Elana Kirsh

Tag: food

  • Stuffing My Face Mindfully

    I am hungry all the time.

    Okay that’s not entirely true. When my mouth is full of food I’m okay, as well as directly after (most) meals. A few minutes later I have a short window during which I’m just peckish, and then BAM! Starving again.

    So what’s a girl to do, right? I’m pregnant, gotta eat. Especially after the first trimester – then if I let the peckish feeling go on for more than about 5 seconds I’d be rewarded with instant nausea. Gotta eat.

    But I just realized – I’ve been eating crap, basically all the time. Somewhere during this emotional rollercoaster of the postpartum period, going back to work full-time, getting pregnant then miscarrying, getting pregnant again and having to terminate that one, and then this current pregnancy, I got stuck in the comfort food zone. And understandably so. I was just so focused on “taking care” of myself – being kind and giving myself a break – that I forgot about other way to take care of myself with food.

    Nourishing my body.

    My decision a couple of weeks ago to put my vegetarianism on hold for health reasons was the trigger. As I went through ways to get the most out of a few servings of meat a week – not eating meat with dairy and upping my veggie intake for example – I finally brought some awareness to how I’d really been eating. For longer than I’d care to admit. And as soon I had the thought, it was a done deal. There’s no point eating meat to feel better now and prepare my body for birth if I’m gonna keep downing pastries every second day and subsisting on a predominantly carb-and-cheese diet. Delicious as it may be.

    Just like that, my diet changed.

    I got back to eating nutritional snacks like nuts and veggies and fruit in between meals, and while my appetite is still mammoth it feel does like I have a bit longer between the crashes. I’m also craving healthier foods more often, and happy for a bit of dark chocolate here and there (ok every day but come on! It’s a superfood) rather than fatty, sugary desserts all the freaking time.

    But what I’m eating isn’t the point. It’s not about diet and it’s certainly not about weight loss. It’s just about how when we open our eyes – and really look – everything changes.

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  • The Secret Link Between Babies and Camping

    In my recent musings (granted – probably fueled by some mild infant-induced sleep deprivation), it has occurred to me that there are an unnerving number of similarities between babies and camping. Allow me to present my findings:

    1. Rise with the sun
    The first rays of sunlight penetrate the tent, stimulate a hot-house effect and make sleeping past 6am impossible. Maybe that’s what’s happening in my baby’s brain.

    2. Embrace getting dirty
    At least there aren’t any mirrors in the great outdoors.

    3. It pays to be prepared
    I’m not sure what’s better – the feeling of triumph as you realize there’s a bottle opener on your Swiss army knife, or the day when you actually use the fourth “spare” outfit (see #2).

    4. Simple meals are best
    You’re gonna need to either cook it with a mini stove or eat it with one hand on your lap. Probably better off with a sandwich, huh?

    5. Waking up way more often than you’d like
    As if #1 wasn’t enough.

    Need I go on? A word to the wise. Before you go off the pill, ask yourself – do you feel like going on a full-time, non-stop camping trip?

    Luckily, I do.