What, or perhaps how, we should eat is one of the more controversial topics that we tend to argue. There are endless ideologies, science based diets* and trends circulating, with newer, more radical ones popping up constantly and wether it is health, performance, palate or ethically driven, it seems that we must all impress the correctness of our chosen food-faith upon the world.
The problem with this is the same problem that we fail to recognise in the debate of many right/wrong, should/shouldn’t topics and that is that we are all different. The SAME, but DIFFERENT. We may consist of the same matter**, but there is infinitely more to the human body than our flesh and bone, especially when it comes to how we individually react to foreign substances.
At this point I feel I must divulge that I hold no qualifications or publicly recognised expertise on the subject. I am simply a curious young man with a desire for enlightenment.
The perspective that I am about to share is that of my own and the one that I have found to resonate with my intuitive truth.
Here it is, the magic pill! The one diet and nutrition truth to rule them all…
There-is-NO-one-right-way to eat.
Damnit.
It is widely recognised in science that the placebo and nocebo effects are very real - What we truly believe to be the truth has a profound effect on our truth - The brain is the most complex governance and regulation system that we know of and the little we understand of its ability to alter the chemistry of the body is nothing short of phenomenal. It is so complex that we may never know its true potential or capability and so to declare that, “this is black” and “this is white” is simply naive and unwise.
Another topic of notability is that of evolution. People often refer to where we came from and what we came from, when making an argument for a particular diet* or ideology and while I do tend to look to the past for guidance, I believe that the inevitable evolution of all things somewhat dismisses the effectiveness of doing so. In time the genetic makeup of organisms is subject to change due to the nature of its environment; think GMO foods, the decline of nutritional density in plant based foods due to the raping of the soil that it is grown in and the effect that that has on us and the meat of the animals that eat it, the quality of air suffers from pollution, the chemical compounds from sprays and other such foreign substances, the evolution of disease and other illnesses in response to man-made chemical concoctions and our bodies cellular adaptation to such things etc, the list goes on.
It all seems a little scary and overwhelming when laid out as such, however, my intention here is simply to point out that as our environment changes life on earth is required to evolve in order to survive.
Circling back to the point of this topic, my argument is that comparing ourselves to the hunter gatherer days is a useful guide, but perhaps no longer an applicable one-size-fits-all truth.
The last topic for this segment is that of personal goals, beliefs, ethics and desires. Not only should we look at the science and history of food in order to guide us to nutritional enlightenment (haha), but significant consideration for our individuality and unique expression of life is also of utmost importance.
If you desire a healthy, fit and strong body in which to reside for this earthly experience, naturally you will prioritise foods that will assist you in achieving this.
If you desire a life of ‘flavourable’ pleasure and indulgence, naturally you will choose foods that bring you such joys.
If you can’t stomach the suffering of animals, perhaps you will choose to refrain from eating them or maybe you dislike the taste of plants and so you choose a carnivorous existence.
Which ever category you decide is your truth, you are right. That is not to say that it cannot or will not change and that is perfectly ok and completely natural. Honour yourself and do so joyously.
But please, do not judge or condemn others for their choice, offer opinion and guidance when asked for it and remain open to receiving such in return.
There are infinitely more food types, environments and body types today than there was even a hundred years ago.
We are all different and we all respond differently.
And so, to my journey.
As per the title of this piece, you may have already figured out that I have made another change in the way that I fuel my body. After two years on a plant based diet (no animal products except for honey), I have recently decided to re-introduce some animal products back into my diet (red meat and seafood at this stage, with plans to also bring back eggs and possibly poultry and yogurt in the near future).
Some of you may be shocked, I understand. For the past two years I have stood fast as an ethical and health conscious “almost-Vegan”, with certainly no obvious signs of reverting. If I’m honest, Im probably as shocked as you are, it all happened so fast.
Reason #1: For those who do not know, for the past 6-12 months I have been suffering from terrible digestive discomforts, such as; severe bloating, cramps, constipation, flatulence, haemorrhoids, an overactive bowel (TMI?) etc and I have absolutely had enough. After exploring possibilities such as SIBO (Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth), Fodmap intolerance, IBS, Celiac and so on I found that the dominant factor was undoubtedly stress. Stress has been a direct and unquestionable cause of many physical and emotional discomforts in my life.
Having spent some time realigning and rebalancing, I managed to reduce my stress and thus my stomach improved drastically. However, some symptoms still remain and so my journey to better health continues.
This may seem like an odd angle to approach the abandonment of a plant based diet, considering meat and other animal products have been linked to so many digestive diseases and imbalances, however, I cant shake the feeling that relying on beans, legumes and predominantly processed foods such as; Tofu, Tempeh and other imitation meat products for protein is having a detrimental effect on my stomach…
I digress. As a performance based athlete and health and fitness junkie, it is extremely important to me that I provide my body with the best possible fuel to support it in achieving its optimum potential. For my body type, this generally means a diet high in protein and fats and lower in carbohydrates. I am carb-sensitive, meaning that my body responds quite quickly to excess glucose in the blood and stores it as fat faster than those who have more of a fat sensitive body type.
So to conclude this first reason, I am interested to see if returning to a diet that is rich in plant based foods but also includes some animal products for high quality, bioavailable protein, among other reasons I may not be aware of, will indeed help me return to homeostasis.
Reason #2: Let me take you for a quick journey back in time… As a child and teenager I was raised in a whole foods household, eating a diet high in plants, grain based foods and dairy with very little meat.
Towards my late teens I started lifting weights and became very interested in bodybuilding, naturally, the industry swallowed me up and I began sharpening my fangs and tearing through meat at an unnatural and unhealthy (in my opinion) rate, in order to get “sufficient” protein for my adolescent muscles to grow.
One day I opened my freezer, pulled out my stacks of perfectly-portioned chicken, salmon and kangaroo mince for the Sunday ritual of meal prep and found myself suddenly overcome with a deep sense of unease. It was as if my stomach was saying to my brain, “you don’t want to eat that”. The feeling was so strong that I took heed of it, placed the pile back into the freezer and took a few weeks off eating meat at all. After a short while the feeling subsided and I returned to eating some meat, although not nearly as much as before. Over the following 12-18 months I remember feeling a desire to return to the ways of my childhood, very feint at first, it grew and grew and before I knew it I was going vegetarian with the intent to go vegan within the year. One vegan advocacy documentary later - I think it was Food matters or Food Choices - I had decided to go cold turkey. I was now a Vegan and it felt so, SO good.
I have no doubt that at this time in my life, going vegan was the right choice. It felt amazing, I had more energy, my skin improved, I felt healthy and my conscience was clear. I was no longer responsible for the mistreatment and death of these beautiful, sentient creatures that we share this earth with and that made me feel a deep sense of pride and at times even moral high-ground.
Fast forward two years and I have begun to experience an intuitive calling to return to the basic foundation of our dietary origin. Approximately 2 million years ago, early humans that had evolved from the great apes left Africa. It is believed/known/accepted that these early humans and the Chimpanzees that we evolved from were omnivorous and so I think it is somewhat safe to say that our bodies are designed to be able to digest and process meat as part of a healthy and balanced diet.
As my time on a plant based diet came to a close I felt an inner peace spread throughout my body in regards to the cycle of life and my respective place within mother natures food chain. All life must return to source, it is only natural. As a dear must eat to survive, so must a wolf.
As a human being, I believe it is important to practice ethics, empathy and love, but I also believe it is of utmost importance to put yourself and your health first.
Reason #3: Perhaps the most important reason of all… As per my previous blog, I believe, above all else, that balance is the key. I believe that all cases that are extreme in nature are in need of re-alignment and so I believe that my abolishment of all animal products was destined to come to an end. Balance is a universal law, it cannot be neglected for very long before it finds a way of centring that which is necessary. This is my belief and thus I feel glad to have returned to a place of balance.
In conclusion I will say this. Do what you feel is right. Because at this particular moment in life, it most probably is. I strongly believe that our intuition is here to serve and guide us to our truth. I also believe that variety is the spice of life and that our truth morphs and transforms with time and as we evolve as human beings.
What ever you choose, I support your sovereignty.
With Love,
Jeremy Strong
Diet - I refer to its first definition as: the kinds of food that a person, animal, or community habitually eats.
** Matter: physical substance in general, as distinct from mind and spirit; that which occupies space and possesses rest mass, especially as distinct from energy.