Monday, April 26, 2010

An experiment…a turning point…brought to you atop my soapbox.

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(Ok, this is a long post and in all honesty, if I saw this on the blogs I check I wouldn’t read it. I get it. Pretty pictures and short blurbs are so much more fun and efficient. I just had to get this out. I feel passionately about it. For good measure, and in case you don’t read on, here’s an awesome picture of Beck that Stephen took at the beach at the end of our street. Can you believe he’s going to be a year next month?! Ahhh! Where’s my baby?)

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A couple weeks before this last Christmas I sat at my computer during one of Beck’s naps and watched the documentary Food Inc. I had heard about it long before this day, seen posters in Chipotle and been intrigued but purposely avoided watching it. I wasn’t interested in anything that was going to turn my stomach at the thought of eating meat. I enjoy meat and feel better (by better I mean thinner) when I eat a diet heavy on the protein and lower on the carbs, focusing on whole foods. How do you do that without eating meat? I’m not sure why I thought this would be the result of watching this film. Would it really be in the best interest of Chipotle to promote a film that discouraged the consumption of meat - of which they sell a wide variety? Still I avoided it. And then one day I felt strongly that I needed to watch it.

I think I’ve been confused about food most of my life despite my unending research on nutrition, diets, health, etc. I’ve always been looking for how to keep my weight in check and my body wholesomely nourished. I felt like the more I researched the more confused and overwhelmed I became. I had often wondered why I had abandoned my go to resource for answers about confusing topics and decisions. I mean the scriptures offer a very specific guideline on what we should and shouldn’t put in our bodies. Why wasn’t I turning to the Word of Wisdom for diet advice? The reality, if I’m being honest, is that I wasn’t really sure what to do with the nutritional guidance given in the Word of Wisdom. Am I really supposed to be a vegetarian unless there truly is a famine? Don’t get me wrong, I want nothing more than to run and not get weary, but what was a girl to do who looks forward to tri-tip at the ranch, chicken phad thai at Thai Ginger, my mom’s meatloaf, and my sister’s barbacoa. I figured I would make sure I was avoiding the big no-no’s and glaze over the rest.

Enter Food Inc. Now I should preface this by acknowledging that we are not commanded in all things. This gives us the opportunity to seek out personal revelation and use our own free agency, so that we can act and not be acted upon. I’m not saying this film should be everyone’s interpretation of the Word of Wisdom, but for me, when I read the Word of Wisdom after watching this film, it all clicked. I finally understood a little of why and how to follow this guidance and apply it to my philosophy and attitude towards food. Michael Pollan sums it up so well. “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.” Eat meat sparingly. Make plants the bulk of your diet. Eat foods in season, locally grown and organic when possible. Have respect for the temples that are our bodies. Have respect for the incredible gift that is this earth and the resources that have been provided to us.

Those last few sentences don’t sound like me. Before watching this film, I would maybe roll my eyes at some of these sentiments. I use the terms tree hugger, granola, etc. freely and not usually to describe myself. I don’t think these are negative terms, necessarily, but I do usually use them for people I think have been caught up in the trendiness of being “green” and have maybe gone a little overboard at times. The description of “green” is used as a powerful marketing tool and I think there are times when threats are over exaggerated or misrepresented to justify charging more for a product. Having said this I find myself gradually leaning toward the more “crunchy” side of the spectrum, especially in those areas that I feel effect choices regarding the health of myself and my family.

Ok, enough, background. Now the experiment. It’s no secret, and it is an important point in Food Inc., that buying organic, locally grown whole foods is not cheap. In case you haven’t heard, we are currently starving students. Organic, free-range, locally raised chicken is usually not at the top of a starving student’s grocery list. I can see the numbers crunching in Stephen’s head when I bring home the organic milk. Steam starts rising from the head of the all knowing Nielson Family Budget spreadsheet. It’s not pretty. Regardless, I feel like there is a way to start to make a change - to work within our current budget to make better choices about how I feed our family. My hypothesis is that if I’m more diligent about planning out our meals, cooking at home and including more vegetarian options I should be able to afford the expensive chicken and weekly surprise organic fruit and veggie box delivery I’ve been coveting. Just eat the more expensive stuff (aka meat) more sparingly and get creative with the plants. Oh, and hit the treadmill. Those nutrient dense grains add up. I think I can do that…wish us luck.

6 comments:

Heather said...

We just watched a part of Food, Inc. on PBS over the weekend and now totally want to rent it. Have you read, "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" by Barbara Kingsolver? It has a lot of the same ideas. I like your thoughts. Oh, and the Evanston Farmer's Market opens up in May and goes through October. It helps us eat locally in the summer.

Leone said...

Thanks, Heather. I do have that book and read it a couple of years ago. It's such a beautiful book. I think it originally sparked my interest but seemed far fetched. Food Inc. and Michael Pollan's books have made it seem more accessible to gradually make some changes. I'm excited about the farmers markets. I'll get to enjoy them briefly before CA where I'm sure there is will be no shortage of summer markets. :)

Krista said...

I've wanted to watch that movie but I was scared too to...isn't that weird? I'm going to sometime though. I'm reading omnivore's dilemma though and isn't that a pollan book too? Anyway, I like the blog "this week for dinner" where she is also eating less meat and has some good ideas for the dinner menu.

Krista said...

ps the photos of beck are beautiful. :)

Leone said...

I'll have to check out that blog. Thanks for the recommendation. :)

Jessie said...

I, too, have always been conflicted about the W of W's "eat meat sparingly"...it seems as if most Mormons do just the opposite. The Church as a whole could really improve it's food offerings. I refuse to buy most food storage from the canneries because most of it is refined and stuff I would never normally eat. But I guess that's my soapbox, not yours. I totally agree with your attempt at whole foods, organics, and less animal protein. Good luck!