Healthy Choices: What Did You Eat For Christmas Day?
As a vegan I’m occasionally asked what do I eat on the holidays. Sometimes I find this question amusing because my food consumption is no different from any other day. I nourish my body with healthy & tasty foods. I don’t take a break from eating healthy. The excuses many us make for our poor eating habits is it any wonder why we feel run down. Should we really be surprised by the diseases that plague people in westernized civilizations? Often, we do have control of our health.
Disease usually isn’t pouncing on some unsuspecting victim. Often, we have created an environment that makes disease welcome. It feels right at home wreaking havoc in our bodies. We’ve welcomed it in my the choices we have made with our food, lack of exercise, and how we manage stress. Even with all the disease that plagues westernized cultures many of us will still make excuses about why we cannot change our eating habits. If change were easy many people would be healthy, right?
When asked this question do I take a break from eating my regular food and occasionally indulge in “junk” my answer is always no. That, to me, is like taking a break from quality writing and consciously making the decision to fill my blogs with junk. Knowing that is a representation of myself I could never do that. So why in the world would I fill my body with food that isn’t good for me? That won’t happen.
Realizing that what I choose to put into my body has a direct effect on how I will ideally feel why in the world would I want to feed it with foods that aren’t nourishing my body. If we received a negative reaction to the bad food choices we make I believe many people would make better health choices; however, it normally doesn’t happen that way it takes days, weeks, months, or years for problems to come to the surface.
I do think many of us use food as a crutch and allow ourselves “treats”. Treats for me are something that is beneficial for my body not something that can potentially harm it. Maybe if we eased up on these “treats” we wouldn’t see the of cancers, diabetes, high cholesterol, hair loss, high blood pressure, eczema, memory loss, depression, etc., Are you getting the picture the choices we make regarding food can have a major impact on our health. All these diseases can be brought on by the choices we make.
What was on my menu yesterday? Nothing major I ate fruits and vegetables. My biggest meal yesterday was a “big salad”. I did something different and added an agave ginger dressing. I’ve made it before, and it has received rave reviews when I brought it to work. I usually eat my salads plain; however, if you are new to this using a low calorie, no fat dressing is a way to break yourself into a healthier way of eating a salad (if you are the type that slathers high fat dressing onto your salads which make the salad “unhealthy”.
What did my daughter have eggless eggrolls, raw zucchini pasta with thick and chunky tomato sauce, and fruit pudding.
Our society is bombarded with unhealthy choices that can cause problems to our bodies. I say its time we take control of our health and just say no to unhealthy living.
[tags]vegan, healthy choices, nutrition, unhealthy[/tags]
on December 26th, 2007 at 6:12 pm
I don’t feel too bad about what I ate for dinner - I had all vegetables, plus a stuffed mushroom. But I did indulge in some mashed potatoes, a handful of potato chips and some miniature Mr. Goodbar candy bars.
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on December 26th, 2007 at 7:07 pm
I agree with that.i ate grilled veggies lol and a sugarfree popsicle but, I was sick so i didnt eat much yesterday.
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on December 26th, 2007 at 10:05 pm
:mrgreen: I started in on a Christmas ham with some of my family, and then, (for the first time in my life) realized that I was fixing to eat a dead animal body!
I went to eating roasted vegetables (OK a whole plate full) and was quite full and satisfied!
I feel better today than I’ve ever felt after a big dinner.
I don’t ever want to eat things that are not healthy again James
on December 27th, 2007 at 7:25 am
haha…..i remember eating a BIG bowl salad on Christmas too when I visited my neighbour :)
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on December 27th, 2007 at 12:49 pm
Actually, I decided to deviate from my regular eating habits of the last few months (reduction in processed foods, fewer carbs, and complete avoidance of high glycemic value carbs) and dig into some deserts. Sad thing was, I didn’t find any of it satisfying. Kind of like when I gave up regular soft drinks for water and the occasional diet drink. Now I can’t even drink a coca-cola without feeling as though raw sugar has been poured into my mouth. “Breaking free” of my lower carb lifestyle for a day, I guess, gave me a new appreciation of how not so horrible it really is. So, I’ll just keep eating like a caveman for now.
on December 27th, 2007 at 1:02 pm
I made Cornish game hens, stuffing, corn, salad and rolls. I had a small portion of everything, and actually felt pretty good about it. My diet lately has been fruit for one meal a good salad or veggies and rice for one meal and then whatever I fix Hubby for dinner. Its working pretty well, and since we only had the one meal on Christmas, the rest of the day we munched on fruit, veggies, nuts and such. I realize it could be healthier, but baby steps can be a good thing. I didnt do well when I tried the extreme change. This works for me.
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on December 27th, 2007 at 2:54 pm
I agree that disease being so rampant shouldn’t be a surprise in the land of milk and honey … when those things come from Jack in the Box, and a lot of my coworkers’ ideas of eating healthy are having lunch at Taco Bell.
Unfortunately, my holiday lunch was mostly road food. Lots of veggie burgers with fries or salads. Not that those are a bad thing, but at home I cook them in a touch of olive oil, which is more healthy, and also more tasty … I also don’t have them more than once or twice a week. But a vegetarian on a road trip has mercilessly limited choices.
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on December 27th, 2007 at 3:04 pm
You are SO right about the excuses we give ourselves for “treats”: First, it’s Christmas; then it’s New Year’s; and of course, Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. As you note, the solution isn’t about eliminating those excuses, but about redefining the very way we think about “treats.”
on December 27th, 2007 at 7:23 pm
I’m glad to hear that you both had a wonderful christmas!
I’m ashamed to say that I’m having problems with clothes fitting :) and the holidays are not over for me as yet. I need to start just munching on healthy food….
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on December 27th, 2007 at 7:24 pm
Opal you are so healthy. What do people in America normally eat at Christmas? They do turkey at thanksgiving right?
I made turkey but we have this with a lot of vegetables and potatoes. I’m a really slow eater, so I never eat it all as I get full way before I’ve finished.
Since then we have had mostly turkey salad, although tomorrow I think we are going to have turkey curry for a change!
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on December 27th, 2007 at 11:25 pm
HI!!!! I wanted to let you know that I am blogging on facebook now…Happy New year!
on December 28th, 2007 at 6:52 pm
Reading your post has me thinking about being a veg again. I’m thinking at least.
:O)
on December 31st, 2007 at 10:01 am
I’ve been thinking of going vegetarian again and I have to say that this post really puts it into perspective. I had way too much food this holiday - this morning I noticed the results beginning to gather at my waist. I’m a naturally lean person, so seeing this is quite a shock.
Yesterday morning, I squeezed a grapefruit on a whim, just because it has been sitting around - uneaten - for so long. That simple act struck me to my core and I wondered why/how I had strayed so far from my previous eating habits.
With the blog re-design behind me and a new year in front of me, maybe this is the time to change. I’ve actually considered a blog behind this transition back to healthy eating. I know for a fact that there will be plenty of material for posting, well into the next few years. Thanks for being so inspiring. :)
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on January 5th, 2008 at 2:30 pm
I have tried once to became a vegan but i didn’t succed. Your posts are the perfect inspiration for trying again :smile:
Happy new year to all of you
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on February 15th, 2008 at 5:38 am
I’m afraid my Xmas lunch was strictly carnivore. I’m one of those people who happily adapt my diet to those around me - I love cooking for vegetarian and vegan friends, but when the meat eaters are round they get served with what they want, unless I’m making curry, which is always strictly vegetarian in my house.