About The Good Stuff 411
December 6th 2008 I began a journey that has forever changed my life. My friend Michelle challenged me to go 5 days without eating any processed foods. Easy, I thought. I made it about two hours before I started hitting roadblocks. Eggs? But no cheese, no toast. Salad? But no ranch dressing, no cheese, definitely no bacon bits. No cereal, no crackers, no juice, no soda, no string cheese, no yoplait yogurt, no ketchup, no protein bar on the run…no milk!
What the heck did people use to eat? What did I eat growing up? How had my concept of food become so narrow and so unhealthy?
And then it hit me, like a ton of bricks. I was fat, I was tired, I was unhealthy, and I did not eat very much real food…
I had been processed 
Today, three years later, I eat real food. I am not a vegetarian. I am not a vegan. I am not a Dr., nor a nutritionist. I am just a girl who never thought much about what I ate, nor where it came from, and today I do!
What I know for sure is this:
Real food is not a drug. Real food is energy and should make you feel good, healthy and vibrant. Real food should complete you. America’s version of food is a drug. I believe it is addictive, it drains us of our energy, zaps us of our zest and has been proven to endanger our health and well-being. Some of us are clearly more susceptible to processed, man-made food. Many of us are more susceptible to weight-gain, and to the adverse effects of these foods, but all of us are in jeopardy, regardless of weight. I have skinny friends who eat so much junk they have oily hair, bad acne, low energy…always tired, a hard time falling asleep. I believe 100% we are what we eat. The time has come to stop the rollercoaster of junk.
I do not care if you can show me studies that tell me that antibiotics in my meat, hormones in my dairy, chemicals in my food, methane gas ripening my food, or my food being grown with pesticides and transported half way around the world is indeed NOT BAD for me. I ate those foods and I felt and looked pretty bad.
With all the changes we have made in our home, the most pride for me comes in watching my kids eat. They ask for seconds on salads, enjoy grilled fish, shrimp, sweet potatoes, asparagus, green beans. They snack on edamame, apples, oranges, and love when fresh berries are in season. We gave them life, and now my Husband and I are ensuring it will be a long and healthy one!
I know for most of you removing processed, junk-filled food from your diets might seem impossible, and overwhelming. What you should know is it is much easier than you might think.
In his book In Defense of Food, Michael Pollan said that any food with more than three ingredients is not really food. He also wrote seven little words that resonated loudly with me:
”Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”
When I eat, cook, and shop I keep all of this in mind.
It also helps to expand your vocabulary, educate yourself and your family. Knowledge is power, and if you all know why you are eating the foods you are eating, making changes will be easier. In our home we have introduced new terminology: farm-to-table, organically grown, artisan, sustainable, Genetically Modified Organism, factory farming, slow food, slow cooking, the high price of cheap food, antibiotics, hormones, locally grown, seasonal, and so many more.
I challenge you the way my friend Michelle challenged me. Try 5 days. 5 days of no processed foods, no sodas, no fast food, no junk food. Try to shop for one week at a co-op, farmers market, or a grocery store that carries locally grown produce and see what you can come up with. I felt so much better in those 5 days that I was eager to keep going. In the beginning I did it for me. But as time went on and I realized how easy it was to eat whole, real, healthy foods, and I slowly changed the way my family eats.
I am on a journey to find out what makes me feel good, strong and healthy. I find less meat, less dairy, and fewer chemicals in my food makes me feel better, energetic, and empowered. After spending my life battling a food addiction, one that I believe was fueled by my emotions but then became a physical addiction to the ”STUFF” in most of the food we eat, I am excited to be back IN CHARGE of my body. I am no longer physically and emotionally driven by cravings, sugar-highs and lows, or a desire to fill an emptiness that I could literally FEEL in my being.
Today I understand what it is to LIKE to eat, to LOOK forward to a meal. Food is fun, adventurous and exciting. Food is energy and energy is LIVING!
Here I will share tips I find along the way, the products I can’t live without, the things that make my life a bit easier, healthier and all-in-all HAPPIER!
You know? The 411 on The Good Stuff!
Jennifer
eila @ the full plate blog said,
February 6, 2012 @ 9:53 pm
absolutely love your site! thrilled to have found it, as I love to cook for my family, but am trying to “clean things up” around here too. am so excited to delve into your site, and read future posts as well. keep up the fabulous posts/writing/ideas!!
jensheps said,
February 8, 2012 @ 2:45 am
That is so awesome, and makes me so happy! Good for you! I appreciate the positive feedback! Cheers, Jennifer