lettuce swimming in mayo.
When someone appears challenged by my dietary choices I quite often subsequently learn that they are ignoring the messages from their own bodies about one or more of the substances I no longer choose to eat so they do not want to be reminded of this and can react negatively because of this.
My diet is also free of many ingredients that so many seem to feel are essential to the enjoyment of consuming food but what it definitely now includes is the choice to take care of my body and all it communicates with me.
I have also left behind all things that do not support my body. If something should slip in, the body wastes no time to inform me of its presence. In the past, the signals were always there but had been overridden and ignored.
When present with our essence it is remarkable how much our bodies are informing us of what foods are supportive.
It’s not that one can skip whole aisles in the supermarket, it is that one can actually skip along those aisles 🙂
Supermarkets are good for exercise if raining and you want to go for a walk. Nowadays the farmers market is the right size and has almost everything we require.
What a great way to start the day with your explanation of yummy food and I agree a diet free of gluten, dairy, sugar, salt, alcohol and caffeine definitely does all the things you have shared and may I add that it allows me to work to be of service to others. Making the way of eating not just to serve my body but also to humbly share there is a different way and that it can be as simple as you have shared Josh.
Having lived for many years abusing my body with the food I was eating I now, like you Josh, choose to nurture and nourish it instead, and boy is this new level of love and care worth it. These days the experience of having a few seconds of taste pleasure in my mouth is definitely not worth the day or two of misery in my body that will inevitably follow if I eat something that it cannot deal with. Living in harmony with my body is the foundation for living in harmony in my life.
Thank you Josh, eating and living in a way that supports our body is a very joyful way to live. I have found listening to the body and respecting its signals for what is or is not good for it has helped my health and wellbeing, which means not wanting or needing foods that are harmful but might give me a lift, buzz or comfort temporarily. Particularly taking care of my sleep pattern and reducing causes of exhaustion, as well as healing emotional hurts and trauma with the Universal Medicine Therapies has changed my relationship with food.
It has become normal to think it is normal to feel like sleeping after a big meal or not being able to do much afterwards but what if this is actually a sign from our bodies that says this food is not for me? There are foods out there that we can eat and feel nourished by without the heaviness and sleepiness afterwards so why not choose those?
I can’t get over how good a plain lettuce leaf can taste these days, I used to have to smother lettuce in mayo to be able to eat it but the more we remove things like salt and sugar and simplify cooking the more we can appreciate the natural taste of foods.
I’m the same Joshua free from ALL those harming foods and substances. There is no way I could have done this without the esoteric modalities – they bring a state of harmony back to the body that I don’t want to disrupt and only confirm with super-delicious food that I cook daily. Boyaa ! Universal Medicine!
Having a diet that suits your body exactly is a very precious thing because this is supportive not only for the digestive system but also for one’s confidence too.
Most importantly eating great and healthy food FEELS amazing, for me food is a question of how I want to feel – do I want to feel amazing or do I want to eat whatever I want?
While I have been gluten and dairy free for years I have struggled with sugar. I have used this as a ‘pick me up’ but in truth it leaves me feeling more irrational, exhausted and struggling to get through the day. Recently I have taken all sugar out of my diet and it has been intense- the withdrawals, dizziness, cravings, moods- its all coming up as I detox myself off of this, well you could say- drug.
Our body communicates to us loud and clear what it is feeling in any given moment we choose to listen to it – so why do we all too often choose to ignore what it is exactly telling us?
I love being gluten and dairy free, the way I feel in my body after eating and my ability to cope with the day and with whatever is in front of me is way more important than the taste in my mouth and the adverse effects many great tasting foods have on our body for days, if not weeks afterwards.
When people hear me say I am gluten, diary, sugar, salt, alcohol etc free diet – their response is often -‘what do you eat then?’
Even the word ‘diet’ alone makes them go into reaction of it having restrictions and fear of missing out on foods. There is this expectation that I have severe bodily reactions for me to exclude these items in my eating style but there is no comprehension that the tell tale signs are always there – its a matter of choice whether we listen or not.
And when you mentioned you ‘skip’ whole aisles – it is something I often do. Many of the packaged foods have hidden ingredients unless you are a vigilant shopper and literally read every packaging whilst you shop.
Like you I prefer the simple fresher foods and add my quality to it – I know what’s in it and what I am serving my body.
Yes, I too have observed the same reaction in people when I say I don’t eat some so common foods like gluten and dairy. In the beginning I reacted too by contracting and hiding myself for me to not being asked about my diet, but this wasn’t the solution. Now I honour my food choices and if someone asks me, I naturally express the reasons. The reactions usually remain, but I realise that there is a reason for that. Some people feel exposed with their careless choices and this makes them feel uncomfortable. Some people have never questioned their diet and this opens up a new option for them. Some people have the opportunity of discovering a different approach that may enrich their growing healthy food choices… In any case, I love living this naturally now, respecting myself as I do so to others, knowing that what I live and share makes a difference not only in my life.
What we don’t realise is food can also affect the connection to our being (our essence), but once we live separated from our essence then food can become a comfort we strongly hold onto – the thought of living without certain foods and drinks can feel awful. But the truth is once we can reconnect to our essence, to the true self within, the joy of that cannot be matched by any outer experience, and eating to love our body and remain in connection to ourselves is part of living that joy. We truly deeply miss ourselves and letting go of harmful foods is no big deal when we consider the bigger picture of the misery that comes from having let go of our true selves.
True – eating without using gluten, dairy, salt or sugar, etc. is super yummy and I am forever amazed how much choice there actually is and how many different ways I can come up with to put things together differently.
What disappears, over time and this is a learning process, is the identification with food as ‘culture’ and I get to feel more that it is nothing but a very dense consciousness, trying to tell us, mainly, that whatever sells, is also good for us. And that is, when listening to the body and checking out the supermarket aisles, very far from the truth.
I love food and cooking and I never thought I would say that. Since I have changed to a GF, DF, Sugar Free, caffeine and alcohol free diet, something amazing has changed within me. The simpler my diet the more I love and celebrate the gorgeous natural colour, flavours and appreciation cooking brings me
The belief that healthy and nutritious food doesn’t taste as good is a million miles from the truth – I would go as far as to say it actually tastes better, the rumour that to eat foods that actually support our body do not taste as good is simply a great excuse that we use to not make the right choices.
Great article Josh on loving your body in respect to your daily food choices. the body knows what supports and nourishes it, we will know if we choose to listen and choose foods that give us vitality and what foods deplete us of energy, for me gluten and dairy are definitely out.
What a beautiful and loving testimony to the dietary choices you make Joshua; very inspirational, thank you.
Initially it can seem very daunting to consider letting go of the accepted ‘normal’ foods containing gluten, dairy sugar etc. or how such food can ever be delicious. However, with perseverance and truly acknowledging how one’s body feels rather than the taste it then becomes a ‘no-brainer’, as you describe Joshua. My diet has now become so simple yet it is so full of flavour and I feel revitalised and nourished from it.
When we start to reconnect with who we truly are, we naturally develop a more intimate relationship with food that supports our bodies and reflects the lightness, simplicity, and yumminess within ourselves.
Another key factor in no longer desiring particular foods (that once were craved for, absolutely…), is the healing of what was underlying the need for a ‘pick up’ or ‘reward’ in my day. Sacred Esoteric Healing has immensely supported my body to let go of that which had me feeling emotionally up and down in life, and lacking in vitality – and seeking ‘pick ups’ to keep me going and/or try to engender a change of mood.
For the better part, we are undoubtedly brought up to think of such choices as ‘normal’ – but are they really? When that chocolate bar and/or double shot of coffee will actually leave us more depleted than prior to having it, once the immediate rush tapers off…
You’ve highlighted such an important distinction in regards to our dietary choices here Josh – and that’s actually that many make the ‘gluten & dairy free’ choice in and by a choice of deep respect and honouring of oneself and one’s body.
It can be hard for some to grasp… but I also feel not one iota of restriction in regards to having removed these things from my diet. In fact, you could put the most delectable (to most) dark chocolate tart under my nose today and nothing in me wants or desires it whatsoever!
Reflecting back on how I used to be, this is truly astounding in many ways… And yet, I ‘get it’ – having confirmed what does support my body and the clarity and indeed joy I feel within through such choices over time, the old wants and desires have dropped away… How amazing it is, that our bodies can lead the way, and that there can be not one drop of feeling I am abstaining or being limited in any way whatsoever.
Me too, I eat less and less food and less and less ingredients and have more and more energy and enjoy what I do eat more and more. We have been fed (pun intended) a lot of lies about food and it is causing a lot of harm.
Ha, ha Nicola, I love your sense of humour. I also agree, we have been fed a lot of lies about food in society but when we listen to our body it is very difficult to be lied to because our body will let us know when something doesn’t sit well.
I agree Josh, when chosen to be gluten, dairy, etc free the meals that I now prepare are so much more delicious and the choice of ingredients has expanded and I have so much more fun in the kitchen preparing meals with love and care.
What is interesting is that people do feel that bloated discomfort, and yet to go back to the very thing that has caused the disturbance… Surely we can see beneath the surface eventually and see the deeply addictive nature of what is going on in so many lives and in so many societies
Thank you for this playful celebration of the freedom that is there to be embraced when we choose to listen to our bodies and stop eating foods that do not support it – here’s to ‘divinely yummilicious food’ and the fun that it is to create delicious meals that truly support our bodies throughout the day.
The point you make about missing a number of aisles at the supermarket is interesting. When we look at most aisles in a supermarket, they are actually full of foods that do not support and nourish the human body. Of the food aisles- most are filled with highly processed foods that are high in sugar, salt and other ingredients that we know simply do not support our bodies. Yet the fact that our shopping aisles are full of these foods shows that this is what we are asking for- a diet to numb and dull us from the intensity of the world. If consumers actually wanted a diet to nourish us our supermarkets would look very different as the call for what is supplied would not be the foods we see packed on our shelves currently.
‘Food should be there to nourish us first, and then, secondly it has to taste good, be very yummy as well’ Before buying, preparing or snacking on food we can ask ourselves if this food is nourishing for us and let our bodies tell us before going ahead, ( choosing and thus eating from our head,) . By honouring ourselves in this way we soon get to see how honest we are being about our food choices..
I have found that the tastes that I used to enjoy, like sweet or salty things, I actually find to be really overpowering now that I have simplified what I eat. I realise now that I had dulled a lot of my sense of taste and was not aware of what my food actually tasted like. Now, my taste feels very sensitive to the nuances of food, not just seeking to be overrun by massive tastes.
When we do listen to our body, it is like the ultimate gourmet cookbook… Just waiting there with the most amazing recipes for us to attend to, listened to, prepare and then totally nurture ourselves with.
My diet is similar to yours no dairy, gluten, wheat/grains, alcohol, caffeine or sugar. When you take these things out (I did this not all at once but slowly) you start to get more creative with food. I have still loads to learn with this and do not always feel I am in listening to what my body needs or wants that supports it but I have never felt so clear and strong within my body as I do now. So yep totally agree, and feel that we all know this but don’t want to admit it, how food and drink can either support our bodies or not.
Josh it’s great to come back to your blog and feel the inspiration it gives. I have really refined my diet over the last year, and it’s now so obvious if I eat anything that has gluten, I can feel the tiredness and bloated straight away. Just with dairy too it goes to my sinus and headache. It’s so clear from the body that it does not like the food. If I continue to indulge then the full blown symptoms come on.
I love it Joshua, listening and honouring our body’s wisdom, and the simplicity this brings.
I really appreciate what you offer here in the different expression: Choosing to eat a diet free of gluten and dairy.
It’s simpler, lighter and very clear just like it feels when eating food free of these items.
When we feel what food is doing in our body and listen it is indeed super simple. We know what to eat. There is so much research about what the body needs and people are following diets or advice from so called experts that we forget that we can feel what we need, but this requires an honesty and taking the responsibility for what we put in, in this amazing vehicle.
Since taking gluten and diary out of my diet the variety of different foods I have started to eat has increased tenfold, it’s funny that taking out two food types and listening to my body could have such a huge impact on what I eat.
‘Not to mention the fact that for me now, food containing gluten and dairy just doesn’t seem to have the same yumminess as food I have come to make that doesn’t contain it at all.’ I’ve been eating gluten and dairy free food for such a long time now and like you Josh my cooking and ever expanding menu is just getting more delicious that when I read the sentence above I realised that the idea of eating a pastry or bowl of pasta is completely unappealing as my alternatives are far more delicious and leave me feeling light and invigorated rather than clogged and heavy.
What stood out for me reading this blog again was that as you mentioned many people see being gluten or dairy intolerant as a curse, but their bodies are simply saying that by eating these substances it is an abuse to the body. Alcohol is no different, there can be this perception that we are lesser if we choose to not join in in an activity that is well documented as poisoning our bodies and contributing to many forms of domestic and social unrest and violence.
We perceive that we will be worse off or we are less when we are not enjoining various forms of self-abuse. On one level it totally doesn’t make sense and yet we still do it…To which then I ask myself – are their forms of self-abuse in my life that I feel I would be lesser or worse off or somehow disconnected from others if I loved myself more?
Now that’s what I call a true food enthusiast Joshua… your delight in truly nourishing yourself, not only by food that supports your body, but also by the love of preparing it for yourself too. We eat for so many reasons though, and hence we think we like those foods that in truth, do nothing to really support us.
Why we eat what we do and food in general is a huge area to discuss. We seem as a society to have left behind the concept of food as nourishment, and food is now for reward, consolation, comfort, celebration, entertainment, stimulation, distraction, self punishment, indulgence……the list goes on! Taking it back to what simply works for the body cuts through all the complications we’ve built into eating, and restores it to its true purpose.
I love the concept of listening to your body for it never leads you astray and the reality of your choices cannot but be felt and therefore cannot be denied.
I have noticed that I have fallen for the trap of if it’s healthy than it mustn’t taste as good. I have had to change my diet due to health reasons and found the transition quite difficult as I have always put taste over how I felt after each meal. Thank you Joshua Campbell for highlighting the quality you felt and how that supported you throughout your day. There is definitely a responsibility in making this shift and realising that it all comes back to how the body speaks to us, and our willingness to listen.
Great article Josh. When we choose not to eat certain foods because of the effect we feel in our body we are not denying ourselves anything but nourishing our body and this increases our awareness of everything.
What a beautiful article on food and our ever changing relationship with what and how we eat. Phrasing the way you eat as “I am free of gluten and dairy” feels very free of thinking this is a limitation or restriction to what is eaten.
I agree Joshua it really is very simple, cutting out dairy and gluten and sugar from my diet was easy and gave me so much energy and vitality it was like an instant detox.
This is gorgeous Joshua – I have found myself saying I am GF, DF and SF but realised recently my diet is not about being “free” of these things, it is about eating what makes me feel light, vital, nurtured and loved. I really appreciated your comment – ‘I could class myself as ‘gluten and dairy free’, but in truth a more correct way for me would be to say “My diet is free of dairy and gluten”, as it recognises the fact that my diet is based on a choice to eat foods I feel honour and support me and my body as I work throughout my day… ‘ Great Article Joshua – thank you.
Thank you this is an inspirational read for anyone on or considering a ‘free from…’ way of eating. I know as my food choices have changed over the years my recipes have become more creative as certain foods drop away.
The simplicity you have here in your article, makes so much sense. Putting it in a nutshell, being honest with ourselves, how does each piece of food feel in our body? Does it support the body or not…..taking full responsibility…..being true to ourselves.
Love the simplicity of what you present Joshua, simply choosing to eat in a way that supports the body through food that brings you alive rather than dulls you down!
It is amazing how such a simple diet can support one in their path of personal evolution…. Simplicity does seem to be applicable in many spheres of our lives.
I like the distinction you make between an enforced gluten, sugar and dairy-free diet and a choice to not eat gluten, sugar and dairy that’s made simply out of respecting and honouring the body and doing whatever serves it best. When we seemingly restrict our diet, we then crave what we’ve cut out but when we are able to listen to our bodies in terms of the post-munch effects – rather than the ‘moment on the lips’ – and from there work with the feedback to support the optimisation of the body, then dropping foodstuffs that no longer enhance our vitality is truly no loss.
Getting honest with food is such a challenging thing. I feel like it drives the way we think and move and even the way we interact with the world and our bodies. Yet it’s so often the last area we are willing to look at.
Delicious Blog Josh
I am gluten dairy free also and often get asked ‘can you eat that’? My response is ‘yes I can but I choose not to’. It is so important to not leave out the understanding as to why we choose to do something that feels great for the body. Everyone deserves to know and feel inspired to give it a go if they choose to 🙂
It took me nearly 50 years to actually wise up and get real honest with my food choices. Many of my symptoms of dis-ease came from my food choices and to realise I did not have to follow ‘other promoted slimming diets’ to gain back my vitality, enthusiasm and joy for life – the best diet is one that simply nourishes/supports us from the inside, not letting our past or visual/outside influences misguide our self-nurturing choices. I can truly feel the wisdom that you offer to us all Josh – thank you.
The family’s pantry is very revealing isn’t it …. You can present in a certain way, but all is revealed behind the closed doors of the pantry… and also of course as we evolve energetically , we can watch the change there as well!
Well this was an exposing and inspiring read Joshua! I can see that many times I have wanted to ‘eat the chocolate’ as gluten and dairy does make me quite sick in my body. I have always loved the taste of chocolate and wished it was good for me. Getting sick from these foods felt like a punishment.
When I stopped drinking alcohol I went through something similar but for the past few years I have had absolutely no desire whatsoever to drink alcohol, in fact the thought horrifies me. I can see that eventually I will feel the same way about chocolate if I simply keep allowing myself to feel the truth my body presents.
Things are always changing too. What my body was happy with last year is not what it wants now. We must always be attuned to new developments. This is a different approach to food that does not allow us to go into checking out and automatic pilot when it comes to looking after ourselves. Living this way means we must always be present.
When we really feel how our bodies feel after eating what we eat, the choices become simple. There are cook books that give many great recipes to get started on a diet that many find hard to start on. I know years ago when I discovered I couldn’t eat dairy and gluten, I felt there was nothing to eat, but there are many things that are fun to cook and many recipes that are fun to try. After a while, you feel so good that there is no way you would want to go back. The feeling in your body trumps the taste of anything.
“Not from a cook book per se, but from listening to my body. It’s that simple”. Yes Josh it is that simple, being discerning by listening to our bodies and responsible by following the messages given. You obviously do this and then produce some delicious meals; very inspiring.
Keeping the menu fresh, simple and light is the way to go. Always interesting and with contrasting flavours, textures and colours makes for amazing meals every day.
Growing up in Melbourne, I always loved the experience of going out to a café or restaurant but gradually this has dropped away because for one, I just love the realness of being with people at home and two, the care, love and presence I bring to my food preparation, not to mention the carefully chosen ingredients, are unsurpassed. And the more I have claimed this quality of mine, our food has gone to a whole new level and my family feel incredibly nourished. This level of care is often not possible in a commercially oriented enterprise.
Dear Josh
I love the playful simplicity and absoluteness in your blog. Being a real foodie, it has taken me 3 years of really dedicating myself to this work before I was able to reach a place of choosing lightly because it genuinely felt like a clear choice. As such, I am able to be a great support for others in a similar struggle because I know it inside out. It is a beautiful feeling to not NEED food, or particular types of food, and it is worth all of the letting go to arrive at a place of feeling genuinely light and vital, every day. But it does require commitment and a whole lotta self loving.
I love this line “I could class myself as ‘gluten and dairy free’, but in truth a more correct way for me would be to say “My diet is free of dairy and gluten”” – when we base our food choices on how our bodies feel, I find there are no restrictions, but a simple offering of choice as to either supporting our bodies or harming them…
“My diet is free of dairy and gluten”, I love the way you have phrased this. It feels closer to the truth of your choice. I too elect a diet that is free of dairy, gluten, sugar and yeast products and it feels fantastic. My body, confirmed by my doctor, is doing extremely well on this, and as you say the variety of food feels like it is increasing rather than diminishing and my taste buds seem much more alive too which means that I really appreciate every morsel.
At first, I was very cautious about not eating gluten or dairy, almost like I thought I was breaking some kind of laws against making decisions that were out side of what was considered the norm. However, once my body had a few months without those ingredients, and I got to feel how light and with so much more vitality I was feeling, the choice to go back to gluten or dairy seemed an illogical one. Staying with my choice just made sense because of how it felt in my body.
What you have shared Shami is a beautiful way of understanding ourselves and our bodies. It is very empowering to choose to eat based on the body and its communication through these experiences instead of just giving our power to what we have been told is the way to be in the first place
I like that you’ve clocked how we can avoid standing up and being counted for actually choosing not to have certain food types in our diet – just by conveniently riding on the crest of the wave of current quasi-fashionable food intolerances and allergies. It means we don’t fully express the power of the choice we have taken, nor the responsibility we’ve exercised in support of our own vitality. It’s like we’re somehow ashamed of the conviction we truly have and the dedication to our bodies that we live. By saying it as it is, that we’re opting not to eat certain foods simply because they do not optimise our bodies, we may well inspire others to begin to listen to their own bodies and make more supportive choices too.
So true Cathy. I have noticed how much pressure there can be from those around us and the enormous impact it can sometimes have to claim that there is a particular type of food you no longer eat or now choose to eat in a certain way. It is actually very very small in the details of our entire life yet it can become a huge focus point for many as food can be a very very safe and secure comfort that is rocked when we feel another taking more responsibility with their eating choices.
This is so true Rebecca. It feels like a comfort to hold back when the feeling of a reflection of truth is needed. It is an awaking opportunity for them
It’s so true that people tend to be surprised when I tell them that I don’t eat gluten or dairy by choice. As you say, it would be so easy to settle for the ‘gluten and dairy free’ label, or say that I have an allergy. Sometimes I do say this if it gets me understood in a restaurant or something, but if I am having a conversation with someone who really wants to know it is so important to be truthful about why I choose not to eat these foods. It introduces a new way of living and a new awareness that we can all choose to have.
Not only is my food very simple this days, just like yours Josh, but my shopping is incredibly simple as well. And I love the fact that I skip whole aisles in the supermarket, aisles that I used to spend a whole lot of time in; it certainly cuts down my shopping time and makes for stress free shopping as well. Yes, I love my diet of “super yummy and delicious food”!
Yes my shopping has become very simple too, I know what I want and like to eat so I do not need much time in the supermarket either. The aisles that I used to get a bit stuck in were the aisles with cookies and chocolate with all the flavours and different kinds, it definitely saves time not eating them anymore and my body feels much lighter too!
I had not considered this simple fact that my time in supermarkets these days is much more purposeful. Another thing to appreciate. Thank you Ingrid.
I so enjoy what you share with us all Josh. I totally agree the simpler the food the more amazing it tastes. Having in the past read mountains of cook books, my eyes visualising the results, spent hours preparing these culinary delights only, to feel the heavy results in my body moments later after consuming. Not listening to my body but allowing myself to be influenced by the pretty pictures is a thing of the past. To eat what simply supports our bodies, nourishing and nurturing is definitely the way forward – and very tasty too.
Eat ‘a pie, or cake or huge slab of chocolate. Enjoy the taste, sure. But feel the body afterwards.’ It is worth considering that if you eat a diet and foods all the time that your body cannot tolerate your body gets used to feeling less that it could with a cleaner more supportive diet appropriate for your bodies individuals needs. It’s a vicious circle because this lessened state also becomes the norm that you feel everyday so you don’t question it.
Great blog Josh – yes, our bodies are great recipe books in their own right if we are prepared to listen and read the instructions/directions being constantly offered.
I also choose to be gluten, dairy, alcohol and sugar free because of the ill effect it has not only on my body but also my state of mind
Lovely Josh. The selection of foods we can eat when on a gluten and dairy free diet is not minimised that much at all, and are super yummy and nourishing, not to mention the most natural looking foods (like salads, roasts, vegetables, fruits, nuts etc) I also really like how you mentioned that there is a lot to be aware of in terms of how food really makes us feel. There are a lot of foods which do make us dull, and to be honest about how we are feeling is a good step in our relationship with food.
This is an inspiring blog Josh. I have been a bit lax at times and have some sweet tasting foods and always regret it soon after, my body feels heavy and sickly feeling in stomach. I am needing to experiment more with different foods and often enjoy the foods if friends share a meal with me for a change, a great way to taste new flavour combinations too and try them for myself. Thank you for sharing Josh.
Finding out what food supports us … Dianne Trussel’s articles are well worth a read in finding out just how attuned our bodies can be
I absolutely love this blog Joshua. It amazes me how we are taught to think that we treat ourselves with a food that dulls us and makes us feel heavy. A real treat would be to eat something that supports us is being all of who we are.
There is no doubt that gluten and dairy have adverse affects on our health however it may take a few months or even longer for the body to clear and in that time we may find spots occurring or symptoms worsening as the body clears. I know it is easy for some to give up at this point choosing to believe that this is a bad thing and that they need to return to their old ways. Being consistent with our food choices over time allows us to really see what is going on – and sometimes it is not until we have been without these substances for some time that we become aware of the benefits to our health and well-being.
Thank you Josh for sharing your experience, I also agree with you , I feel so much better in my health since going gluten and dairy free. People don’t often feel what the body is telling them when we eat unhealthy food because it is often the sugar rush or the dumbing down that we are looking for, and beyond these we are often not interested, until of course an illness comes along for us to then pay attention to the body.
Great blog Josh – I have loved learning to cook a greater range of foods and actually eat far more foods now than before I chose to be more discerning in the choices I made around what to eat and drink. I also find it crazy that we have been in the habit of eating and drinking without being aware of and listening to what is happening in our bodies as a result! Food is an everyday medicine and we have the opportunity to provide what our bodies are asking for if we but listen.
It’s interesting isn’t it that saying I’m gluten and dairy free by choice has created a backlash. I know I hate confrontation and argument and say I am allergic to those things. I am, however I know that these days I would choose not to eat them. All the same I shrink from other people’s reactions when I have to state it. Yet life without those thing and the other foods I avoid, is so much lighter and lovely. I could be telling people this if they challenged me on my choices. I have also found when I am solid in my choices and stop apologising for them, that the opposition falls away. That empty place that doubted my right to choose has been filled by my right to be the person I want to be.
Josh one thing I have noticed, now that I have also refined my diet to ‘super simple’ like yours is that the treats from the past actually taste terrible in the mouth and disastrous in the body, such is the truth my body now can reveal and how numb it was before.
Josh what a great fun blog to read, you make it so enticing everyone will want to eat your food! and I have never read so many Yummies in a blog before its great, your passion truly shines out.
I loved reading your delicious blog Josh and thanks for the great tip on how you respond when asked about your way of eating. It never ceases to amaze me how something so simple can make such a huge difference
I love the simplicity of your way of life Josh. Most people focus on the elimination of foods as deprivation. When I chose to stop eating gluten some years back I noticed that my way of eating was very healthy because I was now exposed to many new foods that my body loved, and the diversity of ingredients was much greater. I realised it was a blessing but if I had a resentful attitude about it I may never have taken the steps to enjoy the new adventure of discovering my new diet. I also noticed that I felt so great with my new style of eating I could not understand the sympathy people would express when they heard I was “gluten free”. We rely very heavily on foods instead of whether or not our body simply feels wonderful.
Some people think that you’re deprived and can’t imagine not eating chocolate, dairy, gluten, etc., etc. but my body can’t thank me enough for steering clear of all the heavy, dulling, stimulating choices out there. There’s nothing better than having fresh produce beautifully prepared – the grocery bill is massively reduced, not to mention not ingesting all the additives that are placed in processed food and I no longer experience cravings – something I thought I would always be living with.
That’s a good point Deborah McKay, I hadn’t really considered all the additives I would have been ingesting. All those random numbers on the back of the pack are actually chemicals which if I saw laid out before me I would definitely not choose to eat, but when all mixed together and package up I would blindly consume. And yes fresh produce beautifully prepared is definitely my bodies choice.
I too have noticed, I have no cravings anymore either, since I chose to not consume, dairy or gluten in my body anymore……. it feels awesome !!!
Josh you are super inspiring and you’re food sounds amazing. I love how you have discovered what is harmful and unsupportive and decided not to override the feelings and reactions you receive and instead listen to the innate wisdom from your body and the guidance it give you towards foods that will truly support you.
I love that you are claiming that your food is delicious Josh, it inspires us all to do the same, rather than justifying almost in an apologetic way, why one chooses not to eat certain foods. Rather claiming how vital and energetic one feels for choosing to eat in a particular way. Which can then inspire others to do the same for themselves.
Great point Josh, about telling people you’re gluten and dairy free, rather than telling people why you don’t choose to eat these food. I feel I am playing it safe and holding back telling people that I’m gluten and dairy free, as I’m not telling them the full story and my experience of how these foods adversely affect my body and moods.
“Not to mention the fact that for me now, food containing gluten and dairy just doesn’t seem to have the same yumminess as food I have come to make that doesn’t contain it at all.” I still am amazed at this, as I feel the same. I also do not eat gluten and dairy anymore since a couple of years. Since then my food has become so delicious and full of nourishment that I would not choose any of the gluten and dairy again.
There are many foods I don’t eat too, often I get asked “Is this your choice” or “Are you actually allergic”. I always answer people when they ask me these questions and share the understanding of why it supports me to eat this way. But I often wonder… does it matter if I am allergic or not? One’s choice deserves the same level of respect whether they have choice it or have been diagnosed by a Doctor.
Such a good point Abby, what is the difference if we choose to not eat something from choice or from an allergic reaction of the body?
I get funny looks sometimes Abby, when I get asked…. am I celiac and I say no I’m not, I just choose, to not eat gluten. Sometimes I go into reasons why. Some people give me such a weird look. So I fully understand, what you mean when you say, we all deserve the same level of respect whether we have been diagnosed by a doctor or if we choose to cut it out of our diets. But could it be possible that it is so foreign to them, as it is so normal in our society to eat gluten and dairy, even if it is damaging to the body? That for someone to choose, to not consume them is just weird…..cause we’re not doing the normal thing. We’re making a choice to be outside of the box and listen to what our body is truly expressing to us. Could that also then, be reflecting back to them, where they are not making true choices for themselves?
People around me often find my diet very strange given, that I don’t have a diagnosed medical condition but there is no way I want to go back to putting my body through the abuse that I used to by what I was eating. Like you Josh, I usually don’t follow a recipe and often devise or adapt my own recipes which mostly turn out quite yummy. Meals while travelling can be a bit difficult but otherwise, I find there is a simplicity in preparing my own meals these days and grocery shopping is much more streamlined.
An inspiring declaration of your solid level of care for your body Josh. When I first trialled my diet without gluten or diary the results were obvious, and although later I was diagnosed I am not intolerant to gluten, what my body told me and continues to tell me if I do eat it, can not be denied so I know who I’m better off listening to.
JOSH YOU ARE AMAZING! So young and so wise, you inspire me to be more adventurous in the kitchen and I thank you.
Josh the joy that you feel when you cook is infectious, I love how you don’t see not having gluten and dairy as a problem, these were choices you made for yourself, not because you were ill or intolerant to these foods but because you could feel what they were doing to your body and how they were affecting your day.
I love this article Josh – food can be such a trigger for people, and many find it hard to understand how we can give up things like sugar, dairy, gluten and alcohol when these foods are so abundant in our lives today. I too used to eat lots of bread, cakes and dairy foods loved red wine, but often would feel quite unwell after eating/drinking them but I never associated how I felt with what I had eaten. It wasn’t until Serge Benhayon presented the possibility that these foods could be having a direct impact on our bodies that I became aware of the association. But I didn’t stop eating them there and then. I just started to listen more intently to my body and to how I felt. Overtime I realised that by leaving certain foods out of my diet and introducing delicious new ones I felt much more energetic and vital. It was a revelation! And like you say Josh, my diet too is now incredibly simple and incredibly yummy!
It is rare these days to see youth choosing to eat in not only a healthy way but a truly loving way. The more people become open to listening to their bodies once again and honouring what it says the more the world will see what true freedom living in this way truly is.
I have always found that when we go to picnics with our children and their friends that the other children will always devour our healthy snacks and meals in preference to the take away meals that they have brought themselves.
Very true Joshua and I often see young children eat healthy foods because their parents make the same choices. So, how we eat as adults/parents does in some way influence our children too. I find teaching our children to listen to their body is so important, it empowers them to make loving choices.
Such a beautiful sharing with us all Josh and so lovely to feel your playfulness and enthusiasm to cook super yummy food. Cooking to what your body requires for nourishment and not from a need. So much of what I ate in the past was governed by what I saw or could smell – whether I needed to eat or not. Now I can also skip certain aisles in the supermarket – getting creative in the kitchen is a delight and to share this food with others is a joy.
Its great Josh that you are so on to it at such a young age. I went for years filling my body with things that are considered normal with no regard to what these things were actually doing to me. I remember always feeling really ill on Christmas day, especially because of what I ate and the amount of it. It’s so great now to have the option of just saying no where as before it was almost mandatory to over indulge in everything. One thing that I notice the most now is the salt content in foods and how awful most foods taste if they have it in them. I used to put both pepper and salt on a boiled egg as that was the way I was shown to eat them, now I can enjoy this wondrous little food for the great taste it is without anything on it.
Love it Josh, Thank you for presenting that your “divinely yummilicious food” is in fact super simple to make. It is for us to have fun with it, and be honest about how our bodies feel. I am also gluten and dairy free – by choice – and I feel to claim it now more and more to let people know that there is a different way, this is me, and it is not a curse 🙂
We have really enjoyed watching the way the family pantry and fridge have “ evolved” over the last 12 years also… And feeling the resultant change and enhancement in our collective energy… If it was graphed it would be a great read out the way the energy goes up as the old addictions go down.
Great comment Chris. I can say the same for myself.. and still evolving. I have kept a food diary at times over the years and seen how the effect of food is so impactual on how I feel and the choices I make and how slow sometimes I am to really accept that a food is, in truth, pulling me down, or making me feel racey. I am now honouring my body by letting IT choose rather than my mind or eating what I feel I ought to eat..
I feel the same about food: since experimenting with not eating gluten and dairy and then continuing because it brought so many benefits to how I feel daily, my diet is going from yum to yummier with no end in sight. I never knew that preparing and eating food could be this enjoyable!
I agree Gabriele…It has made such a difference to my body and life too….. eating gluten, dairy free and truly listening to the truth of my body in what it needs. It thanks me every day. I am so glad I made the choice to do this. I couldn’t even imagine, eating a big fat cream bun now…as I know, it would leave me feeling bloated and so heavy in the body…..I prefer to feel light and enjoy how I feel in my body.
Monica I completely agree with you about how great it is that Josh is so clear when he discusses the fact that for him not eating dairy and gluten are lifestyle choices that he has made willingly. I understand that his intention is not to convert others but none the less they are much more likely to be inspired by a man with such natural vitality.
Josh it’s fascinating for me to consider that I used to be a daily chocolate, cheese and gluten eater. These are foods that I loved. I feel that because I was so out of whack myself that this was reflected in my eating and my eating helped keep me out of whack, which in turn kept me reaching for foods that destabilised me. Now that I feel steady on a day to day level I choose foods that don’t destabilize me.
Super yummy post Josh that has supported me to let go of some old beliefs around feeling I am missing out if my body can no longer tolerate a food I want to eat. Thank you!
Once we discover something great that is life changing, why in the world would we like to go back to the old way if every cell in the body confirms that the new is obviously much better? Eating a diet that is free of gluten and dairy is clear case in point. This is not a matter of preaching. It is simply a matter of trying honestly and feeling what happens.
I loved re-reading this Josh. I am finding that when I share in conversation my diet with others I often initially receive a response this is in sympathy of the struggle it must be, as if I am handicapped. But as I express that my diet is my choice and how it makes me feel to eat in this way, by listening to my body, I find the conversation changes and people start honestly sharing how and what foods affect them. I love this. And through this they also get to feel my vitality and that it is not a handicap at all.
Although not always simple for me when my old addictions and thoughts tempt me to eat food I know will make me feel unwell, it is inspiring to read your blog again Josh.
It encourages me to continue listening to my body, which has all the answers.
Great to read the food choices you are making to support your body. Not eating food that only tastes good and disregard the body. I too can remember eating pasta and then going into a coma sleep afterwards.
“I am dairy and gluten free”, no I prefer to say “My diet is free of dairy and gluten”. By using the second option I feel I am claiming my choice to not eat dairy and gluten, and it feels so much more empowering.
Thanks for highlighting this difference Josh.
I like the emphasis here of choosing not to include gluten and dairy rather than I am gluten and dairy free. I agree it is also a very simple thing to cook yummy food. I also am connecting with how important it is to feel great about myself and my choices when I am eating and how that affects my digestion – it does not feel good to eat foods I ‘should’ be eating. I also want to make the point although it is easy to cook very supportive foods, there are some great simple recipes to follow also, such as on this link – http://www.unimedliving.com/food/recipes
A great article Josh, and it’s awesome isn’t it, when we start to listen to and care for our bodies, we are definite about what we choose to put into them, because how we feel inside, we most definitely want to honour and treat with the upmost respect and love.
A yummy article Josh. When I first started to feel the effect in my body of different foods and choose to not eat gluten and dairy, alcohol etc I used to apologize for being different and as a result it didn’t ring true. I had never enjoyed eating liver, kidneys or offal and just chose to not eat them, no need to apologize, they just made me feel unwell, no questions asked. So this is no different. My choice of what I eat is just that; my choice and all the food I eat is yummy. In fact, I am now much more imaginative with the meals I prepare and cooking is fun.
So true Joshua, I make now too the most delicious foods, much more delicious I would say than before I ate free of gluten, dairy, sugar and alcohol! Eating without those things made me way more creative with foods and try a lot without a recipe. This creates many very delicious meals.
Absolutley Lieke. When we cook from what we feel our bodies need it is far more nourishing and consequently this is far more delicious in many ways.
Great article Josh, thank you.
It’s amazing how many people say “oh gluten doesn’t affect me” or “I could never give up my dairy”. I could have said these things too – but the fact was my body was screaming at me to make changes and I finally listened! I have never looked back – goodbye “allergies”, goodbye bloating, goodbye lethargy and hello to much greater health and vitality. And yes the food is so yummy! Giving up gluten and dairy actually opens your eyes to another whole way of eating – and it’s a nourishing & very tasty way.
Well said, Jo. The body has a lot of wisdom, a lot more than we often give credit to. Takes a lot of humbleness to be real about the fact that maybe gluten and dairy is not truly needed by the body as it reveals we may be attached to having something that is not truly good for us.
What a tasty blog! Simplicity and joy in the kitchen can only feed you back the love you are. Very inspired, I’m off to prepare my breakfast. Thank you Joshua for your enthusiasm, I will certainly present my diet to others in the same light from here on.
Hello Josh, this is a timely blog. I have recently started cooking all my meals. It’s not that I didn’t use to cook at all but I had other people cook for me most of the time. I found that I was wanting different foods at different times of the day and in particular combinations. When I had other people cooking for me I didn’t want to be a pain or inconvenience them and so a lot of the time I would just let them prepare it and I would eat it. The food ticked a box for me, I was hungry and it was dairy and gluten free but something was missing. For me it was the extra care for myself in what I was needing to support me. I love cooking and preparing food and the way this has supported me, it’s been huge.
That is such an interesting shift you describe Raymond where your level of self-love deepens to an extent where you are noticing that whilst convenient for others to cook for you something was missing. Whilst I have always been relieved not to have to cook for myself, I too now appreciate that I can prepare exactly what I am needing for myself to support me in my day.
This is a great point Ray, I can tick all the gluten/Dairy free boxes and still not feel that the food I am eating is truley nourishing me. I have found that for me a lot of the time that the missing ingredient has been love, love in preparing the meal. I have always had such a love/hate relationship with food and my body is now asking for that connection, to really fee what my body needs at that time, not just a gluten/Dairy free meal thrown together.
This makes it so clear that everything we do as an affect. Even having a dish prepared and cooked with love, if we grab it out of the oven and plonk it on the table how does it feel then?
Yum Josh. The simple meals are the best. I have found that my taste buds have dramatically changed and the simple foods, that don’t seem to have a lot of flavour to others, are the yummiest. I’m thinking because it feels so great to eat them, and how I feel after eating them is gorgeous, I don’t need that stimulation from my taste buds as being the only thing that feels good whilst having the meal.
Josh this is awesome, (and I’m coming round to yours for dinner then ha ha). What I enjoyed very much about this blog is the clear conscious busting distinction you make about those who will-fully choose to be free of dairy and gluten in their diet, to those who have a medical condition and quite often are annoyed with things having to be this way, as if to inhibit their enjoyment of food, and themselves too. Agree, there is nothing more satisfying than eating something delicious that truly supports and nourishes the body into its natural lightness and vitality. Nothing bothersome or hindering about that.
I agree Zofia. The fact is as Josh is saying that most see having an allergy to dairy and or gluten as a ‘sentence’ of some kind. I don’t see it as anything but a choice, a choice to support myself and I really enjoy making that choice. I am not inconvenienced or different or anything like that, I just see myself as free, free to make a choice that supports me and it feels great. Thanks Josh, great blog.
Perhaps the most important thing about the food choices I make, it that they are made from a body that is super delicious and scrumptious, before I select, prepare and eat the food. Connecting with the yumminess inside first, is the most important ingredient of any meal. How we can simply connect and live without emotional investment and dependency on anything in life, is the amazingly delicious, fresh and full of variety banquet served up at Universal Medicines courses and workshops.
How inspiring you are for everyone around you who are of the belief that you ‘can’t eat anything’. Kicking goals Joshua!
Since eliminating foods which made me feel bloated, heavy and sleepy I have discovered many benefits – How enjoyable it is to shop for foods that feel healthy and nourishing, shopping is simplified, I enjoy cooking more, I don’t overeat, and nor do I feel tired or uncomfortable after a meal. My body feels lighter and I have more clarity. Thank you for expressing your appreciation for the way you cook Josh, and for your enjoyment of the yummy food. I will take time to appreciate, as you have done here.
Very cool Josh the way you say your food list is constantly expanding, rather than suffering from some limitation. When I choose to eat focussing on the yumminess as you do, then my awareness and enjoyment seems to expand and grow also.
Thank you Josh, I enjoyed reading your point about categorising ourselves with food, identifying ourselves really, by the food choices that we make. What you have given is an alternative to that, a way to be with food and diet that is not about any ill condition or preferred ideal, but rather just about the simplicity of the human body needing what it needs and being met for that with nothing else imposed upon it.
Fantastic that you have claimed this for you. I often find that people say “oh poor kid” when they realise that we don’t eat gluten and dairy at a children’s birthday party. They assume that we are missing out because of our choices. I used to get so many people trying to give us foods that they have found that tick the boxes but have found that the more I claim this for me the less that happens.
Josh, how easy, simple and delicious our food becomes when we listen to the body first. I have found this for myself also. I just LOVE the food I prepare, yet it is very, very simple. It sustains my body and does not leave it wanting a ‘treat’. Thanks for your yummy article.
Josh, why would anyone want to eat dairy, gluten, sugars, chocolate etc after reading this yummy blog! You are right the simpler our diet is the more delicious it is. I very seldom eat anything from a can now as prefer to eat fresh. I too can go down the supermarket aisles choosing very little but really enjoy the local market. It must be a joy for our body to not have to digest all the preservatives and additives in so many foods.
Your playfulness and clear way of writing is a blessing to read Josh Campbell. You helped me with getting a deeper understanding of the fact that my diet is not ‘gluten and diary free’ but that in fact diary and gluten are no part of my diet because I have chosen so. This detail I feel is important to express, since we must not allow our expression to be diminished from the truth that has to be communicated.
This is such an inspiring blog Joshua.
I love the way you so playfully and honestly presented what you eat and the choices you make around food.
Thank you for the beautiful reminder to keep on listening to our bodies as a guide to what we put in our mouths.
I wonder if the reason people think highly sugared or creamy foods taste good is because that’s what their taste buds are used to? The last time a tried chocolate after a big break (years) I found it unpalatable. Same with some other foods I have let go of because as Josh has shared, they made me bloated or tired. I can really understand how foods that are good for the body actually taste good – because when we get to a certain level of wellbeing through making healthy choices, our sensitivity is heightened. So when we taste, we also feel the food and what feels truly nourishing, tastes nourishing as well. I recall this being said in a Universal Medicine presentation years ago – that when we are more sensitive to our feeling, we combine feeling with smell, taste, see, hear, and touch. Perhaps this is a foundational reason why listening to our bodies is so important to making lifestyle changes because they do not remain a discipline or hardship, they just feel right.
Like many I have also chosen to have a gluten, dairy and sugar free diet. I wasn’t aware how those foods had affected me until after I stopped eating them, I thought I had a healthy diet. I was so used to feeling heavy and tired after eating, I thought it was normal. The difference is fantastic that tiredness and bloated feeling has gone and the constant feeling I had to clear my throat from having dairy foods has also gone. I truly enjoy the foods that I have discovered and am still discovering since not eating gluten, dairy and sugar and the simple ways I can prepare a yummy meal. Thank-you Josh for the fun new word you have added to my vocabulary, yummilicious, what a great description of the food I eat these days
So true Joshua. I also used to say I was gluten and dairy free without saying why. Many people would actually ask if it was by choice or from an allergy and thus I had the opportunity to feel for myself and explain why I do not choose to eat gluten and dairy. Like you I never felt it to be a curse, it has actually opened me up to a whole new way of cooking with only foods I and my body like, I deeply appreciate this as my food is really good and yummy for my whole body now. Never a ‘today I have to eat this but I do not like it’ day!
Cooking yummy scummy food is a fantastic way to nurture our selves – super lovely in fact.
I love how playfully you approach your diet (and this blog) and I can feel the pull to step up my expression in claiming that the way I choose to eat is also in a way that truly nourishes me and that I am not depriving myself in any way!
How beautiful, you started this already so early in your life. The level of self-love you present is such an inspiration. Cool, Josh!
Awesome blog Joshua, the yumminess of you oozes out of it! The great way about being aware of how different foods feel in the body is that you not only discover your personal unique diet but that you are never, ever denying yourself anything but instead are giving yourself love and nourishment.
A very enthusiastic and enticing post Josh. People often give me the ‘poor you’ look when and if I mention that I avoid gluten, dairy, chocolate, caffeine and alcohol. This always comes about whilst being offered treats at work or going out to dinner. I always reply with the fact that I feel I am not missing out on anything but have only gained everything by feeling well in my body. I would love to taste some of your yummilicious food sometime!
Awesome blog, Josh, very inspiring. I have compromised a lot in the past, and do it less and less. I enjoyed reading about your enthusiasm around cooking delicious, supporting food. I look forward to future blogs with recipes 🙂
Hi Josh, I can relate to what you write about it being easier to say you’re gluten and dairy free, instead of claiming the choice you made. And even though I am dairy intolerant, I know the harm it does to the body. And even if I wasn’t intolerant I would still not choose to have it.
I can also relate to this. For years I had said that I was gluten and dairy free without really claiming it and I found that people would always make me food that ticked the gluten/dairy free box and I was still in that position of people wanting me to have their food. It wasnt util I really claimed it that people have let it be and dont try to get me to have their food anymore. More so now, they ask for my recipes so they can too enjoy what I make.
Joshua I feel I could invite myself to your table and taste all these yummy foods you prepare with so much love. Abandoning gluten and diary is one of the best things I ever did for my body.
Josh I could feel your passion about food while reading. Very inspiring.
Thanks Josh. I like how you describe your recipes as ever expanding and how cooking/eating healthy food can actuality be enjoyable. I am not sure what to cook sometimes but other times the creativity flows.
I love your blog Joshua. Since I also made the choice for my body to free myself from dairy and gluten, I have found I have so much more variety and fun with what I prepare for my meals. Cooking has become a joyful experience every meal, simple, nourishing and just really super fun. What more could you ask for?
You have very beautifully expressed the truth about eating foods that are truly supportive. Up until I just read your blog I had never acknowledged and appreciated that since I stopped eating sugar, gluten and dairy my diet has also …. actually been….. *Expanding* Wait what?!? Yes …expanding. That is so cool. Thank you for your insight Josh.
Totally puts all of what ‘expanding’ may mean on its head. Expanding the joy, space, love, care, simplicity and support, yet forever refining all of the time. How cool is that!
Awesome Josh! So claimed, and inspiring!
I totally agree Josh, and I do recognize the fact that when I say I am gluten and dairy free I actually don’t take the responsibility to say that it is my choice, and that people will think I am weird, what some people maybe think ;-). But I actually don’t mind, because they get the beautiful me in return because I choose to not numb my body with those foods. And I do recognize as well the enormous yumminess there is within, is with the foods I make, and they are always better than the foods with dairy and sugar I still sometimes choose.
Beautifully claimed Benkt. It really matters not what food we choose so long as it is truly supporting our bodies and us throughout our daily lives.
Hear Hear Joshua…
Cooking from your body is such as great way to cook. I often get a feeling for the main ingredient and then a few others and it is all there with no thought required! I also like your body test idea. Its great to rate how tired or light you feel out of 10 before you eat, then 30 mins or an hour later. The signs are all there if we listen. Our bodies really are delicate despite the way we think we can treat them.
Hey Josh, I love your sharing on your super yummy foods. I also choose not to eat gluten, dairy, sugar etc as you have mentioned and don’t miss it either. I am not tempted to eat many of the foods that I used to eat, because I know how it makes me feel in my body and I now value too much how light and lovely my body feels to choose otherwise.
“My diet is based on a choice to eat foods I feel honour and support me and my body as I work throughout my day” – so simple. There is a belief largely held that says ‘moderation in everything’ and if you are not able to digest or react to certain food, it should be cured; if you are choosing not to eat certain food, you are being too sensitive, too picky, too complicated. Funny how our minds want to ignore and override what our body says when in fact it is the body that ends up dealing with whatever we put in.
I agree, Josh, I am often amazed at how delicious and yummy my food is now that I honour my body and listen to it. Before I was so focussed on satisfying the taste buds that I took no time to consider whether the food was the most supportive food that I could offer my body. Sometimes I sense that people are sorry for me that I no longer choose to eat wheat and dairy, but I now I enjoy it so much that I would not choose to change.
A very inspiring blog Joshua, thank you.
Your passion for great food that supports your body is evident in everything that you have written in your blog. Cooking, for me, has always been a chore but now I experiment with different foods and flavours and have created some very interesting and ‘yummy’ dishes without gluten, yeast, dairy or eggs, all of which make my body feel heavy, bloated and nauseous.
Every meal is an experiment, letting go and forever appreciating what foods come naturally from our bodies.
Delicious !
I agree, it makes such a big difference in the body to eat what I feel is good for me. I love that you describe that cooking is such fun and simple !! Good reminder !
It is so true to “skip whole aisles” in a supermarket, isn’t it? I love it because it is so quick to shop (except when I want to try something new and need to read the whole label!). When I used to be asked how I could maintain gluten & dairy free diet, my answer was that I always focused on what I could eat and did not think about what I chose not to eat. As written by Josh, there are so many great foods that we can eat that are free of gluten, dairy, grains, caffeine, yeast, etc.
It is so simple – and practical!
Excellent blog – thank you Josh. I never thought preparing meals could be so simple and delicious – yet I find that eating in the way you have described just gets more and more simple.
I agree Josh, most people seem to think that being gluten and dairy free is a penance and the food to be lesser somehow. Even the consultant I talked to about my intolerances was attempting to find a way of putting me back on gluten and dairy as the healthiest option. I found it hard to claim that is what I have chosen to do rather than I have had to do against the expertise and skill of the medical profession. I did manage to say that this is what I have found my body to prefer through years of experience, and I guess that might be the best answer, for no-one can discount our own body’s experiences and the messages it tells us.
Absolutely, Joan. We should not give our power away to anything even those that are supposed to know, Our livingness is the best guide and having such simple fun and honour with our bodies is a great joy that speaks a great message.
So true Joshua…our livingness is the best guide and our bodies will always show that truth….
Living in a country where bread and cheese are such staple foods and so part of the culture, I have countless conversations with people with Irritable Bowel Syndrome, bloating, sinus problems etc explaining how so much better I feel in myself without those foods. I do not teach it but share it with my experience and show that, possibly, there is another way of eating.
Yes Josh, you are right!
I know hundreds of people who all have the same experience: If you don’t have gluten or dairy for a while and you then eat them, your body always changes in an unpleasant way – bloating, sinuses, feeling dull.
Yet science has not been able to discern this. Either hundreds of people with no investment in the outcome (in fact many would probably like to be able to eat these delicious foods) are fooling themselves or these foods are no good for many people (everybody?).
Well said Christoph. That sounds like a big Truth pill for many to swallow eventually!
What’s more- now my body reacts to substitutes such as soy yogurt or gluten free pasta the same way as to real dairy or gluten foods. After eating just a few spoons of soy yoghurt I had sinus problems for a week. It proves that our body is getting more sensitive and I do need to listen to it with more attention and be aware-why do I want this yoghurt?
I know what you mean Elena…my body also reacts to substitutes too such as gluten free pasta and rice etc… just as it did when I used to eat gluten. It feels so heavy in my body now and I bloat, which feels so uncomfortable. I feel like I’ve had a huge meal, when I know I haven’t. I know …if I have eaten something that is true for the body though, as my body will feel light and sustained after I have eaten it. Which feels so much more yummy in my body. Great reminder to ask…Why do I want this certain food? Am I hungry or is their something I don’t want to feel?
Wow Joshua what an inspirational blog. I could feel in every word you wrote the joy you have making such decisions with your food. And I can agree because I by myself discover that my health gets better without dairy and gluten. So it is for each person to find out whether what we found out is true or not.
A most delicious blog Josh. And like you my diet is gluten, dairy and sugar free (and also very yummy) and as a result my body is incredibly appreciative of the nourishing food that supports it, rather than the mind and emotion driven eating that used to keep it bloated, tired, very sluggish and overweight. Those around me who see how I eat, and how I have changed so much, have given up asking if I would like something that they know I wouldn’t choose to eat. They used to say “just have a little (chocolate cake, ice cream, pie) – surely it won’t hurt you”, and my gentle reply would always be: “Why would I have 30 seconds of tasting pleasure in my mouth only to have one day (sometimes more), of feeling horrible – does that make sense?”. They would usually agree, but I could always see a look of puzzlement on their faces. I am sure that they were thinking I was just being fussy, but the truth is, I was actually feeling more wonderful than I had ever been due to the fact I had finally begun to listen to my body and to only feed it food that lovingly supported it; and it was, and still is, thanking me every day for doing so.
Beautifully claimed Ingrid.
This is so lovely, I can really feel the joy you have in the loving choices you make around your lifestyle and food, which is so great to feel and very inspiring.
Great points Josh, I also have a very simple similar diet, enjoy my food more than ever and absolutely love the new found clarity and vitality I have. It is very strange how we call eating something that makes us feel heavy, racy and sick, a treat???
Wow Josh you have basically called out any comfort or hiding people have when choosing not to eat gluten or dairy. So thank you as I will now go to my day knowing that I chose to take gluten and diary out of my diet because it supports my body and makes me feel so much more vital.
Beautiful Madeline
Josh, If asked, I say to people at work that it’s my choice to eat food free of gluten and dairy and not because of I experience allergic reactions. This feels more true and oftens stimulate questions and conversation about why I made this choice.
Yes Josh – I so agree – ” why on earth would I ever go back to wanting to feel bloated, heavy, lethargic, slow, unproductive, abusive (to the body) and all the other symptoms I – and many others – get from eating foods that are clearly harmful to the body, let alone lacking in what the body truly needs to support it in its activity?” – Why on Earth indeed! I am also so glad that this phase of my life is truly over and am enjoying foods that my body asks for and enjoys and lets me know that it does enjoy by just feeling truly great.
Super yummy indeed.
I choose to not eat dairy or gluten 9 years ago and I have never, ever looked back. It has transformed my health and vitality well beyond what I could ever have imagined. I’d have to say it is one of the best choices I have ever made and like you Josh I don’t miss out on anything. The food I eat is the best and most delicious quality out there that I enjoy every day.
I’m with you all the way on this one Josh! And my body is not going without or missing anything…in fact it is gaining so much more in health and vitality from simply listening to what my body needs and doesn’t need.
I like it simple. In simple food with minimum preparation it is more a real test for every ingredient chosen and felt.
Listening to the body is important – and in my experience it never asks for complicated dishes.
I like your words, Joshua, like yummilicious -what a fun name for some salad!
Hi Joshua, your health and vitality is jumping out of the screen as I digest each yummy word! You are an inspiration and I can’t help wonder if more young people took your approach to their diets how different our world would look to the take away mentality of so many. Maybe you will put together a cook book? With thanks to you.
What a delicious blog Josh! I too have dropped many things from my diet that do not agree with me or support me, and love being really creative in the kitchen – I don’t feel restricted at all by my food choices. I used to love eating out, but now I find I much prefer cooking my own meals because I get to eat exactly what I feel like – it’s like I’m my own personal chef at my own exclusive restaurant!
I have really enjoyed reading your blog Josh. I am with you on all counts regarding how certain foods will have horrible effects on my body if I were to eat them, and yes with a little effort super yummy food is so easy to prepare for myself and family.
Josh, what an enjoyable and inspiring blog to read, thank you. Your passion in listening and feeling into what to eat then preparing your meals with the same love and passion, that is an art ~ such love. Thank you.
Sometimes you get a sense of a person’s ‘passion for food’ – more often then not it is purely about the in mouth moment sensation – ignoring the lasting affects, I have been one of those people – using the moment to distract from whatever is uncomfortable and I don’t want to feel. But there is none of that as I read this blog as the consideration of the body before, during and after the food is taken into account. What I am discovering with food is that it is HOW I prepare and eat the food that has a huge impact on the taste and how I feel afterwards – gluten and dairy were the big obvious ones that I could feel that their qualities alone brought a heaviness, tiredness or stomach issues. As my diet has cut these out by my choice to favour feeling not heavy or cramps for hours for the sake of a few minutes taste pleasure, I am discovering the more subtile feelings around food. So much so that I feel that eating gluten free bread or a handful of brazil nuts – if I eat them out of stress or wanting to avoid feeling something – have the exact same effect regardless of what the food may be.
Josh thank you for sharing this yummy blog, it was an absolute delight.
What an amazing, light hearted article Josh, I love your playfulness in what is actually a serious subject. I follow the same diet and am loving it. It’s never been a curse to me either and considering I was a chocoholic I have never been tempted to eat it again because I know the detrimental affect it would have on my body.
I agree with your comments about supermarkets totally too, I have skipped certain aisles for years, realising that most of these ‘foods’ are not only highly packaged, they are processed, full of sugar, salt, additives, chemicals, artificial colouring, convenient, and completely unnecessary. Not only waste of resources and money, but not healthy for us either. You are an inspiration!
Josh fabulous article. I, too, absolutely love food, especially super yummy. Choosing gluten and dairy free came easy for me and the difference in my well being remarkable. There is no temptation to eat otherwise and what really surprised me is how much I now really enjoy preparing meals. Thank you for your satiating story.
Super delicious food is made in house too, all gluten and dairy free. We often say ‘why would we want to eat out?’ We say this because the food is so supportive of our bodies and we can cook exactly what it is we feel to eat.
Cooking from our body truly supports our vitality and ability to live.
Thank you Josh, I can only agree the food I eat is also free of gluten and dairy and other things but it is not at all boring , tasteless or worth pitying me instead it is absolutely yummy and gets yummier by the day. It is absolutely amazing how very tasty food can be. But then it is in my eyes only logical because when we eat food that truly supports our bodies and make them feel vital and healthy our senses sharpen and so do our tastebuds and then there is no need for all the thousand ingredients we have to make food taste good. Making delicious food then becomes very simple.
Eating dairy, wheat and gluten free is amazing. Foods that don’t have these ingredients are delicious and so satisfying. If only this concept was more accepted by society we could see some really amazing shifts in health statistics.
Not so much ‘food for thought’ Josh, (although eating this way does clear the head), but more food for life, light and vitality! Thank you for a great blog. It’s been my experience that once things like sugar, excessive salt, wheat and dairy were removed from my diet my tastebuds (along with my body) woke up, came alive and I began to both taste and feel the true flavours and qualities of foods. As you say ‘super scrumptious, delicious and divinely yummilicious.’
Well said Barbara. Josh has indeed given us much ‘food for thought’ regarding the connection of what we eat and how our body feels with the after effects of our dietary choices. What is worth considering is the long term after effects of these same choices on our bodies and health care system. You only need to open your eyes and honestly understand and accept our societies burgeoning levels of obesity are not healthy and are actually feeding our poor projected health statistics.
Josh you’ve inspired me to change my terminology when people ask me if I have allergies, and look at me with pity as if being ‘gluten free and dairy free’ is a tragedy instead of a self-loving choice! People say it must be very limiting, there’s only a little bit of gluten or dairy in it, how do you have fun, do you have to deprive yourself all the time, what do you do for treats? Etc etc. My answer to them is that, no I don’t have allergies, it is a choice to not include gluten and dairy in my diet, and I eat amazing delicious nutritious food so don’t need ‘treats’. I add that it’s difficult to find comparable food when I eat out. And that now my body feels clearer and more responsive than it did when I ate gluten and dairy.
I agree Dianne, eating out gluten and dairy-free food is not so easy as our home food is so much more delicious !
Yes Josh and Dianne, I used to say I had an intolerance to gluten and dairy when asked about my choices. It was a way of hiding, a way of not ’embarrassing’ the people who invited me. I knew what was good for me but I did not have enough integrity to claim it. Now when asked I say that it is a choice not a medical condition although it is good medicine to look after one’s body.
The true deliciousness of eating is a freeing feeling in the body from foods that truly support us to express who we truly are, absolutely delish as you have shared Josh.
What an awesome blog Josh and I can totally relate to everything, yes everything you said. I also maybe use 20% of the whole supermarket, and that might even be generous. I always find that quite strange as it says to me much about the qualities of the food that are being sold at supermarkets. Most of them are full of added sugar, dairy, gluten or other very artificial products. All of those I choose not to eat because of how they make my body feel, bloated, heavy, racy etc. but probably it is not only doing that to my own body but to everyones as we as human beings are made up quite the same!
Love it Josh, eating Gluten, Dairy and sugar (& more!) free is actually way more delicious with all the flavours. It’s like those heavy foods are dulling the taste, I totally agree.
The temptation to go back to those other foods is not there just because it’s not tempting at all… it’s not appealing when you know a far more delicious way to eat that leaves you feeling good in your body, how fun 🙂
reading this blog though makes me feel hungry for some yummy food haha..
Hi Josh, this blog is a super support for people who are in the process of looking at healthier food choices. And that the main ingrediënt to this process is to listen to your own body and what it tells you…. super simple and clear.
I like your main ingredient Jacqueline!
Great way to name it Rachel ( the main ingredient I mean) 🙂
Thank you Josh
I found your sharing super fresh and delicious. I love your response of ‘because my food now is so super yummy that there would be no reason to!’ – I have been inspired by your blog to phrase my also very delicious diet and way of eating this way.
I used to feel rather reticent in saying I did not eat gluten or dairy but not any more. As I have become more aware of the effect some substances have on my body I just have a choice whether to eat or drink them or not. When I was an undiscerning omnivore there were quite a few things I did not eat either because I did not like the taste or they made me feel unwell. I have just refined my awareness of listening to my body and I now feel so much more vital and with more energy.
Thanks Josh for openly and clearly expressing your experiences of how harmful food can be to our bodies if we do not take heed of the messages from within.
I especially enjoy your descriptive words for delicious …….
Thank you Josh for this insightful and playful blog.
I have always loved preparing food for myself and never would have thought it to be possible that with choosing to avoid so many things in my diet my diet would in fact feel more amazing and tastier than ever before.
I feel vital instead of lethargic and cooking not according to a recipe or plan, but from what your body tells you is needed is such a joy. At first it felt very strange to combine certain ingredients that no recipe ever would.
Now it just makes me smile when such a colourful array of vegetables and other things is lying in front of me and I just open up for the nuturing and yummy meal this wants to become. The outcome is just gorgeous.
Hi Micheal loved your comment. In the past I had never liked to cook which boiled down to living life in a constant rush and feeling there was no time to cook some thing delicous, of course that was not true, I just did not have a rythm of self care and self nurture at that time. Today is very different… I love to cook for myself and just yesterday I made this super delicious soup that i had not made before… but while I was in the supermarket, I was drawn to buy certain vegetables. Interestingly, i heard a small voice saying what if it tastes horrible, just stick with soup you know. But I over rode this and thought, its okay to experiment and make mistakes, that’s okay and so when the soup turned out great, I was so happy with myself, oh the simple pleasures!
I am an entirely self-tought cook and I have always loved cooking because food for me was associated with comfort and homeliness. My relationship with food have changed so much over the years – now I cook to truly nourish myself and others and my cooking is so much lighter in all sense of the term as a result !
Great blog Josh and a fabulous point about the choice to eat foods without dairy and gluten. It’s a choice not a punishment! People often think I’m missing out on life as I’m not partaking in the staff birthday cake and such things. in actual fact I am living more than I ever have before, with my body! I will work in owning this choice so others may feel the possibilities rather than loss.
Thanks Josh,
Sounds yummy I might pop over for breakfast!
love it, Josh! I especially love how you shared that your choices are continually expanding – makes me feel inspired to go and cook something new! I too like to celebrate all the foods that there are for me to enjoy and choose, sans gluten, dairy, sugar, etc., rather than focusing on all the things I ‘can’t’ eat.
Your joy expressed through this blog is delicious. And I just love this Josh – “How do I make my delicious diet of super scrumptious, delicious and divinely yummilicious food?… Not from a cook book per se, but from listening to my body. It’s that simple.”
Such a delightful blog Joshua. I find you very inspiring in the playful and positive way you approach the food in your diet.
Great blog thank you Joshua, I enjoyed reading about your simple diet and how you care for yourself by listening and responding to what your body needs. Your simple diet looks, and I’m sure, tastes amazing
“How do I make my delicious diet of super scrumptious, delicious and divinely yummilicious food?… Not from a cook book per se, but from listening to my body. It’s that simple.” Josh such a wonderful way to claim the healthy yummy way to nurture the body – the key is simply listen to the amazing body we all have.
Thank you Josh, for your lovely blog. When I started to learn to listen to my body, the changes I could then make were easy, as the body showed me how lovely it felt. So there was never a sense of ‘giving something up’, instead there was this new feeling of vitality and lightness in the body. And the more I listened, the less there was even a thought of foods I thought I enjoyed.
Super Yummy blog, Josh! From one aisle skipper to another, it feels so liberating leaving behind the foods that were actually holding me back! I wouldn’t trade the vitality or lightness I feel in my body for any of those foods that made me bloat, feel heavy and moody. It was a true revelation to me to start listening to my own body and it’s wisdom, one that is constantly unfolding and expanding as I invent super yummy foods for myself, just like you’ve described so beautifully. Thank you!
If I am eating out and I tell people what I can’t have, they seem astonished and confused about what to serve me as a meal. When I say “just meat and vegetables, no sauces or butter”, they seem surprised that someone can eat like that. But honestly, it’s just real unprocessed food, so how have we drifted so far from the basics? To me it’s very nourishing and my body appreciates the simplicity. Supermarkets are filled with processed faux foods which have become the norm, as is following diets and nutritional guidelines, yet when do we ever really consult our body? How could anything be more expert than that! Awesome blog Josh, I love your joy in your self care and cooking.
So true Melinda- it’s like food is now a reflection of what humanity is. Complicated plate = confusion and a complicated mind.
Bring on simplicity and awareness!
Thank you Josh, I love how you write it is a choice to not eat “gluten and diary” based on your body and how you feel and not because someone has told you to. For many years my body told me there were certain foods I could not eat but I very rarely stopped to listen, for example, if I ate bread at lunchtime I would struggle to get through the rest of the day, and hence relied on coffee and sugar to push me through. As I write this I can feel just how abusive I have been with my body, constantly pushing it beyond its limits. Never stopping to really be aware of what it was telling me. Today I am much more aware of my body and what it is telling me – and I have to say it is much more intelligent than I have given it credit for. There was a time I would listen to this or that study, especially if it suited me to, such as those studies that tell me chocolate is good for me, or a glass of wine a night was beneficially to this or that, even though my body was telling me otherwise. Today my body is the greatest scientist I know and I trust it beyond what anyone else has to say.
So true – there are forever conflicting so-called scientific findings sponsored by various organisations and companies on what is supposed to be good or not good for our health when all it takes is to choose food consciously and then check what it does to how we feel; and checking includes everything to do with true wellbeing: our vitality, stamina, need for sleep, and so on.
I love how you have offered a true reflection of why you choose to eat gluten/dairy (etc. ) free Joshua. This is very inspiring for the future conversations when I’m asked about choosing to be gluten/dairy free (etc). I’ll be more prepared to make sure I’m sharing my truth and not just passing on a minimal answer.
Josh, I love how you describe how you nourish yourself now. I too love that I don’t feel heavy and bloated after eating from choosing to not eat foods that I know will make me feel this way.
I love the lightness and joy you bring to writing about your experience with food. It is easy to feel that you really are enjoying the yumminess and support offered by the food you are choosing. I know if I choose one of those very non-supportive foods I feel the effects straight away and it is not pleasant. These days I find the lighter and simpler I eat, the more energised and clear I feel. I’ve also noticed that cutting out the gluten, dairy, sugar, salt has allowed me to better taste the food I am eating – I have never enjoyed salmon so much as I do now savouring every mouthful. Food has become such a focus for everyone, especially this new trend to be a home masterchef. It has become very glamourised. But I’m with you Joshua, I’ll take simple anyday – it really is yummy.
Josh. Love your blog, on how you stay away from temptation, going back to the foods you used to love, and now eat foods that are healthy and good for your body.
Your joy comes shining through, Josh and your blog is a pleasure to read. I love your line, “I could class myself as ‘gluten and dairy free’, but in truth a more correct way for me would be to say “My diet is free of dairy and gluten”, Thank you for writing.
Rachel that’s great what you’ve picked up on, it turns whats “Normal” on its head. Indeed I choose to eat gluten and dairy free because of how my body feels – so its a much more appropriate way of saying that.
Great achievement Josh and an inspiring read. The “proof is in the pudding” as we used to say! As I have ‘given up’ a food my body does not like, another delicious one has presented itself to me. I share with friends and family that I am ‘replacing’ foods, with food that supports my body.
Josh, this is fantastic – I too have experienced people asking ‘well surely it would be okay if you had a little bit of ….’, as I have chosen not to eat some foods as they don’t feel good in my body. How crazy that it is so ingrained that we ‘have’ to eat all the ‘normal’ foods otherwise it is considered odd – even though there are many people who I have spoken to that have agreed that when eating foods such as gluten/dairy/alcohol, it does inhibit how you normally feel – in fact I’m sure that many people have felt the sluggishness after having some of these foods – it comes down to the question of what do we value more – the quality of how we are living in our bodies day-to-day, or the 5 minutes of great taste?
A great refreshing sharing Josh on how yummy your meals and food naturally are. We are amazing beings, so only feeding ourselves meals that support this makes so much sense.
Well said Monica, I agree and have had similar experiences.
Gosh Josh! 😀 I loved reading this and really enjoy the way you write.
‘“Well, because I am dairy and gluten free”. I came to realise the other day that I have been using this as a way of ‘freeing’ (pun intended) myself from the responsibility of presenting the real reason I choose to eat the things I do.’ … I too have known this and the truth is, I used to initially want to still eat these foods although knowing they did not support me as I had felt the effects of them on my body. Over a few years of dropping these foods from my diet and choosing foods that support me more I feel much clearer and really enjoy super simple meals.
Such a cool blog…I agree there are so many yummy foods to eat… gluten & dairy free. Not eating gluten and dairy has made such a difference to my body and my life. No more bloating and heaviness in my body after a meal or feeling tired. I definitely do not miss the foods that contain them both.. I would never want to go back to the way I used to feel. I not only feel lighter now, but I have also noticed how much the texture in my skin has changed.
Super yummy blog Josh, I love that you break down the gluten and diary free box people get put into or put them selves into.
I chose not to eat gluten and diary in my diet, and one of the aisles I skip out at the supermarket is the gluten and dairy free aisle, as it basically contains a whole load of gluten and dairy free foods that still make me feel heavy, bloated, racy and sick, i.e. cakes, breads, biscuits, pasta, sugary snacks, and they seem to contain worse ingredients that usual products.
Another lovely and inspiring blog josh thank you. I love how you claim the choices you have made. ‘ I could class myself as ‘gluten and dairy free’, but in truth a more correct way for me would be to say “My diet is free of dairy and gluten”, I love this Josh how the placement of these words completely changes its meaning and feeling and tells a whole other story. It clearly speaks of a choice that you have actively engaged with rather than something that has been imposed upon you. I’m inspired Josh I’m no longer going to describe my diet as gluten and dairy free but my diet is free of dairy and gluten. Feels so light . Thank you.
Josh, I love what you said about your range of food you cook with is actually expanding. I have felt the same thing, and preparing meals for the whole work week (both dinners and lunches) just feels so supportive for our whole family and quite fun when we do it all together. I have found that it brings us closer and I feel very connected with my body cooking great gluten and dairy free foods that I know will help me feel more of me and energized throughout the day.
I really enjoyed reading your ‘super yummy and delicious’ article. This line has given me a lot to think about with regards to how I describe my diet, “I could class myself as ‘gluten and dairy free’, but in truth a more correct way for me would be to say “My diet is free of dairy and gluten”, as it recognises the fact that my diet is based on a choice to eat foods I feel honour and support me and my body as I work throughout my day…” I’ve realised that by simply changing a few words regarding how I describe my food choices (for example, being free ‘of’ or free ‘from’) honours what I have chosen for myself and leaves out any misinterpretation that I am missing out on anything.
That’s it Cheryl. Its a choice that comes from a place of love . No missing out here. Quite the opposite, gaining vitality and feeling the body in the energised and vital state it naturally is.
So true…. once you have felt that joy and vitality in the body it is no contest for the few moments of stimulation, (that for me was sugar, salt, gluten, dairy, caffeine or alcohol), can give and it is certainly no match for the heaviness, dullness, tiredness, or raciness that goes with these foods. I have also made big changes to my diet by simply listening to what my body was telling me, rather than following any particular diet or instruction from outside. That way it feels supportive, practical and easy rather than using willpower or discipline, which is often how diets are done.
If “the proof is in the pudding” as the saying goes, then your spot on Andrew “it feels supportive, practical and easy rather than using willpower or discipline, which is often how diets are done.”
This blog feels full of joy. I really felt this and can identify with that feeling of really enjoying listening to what my body is saying concerning how food makes it feel. I have chosen to not consume gluten, grains, dairy, yeast, sugar, salt and alcohol. This has not happened overnight but over a number of years and I am feeling the benefits on all levels of life. I have felt a true joy in supporting my body, by making choices concerning what I eat and drink. People also ask me “don’t you feel like giving yourself a treat or a sneaky cake?” but no, I don’t, I am not on a diet, I and not denying myself anything, this feels amazing and something that I relish. Thank you for this joyful blog!
And when you are living that love, you don’t need a cake or a treat. The joy is better than any of that.
Thanks for this, Josh. It reminds me how easy and convenient it is to hide behind the ‘gluten and dairy free’ label dished out by society to explain away my eating preferences rather than presenting the truth – that it is a decision taken from true choice, one based on a deep respect for the body and its wellbeing, one taken from an understanding about what food types support or impair its vitality.
Thank you Cathy, makes me wonder, why is it that society does not like something that is so evidently beautiful and healthy for someone to do? Should we not be celebrating the loving choices one is choosing to make? We want to sell the ‘healthy’ food label on many of our foods these days, but do not make the true choice to eat with love. This does not make sense to me.
Great to read Joshua, thank you. I love that you write ‘I eat the most amazing food in the world and I cook it all myself. This is something I would never have said let alone claimed, even just a few years ago.’ Beautiful!
That is beautiful Rebecca, it is so important to appreciate and claim every loving choice we choose to make
I always love what you write Josh, you have such a real way it’s awesome. I can also relate to how the momentum grows with food right, you start by making a few loving choices and these just keep on growing, it’s so awesome. I love the fact that I can spend longer in the fresh food sections carefully selecting produce and aisles I have my yummy ingredients in, rather than racing around stocking up on caffeine and sugar. I love the fact my body talks and I listen.
Thank you Phil, I can really feel the appreciation
This blog is refreshing to read as it has been written in such a light and playful way. Food can be a tricky subject to talk about but you have made it simple by expressing how your body feels, as most people can relate to this. I find that as foods drop out of my diet, I have become more creative with my recipes so now make some really awesome dishes which taste great and support my body.
And there is so much freedom in not needing a food because of its taste etc. Then every meal becomes yummy 🙂
Josh I love your enthusiasm and joy for cooking your own food and choosing the right foods for you. Very inspiring. I remember nearly 30 years ago feeling bloated after eating bread and finding dairy, especially cheese hard to digest. I had heard about gluten intolerance through a naturopath and I remember thinking to myself, “why me? Why can’t other people feel this too, and thinking there was something wrong with me. Now like you I feel what to eat from my body and not from my taste buds and it has made a big difference to my vitality. I don’t get the highs and lows that used to accompany food, and my energy level stays the same throughout the day. I love how you have claimed what foods work for you and those that don’t. If more people had the awareness around food that you have, supermarkets would have to re-think what they stock on the shelves. Thanks Josh I love the fun and simple way you approach and write about food.
For food is not a serious subject. Why does it need to be? We miss out on enjoying it if we make it so serious and then we become owned so to speak by needing to eat a particular type of food like cheese without knowing why we seem so addicted to it. Especially if we know it is harming us in the way we are having it.
Yes Joan, me too! And when people ask me “what DO you eat!” there seems to be a strong and fearful illusion that without dairy or gluten (and others) in the diet there’s not much left! I’ve been saying “oh I eat tons of delicious things”…but they don’t seem to believe me… I’m so happy to read your article Josh. It has opened me up to share more honestly when people react to my diet as a “going without”. I could say “I choose not to eat what my body feels does not serve it and nothing can tempt me to go back!!” I can see the absolute clarity in your face shining out of your photo. How could your beauty radiate like that if you ate things your body said no to? You are incredibly inspiring!
I am often astounded by how limited we do not realise we generally hold ourselves with our food and our diets today as humanity. I used to find that something yummy (like a lollie) was also something unhealthy for us to eat. Why did yummy food have to be unhealthy too? Could food instead be healthy and yummy? Most definitely, and healthy is not boring when it truly means you are eating from what the body is asking for to nourish it. This takes yumminess to a whole new level 🙂
This is very inspiring Josh. I love the first paragraph because I often get criticised for not eating a “wide range of foods” but it’s not true, I eat a lot of things other people have never heard of!
Its just to them they may think its not a lot because gluten, dairy and other foods may be a normal part of their diet. I am learning that inspiring others with sharing some of the food I do eat can often astound as it is so yummy, it surely can’t be dairy, gluten and sugar free and be healthy too! Goes to show how lovely inspiring others in this way can be.
Hi Josh, yes I love the lightheartedness and playfulness you’ve approach this topic 🙂 It’s so well written and picks up on some great points. I’ve gradually cut foods out of my diet because they no longer sit well with me and I so love food and cooking. It amazes me know how complicated we make cooking when at it’s simplist it is soooo yummy!
And how serious we make it too. Almost like a burden to eat what is ‘right’. You could spend ages these days studying diets, nutrition etc when really all the simplicity of cooking is already within you. Are we choosing to miss out?
I love the way you write, Joshua. There is so much joy and love expressed I can really feel the yumminess in your food and also know how much better I feel from choosing the same sorts of foods as you.
Well Said Josh, I love your playfullness with your writing. It is so true how easy it is to say I am gluten and dairy free without actually claiming why I am. Friends used to get surprised when I would make a meal for them and afterwards I would say it had no gluten or dairy in it. I too love my food and cooking and prefer to eat at home with my partner or friends rather than going out to restaurants, as we can then prepare and eat the food that our bodies want rather than trying to find something on a menu which is a slight compromise.
How often do we compromise even the slightest in our food just for a taste or satisfaction like eating out at a restaurant? You raise a great point because we can still have the social support with what we eat and also claim the food we know our bodies require. So amazing to share this playfulness with everyone!
I enjoyed reading your article Josh. I too am enjoying cooking really delicious meals for myself. Having also given up eating dairy, gluten, caffeine and sugar, I now feel so much more energetic and vital. The quality of my sleep has improved and I am able to think more clearly. It’s amazing how changing what you eat can affect your life so profoundly.
It goes to show that sometimes what we accept in society as being ‘healthy’ or ‘normal’ may not be what our bodies truly require. Not having caffeine, sugar etc. is now a normal part of my life and like you I feel vital and naturally alive which is in contrast to what we have been told by society that to be vital and alive, you would at least need to be consuming sugar and caffeine.
Thanks Josh a great article, I know how much better I feel having stopped eating Gluten and Diary. I’ve never however claimed my choice like you’ve expressed – very inspiring!
And you cook amazing food David, so why not claim it?
Indeed Josh, I do! Having the most delicious meal on both Saturday and Sunday. It’s almost like we’ve been fed this lie about what food is- being told by the supermarkets what to eat instead of choosing what will support us. It blows me away just how ever expanding the food I cook is yet the fewer “types” of food that go into it! It also shows me just how small a supermarket actually needs to be..
Fantastic point David, look at cows, elephants, tigers and other animals. They don’t need to go to a supermarket with a selection of thousands and thousands of different products and 20 different brands of grass and yet they seem healthier than we are.
Fantastic point David, look at cows, elephants, tigers and other animals. They don’t need to go to a supermarket with a selection of thousands and thousands of different products and 20 different brands of grass and yet they seem to be healthier than we are.
Good point, most of what is stocked in supermarkets is actually not edible when I truly feel into what supports me and what makes me feel heavy and sleepy and bloated.
Thank you for a lovely playful and simple article. I too find that I can make an amazing variety of food from a seemingly small range of ingredients. And what you have expressed is really important, to claim that it is my choice to have a diet free of gluten and dairy, amongst other things, not that I simply can’t have it.
It is only in claiming that gluten and dairy free etc is the preferred choice of diet that will actually inspire others with the possibility that in fact it can be extremely lovely to eat in this way.
This is great Josh, thank you. I remember when I chose to stop eating dairy and gluten and the outcry of those around me was ‘what do you eat?’ Well as you mention there is an abundance of delicious food that does not contain gluten, dairy and sugar and it is yummy. After a while of not eating gluten I realised one Sunday morning that I felt more energised than I used to on Sundays, this being because I had skipped the traditional Sunday fry up with toast and tea and therefore not experienced the dulling and sleepy effects that used to occur. My body feels so much lighter (in weight also) since choosing to not eat gluten, dairy and sugar and I have more energy too. I had previously always battled with diets and weight loss, losing weight and putting it on and now I have naturally arrived at a weight that suits my body and is back to the weight I was in my late teens. Awesome.
I have found without a doubt the only thing I am listening to regarding what to eat is my body, it gives clear factual evidence to what it likes and does not like.
Sometimes the simplest fact that gluten can make us feel heavy is seen as a ‘It does not apply to me’ discovery. I can feel for me that to be able to realise that in fact gluten did affect me was only able to be accepted when I realised that ‘comforts’ like bread, cheese etc no longer were loving for my body to eat. If I had not been open to accepting this, I would not have realised how much more energy I have in the day without it.
This is so true Josh. I did not fully realise the heavy and tiring effects of gluten until I chose to eliminate it completely from my diet. It is easy to think we are gluten-free but still have just a little here and there, but I liken it to putting one small drop of ink in a glass – it still clouds the water!
Yes Vanessa, this is so true and we can feel which foods to eat when. Sometimes my body is crying out for fish, sometimes dark green leafy vegetables and sometimes red meat, it feels so good to eat the right food at the right time.
I really enjoyed this article Josh. Learning to look at food and imagining the transitory taste in the mouth and then seeing the same food and being aware of how it would feel in your body, is amazing. When I first started to adjust what I ate according to how different foods made me feel, I had a sense of depriving myself of accustomed treats. Now it is completely different and when I see advertisements for foods laden with gluten, dairy, sugar etc. – I am no longer tempted as I am aware of how they used to make me feel in my body afterwards.
There is far more to food than just taste. This is something so many choose to ignore, and see being healthy with how they eat as a diet of discipline with no taste or fun. This is indeed far from the truth when we eat what is truly nourishing and nurturing for us. Thank you for sharing Mary
It’s great how you can express to others the true reason behind not eating gluten and dairy. I myself have found it difficult to express why I don’t eat those foods to other people and then ended up eating the food I was offered after! It is also great that you don’t feel you need those foods anymore. Thank you for sharing.
I too found it difficult at first Rhiannon to express why I was no longer eating dairy or gluten. Often this was because I found it was confronting for others to feel the openness and joy that was so evident in the way I ate so healthily and lovingly. But then I realised why hold it back? It’s so much fun to cook and nourish in the way I do. And if it is the truth for me, why not claim it?
A great light and fun article Josh. I too no longer eat gluten and dairy foods. It’s approximately 3-4 years and I cannot imagine eating those foods again. It really became a no brainer when the distressing physical symptoms stopped when I stopped eating gluten and dairy.
The body speaks very loud when we are ready to listen. Thank you Shevon.
Josh – you make a really relatable point about grocery shopping these days.
Like you my diet is very similar – so there are quiet a few standard ingredients I no longer choose to eat.
So when I go shopping now it is very simple. Fruit and veggie aisle, meat and fish aisle and then any other things i might need are usually for the home (ie cleaning products)
I do remember a time when I could spend hours in the supermarket slowly going up and down aisles looking for what to buy or what i could cook up at home that most of the time was not good for me at all.
Its interesting how I would find things to create food or treats that didn’t support me but were an exciting idea at the time.
It meant I would waste a lot of food, i’d eat for stimulation and not nourishment, and I’d be pretty confused as to why I was eating the way I was.
But now I keep it beautifully simple, and I am really enjoying experimenting with food in a loving and supportive way.
Thank you Hannah. I must agree, it feels amazing to know what the body truly needs to support it and very empowering to actually be honouring that. It is super supportive and has offered huge changes in my overall health and well being too.
Hi Josh – so well put! And I have to say I agree, there is nothing more amazing and sweeter than feeling amazing in your body, why would you ever compromise that for a mouthful of food? I also agree that gluten free, dairy free and sugar free food is honestly the yummiest food for me and I know I am eating better than I ever have in my whole life. I also know if I crave sugar or any kind of food it’s not about the food but about something within me that’s not quite right at that moment. Eating amazing food AND feeling amazing in your body… it’s a no-brainer!!
Hear hear to that! Thank you Meg.
Thanks a lot Josh. There are only a couple of aisles in the supermarket that I use these days but you have inspired me to branch out a bit and be a bit more experimental with my cooking. Also when I am in the supermarket I look at all the aisles and aisles of foods that are just not necessary to healthy living and have been noticing how people consume many foods that are doing them more harm than good. If we all learn to listen to our bodies and eat what we need instead of just what we want we would be far better off in a lot of ways.
Thank you Kevin. I am finding that there are different foods or ways of cooking always opening when I feel what my body is asking for. Even when we eat common gluten and dairy staples like bread, milk, cheese etc. these can still become the ‘usual’ that we always seem to eat because we are comfortable with just having that. When we consider it like this, dairy and gluten free is potentially no more limiting – we just think it is because most of the foods in the supermarkets etc. stock items containing dairy or gluten.
And supermarkets would be loads smaller 🙂 But seriously it is incredible how much food there is in our supermarkets that actively do NOT support our bodies. It is a funny state of affairs we find ourselves in in the 21st century ‘modern world’. Food wise we were probably a lot wiser and advanced in the middle ages.
It’s a good point Vanessa, supermarkets would be smaller, less overwhelming and we may even go back to the concept of a butcher, fish monger and green grocer. I notice how moods seem to deteriorate in the super market, how suddenly people are more impatient and stressed. Perhaps there is more going on when we are walking around the supermarket buying food that is harming us than we care to admit?
I agree Vanessa – even 50 years ago we were probably much wiser about our food and there was certainly much less to choose from. And shopping for food was much more social as you had to go to individaul shops to get your meat, veg, groceries, and more often than not the people running the shops would know you. Supermarkets, albeit very convenient have without a doubt changed many things about the way we shop and the way we eat, and not for the better.
I agree Kevin, I only use one or two aisles in the supermarket too. Being gluten, dairy and sugar free takes us back to basics, and this is where the experimentation comes in with simple, natural ingredients. I am staggered at the amount of pre-packed and processed food in the supermarkets, and like you say, “it does us more harm than good”. All the packaging is a waste of resources too, not to mention the toll on peoples health. Most pre-packaged food contains salt and/or sugar, and many contain ‘hidden’ dairy and gluten, it pays to read the labels because I have been caught out by this one, for example some oven chips contain gluten in the coating and some olive oil spreads contains whey powder, so it pays to check the labels, or avoid these products altogether as I now do!
Great blog Josh. I too cook all my food for work and home and yes it is also the most amazing food in the world!
We can all make the most amazing food in the world. My list of favourites keeps getting longer with every meal. 🙂
Thank Josh, a great sharing, extremely inspiring. It’s all about listening to the body, as it will tell us what foods are not good for us and also give us the vitality with the foods that are good for us. Most of our problem is that most of us avoid listening to our body and override, hence all the harming foods go in. So for me this was great to hear that, I so much need to just stop and listen to my body and trust it will support me with my food choices.
And the thing we often ignore is that our body is our friend, not our enemy. How would you treat your best friend?
Hi Josh, I can feel the freedom you now have with food, which comes through in the joy and playfulness of this blog. Also that you really have come to treat your body as your best friend – this makes so much sense!
Wow, josh, that’s a great way to look at it, how would you treat your best friend, with love and respect. So the body needs the same. Great way to connect to the body and feel what it needs. I am really coming to understand that even a slight amount of gluten and dairy how much it effects my body, how quickly I feel tired and heavy and it last for days. It’s really not worth feeling like that. So I am at a point of exploring with food, I know once I bring the playfulness in food and really start to appreciate the nutritious foods, my choices of foods will change.
I love this article Josh and the playful way you have expressed it. I absolutely concur with every line!
So can I Lucy, I enjoyed writing it. 🙂
Thank you Josh. I am often asked, after I tell people what I no longer eat, what is left! I just say lots of things and none of it has any chemicals, preservatives, things with names I can’t pronounce, artificial flavours, colours, just good food. What would our grocery store look like if you removed all the stuff we do not consume? Is that not what a farmer’s market is?
People tend to focus on the limitations and restrictions of what truly good food may bring because it brings much greater responsibility and care to live in such a way that honours the body when we eat. Others are exposed for not choosing this when this is shared but in-truth the warmth, care and nourishment of our food is what we all deeply want. Steve, as you say, if our supermarkets, grocery stores and other outlets supported this, we would have whole aisles that would be bare! Thank you for your comment.
Yes Steve, I am often asked the same question ! And I reply that I eat simple dairy and gluten free food and also food that my body likes. I would like to see our supermarkets to look very different to those we have now with far less in it – fresh meat and fish, vegetable and fruit. Food that we find on a French market for example.
Josh I so agree with your comments, it’s not about what I don’t have to eat, it’s about the wonderful choices that are available. When I am invited out to meals I am often asked about my weird diet – the foods I can’t eat. I now have a sheet that I have prepared, which is constantly changing. I entitle it my nutritional choices and list foods that my body prefers me not to eat and those which it really enjoys. I have had some very interesting comments and put several chefs in touch with the delicious recipes which students have posted on Facebook.
I find the exact same thing Kathie! And the comments people tend to make are about what cannot be eaten and how restrictive this may be, but I would say the opposite. It has made me more aware of what I eat, how I eat and what different things I can do to make my food even more lovely and nourishing to eat. It is deeply fun and never boring as the people who cook with me can attest to.
I agree Josh, a few years ago my diet was full of the same old pasta and the same old meals, now the food I eat has variety, I use FAR MORE ingredients than I ever used to and I cook fresh delicious meals from a broad selection of fresh produce.
Me too Fiona, I use a much wider variety of vegetables, herbs and spices than I ever used to and am really enjoying experimenting with different combinations, it’s fun, not a chore. I don’t feel like I am missing out on anything either, and I certainly don’t replace foods with the gluten free alternatives, as they are often full of fat and sugar. In fact, since I have become gluten, dairy and sugar free, for the first time in my life my weight has stabilised too. Bonus!
I agree Fiona, it has opened up a whole new world of imagination for me, using ingredients that I would never have thought of before. I no longer make excuses that I don’t have time to cook because I always ensure that I MAKE time to prepare myself delicious, nourishing meals because that is what self-care is all about.
Kathie… thank you this is a great idea, I need to create a nutrition foods list to help me share with others what I chose to eat. We run a hotel and our chefs are constantly wanting ideas of what I would like to eat, sometimes when days are packed it becomes difficult to think on my head what foods they can cook for me. But if I start to plan and create a list, that would really support them to prepare food that supports me. At the same time inspire them with new ideas.
What a great idea, Amita (and Kathie). I find that when I am really clear about what food I enjoy eating rather than what I do not eat, it makes it super simple and a positive challenge for the chef/cook.
I agree Janet, Kathie and Amita. Make it positive about what foods my body doesn’t react to and not a list of what my body does react to.
That’s a brilliant idea Amita, and how wonderful it is that you have chefs who are prepared to support you with your food requirements, and are willing to experiment with new ideas. Things they are a changing and what better place than your lovely hotel to try out new dishes on guests too!
Awesome Kathie. Your expression ‘my nutritional choices’ perfectly reflects a loving relationship to food and your body.
I love this idea Josh and Kathie, it can feel so negative to say “I don’t eat gluten and dairy” to all the people I meet who then ask me what I can eat, as they can’t imagine life without it, and it feels so much more open and encouraging to say “This is what I choose to eat and I enjoy it, and I know it nourishes me because I feel so much more alive!” To make a list that demonstrates how many varieties of food we have available to us would be very helpful.
Awesome Kathie – a wonderfully self-loving thing to do and perhaps inspiring others to look at their choices in the process. I love that the chefs are prepared to look at the recipes posted by students. Fresh food lovingly prepared is never boring and the body loves it especially when we provide it with food with the purpose of promoting vitality.
This article hits the nail on the head, the general perception is that it is a curse to not be able to eat gluten and dairy, rather than the great gift that your body is able to tell you so clearly what is and isn’t right for it. And the end results, a super vital body. 🙂 Great article, so well expressed.
It’s only a curse because we are so used to abusing the body with what we eat and enjoying the comfort that may bring. In-truth, living from an honour of what your body truly needs to support it actually makes food so much more enjoyable — it no longer becomes just about taste but also true nourishment. Something I can already feel you deeply know and live Stephen, thank you.
I agree that so many people would see giving up dairy and gluten as a punishment and for so many that is exactly what it would feel like. For most of my life food has been a way of changing how I feel and because I didn’t feel great then it was a welcome relief to be able to eat too much and zone out or have a mega latte and get an instant boost. It has been a gradual process of improving how I feel so that my food choices have changed as a by product.
I agree Stephen, it is generally accepted as a curse if you don’t eat gluten or dairy, as if somehow we are missing out. I feel the absolutely opposite is true, because what could be better than eating natural, fresh, unprocessed food, fresh herbs and spices all lovingly prepared to nourish our bodies. I for one, feel lighter and much better for it and my body says thank-you.
Yes, its strange Stephen that many regard not being able to eat dairy and gluten ins a curse. I would often have symptoms of pain and bloating after eating bread or pasta, and nausea after eating something that was rich with cream or butter, but for a long time never considered that these symptoms might be something to do with what I was eating! So when I was introduced to the possibility that my diet might be the problem it was a revelation. I now eat no dairy or gluten and have none of these symptoms. And whatsmore, my diet is so delicous and simple I can’t imagine it being any other way. Rather than feeling as though something has been taken taken away from me, I feel as though I have been given a true gift. Thankyou Josh for your sharing.
Great stuff Josh – I remember the occasional breakfasts, mainly on the weekends, of croissants for example and how overwhelmingly tired that used to make me. So tired that I felt I had lead in my limbs – and just like you, this does not happen now that I eat all this amazing food free of gluten and dairy. And not only is the food I now eat non-gluggy and does not give me sinus problems anymore, it is also incredibly yummy and fun!
And such must be the enormous arrogance that can have a croissant for its taste and ‘feel in the mouth’ to then go through the day numb and tired — but STILL want to have it again later when the body is not so numb or tired. Or worse having another one just to override the tired-ness of the first! Yep I have learnt the hard way that listening to the body is the best medicine and guide for what to eat. Thank you Gabriele.
So true Gabriele, gluten makes me feel tired and sluggish and dairy goes straight to my sinuses.
Me too Amita. Being a sinus sufferer for years my doctor couldn’t understand why I was always clogged up. I had every allergy test you could imagine and it was a simple conversation with a women I met at work who suggested I look at dairy consumption. I haven’t looked back and my nose thanks me each day!
It never occurred to me in the past Gabriele, that after having my ‘stodgy’ breakfast I would need that mid-morning cup of coffee to pep me up and keep me going, doh!
Now that I am gluten, dairy and sugar free I no longer need that mid morning ‘pick me up’ or the afternoon sugary snack to keep me going, I am delicious enough!
What a great observation Sandra – that after having a stodgy breakfast that would make you sleepy, you needed a cup of coffee to pick you up! I had never made that assoscaition either, but it was the same for me. There was a time when I couldn’t imagine eating breakfast or lunch without bread, but now the very thought of it makes me feel tired! I also find that having a meal of fish and vegetables in the evening is so much lighter in my body, and I sleep so much better than if I’ve eaten a heavier meal. There is so much in this blog Josh to consider and be inspired about food and diet – thank you.
My body had the same response when I reduced and then stopped eating or drinking any dairy product I stopped getting sinus and phylum . Thanks for sharing Joshua
What a great article – so inspiring Josh and deserving of a page one on google I say!
Thank you Jo. My article is so yumilicious that even Google would find it delicious!
Inspirational. I have almost the exact same story. I was at this farm and there were cows on the other side of a fence. They were very cute and I wanted to pat them, so I walked on over careful not to step in the dung. However, as I reached over to pat Daisy’s head (I am told that was her name, though I never managed to meet her, more on that now), the fence bit me. Well obviously it wasn’t a bite, but it electrocuted me. See what I hadn’t realised in all this time was that the yellow tape on the fence that I had ignored, similar to your symptoms I guess, was warning me that this fence and I were not to be pals. Like you, I have stayed away from these fences ever since. It is hard for a 6 year old to go through not being able to play with cows on the other side of the fence, so I understand how hard it must have been for you at 20 to stop eating food because it made you feel unwell. Thank you for sharing your story.
I can most definitely say it took courage and trust to listen to my body over what I had been told by others about what to have or what to not have, and also to cook in different ways I had never done much before. But so too must it be to learn to observe Daisy instead of reaching to pat her. Sometimes if we ignore one thing we often miss out on seeing the rolling meadow that surrounds us. Thank you for sharing MJ.
Great article Joshua and the above comment equally so. When I used to eat lots of bread, pasta and potatoes there would be no room left in my body for salad or too many vegetables. Feeling bloated and tired after meals and bragging about how much I could eat (and to that effect opening an extra button during christmas dinner) was just how we did things. Thanks to inspiring people like you I am now starting to find my way around the kitchen in a way that supports me.
What a deliciously inspiring article from a true enthusiast!!
Thank you Katie.