Savoring Special Occasions with Food (as a health coach)
Food fuels your body to do what you love. But it’s so much more than simply nutrition.
I love coconut cake. Any day, in all the ways. Mostly, I love coconut cake on my birthday. This year’s birthday was quite special. Not only was it a big birthday to celebrate (50 and thriving!), but my favorite part was that I had a lot of family surrounding me as I blew out the candles and dove into my first slice of cake.
SAVOR THOSE BITES.
It was so good and so delicious, I decided to have a second piece. Both were equally as good. Every bite was savored.
I stopped there. For the night. But woke the next morning, and pulled that coconut cake right out of the fridge and dove in for a piece. Do you know how good coconut cake tastes with a cup of warm coffee?
THE TRUTH
Yep, I am a health coach, nutrition coach and work with clients every day on their attitude and behaviors in and around food. I love my work. And work tirelessly to inform and teach clients how to find balance. This is balance in food.
I try to eat mostly whole foods, most of the day, and most of the days. On special occasions, I like to treat food like an experience to light up my taste buds for a long time. And then there are very special occasions where the timing of coconut cake matches a special day, at a special time, with all the right people around - and in that moment I want to hold that taste longer by wrapping it up with the experience.
Food is more than nutrition.
Food is nourishment and sustenance. It’s equilibrium and happiness. Food brings pleasure and joy. Food helps us create experiences with and for others. Food helps our brains, hearts, and bodies feel better. Food helps us laugh, learn and love one another better.
Here’s the thing, as we head into the summer season filled with LOTS of special occasions, it’s important to be selective.
Select the foods or the “specials” that are important to you, so you can savor them, relish in them, delight in them. If you aren’t selective, with spacing time and effort, around those foods you love, they will get watered down and not special anymore.
In the season of special events, choose the one thing that will keep it special. Is it the fun drink? Is it the appetizer with the cheese from europe? Is it a sweet dessert?
Whatever it is, pick that one thing and ENJOY IT! Embrace it. Love on every bite. The more you savor, the better you relinquish that dopamine and draw on the very best of our midlife hormones.
