Real Food Now

So you may or may not have seen that I am bailing (or backing out gracefully) from the Foods and Nutrition program that I was so excited to get into this year. I have not been enjoying myself in the classes, even though I have met a lot of wonderful girls who I know are going to make great dietitians when all is said and done! Being in a program that I thought was a passion (but that actually crosses the line to an obsession) is counterproductive for me -- despite the fact that I am confident that I could make it through the program and become an RD who has struggled with food issues, I am not so certain that doing that is what I want to do. Of all the things I can do with my life, do I really want to spend it in such a potentially triggering situation? Do I really want to limit myself to something just because it's what I've started? ...the answer to these questions is NO. I am willing to admit that even though I don't know what else to do with my life, I am not willing to stay in something just because. I am also at a point where I can admit I made a boo boo in transferring into the program, but where I also give it credit: had I not been so immersed in it and actually tried it out, things might not have escalated and I might not have realized how badly I needed to address my issues AND if I had not tried it, I might have always wondered what could have been.

All of this is more of a diary entry than a blog post, but at any rate, here's what was interesting for me today--and it comes from a lecture, believe it or not!

Go this link: www.realfoodnow.org and WATCH THE VIDEO. These are the kinds of foods and nutrition things that I am passionate about and that I can see myself working in in the future. Helping people get past the fat grams and what's healthy vs. unhealthy debates and to the bigger picture. It's all cheesy, but thinking about sustainability is serious and is important! I am not going to ask you (or myself) to give up things like salad in February just because it's not local, but I am going to consider the implications that my choices (not just food, but everything) have on the bigger picture. I was really interested in the 100 Mile Diet when it first came out as a book, then when it caught on and became a TV series, I was even more interested. http://www.amazon.ca/100-Mile-Diet-Year-Local-Eating/dp/0679314822 and http://100mile.foodtv.ca/ (check it out!)

Another interesting topic discussed (very briefly) today in class was the idea of using regional or seasonal versions of the Food Guide instead of the standard one we have now. I never would have thought of it, but as soon as the idea was presented, it made so much sense! How can people in the Northwest Territories and people in the GTA expect to eat the same, realistically? There has to be a healthy way to adapt the Food Guide to the regions and doing so will enable people to actually follow the recommendations. To be honest, it seems to me like we need to return to a simpler way of eating: people in the Northwest Territories managed before they had a guide to tell them what to eat. They also managed before there were fresh fruits and vegetables shipped to them year-round.

Whatdya guys think? Should we have seasonal, regional guides? Do you think Western and the Real Food Now campaign would work together? Or do you associate eating local with a long, boring winter of hearty borscht? Lemme know!