Conscious Inner Transformation

I’ve noticed that transformation as it occurs, radiates through my life, touching every aspect of it. Lately I’ve been very much more focused on what I eat.

I’ve struggled with my weight off and on – even when I was a beautifully slim UK size 10!  I always compared myself with skinnier women and thought that I was fat and ugly.  That issue has come up a lot over the years and each time I’ve delved into the pain of feeling ashamed of myself, ugly and unlovable.  What I came to realise was that being ‘fat’ didn’t make me feel ashamed and unlovable.  I already felt those things – and believed them at a deep level, holding judgments about myself and how bad I must be.  My body, parts of my body, and my weight all became areas where I unconsciously projected this self-hate.

As I got into personal transformation I worked at releasing the deeply held emotions and the destructive beliefs about myself – and even though I’m as big as I’ve ever been, I can honestly say that I love myself and my body now.  I even prance around on the beach in bathers, unconcerned about other peoples’ opinions of me.  (Even though no-one’s probably even looking at me lol!)

Towards the end of last year and the beginning of this year (2010) I began to really focus on my health (rather than a fat/weight issue) and started to feel a strong desire to attain optimum health and fitness that I can enjoy now and into a very long and active and youthful old age.  I have long known that my eating habits for the last 12 or so years have been less than ideal for my system, especially since I’ve been married with a child and have made do with what’s easy more than going for excellence in nutrition.

Surfing the Net for information one night, I came across a site called www.peertrainer.com, which I found to be an incredibly valuable resource for people wanting more health and fitness.  Among the articles there was information on Dr Joel Furhman’s work, including the first chapter of one of his books, Eat for Health.  He has coined the term Nutritionist to describe someone who chooses what foods they eat based on how many micronutrients they contain.  To cut a long story short, I bought the book, and also hired another of his books, Eat to Live from my library and am totally enthused by what he presents.

I will let Dr Furhman speak for himself if you’re interested at: www.drfuhrman.com – but suffice it to say, I’ve adopted the mindset of choosing nutritious foods, rather than what’s quick, convenient or artificially tasty.

Now I’m having fun experimenting with healthy food – smoothies, soups, salads, and not only using recipes from Furhman’s  books, but also making my own and really enjoying a new eating experience.  My family (husband and son) are less veggie-orientated than I am, but to their credit are giving the recipes a go and while I still cook to their tastes for them, always try what I’m having.  I don’t believe in converting people, but giving them the opportunity to try and change, if they wish, themselves.  Although to me, its vitally important that my husband and particularly my son, adopt a healthy lifestyle (eating and exercise) now, so they can enjoy a full, active and healthy existence.

In the meantime, along with having fun eating (no guilt attached when you can eat as much as you want of nutritious foods) I am losing weight!  Since January I’ve effortlessly released almost 3Kg.  I say ‘released weight’ as ‘lost weight’ might imply that I want to find it again haha.

If you’re interested in following a day by day account (with photos) of Dr Furhman’s recipes, you might be interested in Jana’s blogspot at http://janadrjoel.blogspot.com .  I found it very enjoyable to read, loved the photos and liked how she and her husband graded each recipe.

So in summary, transformation of oneself takes many forms and as we grow, release limitations and embrace more life within, we find that our lives open up and bring us many opportunities for increased health, fulfillment and opportunities.  Healthful eating is one of those areas that can give us the opportunity to  be more creative and adventurous, enjoy more sensuality in cooking and eating, and discover the unfolding wonder of increased health and fitness now and into our later years.