health

Organically speaking…

| Chris

Some people have begun noticing the change in my eating habits. Including me! For about a year now, my diet has been for the most part, organic and health centric. I say, it’s not really my eating habits that’s changed as much as it is my outlook in life. And that outlook just happened to involve an awareness in personal responsibility. Responsibility towards health and nature, that is. Hence, my reason for taking the organic route.

First of all, I believe organic food is healthy, not necessarily in a physical sense but more in a perspective of wellness. For me, it means a little peace of mind. The peace from knowing I cared, even if it’s just a little bit. It’s a good feeling to know that I care, respect and am thankful not only for my health, but also for nature and the folks responsible for my being able to eat clean food. That, to me is giving importance to the wellness of my own being. Now, if that’s not being healthy, I don’t know what is. Hey, let’s just say, if I could choose food that has less chances of chemical contamination, why shouldn’t I? I’m sure the regular variety won’t kill me anytime soon (it hasn’t, in the past 45 years) but if it doesn’t give me peace of mind anymore, what good is it for me?

Another thing I should note is that organic food may or may not taste better than non-organic varieties. In my experience, a lot of them do, but some don’t. However, that is the least important factor, in my opinion. I didn’t choose organic products because they taste better. If they do, it’s simply icing on the cake. Choice is a matter of principle. What we believe in and what we care about. I believe that whatever we decide to eat is a very personal choice. The way we shape our diet is from the knowledge we gain from a desire to understand, as well as our own fundamental beliefs, if we have any.

Unless we grow our own food, we’re stuck with what society feeds us. We’re force-fed with very limited choices, in stores or even in restaurants. There’s not as much control we can get when eating out as we do from when we’re cooking our own food. By the way, it is important to know how to cook, if only for this reason alone. But… that’s for another story.

Okay, let’s be honest and take the marketing labels out of the picture. Wouldn’t most of us choose organically produced food if the price was the same as the ones that aren’t? I hate that it costs so much to buy organic – it makes no sense, I know – but if that’s what it takes for me to gain peace of mind, then it is my responsibility to adjust my finances to fit my priorities in life. After all, the length of my life isn’t as significant as its quality. And quality is subjective to each person’s decisions. However, at the end of the day, practicality is still just as important as sensibility. I hate snobbery of any kind! It’s what makes sincere attempts to do good look suspect in many people’s eyes. And that’s what stereotypes a worthy lifestyle. That’s what reduces a good habit into a mere fad.

We make decisions in life according to the level of responsibility we are willing to take. Just like anyone, I have mindlessly eaten countless amounts of junk food in my life. And believe it or not, it doesn’t bother me much to this day. It’s just that now, I’m a little more aware of how much responsibility I am willing to take, whenever I do it again. I may eat healthy all week and decide to pig out at KFC one day. No guilt there. Or, if I decide to buy a more costly bag of healthy groceries at the expense of a road trip or a fun weekend somewhere, so be it. Or if I’m invited to a backyard bbq over at a friends house, I’d enjoy that big fat burger just like anyone would, with no hesitations. I call that… life. That’s right! I stand for life, not religion. When lifestyle becomes religion, life is robbed of its freedom.

Now, our decisions will always cost us something, no matter what it is. All I can say is that after a year of gaining health awareness, its effects have drastically transformed, not only my body, but my mind and spirit as well. Now, if that wasn’t worth the cost and trouble, I don’t know what is.

So I say… simply live life to the full because that’s all that matters, really. And organic or not, we still need to eat our vegetables.

Cookin’ up a storm

| Chris

Been a while since I wrote anything here. But trust me, I have been around. Just not in here, unfortunately. Well, sometimes you generate a new passion and it steals all of your time you don’t have any left to write about it. In my case, I have been cooking a lot lately. Not necessarily pigging out, just… cooking, that’s all. Funny thing happened yesterday… I cooked 3 dishes in 6 hours. Man, I was so tired I felt I needed some food. So, I treated myself to a little fish filet sandwich at McDonald’s.

Just to back track a little… Last year, I went to the doctor for the first time since… well, since my mom dragged me there when I was a kid, actually. I’m not kidding you! So at 45 years of age, I naturally thought, wow, I must be in big trouble now. Well, I was lucky I almost got a perfectly clean bill of health. I did say almost, yes. That’s because at the last minute, I was prescribed a cholesterol lowering med to be taken in the next six months. Just for precaution, the doc affirmed.

At the start of this year, I vowed to be a lot more health conscious and try to do as much as I could to not be given another round of prescription the next time I visit the doc. Well, it’s been a fun ride, actually. Back in January, I weighed in at 152 lbs. Not terribly bad for a guy standing at a towering 5’6″. But still a tad overweight, I guess. Golly, when you’re in your forties, your body’s not very forgiving. I should’ve learned this early on. Anyhow, so I began counting calories, being mindful of fat intake, nutrition, physical activity and all that good stuff I never thought existed before. I started walking a lot. At work and everywhere else. Ditched the elevators and took the stairs. I purposely missed my floors so I could walk even more. Started experimenting with vitamins and bought as much organic food as I could. Fat-free this low-fat that, you name it. I spent half of my time in the grocery store just reading labels.

But mind you…I didn’t obsess! 🙂

Okay, maybe, just a little in the beginning. However, as the months passed by, I realized that trying to develop a healthy habit shouldn’t be about losing weight or because you’re afraid of the imminent bad news your doctor might have to break. It should be something you’re meant to do. So, as an artist, I found that as I labored in the kitchen, the joy wasn’t coming from a health perspective. Although it was definitely a bonus, my satisfaction came from an artistic standpoint. It was creativity that made me want to cook. I cook even when I’m not hungry. It’s not about eating as much as it was about creating something. Well, I knew I was gonna get hungry sooner or later so it’s not like it goes to waste, right? Now, this is probably what filled in the void that my songwriting and music playing has caused in the past couple of years. I had to channel it somewhere as art is what keeps me functioning. But it had to be meaningful, somehow. And cooking was.

Now, I’m not a vegetarian. I don’t like to label myself. But I try to be sensible and responsible, as well as practical, about food and nutrition. I believe food is something all humans have to be consciously grateful for – in words and in action – at all times. Food is a gift that nature abundantly and freely gives. There’s a lot of respect that needs to come from that alone. But I’m not going to elaborate on this anymore as I’m sure you already know what I’m talking about and that we all have our own little ways of translating this into our own lives anyway.

Though for me, it definitely has been very inspiring. For one, I have lost 20 lbs. and my waistline went from 34 to 29. All in 10 months! I feel so much better and I have more energy. I’m only shouting this through the rooftops because I’m not young anymore. If I was in my twenties, it’s probably moot but when you’re over the hill, it is something to be  celebrated, I think.

Okay, what I’m trying to say here is (Yeah Chris, what are you trying to say already?) that cooking has become a true passion lately. One that brings me joy and fulfillment. I mean, I’m a fan of cooks and chefs on TV, too! They’re like my new found rock stars and I watch their shows as much as I did all those hair bands back in the 80’s. I get inspired, not necessarily by their recipes, but by the passion they invoke into their craft. It’s infectious! That passion is what builds my own. The only difference probably is that I try to be as consciously responsible as I possibly could. Towards nature and my health. And without being snobbish. 🙂

Oh yeah, I also started a food blog, lately. Check it out.