A couple of years ago I came across some ideas about food choices that challenged everything I thought I knew about my body and the effects of what I put into it.
The idea of not drinking alcohol or caffeine and giving up gluten and dairy sounded ultra-healthy, but the thought of no cake or mojitos ever again? What a boring way to live, I thought.
Back then I judged making different food choices as an obsessive eating habit – a disorder even – where some foods were deemed ‘bad’ and others ‘good’.
The people I met who lived like this didn’t see it or describe it like that, but neither could they explain to me exactly how it made them feel in a way that I could understand. It goes without saying that it’s pretty challenging to experience what it’s like to be in someone else’s body.
If I really wanted to know and understand why anybody would eat that way out of choice, rather than necessity, I realised I would have to give it a go for myself.
I also noticed that people who’d made what I would have called ‘unconventional’ food choices, based on how different foods made their body feel, didn’t seem to be wallowing in a world of deprivation and self-pity.
In fact, they seemed more alive and fulfilled than most, and just getting on with their lives. It was me who was making a big deal about what they chose to eat, not them.
After suspiciously keeping my distance, eventually my curiosity got the better of me and I caved in. Giving up cake, champagne and ice cream had to have some benefits other than the obvious health ones, otherwise why bother with the effort? It was time to investigate.
I gently put to one side the cake, champagne and ice cream, in an experiment that I imagined would last a few weeks or months. Often I had a beer or glass of wine, bread, cheese or something else that I was attempting to temporarily abstain from in the name of my not very scientific experiment. But it didn’t seem to matter.
The less I ate of foods containing things like gluten, dairy and sugar, the lighter, cleaner and clearer my body and my mind felt.
It still amazes me that food can affect my body so much, because until recently I had never really considered the link between what I eat and how I feel, and even the quality of my thoughts.
But as I started making different choices about what to eat, I noticed that things began to change; the way I responded to situations was changing. Difficult conversations, although still difficult, became less intense. The internal emotional whirlwinds that I’d created (and blamed on others) took less time to dissipate. It felt like a fog I’d been living in – one that I couldn’t see even existed before – had started to lift.
The links between my body and my emotional and mental state have become much more obvious. When I eat lots of heavy food or too much food, I feel heavy, weighed down and foggy – like I’m operating on battery-saving mode.
It makes it easy for my mind to slip into a quicksand of circuitous and dull negative thinking and I start to feel lethargic and bored. Instead of focusing on what I can contribute to a situation and bring to others around me, I make it all about me and my life. My self-obsessed thoughts turn into a distraction and I forget about my responsibility to live fully and truly.
I still have ideas that pop into my head about my choices around food and how I ‘should’ be living. How come nearly the entire world eats gluten and dairy and drinks alcohol – surely it can’t be that ‘bad,’ if everyone does it? Isn’t it fussy and ungrateful to be choosy about what I’m eating?
But I’ve come to realise:
- It’s not about demonising food groups nor judging myself nor anybody else for what we choose to eat, but so much more simple: stop, feel, and choose from there – is this food really supporting and nourishing my body, and how do I feel after eating it?
- It’s not about shouting from the rooftops about how great I feel, but to just accept and allow what feels good by listening to my body
- There are no rules
Now what I choose to eat isn’t about rules, perfection or deprivation, but about learning to listen to my body and feeling the effects of what I put into it.
Every time I choose something – a food, drink, thought or emotion that doesn’t make me feel so good, I get to feel it – and I can choose differently next time, if I feel like it.
What has been amazing is that I rarely crave any of the stuff I used to. I’ve had a sweet tooth since I was a small child and used to love cakes and biscuits. But now I’d rather choose the stillness and solidness I can feel most of the time, over a sugary treat which makes me feel hyperactive and like I’m on drugs.
When I listen to my body like this, it totally removes the arduous ‘giving up’ of unhealthy foods, the battle against cravings, or strict regimes. Eating in a way that truly nourishes me becomes easy because my body just isn’t interested in foods that don’t make me feel good.
Eating to nourish my body, and how it feels afterwards, instead of just for the short-lived taste sensation, is a constant unfolding, with increasing clarity and an amazing revelation: I can choose the level of awareness that I want to feel in my body by choosing what I put into it, and it gets reflected back to me in all areas of my life.
The more I listen deeply to my body, the more it shares with me, and the steadier I feel. It’s amazing to feel how this has affected all areas of my life, far beyond how my body feels: from knowing what needs to be said in any given situation, to feeling clearer, having more trust in myself and knowing of what to do next, with far less need from anything outside of me.
The effects of what we choose to put into our bodies is profound.
By Bryony, UK
Further Reading:
My Body’s Reaction to Gluten, Dairy and Sugar
The Body Knows
When it comes to food – let your body speak
920 Comments
The most addictive substance is possibly sugar and there is only way to eliminate it and that is slowly? After giving up white sugar or white death some 30 plus years ago it then became what is next! Surly not my favourite fruits or maple syrup, honey etc. but eventually they all were felt for there addictive nature as they ended up being to much sweetness for my body and made me feel racy.
Eating to expand who we are and bring vitality is the choice I’ve made. I never want to return to the days when I felt dull and stagnant in my body.
Making the link between our emotional states and type of food we eat is a much needed conversation. A lot of media coverage of mental ill-health confirms its affect on every age group, but little is said about causes and how eating certain foods can improve the way we feel about ourselves.
The way we eat reflects the nature of our relationship with self. Do we treat the body as a garbage can, eat without discernment or care, pay little attention to what it needs? Or do we relate to the body as a precious vessel, close confidante and loving it dearly shop, prepare and eat food to nourish and sustain and heal?
“Now what I choose to eat isn’t about rules, perfection or deprivation, but about learning to listen to my body and feeling the effects of what I put into it.” Love this Bryony it takes all the perfection and stress out of it, just a natural unfolding.
I love the honesty and wisdom our bodies are always sharing and communicating with us if we are open to listening, ‘The more I listen deeply to my body, the more it shares with me, and the steadier I feel.’
Choosing food that nourishes us makes sense, but also listening to our body and what it is communicating to us about our food choices is equally important.
Food is a fuel we all need in order to nourish our bodies and so we can function. There are foods that you would categorize as low-grade: all the comfort, dairy and sugar laden products and we all know the foods that are more refined and lighter on our digestion system – we know exactly which foods to eat to sweeten life and, or take the edge of life.
I love to read this blog today- there is so much to digest- pun intended! Recently I got to observe how strict I have been with foods coming from knowledge rather than feeling what is true for me at this time. That said, I have now thrown away the rule book, and being more honest and I find I am so much more relaxed around food. And being more honest is a good foundation to move forward from.
I no longer consume alcohol simply because of how much better, clearer, and fresher I feel in not consuming it.
It is always worth remembering that the choice of the quality of the food you end up eating happens well before you choose what to eat. Your every quality of movement is already governing whether you will overeat or not in you next meal.
Thank-you Joshua, for that reminder and so true that the quality of food we end of eating comes from the quality or the energy that you have been moving in or aligning too.
I love this, it is so simple; ‘is this food really supporting and nourishing my body, and how do I feel after eating it?’
When I shop with the intention of buying food to nourish my body my trip around the supermarket is joyful and quick, whereas if I shop with my taste buds leading the way, my trip takes much longer and becomes a real chore.
You speak of eating, being, thinking from the inside out, observing the impact of these things on how we feel, how our bodies are and then we have a choice, to continue or not, it’s not about any regime, but about listening to ourselves and how we feel, simple, and it knocks out any comparison or right diet or way to live.
Its interesting to notice the stillness I can feel inside, and how that is affected by food choices. Sure I can wind myself up with some sugar.. and whoa caffeine would have a field day and its gone (or hard to feel). But when I’m settled I don’t get those cravings and my food supports the incredibly strong connection I have inside… and I value that.
Great bullet points Bryony, that offer the reader a clear understanding and support to enjoy new food choices by listening to the body, without feeling something has to be being given up-then with the realisation that there is so much more to enjoy.
* “It’s not about demonising food groups nor judging myself nor anybody else for what we choose to eat, but so much more simple: stop, feel, and choose from there – is this food really supporting and nourishing my body, and how do I feel after eating it?
* It’s not about shouting from the rooftops about how great I feel, but to just accept and allow what feels good by listening to my body
* There are no rules”.
The body has much wisdom and continues to communicate exactly what works for it and what does not. I love that you have found that Stillness and Solidness from within are the antidotes to the sugar addictions.
“But now I’d rather choose the stillness and solidness I can feel most of the time, over a sugary treat which makes me feel hyperactive and like I’m on drugs”.
And that the foods we choose to ingest affects our levels of awareness, ‘I can choose the level of awareness that I want to feel in my body by choosing what I put into it, and it gets reflected back to me in all areas of my life.’
“It was me who was making a big deal about what they chose to eat, not them” This is a great observation of the disturbance that judgement of others causes in our body.
There is no greater feeling than when we choose to eat a food that nourishes. The body speaks volumes of appreciation with each mouth full!
For me it has been a consistent letting go of the rules of what was deemed healthy. Actually I was quite stubborn and became thinner and thinner but also weaker instead of feeling the solidness I knew that was there’, now with seeing the rules for what they truly are, a distraction and an avoidance of the power i have and am, ‘I can choose the level of awareness that I want to feel in my body by choosing what I put into it, and it gets reflected back to me in all areas of my life.’
and yet for most people eating is such an unconscious action, and as a consequence it really is feeding our unconsciousness.
Making supportive food choices because my body flourishes versus depriving myself on a diet or because I “should” not eat something comes from two different places. The first an act of self care and the second trying to live up to a belief of what is good for me.
Love this simple answer Jenny – choosing food that makes us expand so we can feel more and be more of who we already are.
The effects of food are massive on our bodies I agree, I find my relationship with food is constantly changing – even though I know food is for nutrition I constantly use it for relief or taste or desire or eat too much – there’s a never ending array of choices when it comes to abusing food – but there’s only one choice that is super precise and detailed when it comes to listening to our bodies and being deeply caring when it comes to what we choose to put in them.
It is important to commit to building a loving relationship with our body and how we feel within as this is key to the quality of our relationship with food. Without taking care and staying connected to our body we no longer value ourselves and then make choices that dishonour and harm our body.
Yes Bryony, food effects us very visually so, but also to note that there is much in this world; like our movements, thoughts and actions that lead to bad health, meaning feeling a lack of vitality, not truly feeling content and or a lovelessness. Why don’t we see that as bad health actually? What has made us think that health is just physical?
It shows us that we have switched our radar out to be aware of what energetically is going on in and around us, that we have only made life about physical health number 1.
‘It still amazes me that food can affect my body so much, because until recently I had never really considered the link between what I eat and how I feel, and even the quality of my thoughts.’ We are never encouraged to think about this as children when educated about food, food groups and the health of food. More predominantly, we are taught about weight gain, but little else. Yet, eating is one of the most common things we do, aside from moving and sleeping. It makes sense to look at the subtleties of how it affects us.
It interesting to observe within us the thoughts that come up, such as ‘I am going to miss out’, ‘my life will be boring’ when we begin to consider listening to our bodies or consider a way of living that is more supportive to our health and well-being. But do we consider that theses are thoughts fuelled by an addiction to certain foods or lifestyles and not a true response to the inspiration we are feeling from our body or Soul? And do we consider why we have such a strong reaction to the potential to care for our body and being? Our relationship with our body has become distant to the point where we consider ‘abuse’ as normal and ‘loving’ as strange and questionable. Yet we crave for more and seek for more. That ‘more’ is the love we are and through a loving relationship with our body we will realise that living in connection to our love is what we are truly missing out on.
Great blog Bryony, reading your blog has brought to my realisation how I used to feel, and I remember I would often feel foggy in my mind, since changing my diet my head is so much clearer these days and I feel so much more vital in my body, this is definitely something for me to appreciate, the making of self loving choices.
Our bodies are such an extraordinary balancing mechanism… They can be so delicately and lovingly tuned with what we eat
That is a new concept to consider, that our bodies can be so delicately and lovingly tuned with what we eat – and how we eat I am going to add, as sometimes if I am honest, I can rush eating my food because I went too long without… which no longer feels nourishing!
It is amazing the tricks that the mind plays with us. I knew for 20 years that gluten did not agree with me but put off doing anything about it because I was caught in believing that it would be so hard to give up when in actual fact I felt better within 24 hours and this supported me to take more loving care with my diet and I rarely had any cravings for all the things that I thought I would miss. The connection between the gut and the mind is only now being explored more in mental health but in my experience it is crucial to be aware of how we choose to take care of ourselves and the dietary choices we feel impulsed to make for our overall wellbeing.
I couldn’t agree more Helen when I gave up gluten and dairy my body recovered very quickly from all kinds of health issues. In fact, considering how ill I was I didn’t expect any miracles but that’s what I got. Even when the tests do not show an intolerance to gluten or a dairy allergy the body can still be struggling with these food products.
When people come to know that I do not include gluten, dairy and sugar in my diet many of them still say things like – ‘surely just a little wouldn’t hurt you and everything in moderation’. But without hesitation, I look lovingly at them and reply – why would I risk having 2-3 days of my body feeling miserable, simply for a few seconds of a “taste sensation” in my mouth? I can see them processing this and then they usually nod in agreement and nothing more is said.