Recognizing Cultural Eating Habits
“The process of building habits is actually the process of becoming yourself.” - James Clear
As mentioned in the previous blog post, this week I’ll be sharing some of the details that go into acquiring a body composition goal through weighing and measuring the food I consume each day.
I realize most people nowadays don’t have the experience of making their own meals at home, let alone weighing &/or measuring the food they consume. Our culture today is more conducive to eating on the go and stopping by Panera or Starbucks to make it past the hunger pangs and late afternoon fatigue. It's just more convenient and way more efficient.
Until I became a fitness trainer and learned how to properly count my macros or recognize the eating habits that would inevitably sabotage my progress, my experience with food had me on the same path as today’s Starbucks drive-thru regular. Even since changing my habits and eating a fairly “clean” diet by today’s standards, I still have no problem eating massive quantities of food. The difference is that now, those massive quantities include lean meat and vegetables, and before...well, keep reading and you’ll find out.
Growing up, my brother and I were homeschooled for 3 years. During that time, my grandparents would come over after my mom left for work. They’d bring us Dunkin’ Donuts for a mid-morning snack knowing that by the time they got there, we’d already eaten a bowl of cereal for breakfast. Shortly after our donuts, they’d take my brother and I to McDonald’s for lunch, and if my parents were still at work a few hours later -- we’d splurge and either get a “healthy” loaf of bread (from Jared at Subway) or we’d order a few Little Caesars pizzas for dinner. The Crazy Bread was my favorite.
“Environment is the invisible hand that shapes human behavior.” - James Clear
My grandmother was half Polish and half Italian. Why does that matter you ask? It doesn’t. She never cooked. But to my grandmother, being Polish and Italian to her meant: your grandkids have to eat… a lot and often. In her mind, her heritage was the justification for her mission as a grandmother. It was no secret, the most important aspect of her time spent with us revolved around feeding us. Her mission (as noble as it was) was heavily influenced by her cultural experience with her parents. I remember her saying to us: this (feeding us constantly) is just what Grandmas do.
In my opinion, one’s cultural experience is the most impactful way to form nutritional habits. Whether they’re healthy or unhealthy habits is determined by the application of that culture to one’s own life.
The point that I’m trying to make is: we all experience food in unique and personalized ways. Seeking out that experience again and again over time can form, what some call, your “relationship” with food.
My grandmother didn’t care WHAT we were eating or HOW MUCH we ate. She did care if we ENJOYED it and if we didn’t eat ENOUGH. How much was enough?
No leftovers. No movement. No words. Just stuffed bellies and quiet kids. Her version of heaven on earth.
With my grandmother’s encouragement and positive reinforcement, I never had a problem eating. Eating was my strength. I’m not going to lie, I loved it at the time! Not too many kids in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade would get donuts, McDonald’s, and pizza on the same day (let alone 3-4 times per week for 3 years)! That was MY culture. The opportunity for an experience to become a habit is sometimes chosen for you, and that’s the power of what culture can do.
My cultural eating habits taught me two things about myself:
It felt normal to me to eat that kind of food all the time
It felt normal to me to consume the amounts I was
The cultural habits that led to an unhealthy result stemmed from the routine.
Like I said, it wasn’t until I became a Fitness Trainer (and married a Nutrition Coach) that my habits started standing out to me. Recognizing how and why you currently eat the way you do is a foundational and, albeit - usually overlooked step in developing and forming new habits that lead to healthy results.
I’d like to point out that being a Fitness Trainer doesn’t mean you automatically have abs.
Trainers are at risk for the same pitfalls as anyone else. Creating a new set of habits starts with recognizing and understanding what you’re working with, how you plan to change it, and why you’re dedicating your efforts to do so. From there, it’s all about applying the action and working toward that goal one spoonful (or lack thereof) at a time.
I’m pumped it’s NUM NUM TIME!!!!