Sometimes the people we encounter daily feel as though they were sent just to test us, push our every little button. So, when I meet people like Jeremy Smith, a young man of many creative talents, who spends most of his time at work tutoring kids of all ages, practicing yoga and dance, as well cooking up new recipes, studying for class, or enjoying a new book! I tend to pick these people’s brains for all the useful knowledge and insights they’ve collected. You see I look up to this young man. He is a self-taught, ambitious student of life who, after years of research and trials, has discovered some things about nutrition and the body. I know firsthand because he has helped shaped my beliefs about nutrition and my understanding of what listening to your body really means.
Jeremy has been able to interpret his body’s messages. He says of the diabolical sweet tooth, of course, you get cravings for sugar if you have maintained a poor diet for most of your life. For instance, your body knows “I get sugar aka carbohydrates from this snickers bar” when really you should instead get yourself a smoothie. There is plenty of sugar naturally in fruit satisfying your carb intake. Set out to make these slight changes in choices for your nutrition to take care of yourself and give yourself the vitamins and minerals that your body craves. Don’t try to take on more than is maintainable. Sometimes it’s not changing your whole life inside out, it’s just making small adjustments in your day. Then you won’t have those misinterpreted cravings because your body will be satiated with what it needs and you will start to build an understanding of what will benefit you most.
That was the biggest message Jeremy stressed and still stresses to everyone he comes across looking for knowledge. Don’t take on more than you can carry, making too many changes will set you up for juggling and failure which is not encouraging for a beginner. Instead, you should also consider other methods other than western medicine if you need healing- a lot of what you can control comes from your diet and not prescriptions which tend to just mask the real problem. Jeremy explained that it is crucial to really learn to listen to your body and believes “A lot of people don’t realize to consider that each of our ancestors ate some certain things that available to them, depending on their region, and each person has different reactions to foods, so getting hung up on these dietary fads can be harmfully limiting. Going vegan isn’t just a diet to lose weight fast, a lot of things need to be considered before believing that ‘one diet fits all.’ It’s actually much more personal than that.”
And here is where you can take control of your eating habits. Jeremy suggests if you want a hamburger you make it yourself, don’t rely on chains or even fancy restaurants unless advertised that they use all organic and grass-fed animals. Did you know the omega 3:6 ratio used to be 1:1 when humans ate wild animals, now the meat is a 1:46 ratio, so it is likely we cannot process most beef because they are fed a lot of soy and corn, which they cannot digest either. Invest in your health and get grass-fed and organic food. It’s better to spend a few extra bucks and make an investment in your longevity. In the end, you will end up paying more for a doctor than for your healthy lifestyle choices. Don’t set yourself up to change your life around just set out to attempt to make small or singular changes that will nourish your body. Learn what you need and ask yourself what are you going to do first