What is your background and training?
I have my doctorate in chiropractic (D.C.) from Northwestern College of Chiropractic and have done a few different programs and certification processes after getting my doctorate. Specifically in cellular healing, digestive health, and applied kinesiology (the last one I obviously don’t use via the internet).
My philosophy is that our bodies were created to heal and we can live vibrant lives. We can live fully and in freedom. It is with stress or interference that we get sick, whether it is physical, chemical or emotional. When we find the cause we give our bodies the opportunity to heal. I have a passion to help women realize health is important and health is made in taking one health step at a time. I want to simplify the complicated world of natural health and nutrition. I want to help you and link arms with you and be a source of information and encouragement as you are on your healing journey.
Why did you start this website?
The topic of nutrition has always fascinated me. I actually became a chiropractor because I was inspired by nutrition and healthy food. It was after deciding to be a chiropractor that I fell in love with chiropractic and learned what chiropractic actually does for the body. My love of nutrition way back from the beginning cultivated a love for all things natural: chiropractic care, nutrition, cellular detoxification, natural household and personal products, essential oils and emotional healing.
I started the blog Just Enjoy Food in July of 2011 without a plan and without any consistency. For the next 3 years it was a hobby (and a hobby that I loved) while I was working as a chiropractor in practice. In the spring of 2015 I left practice to launch this website, which has become a larger resource for women who are in all stages of their natural health journey!
What diet do you follow?
There are many diet plans circulating right now. Some are good and others are not so good. I don’t believe that there is a one-sized fits all diet plan for everyone. We each have different needs and physical make-ups that require different ratios of macro-nutrients. I believe everyone should follow an anti-inflammatory diet specifically tailored to your needs. Our foods can be a source of great toxicity loaded full of chemicals and ingredients which cause inflammation or a source of great healing. Food is powerful. I want to inspire you to put healthy foods in your body by providing recipes that are fun, easy, family friendly as well as incredibly nourishing.
I personally eat a grain-free diet. When I was going through my gut healing I cut out grains and noticed a change in my digestion and the ability for my gut start healing. Since then I have found I feel much better when I eat grain-free and haven’t been able to add any grains back in my diet yet (I am working on getting some sprouted and fermented grains to sit well with me). I love dairy but only eat butter, raw cow’s cheese and goat cheese as well as heavy cream (because life is better with heavy cream). I try and eat a lot of vegetables but often times find myself eating the quick foods like nut butter, cashews or a leftover grain-free dessert. I have also learned that my body needs higher levels of fat so we add a lot of butter and coconut oil to our foods. I’ve learned over the years that there’s no formula to my own diet. Each day can look different and that’s ok. I’m all for choosing grace over guilt in my food choices and realizing there’s no such thing as a perfect diet.
Do you ever have vacation meals or “cheat” on your plan?
This is a question I get so often! I want to first say there is no such thing as perfection and I also don’t believe that we should strive towards it in any areas of our lives. Chasing Perfect makes us feel inadequate, discouraged and ends in feelings of guilt, comparison and depression. I want you to encourage excellence as you acquire more and more knowledge of health and food. Apply the knowledge you know now and continue that learning process from where you are at.
Right now I don’t deviate too much from the foods that make me feel my best. Why? It’s because I used to be really sick and struggled with severe digestive problems. I struggled greatly in my early 20’s and I do not want to go back there again. I have made a choice not to eat like I used to eat or make health choices that I used to make.
If you have reached your health goals and feel great, there is a little more freedom in having a vacation meal or adding in some properly prepared grains, a little more sweeteners, fruit, or starchy foods. Continue to choose wisely staying away from chemicals, colorings, genetically modified foods and highly processed foods. And most importantly, listen to your body afterwards. If you don’t feel as good, you most likely shouldn’t be eating that food. If you feel good, awesome. Keep it up!
What if I struggle with sticking to a plan and have a hard time following through?
Keep putting one foot in front of the other and make the next best decision you can. I’ve also struggled sticking to a plan. When I started college I tried very hard to eat healthy but couldn’t stick to what I knew to be true and was a major sugar addict. Any desserts, breads or snack I had bought would quickly disappear. The word moderation was not in my vocabulary when it came to sugar. I was even known to eat way a few big pieces of leftover cake for breakfast on more than one occasion. Trust me, I didn’t feel good afterwards but I did it anyway. I had a horrible body image, was hungry all the time and had cravings that were so strong I thought they were controlling me. I know I’m not the only one who’s ever felt this way, but for some reason, I thought I was.
First of all, give yourself an extra serving of grace. The worst thing is feeling guilty and stressing out. Take baby steps and do what you can in your own time. I would also recommend having someone help you in this journey; you may need some help with decreasing inflammation and your toxic burden. If nothing else, you may need someone else to guide and encourage you during this time. I’d love to help because I have been there.
What do you believe about grains? Should everyone be grain-free?
I believe grains can be a major causes of inflammation (both gluten and non-gluten grains) in many people. They act similar to sugar in our bodies. Have you ever heard of the Pepsi challenge? Pepsi did an experiment that showed blood sugars after drinking Pepsi vs eating a bowl of oatmeal or two pieces of whole-wheat toast. Guess what? The results showed that the blood sugars were almost identical with the grains or the Pepsi. In the United States 60% of our calories come from grains. Studies show that cultures that eat more than 20% of their calories from grains start experiencing symptoms and diseases. We need a grain intervention in the United States. If you have any health symptoms you could benefit from a grain-free diet, or even start with a gluten-free diet and cutting back the amount of grains you eat in a day/ week.
Once your symptoms disappear and you have met your health goals (weight or otherwise) you can start slowly incorporating ancient grains into your diet. Ancient grains are grains that have not been changed or altered. Ancient grains include quinoa, amaranth, buckwheat and millet. We all have a level of grains we can tolerate based on our genetic make-up and past health history. Some people can’t tolerate any grains and others can have some in moderation. If you are eating grains and symptoms start again, decrease the quantity and frequency you eat them. The best way to consume grains are by fermenting and sprouting them and it helps your body digest and absorb them easier.
If the thought of going grain free overwhelms you just start with small steps to get there. Start to cut out the gluten in your diet. Start to decrease the processed foods in your diet and open your heart to keep learning more and more about a healthy diet and lifestyle. Pretty soon certain things will be easy and you will look back with amazement about how much you’ve learned and applied to your own life.
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