What I Eat Won't Make You Go

 This morning while driving my daughter to her freshman finals, she reminded me of all the crazy sayings my mother had. She pointed out that she never knew what was meant by things like “Fat meat being greasy,” or “The rolling stone that gathered no moss,” but admitted that she had come to understand the meaning of “Never missing the water until the well was dry.” There was however, one “motherism” which kept her up at night. It’s one of my favorites. My mother would often say, “What I eat won’t make you go to the bathroom, (of course she used much more colorful language.) I told Fatima that this line took me years to decipher. What my mother meant was simply this; what’s good for you may not work for me.

Each person has their own path and therefore their own tool box and knapsack (I must be getting older; knapsack…really? I feel like singing Valer—eee, Valer---ra.)

As I sit here in a coffee shop waiting for Fatima to complete her test, I watch as little tiny 20 some things order 500 calorie beverages with a cheese Danish on the side. Then as if they can see the future, but only for a second, they add, “Oh yeah, hold the whip.”

A few years ago, this would have caused me angst. I would wonder how little people seemed to eat and eat but not gain weight, while I, a vegetarian who exercised regularly could not. Since then I’ve learned many things; you need to eat to keep your metabolism running, stress adds more weight than food, one woman’s trigger food is another’s second helping and “What I eat won’t make you S-----.

We often compare our needs to those of someone else’s but your body, purpose and lifestyle should dictate your diet, no one else can.

My mother’s saying, colorful as it was, is profoundly true. Your wellness plan must be personal and personalized.

I’ve learned that I am allergic to corn, but I am also addicted to popcorn. Others can eat popcorn and feel just fine, but when I eat it, I can’t stop. I can eat popcorn instead of food. I can, okay, I’m having a flashback---suffice it to say, I stay away from the demon corn.

·         What is your trigger food or beverage? (Food that you can’t do without? Once you have it, it becomes a trigger to more or other cravings?)

·         How can you begin to slowly remove it from your life?          

·         Whose eating do you compare your own to?

·         Stop it.

We all have a path and purpose. We are unique and uniquely beautiful. Find your strengths and multiply them.

BE You, BE Well

Bertice Berry, PhD

Customize Your Own Wellness Plan