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Eat Like You Give a Damn:Part One

Summer Floyd
Mar 21, 2017
4 min read

Lets discuss a touchy, sensitive subject that deals with eating. Before you continue to read please understand my intentions are not to offend you, but rather shed some light on a matter that has been pushed to the side, hidden, and left to cycle out of control due to the fear of speaking up for yourself or for your loved ones. As you know, I love food. I find food science so fascinating and beautiful in a sense on how it can affect our physical appearance and mental state which tend to reflect what is occurring internally. As a personal trainer, nutrition enthusiast, and a friend to confide in I have been informed of the many habits that fall under certain lifestyles which have caused people to stray away from eating like they give a damn about themselves.

Since I have so much to go over on this topic, HOW TO GIVE A DAMN!, will be a series of blogs. In today's blog (part 1) I will go over a common client scenario to find "what happened to their damn?" and what occurs internally when we eat poorly regularly. Notice regularly? You can indulge in your favorite unhealthy items from time to time, but when we consume those foods every single day our bodies take notice and become affected.

If you turn on the T.V., look at advertisements, and listen to the radio you will hear phrases of "done within minutes", "zero wait time", "immediate results", and so on that continue to climb the ladder of "convenience" in our society. We have transitioned from "taking time" into a "now or never" mentality. This covers a variety of topics (I could easily get lost on a tangent with this), but lets talk food specifically.

Question I've asked clients: If you know its poor quality, poor nutritional value, poorly made, leaves you feeling sluggish, unhappy, and angry then why do you consume it? Why do you feed your children it?

Answers:

It's easy
I don't have time to cook
Convienent
I'm exhausted after work
I don't know what to do
I'm depressed
Eating healthy is too expensive
I had no idea these foods were unhealthy
It's too much work
I don't like vegetables

I don't stop, wave, and tell them to have a nice day. I actually care, I see and I hear their struggle with how they look, how they think, how they move, and how they perceive themselves in the mirror. It's heartbreaking, worrisome, and not something that should continue being suppressed. I want THEM to start caring. This is when it gets good, my favorite part. I comeback with questions which tend to shift gears: client becomes uncomfortable, becomes fidgety, I loose their eye contact, excuses begin to flood, emotions begin to surface, and the individual begins to hear their own voice of truth. When we say things out loud, especially about ourselves, it becomes too real. This is when I know I've hit the jackpot, I pressed their button, and now they're either happy or angry with me.

For example:

Me: How much TV do you watch a day?

Client: Up to 3-4hrs.

Me: How much TV does your children watch a day?

Client: About the same

Me: Could you not spare 30-minutes to make a healthy meal for your family with possible left overs for next day?

Client: *Answers vary at this point* I suppose I could have------to-----I don't know how to cook a meal in that period of time. If I knew what I was doing I would!

Me to myself: **Thinking, I'm loving this attitude, we're getting somewhere** haha I sound absurd right?

As you can see this is a "I don't give a damn" mentality combined with "I don't know how" mentality which can then cause a person to be overwhelmed by TRYING to learn. Sense of being overwhelmed is a bad place. Once you're there...bye bye....towel is thrown in....give up occurs...this is all bullshit is said.

I'VE BEEN THERE TOO! YOU GOT THIS!

How Eating Unhealthy Regularly Can Harm the Body

Physical/Physiological:

Weight/Fat Gain
High Blood Pressure
Increased Risk for Diabetes, Cancers, Metabolic Syndromes, Heart Disease, Stroke, Sleep Problems, Infertility, Kidney Disease, Liver Complications, and Arthritis
Decreased Mortality Rate
Acne
Headaches
IBS
Dental Problems
Increased Fatigue/Weakness
Breathing Problems
Inflammation

Mental/Emotional:

Depression
Anxiety Disorder
Bipolar Disorder
Low Self Esteem/Self Confidence
Decreased Motivation
Mental Fatigue

Perfect example of a client's face when I go over this list of problems of how unhealthy eating can affect their health. Usually followed by a "I cannot believe this is me" laugh. You know what I'm talking about! What will always astonish me is how people are truly NOT INFORMED of this information! If you've read this far you can no longer say you've been ill informed! Next GIVE A DAMN blog will cover the how to transition, how healthy eating affects our bodies, and how to still enjoy your favorite foods.

finding your damn:

Step 1: Find the problem

Step 2: Educate/get educated about the problem

Step 3: Find a way to give a damn together