The last few years, I have explored a lot of avenues in nutrition and health. As a yogi, I take my health very seriously, and I have explored many different avenues of diet and nutrition. In January, I attempted to switch to a totally vegan diet. It worked with my body for a while, but as I became busier in the new year, I fell into the easy trap of being a junk food vegan.
So I added fish back into my diet, and called myself a pesca-vegan – no cheese or animal products for me, except fish. What I have realized is that what I need to be is not a vegan, vegetarian, pescatarian or any combination, but a selectatarian. I need to select wholesome, organic and non-GMO foods for myself and my family.
Whether you choose to consume animal products or not, it is important to know where your food is coming from. My husband Josh and I have recently decided that the foods we eat need to come from as local and as organic sources as possible. While I have lost my taste for meat products, I make sure that the chicken or beef I buy for him is free of hormones and antibiotics. This isn’t always as easy as it sounds, but there are local resources such as Herban Marketplace and Silo, and if you are in the Charleston area, Whole Foods.
It is also important to know that the produce you are buying is organic and not genetically modified. GMO foods are quite simply scary. We are feeding foods to ourselves and our children that are chemically “enriched” and wondering why cancer rates are sky rocketing? It was bad enough when we were spraying our food with pesticides – now we are “modifying” it with chemicals too.
Pay special attention to other items that often get overlooked — particularly things like chips – buy brands that are non-GMO like Food Should Taste Good (also available at Herban and Whole Foods). And exercise – work the toxins out of your body through the body’s biggest elimination organ: your skin. Sweating is good for you!
I challenge you to take the month of July and nourish yourself. Buy only local and organic fruits, vegetables and meats. And then nourish yourself in other ways. Meditate. Try yoga. Take a walk on the beach. Turn off the news and talk to your families. Take a nap in the middle of the day for no reason. Ride a bike. Go for a swim. Be good to yourself. Nourish yourself. And be well.
Shelley Lowther, Certified Baptiste Teacher, E-RYT 200
Dancing Dogs Yoga
1211 Newcastle St Unit 2F • Beaufort, SC 29902
Six Promenade St Unit 1004 • Bluffton, SC 29910
Beaufort Studio: 843-263-5864 Mobile: 843-415-3698
