There’s no finish line on a whole food plant-based journey. The goal is just to keep running! To stay and feel healthy, to stay and feel alive! Yes, it takes persistence, commitment and planning, even stubbornness. But I don’t believe you can succeed if you’re out to prove something to someone else, or to be holier than thou, or to cook kale on a soap box, so to speak. Your heart and soul have to be in it, because you will be tested. I know I have been. I’ve been knocked down so many times by inconsistent effort, cravings, complacency, and a lack of vision for myself, yet somehow, I always find myself back again, striving to learn from those stumbles and rise again to become the person I want to be.
What I’m finding now is that my joy comes from the everyday excursions into cooking, fitness, study, and community, that are essential to maintain focus on a plant-based diet. In fact, I think the key is to always keep things interesting. Take a deep dive into topics you enjoy, refine and improve your process and approach, whether it be cooking with new recipes or techniques, applying new form to an exercise at the gym, or finding out about the specific benefits of certain foods. The more you know, the more inspired you will be to actualize your knowledge. The more you know, the harder it is to see yourself slip back into old habits. The more you understand, the easier it will be to resist the urge to take the easy way out.
Picture yourself driving down the road, your stomach is grumbling, and you're surrounded by fast food joints. How prepared are you for this moment? Is there a healthy snack in the glove box? Are there meals prepped at home that can be warmed up to avert your hangry crisis when you arrive? How much does it matter to you what happens next? For me personally, it usually comes down to time management and priorities. Being prepared is half the battle. If you want to steer clear of a health emergency in your golden years, remember that you are building the foundation of your future today. Make no bones about it (no pun intended, I swear,) this could one day be a life-or-death situation. The food you choose to put in your body today could be the deciding factor in whether you live a disease full life, or a plentiful and healthy life. Believe it or not, we have a significant amount of control over this, and it starts with what’s on our plate. Don’t be afraid to find out the hard truth. The research is there. Peel back the layers of the onion. Find out for yourself. Free your mind and your body will follow!
Whether you are just beginning to think about making some changes in your approach to food, or you've been on this path for a lifetime, I wish you the very best! Start small or go all in, whatever your heart tells you. I know you can succeed! Perhaps your goal is to lose a few pounds, or a hundred! Maybe you've got high blood sugar or high cholesterol and you want to supplement your pharmaceutical regiment with a natural approach. There is no better time than today to start the process. You may be surprised how quickly you start to see the results you desire! I'll be here with you, putting one foot in front of the other, stumbling, rising, and trying to make the best choices I can, (and forgiving myself when I don't.) Keep up the hard work and don't give up! Look to others for inspiration and look within for the grit to change your old bad habits into new healthy ones. Thanks for reading!