Love is the Main Ingredient

Love is the Main Ingredient

We are thrilled to have Poppy Health Foods as our Guest Chef for our upcoming Nourish Dinner Event. Meet Poppy, Joe and Sylvia, by reading Sylvia’s blog below and discover tips on eating intuitively.

 

We hope you can join us for our Nourish event where you can taste the love in Poppy’s culinary creations.

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When two complete strangers first crossed paths while studying yoga at the Sivananda Ashram on Paradise Island in the Bahamas, they knew it was divine intervention. Spending less than two weeks together, Joe and I knew we were going to weave the rest of our lives together as one. It was only a matter of precious time.

After staying committed to each other for an entire year being long distance during the start of the pandemic, I took a leap of faith and moved from Chicago to Tyrone, Georgia, to begin our next chapter of this life together. 

Joe and I connected over yoga, nature, and a healthy lifestyle, but particularly, conscious consumption. We deeply and wholeheartedly believe food is medicine and your kitchen is your hospital. When you eat good, you feel good; you are good.

However, one must first discern what type of food is healthy for them. This can vary from person to person. What may be medicine for one individual, can be poison for another. Here are five ways you can find out for yourself.

1. Do Your Research

Are you curious about a certain food or diet? Google it! You can literally find whatever information you need online. Not sure what to research? Ask yourself what you need. Do you need to strengthen your immune system, boost your brain power or lose weight? Use that as your starting point. Then check multiple credible sources.

2. Take a Food Sensitivity Test

Do you ever feel bloated or constipated, but know you aren’t allergic to anything? You may be sensitive to a particular food. Most people don’t know that even corn is a major food sensitivity and now becoming a major allergen. What about nuts? You may not be allergic, however, you may be sensitive. Or it may be because you don’t soak your nuts in filtered water with sea salt and apple cider vinegar. Soaking nuts breaks down irritating compounds like phytates and enzyme inhibitors that make it hard to digest, while still preserving the beneficial proteins and fats. Sensitivity tests can get expensive, so if you don’t have it in your budget, you can always skip this and follow steps 3-5.

3. Trial and Error

One thing I always suggest to my clients when they have digestive issues is to go on an elimination diet. If you have an inkling about what food you may be sensitive to, eliminate it from your diet for at least two weeks to a month and then slowly reintroduce it to your diet and record what happens. This is where a food journal may come in handy. If you’re not sure what you may be sensitive to, but still have digestive issues, try cutting out these top allergens: soy, eggs, wheat, nuts, dairy and corn. Don’t forget to check labels! There may be hidden by-products of these particular allergens.

4. Trust Your Gut (Literally)

You know yourself best and your sacred body of wisdom stores important information deep in its cells. Literally. Your gut directly speaks to your brain and vice versa. After many years of back and forth dieting, I found out that for me, intuitive eating is the most sustainable, enjoyable and most importantly, healthy. Before you choose a meal, sit silently with one hand on your heart and the other on your belly. Take at least five deep breaths and ask yourself, is this food serving me? If the answer is yes, then move on to step five.

5. Eat with Intention 

Remember the saying, ‘you are what you eat?’ Well, it’s true. Not only what you eat, but how you eat it. Your body and soul listen. They listen to every thought, movement, and bite. Make it count. Set an intention before consuming. This will kickstart the digestion process on a positive note, allowing for ease and grace to take place in your being.

Even while Joe and I were living almost a thousand miles apart, we first shared photos and videos of our juiciest smoothie bowl creations and then it evolved to every meal we created and consumed. This not only made every meal enjoyable, but it also excited us and left space for learning and creativity to take place.

Today, our ideal time spent together involves a rejuvenating yoga practice, adventurous bike ride, and creating deliciously nutritious meals and herbal tea for two.

Poppy Health Foods is our way of connecting and sharing this sacred gift of love with you! Poppy’s meals are vibrant, plant-based, and bursting with flavor. They are incredibly nutritious and naturally packed full with health and energetic benefits you can instantly feel for yourself. We trust you will taste the love and artisanal care that goes into making each and every meal. We are honored to support you on your health and wellness journey.

~ Sylvia Budz of Poppy Health Foods