The Plate Full of "Whatever"

Photo by Anna Pelzer on Unsplash

Last month I was talking about our societal obsession with taking supplements, today I want to talk about food, and more precisely... cooking and eating to thrive.

When asking patients to list foods that they ate in the last 24 hours, I often hear that for lunch they had "whatever was in the fridge" or "whatever was available". To me, this speaks to how low on our priority list our meals are - meal as an afterthought, this haphazardly put together bite, squeezed in-between other (more important) tasks, and rushed... and sometimes not finished at all.
Don't get me wrong - I am not asking us to cook all day, and make meals the most important part of the day; but eating without even a dash of planning (besides all other problems) doesn't align with our societal obsession with health and wellness...
How is it that we claim health and wellness to be so important elements of our lifestyles, and yet when it comes to actually taking an action to take care of our health and wellness, we feel that a granola bar eaten behind a wheel will do? How can we claim that our health is important to us, and then eat "whatever" for lunch, without feeling "off" about it? (I always tell my patients that they deserve "so much better than 'whatever'", by the way...) I believe, deep down, that this - this chasm between what we tell ourselves when it comes to our wellness, and what it is that we are actually doing - this chasm, at least partially contributes to our food-related anxieties. 
We don't eat. Or not much.
We prioritize ease, convenience and speed. Skipped breakfast, protein shake, granola bar, a bite-on-the-go, multivitamin or two, a take-out. 
Nutrient-driven products instead of whole, unprocessed foods.
Edible-food-like-substances (to quote Michael Pollan) instead of foods that saw soil, rain and sun. Throw into the mix a hefty dose of stress, and suddenly we have an explosive concoction causing food anxiety, digestive issues and (possibly) obesity.
Food that needs some love and attention to nourish us, on a typical day, hardly ever enters the picture. We tell ourselves, we don't have enough time.

But here is the thing: visits with a dietitian or a health coach should help you navigate what's already being done; supplements should be there to supplement already existing diet. The best dietitian won't be able to help, if a stove is off and a pot is nowhere in sight. The best supplement will not be helpful, if there is no diet to supplement.

Cooking and meal prep are so foundational for us to live and thrive.
Like exercise, cooking does not need to be done every day. Or perfectly. But it needs to be done consistently, and often enough, to move the needle in the right direction. 

So, I want to propose a revolutionary idea here: don't think about cooking as a chore. Think about it as an investment into your health and wellness.
Gym is not about push-ups and squats - it is about being able to thrive in the body, and do whatever you want to do, physically.
Flossing is not about running a floss in-between your teeth for the pure sake of it - it is about keeping your teeth healthy.
Similarly, cooking is not about chopping an onion and simmering tomato soup - it is about nourishing your body so that it can thrive for you.
Plan your meals.
Learn how to cook, even if a tiny bit.
Take care of your body.
So that it can thrive back for you. 

You deserve so much better than "whatever" on your plate.