Let’s do a little experiment with jar, rocks and sand.
The goal is to get everything in the jar. If you’ve seen this before, you know that the trick is to put the big rocks in FIRST and then work the pebbles and sand in around them. Try it the other way around and you end up with a mess.
We can apply this concept to so many aspects of our lives…take care of the important, ‘big,’ priorities first and work the rest in as it fits. Here, we’ll just apply it to nutrition choices. So, what are our big rocks? What do we actually need to focus on each day to nourish our bodies and enjoy life? I’ll give you a hint…it’s probably not what’s highlighted in most magazines or diet books. Big rocks look like:
- How fast am I eating? The quickest way to overeat is to eat quickly. It’s actually how weight-class athletes gain weight before competitions. They are taught to eat their meals in less than 15 minutes because they can force more food down before their bodies have time to send the ‘I’m Full!’ signals.
- Am I eating to satiety or stuffed-ness? No matter what we’re eating…green beans or Snickers bars…we’ll reach a point where our bodies will let us know we’re OK for now. Are we paying attention to that message or continuing to eat?
- What type of foods am I eating? The more whole foods in our diets, the healthier we will be. Period. Thanks to Whole30, most of us know what whole foods are at this point…food that still looks like something that was grown or raised and has an extremely short ingredient list. And apple is a whole food. An apple fritter is not. Green beans are a whole food. Green bean casserole is not. We don’t have to eat ALL whole foods, but the goal is for them to make up a majority of our meals.
That’s it. Just 3 big rocks.
So, where do things like counting calories, cutting carbs, fasting, apple cider vinegar, Keto, Paleo and juicing fit in? Those are the pebbles. Some of them have a valid place in an elite athlete’s routine. Some of them have a valid place in the trash heap. None of them are big rocks because the biggest bang for our buck is in a healthy foundation. I can cut carbs like a champ and be incredibly unhealthy by eating fast, eating way too much and consuming processed junk (but no carbs!). On the other hand, I can spend very little time thinking about my food, but slow down and aim for meat, nuts, fruits, veggies and whole grains and improve my health by leaps and bounds.
Does it take work? You bet it does. So does everything else we do all day long. Is it worth it? Well…that’s up to you. Here are some paraphrases of responses I’ve received from clients when they’ve put in the work and focused on the big rocks:
- I’m more confident. I find myself dreaming more…reaching for things I’ve given up on for a long time. Somehow succeeding here gives me confidence to try in other areas of my life.
- We liked it! We tried spaghetti squash (I’ve had the same response for many other previously ‘yucky’ foods) and we liked it! We still enjoy pasta, but we were all surprised to realize we actually like this food.
- I was eating REALLY fast. I had to scarf my food at school/work for so many years that it’s become my default. I’m starting to taste the texture of food again and I’m realizing I’m full half way through a meal.
- Everything I ate came from a box. I hadn’t noticed. I had no idea almost ALL of it had added sugar and salt. I didn’t even know I could make most of this food at home. I thought it had to come from a factory.
- I thought my grocery budget would go UP when I started making healthier choices, but it’s gone DOWN. When I stopped buying processed food and slowed down (so I’m not eating as much) the budget went down!
What about you? Would you be willing to work on just the Big Rocks, make life a little simpler and see what you discover?
