A new frame of mind

[Oliv0144]

I'm writing this 10-months after my first whole30, and after a year or so of eating clean and mindfully avoiding gluten/dairy/soy/etc.  I recently moved to Japan to participate in a teaching exchange for a year so my eating and exercise habits were adjusted quite a bit but I feel like I have finally started to get the paleo-lifestyle down.  Which is why seeing this commercial this morning has me in a tizzy:

 

http://great-ads.blogspot.com/2013/09/jwt-nestle-bake-world-better-place-in.html

 

The part that is frustrating to me is the line "Heal a broken heart with a bundt cake" as the young girl is handed a plate with cake on it, maybe after a breakup or some other love woes of adolesence.  It bothers me to see this in an ad because it perpetuates a bad relationship with food.  I know this all to well, having free-reign on snacks and sweets growing up and all too often calming my nerves with chocolate or "talking to some food" (as Tina Fey would say on 30Rock) when I had a lot on my mind.  And I also know, as many of you do as well, how hard it is to break that relationship and build a new, healthy relationship with food.  

 

I am so glad to have found my niche in healthy eating and exercising, because it helps me recognize these indiscretions regarding food as comfort.  I peruse the Whole30 forum on a regular basis, laughing, nodding my head, and learning so much after reading through the posts.  I enlisted the help of Jamie Scott, a Whole9 consultant based in Australia, in finding a way to balance my new diet and exercise plan here in Japan.  And a side-note, he has been wonderful to work with!

 

Reflecting on what I've learned this past year helps me feel confident in knowing that when I become a parent, I have strategies, support, and experience in eating and exercising healthfully and mindfully that will be passed on to my children.

 

A year ago, I may have seen this same commercial and thought "Mmm, fresh baked cookies, let me get the oven preheating!" as I dashed to the pantry to get the always stocked chocolate chips out.  I would have and still feel a pining towards the nice Viking range they used (did you notice it as well?!).  But now, I see this commercial and feel obligated to post about it in a forum!  The whole9 has given me a new frame of mind. 

 

Oh what a great and healthy difference a year made in my life.

 

[JujuBean]

I'm so happy for you! I'm inspired.