2024 Incoming
1 week down! I love even numbered years. I like even numbers because in my head they’re just easier than odd numbers. And I probably have a subconscious bias to the years that are even. In my life I have noticed that in the years that ended in even numbers one aspect of my life comes to a close and a new beginning full of possibility arises. And I think that is just what is about to happen in 2024. And I am so ready.
A little update is I have started incorporating more protein into my diet. Sound familiar? Maybe. Seems like half of the world is now obsessed with eating more protein. I didn’t really decide to do it because any particular influencer was hanging their hat on it. It was really intuitive for me. I have been plant based/vegan for the better part of 5 or 6 years. On and off I would incorporate some fish in waves. I always struggled with feeling satisfied and would end up having a massive dinner that would leave me feeling overly full and sluggish going to bed. Which would impede my sleep. And I would wake up feeling like I couldn’t have a great workout because I still felt like I was carrying last nights dinner. It was a terrible cycle. Not to say that I am blaming a plant based diet, but I think how I was going about it wasn’t supporting me or my lifestyle. I would eat super light in the morning and have a mostly raw lunch and then all the cooked veggies and carbs at dinner. I really wanted to get on board with food combining, lots of people I followed had such compelling stories and the science made sense in the back of my head. And one thing I really evaluated going into the new year was how much of my lifestyle was I basing off of someone else’s life rather than my own lived experiences. And that stopped me in my steps. My entire diet I wasn’t really listening to my body, I was trying to shape my life and routines to look like someone else’s. So while I did feel really good some days eating the way I did, it just wasn’t fitting in with my lifestyle.
Enter a higher protein diet. I’ve taken a reframe to how I approach listening to people on social media/podcasts/the internet. I basically take everything they say with a grain of salt. And I deleted instagram for the first week of the year lol.
Now my mindset is, let’s experiment, and let's be honest with myself noting what works and what doesn’t. What consitutes working? Feeling satisfied, not overly full, plenty of energy, good night sleep and not feeling bloated. There are so many opinions out there and it’s hard when personally I am not in a place of utmost confidence in what’s working for me, it makes me more susceptible to wanting to alter a part of my life to look like someone else’s who seems to have it all figured out.
So who exactly am I looking to for nutritional advice? My Parsley Health doctor, certified nutritionists and integrative doctors. I am currently working my way through Mia Rigden’s cookbook called Foodwise. The photographs are beautiful and she has a philosophy which is not based on restriction that I really resonate with.
On the menu tonight? Za’atar chicken cutlets with purple sweet potato fries, and herbed tahini dip and an arugula salad.
Incorporating more foods that I used to exclude because it wasn’t part of a vegan diet has also given me so much more freedom with food. I love a buddha bowl, and still very much do, but now my mentality has shifted from “am I excluding the right things“ to “am I getting enough of what I need“. An abundance mindset! I have always head Danielle Duboise and Whitney Tingle of Sakara Life talk about this. But I never really quite got it when I was eating solely vegan. I ate a rainbow of vegetables each week and yet I still felt empty or like something wasn't quite right. Who knows, maybe one day I will return to a vegan diet with a different mindset. I’ve got plenty of life left to live so I am not saying no to anything. But right now, my mindset is to focus on eating an abundance of nutritious organic foods that support me and make me feel my best.
2024 is the year of happiness, beginnings and protection for me after all!
So here’s to blocking out the noise of all the influencers of the world and tuning into you! We’re pretty amazing and I want to start celebrating me. Sans noise. Sans judgement. Funny since I’m writing this on a public platform. But here I go. Continuing on my 51 week journey in 2024. The happiest year yet.