Food Journaling
Everyone agrees that exercise alone is only a partial component of body transformation. Diet alone, conversely, will also fall short by itself. Combine the two and what you get is a powerhouse pairing of activity and nutrition that slowly sculpts your body into what you envision it to be. As I continue my training with Ngo at Iconoclast gym I marvel at the coaching that Ngo uses to stress the importance of nutrition in the entire process. This includes the practice of keeping a food journal to chronicle each item of food that I consume.
A part of me was reticent when Ngo first told me about his expectation that I should keep a food journal. I may have even glanced over the significance of the idea with a hint of fear. What could be worse than staring a mediocre diet dead in the eye? What is needed, I was told, was a detailed account of the food I eat and beverages I drink--good, bad, and ugly. "Am I really expected to give up my two glasses of wine per day?", I asked Ngo with slight trepidation.
Yes, the answer was yes. And when I thought about the things that I ate going forward into the weekend I jokingly said to myself, "maybe this pizza won't make it into the journal...just this once." I chuckled at myself when I thought about what it would be like if I kept eating junk and underperforming during my training sessions. I had to come to terms with the reality that I'll be shortchanging myself if I didn't give as much effort to diet as I was giving during the very intense and effective training transformation sessions with Ngo.
Breathe
I tend to write about meditation quite a bit because the focused state that the mind enters has added value to my daily life. But meditation can come in various forms. Entering into a state of focus during an intense lateral lunge set with a resistance-band, as I did during my last session, had me constantly trying to get to that place of calm yet active imagination to keep going. I found that in many respects, starting and keeping up with my food-journaling required the same discipline that sitting and entering into a deep state of calm also requires. And as you begin to face the emotional energy that is often accompanied by food, it is normal to encounter some amount of dread, because food is pleasurable--and anything pleasurable runs the risk of getting out of balance.
Most of us grow up stress eating and taking refuge in overindulging in the vast array of processed foods that are so easy to get and cheap to buy. So when you're confronted with the sudden need to monitor and document everything that you eat you should expect to feel emotionally charged memories. Perhaps when you were a child there were situations where food was the way you bonded with your family. You may have even depended on food to help you cope with a difficult situation. I can tell you that confronting these images, memories, and emotionally charged sensations will only help you in the long run.
And what would it be like to overcome the powerful urge to indiscriminately put harmful food into your mouth? Would you be able to improve your quality of life? Would your life-expectancy be extended just by putting the daily empty carbs of two glasses of wine per day aside? Would it be worth it? Your children and loved ones might think so. As you gather and collect your mind to write about the food you consume, remember that the goal is not deprivation. The goal is awareness. As I train and continue to talk to Ngo about these things a slow and clear realization emerges that food is not to be feared. You may enjoy the rewarding sensation of eating and you can do so mindfully as you journal and become more aware of what you consume.
Don't live in New York? No problem, check out Ngo's book 28-Days-Greater today!
Writer Edwina Ulises (she-her-hers)
Edwina Ulises is a motivated transgender web-developer, blogger, and entrepreneur based in NYC. Her passions include code, technology, fitness, writing, music, meditation.