As an integrative health coach, I talk to my clients about the food that they eat, but I also like to introduce them to the idea of primary foods. What are primary foods? They are the foods that feed your soul, as opposed to secondary foods, which are the foods that you actually put in your mouth. Elements such as meaningful spiritual practice, an inspiring career, regular and enjoyable physical activity and open relationships that feed your soul and your hunger for living all constitute primary food. The idea is that if you are low or unfulfilled in these areas, you may find yourself overcompensating in other areas. Some ways that this overcompensation can come up are; eating too much, poor sleep or always being tired, excessive consumption of drugs and/or alcohol, stress, weight gain, etc… By balancing out what I like to call your circle of life, you will find that you don’t need to be so crazy or regimented to maintain or loose weight. People often find that they just naturally fall into the weight and rhythm that is right and healthy for them. I got to experience this theory in action this past week. I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to go back to Santa Teresa, Costa Rica to spend a week with M.C.Yogi and his wife Amanda, who led the most amazing yoga retreat that I could ever imagine. We were in the middle of paradise.
It was hot and sunny everyday. I was surrounded by an amazing group of people from all over the world, we had at least three things in common, the love of yoga, Costa Rica and M.C Yogi. More often then not, we had many more things in common as well. I spent my days socializing, and working on building relationships, practicing yoga, which is where I find my spirituality and is one of my biggest hobbies and my favorite form of exercise, hanging by the beach and the pool, and eating locally grown, fresh healthy and delicious food that was prepared with love. I found that I didn’t really have an appetite for much food, even though it was healthy and delicious. I also did’t need as much sleep. My body really fell into a nice, natural rhythm. I had no cravings, and even though I didn’t step on a scale, I know I lost weight.
I realized, THIS is IT! This is a very vivid example of primary food in action! The lesson is, the more primary food we receive, the less we depend on secondary foods. The fun, excitement and love of daily life have the power to feed us so that food becomes secondary. The opposite is also true. The more we fill ourselves with secondary foods, the less we are able to receive the primary foods of life.
Next week, I will be back with a recipe to share with you. Today, I wanted to share this beautiful experience with you all.
If you haven’t heard of M.C. Yogi, or especially if you have, check out the link to his new video, called Road Home. It’s remarkable! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1Il3jM9Ypg
Yours in health,
Renee Koczkodan