The Green Smoothie Challenge

The Green Smoothie Challenge
Lose Weight and Feel Great!

The Green Smoothie Challenge

Kick start your heatlhy lifestyle with The Green Smoothie Challenge! I have created this cleanse as a way for you to refresh and rejuvenate. Many people find that they lose a lot of weight, increase their energy levels and improve their health. So, come join the fun at my new Web site http://www.thegreensmoothiechallenge.com/
Get your friends to do it with you. This makes it so much easier!

Thursday, April 9, 2009

The Addictiveness of Processed Food

I have often awoke in the morning feeling physically horrible after a night of having "fun" by drinking wine and eating french bread, processed carbs, cheese and desserts. I am tired, bloated, and unable to function at my peak. I have so often thought of not eating these types of foods and really limiting my wine intake in order to feel better. But then, I struggle with the fact that I want to live a life of moderation and not extremism. I tend to think back to biblical times and what they ate in order to keep myself in check with my own eating. They feasted at appropriate times, they fasted at appropriate times and they ate their daily fare well, daily. What did feasting look like back then? Was the food actually harmful to their health or were they celebrating the bounty that God had given them in it's natural form? It had to be the latter because they did not have foods that were processed and refined and irradiated and treated with formaldehyde, pesticides, and other toxic, disease causing chemicals. Feasts were not held daily either.

When I eat food in its natural form and that is what makes me thrive. When I put processed foods in my body they act like poison and make me miserable. It's that simple. I believe that the tastes that God gave to food and spices are sufficient most of the time and that everything does not need to taste like it is the most amazing thing I ever ate. Sometimes my kids don't absolutely LOVE the taste of something. I often tell them that eating is about nourishing our bodies, it is not always about gratifying our flesh. This is where I imagine that I differ from many people. When I eat only to gratify my flesh, eating only what I LIKE, then I feel that I become addicted to those kinds of foods. This is absolutely unhealthy. I have given this a lot of thought lately. Why is it so difficult for people to give up sugar and white flour and refined, processed, harmful foods? Why do people ingest things that are harmful to themselves, that are disease causing? Why do we, as a society refuse to believe that what we put into our bodies is affecting our health? Why is it easier to believe that putting the wrong oil in our cars is bad for our cars? Well, I guess it's because our cars will break down faster than our bodies will.

In the last few months I have tried to do the "moderation" thing meaning that I have allowed myself to eat more refined foods than I normally would. I think partly I don't always want to be the "different" one. So, guess what happened? I found myself depressed, always thinking about the next yummy thing I want to eat but shouldn't. I have been exhausted, unable to wake up early to get to the gym, I gained 5 pounds, my back has been killing me, etc..... This has lead me to really try to figure out what is going on. What I have found is that food, refined, processed foods that have been stripped of essential nutrients and have had synthetic additives put into them are addicting. Stop and ask yourself. Can you stop eating those things right now? Ask yourself if you knowingly ingest things on a regular basis that are not good for your health. Have you tried to give these things up and go on a diet? Were you successful? Do these foods give you energy and vitality or do they make you gain weight and risk your health?

Are the foods you eat regularly known to cause heart disease and cancer? If you know that what you eat causes weight gain and being overweight can lead to disease and death, should you continue to eat these things? Do you sneak food or eat things that you committed not to eat? Is a few moments of pleasure more important to you than your health and your life? Do processed and refined foods have a hold on you? It's important to ask ourselves these questions. Maybe you just enjoy processed foods and don't overeat them. I cannot do that. For me, moderation of things that are harmful to my health does not really work. Maybe if it's only every very little once in a while, but moderation on a regular basis absolutely messes me up completely.

Our culture has made it so normal to eat these damaging foods that obesity is now one of the top health concerns in our country. People can't lose weight. It is just so sad. Once we understand that those foods are actually addictive, then we can begin to move on and realize that it is not so much our lack of self control, it is much more a lack of knowledge. We are living on food that has little to no nutritional value and then after we eat, we are hungry because our bodies are trying to ask us for nutrients that we are not ever going to get from a compormised diet. Our bodies are crying out for nutrition which is disguised as hunger. We end up craving more of the bad food and so the viscous cycle goes. It is a lack of nutrition much more than it is a lack of self control in my opinion.

One way to combat these unhealthy cravings is to eat nutrient dense foods. The most nutrition filled foods are those that are deep green or sprouted. These are the biggest cancer fighters! One of the easiest ways to add a lot of these nutrients to our bodies is by drinking green smoothies. My favorite green smoothie is a mixture of organic blueberries, strawberries and greens such as kale, spinach, baby lettuce mix, or romaine lettuce and water. I add "Power Organics" Klamath Power 3 which is a mixture of blue green algae, spirulina and chlorella. Nothing will help remove cravings more than deep greens. I buy mine through www.rawvegansource.com I also add a tablespoon of raw, organic sprouted chia seed powder and a scoop of brown rice protein powder. That is my breakfast right now. You can change up the green smoothie and there are all sorts of recipes out there. 'Green for Life' is a book specifically about green smoothies.

Constantly feeling guilty about what we eat is unhealthy. Instead we must become proactive about dealing with the addictiveness of processed foods. Food addictions are commonplace today and it's no wonder. I was watching basketball the other day and I was AMAZED at the constant bombarding of commercials about unhealthy foods. It practically makes you not be able to withstand the temptation. They throw it at us just like they do sex, violence, etc... We have to wake up to this type of brainwashing. If you are realizing that food has a hold on you, do not feel like an alien from another planet. It is commonplace now.

My next blog entry will be about ways to combat these addictions with a good diet. I will give you tips on how to change your lifestyle to one of health and wellness.

4 comments:

  1. This posting is great! I agree with the statement "It is a lack of nutrition much more than it is a lack of self control." When we fill up on nutrient-dense foods we won't be tempted to keep snacking or continue to feel hungry.

    Have you heard of the book "Real Food: What to Eat and Why" by Nina Planck? I think you'd love it.

    Last week I sprouted French lentils and mung beans and have been enjoying them on salads and sandwiches. Yum, yum! Tried giving some to Elias but he was a bit skeptical...

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  2. Kael!!
    Thank you for you comments! I love that you are sprouting. I just sprouted broccoli sprouts for the first time and my family LOVES them. 3 TBS of seeds yeilded a TON of sprouts! We really need to get together!

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  3. I hadn't thought about it being a lack of nutrition, not self control, that drives the processed food addiction. Only recently have I noticed how bummed my body is when I eat junk. Last night I made a batch of chili with organic veggies, beef and beans and woke up feeling great!
    You are right about the planning aspect of eating....when I plan we all eat so much better. I find it difficult to get a system down to help it go faster.
    Now that I am prego with #5 all the effort involved overwhelms me somedays and I just want Haagen Daas :)

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  4. Megan-
    You are so normal. There are seasons where we just have to let some things go!! I kept our eating so simple when the kids were little and I still do actually. Keeping a simple list with breakfast, lunch, dinner and snack ideas inside the kitchen cupboard really helps! Keep it so simple. I'll help you with it. I bet you can't think so clearly right now. I remember that very well:) For sure don't let the eating overwhelm you. THe stress of that is worse than eating poorly in my opinion!

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