How the Pandemic Changed How I and Many Others Ate
Someone else talking about the pandemic…?
Yes I know, I’m sure you, just as I am, are quite tired of hearing about the pandemic. It was a time that no one enjoyed, and one that we do not want to revisit in our minds/in general! But, the experiences we all went through during the pandemic are ones that we can reflect on, in order to learn and grow as people!
The pandemic was a situation that completely swept everyone’s lives from underneath their feet and changed life as we knew it. Suddenly, we could not visit the people or places we wanted to, shop for what we wanted, or even go outside in general!
One of the biggest changes that happened to me during this time was what I ate…
What happened to me during the pandemic!
As a Holistic Nutritionist, I place a major emphasis on healthy eating, and spend a majority of my time coaching others on how to do so. Before the pandemic hit, I ate a Paleo style diet, which consisted mostly of animal proteins, vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, starches, and water, and one that excluded gluten, dairy, legumes, grains, and refined carbohydrates/sugar. Eating this way enabled me to feel great on a daily basis!
In the beginning of the pandemic, I mostly continued eating this way, however once the lockdowns began, things started to change! Due to the state of our society, and spending a majority of the time indoors without being able to easily shop for food, it suddenly became much more attractive to eat fast food, as was the case for many others…
Because of what was happening around me, my motivation around health and nutrition fell, and the convenience of eating fast foods increased. With this being said, through my training as a Holistic Nutritionist and my past experiences, I do have pretty good resilience, and this did not get too much out of hand, however it was out of the norm for me.
What began to happen was the formation of a bad habit, of eating more convenience foods, and this lasted for a majority of the pandemic. As they say, habits are easy to form, but harder to break, and such was the case in my situation with food!
What happened once the lockdowns finished?
Well, once we came out of the major lockdowns, my motivation for healthy eating began to return, as I now had more of an ability to participate in this, however my bad habit of eating convenience foods had lingered, and even up until recently had remained in a way…
The truth of the matter is, we have all went through quite a difficult time over the last two years! One that had brought on a lot of stress, and that shifted how we lived out our lives on a day-to-day basis. For many, eating comfort foods that we may not have eaten in the past gave us just that, a sense of comfort during uncomfortable times, and that is okay! What truly matters is what you do to get back on track!
How I pulled myself out of the mud, and how you can too!
Once a habit is formed, it can be extremely hard to break it. This is especially the case with poor eating, as the preservatives, sugars, salt, and chemicals within these foods can have a physiological impact on our systems, causing us to want the junk foods even more!
For me, I simply had to start making realistic, and slow changes to my daily life, actions that were healthy and positive and that fueled my desire to be healthy! Examples of this was adding back in exercise, limiting myself to a couple of ‘treats’ per week, and drinking more water! Eventually, I had to have deeper conversations with myself, and realize that I needed to take these changes to the next level! Doing this at a slow and comfortable pace has led me to the current time, where I have gotten back on track to where I was before the pandemic!
You too can experience this relief! It is hard work, however with persistence, and setting the right goals for you that are realistic and achievable, you too can return to that pre-pandemic way of living healthy! If you find you cannot do this on your own, working with a health practitioner that you trust is the best course of action!
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Keep on living holistic,
Michael Sharp, CNP, NNCP.
DISCLAIMER: The information listed above is for educational purposes and discussion of general health information only. The information, opinions, ideas, and suggestions listed above are in no way intended to diagnose disease/health issues or act as a treatment for disease/health issues and is not to act as a substitute for medical advice from your doctor. Before taking part in any natural or alternative approach to health, these approaches should be reviewed by your doctor for approval especially if there are existing health conditions and if prescribed and or pharmaceutical medication is being taken due to the potential for interactions between medications and any natural approaches to health.