Roast beef and the great disconnect

As I bit into my Arby’s roast beef sandwich, dripping with signature sauce, I pressed “resume” on the Netflix screen.

Joe Cross, producer of “Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead,” was describing in great detail his miserable life – fast food, lack of exercise, and his resulting ailments.

As I digested his words and my sandwich, I felt disgusted.

What was I doing to myself?

I was quite aware that what I was eating was unhealthy, and its ill-effects were only compounded by previous days of crap-food-feasting.

I’m all about self-love, about nourishing mind, body and soul…yet I was choosing instead to, essentially, abuse my body.

There’s some kind of disconnect there.

This quote comes to mind:

 “Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.” – Gandhi

I have the first two down, but it’s the “doing” part that always gets me. “Easier said than done,” ya know?

It’s easy to think about feeding myself well; a cinch to talk about it; but when it comes down to swapping whole foods for convenience foods with ingredient lists a mile long…it’s tough!

I don’t think I’m alone in that. I think that, for many people, the action is the hardest part. (Please don’t say it’s just me!)

But the action is also the most important part – it’s what ties the thoughts and the words together. To me, the action is what solidifies all three into a belief, a value.

If I value my health, I’m going to have to act on it – not just talk about it. Knowing what I have to do and not doing it is, hands down, one of the biggest sources of suffering in my life.

I’d love to tell you that I put the sandwich down, that I virtuously threw it in the trash and had a salad instead.

…But I didn’t. (Hey, I’m only human…A hungry human.)

Preparation is often required before action. Had I just tossed it, I would’ve been left hungry with no healthy options around (and you don’t want to know me when I’m hungry )

What I did do is seriously start considering my eating habits, put together a solid, healthy grocery list, and stocked up on the good stuff so I had better options around.

Not perfect, but better…That’s gotta count for somethin’, right?

My process:

• Recognize the disconnect. Look for inconsistencies in your life. Are what you think, say and do in alignment? Where’s the gap? In this instance, mine was between thinking about nourishing my body and actually doing it.
• Bridge that gap. For me, coming up with healthier alternatives (and stocking my kitchen with them), would help me to eat according to my soul, not my tastebuds and emotions.
• Most importantly – Love yourself! Living in accordance with your values is a wonderful way to practice loving-kindness with yourself. When your thoughts, words, and actions aren’t in conflict, you can more easily feel at peace. I’ve defintely found this to be true in my transition to vegetarianism (which began after I wrote this article!)

I hope you’re all having a wonderful week. Happy Wednesday!

Peace, love and a steaming cup of Zen,

- K