Get low to the ground – and start listening!

I believe eating ‘low to the ground’* is something our bodies naturally want – and, perhaps, even need. Given our busy lifestyles, it’s nearly impossible to hear (or even listen to) a body all cranked up on drive-thru food and over processed foods that need to be loaded with colorings, added flavors, preservatives and fillers just to make them palatable. I know, through personal experience, that the longer I went without eating manufactured foods, the more I began to hear my body. Sounds a bit extreme - but it actually happens. I didn’t set out expecting or looking for this either. I did it as a health plan – as a way to eat more naturally. However, as a by-product of doing so, my body started talking to me. Kind of like a car telling you to change its oil, get new brake pads or get more gas. (I love the expression “I run like a well oiled machine”. I think that’s true.)

I listen to my body on other subjects all the time: When I’m tired, I rest. When my knee hurts, I walk instead of run. When I’m stressed, I try to exercise. Why wouldn’t eating, one of the most basic things we do for our bodies, be exactly the same? One way our bodies talk is through the language of cravings. I crave certain foods when I am tired or stressed – or energetic. If we teach our bodies - by giving them nutritious food for a while – and then listen – they will start to tell us what we need. A body hyped up on fast food and preservatives will probably crave more of the same – it just doesn’t know any better. But given 3-4 weeks ‘low to the ground’, the body will start to crave nutritious foods.

I know, with schedules and families to feed, it’s hard to stick to such a pure regimen, but just starting to think in these terms can make a huge difference. You can be as extreme as you like: how far you go is up to you. Simply being conscious of what you put in your mouth is a healthy start…
…it’s all just food for thought!

*Think of ‘low to the ground’ as foods locally grown, minimally processed and probably eaten by your ancestors.

Ann Sullivan is a self-proclaimed “Food Anthropologist” and an avid health and fitness activist. After 20 years as a wife and stay-at-home-mom, preparing meals to satisfy the masses instead of her inner voice, she has started listening – and is discovering an entirely new level of nutritional health and personal satisfaction.