Making Peace with Food: Book Review

Here it is. My first book review, and I've not written one before, so this is going to follow no particular format. I'm most excited to tell you about this book because it was the first book I ever read on the topic of non-dieting. I discovered it deep in the stacks of my college library and sat down on the library floor to start reading the book. I couldn't put it down at the time because I was in such desperate need for help. So without further adieu, my first book recommendation:

Making Peace with Food by Susan Kano

This book feels like a textbook and workbook all in one, and from the illustrations sprinkled through every chapter, you'll see right away that it was published in the 80s. But don't let that scare you. This book marked a turning point in my life, and I imagine in the lives of many other women and men struggling with eating disorders.

The cover of the book tells you exactly what you're getting. "OVERCOME YO-YO DIETING, BINGE EATING, FOOD ANXIETY, BODY ANXIETY, AND SELF-DEFEATING GUILT." Does the book accomplish this? Yes. Well, as much as a book can. The rest is up to the reader to dig deep and implement in his/her life.

Each chapter of Making Peace with Food includes a "Personal Questions" section at the end that asks the reader to answer questions that will usually illuminate themes from that chapter as they appear in his/her life. Many sections also include goals for the reader to strive towards on the journey of overcoming food anxiety.

One of the biggest takeaways for me in this entire book -- that I still talk about with clients today -- is the "setpoint theory."

Basically, the notion of setpoint theory is that our bodies each have a weight they are happiest at. This is the weight where we feel most energized, alive and frankly, comfortable. Our bodies want to be at this weight, so if we eat a little less than usual one day because we're in back-to-back meetings, our bodies aren't going to drop weight. They're going to fight to stay at their ideal setpoint weight. Likewise, if we eat a little more than usual one night, we're not going to bust out of our pants immediately. Our bodies will fight to stay at their ideal setpoint weight. Setpoint theory is very complex, and different things affect our bodies' setpoint weights throughout our lives including age, activity and genetics. The whole idea of setpoint theory spoke to me when I was going through my own process of recovery and I think the theory makes a lot of sense.

In general, I think Kano does an excellent job of relating her personal experience to readers and also imparting a hefty amount of information to the reader to convince them (if you've been dieting all your life, you need to be convinced that it doesn't work) that they can achieve freedom from food anxiety.

Great quote from the book, page 18:

"Some of us are meant to be very thin; some of us are meant to be very fat; and most of us are meant to be somewhere in between. We all deserve to be at peace with our bodies instead of in a constant state of tension and dissatisfaction. We all deserve to be proud of ourselves and our bodies no matter how fat or thin we are."

Making Peace with Food will help you understand that belief and so many more. It will also help you, especially if you're just starting out on this journey, to make peace with food and with yourself. Let me know if you've read this one and what you think.

If It's Thursday, It Must Be....

Chicken Noodle Casserole Night!

I like testing new recipes. Sometimes they're good and sometimes they're not. And sometimes they are tasty enough and easy enough to prepare that they make their way into our repertoire of weeknight family meals.

That's what happened with this Chicken Noodle Casserole, so I thought I'd share the recipe.

How this recipe came to be

I'd always wanted to make a tuna noodle casserole because, well, hasn't everyone eaten one at some point? Not me -- in 30+ years, I'd never eaten a tuna noodle casserole! So I finally looked up a recipe and made it. The dish was pretty good, but by night two (leftovers) I was sick of the fishy taste, so the next time around we used chicken instead and made some other adjustments to the recipe. Our version follows. Let me know if you try it and what you think!

Chicken Noodle Casserole
INGREDIENTS
1 (8-ounce) package wide egg noodles
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt (optional)
1 cup milk
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
1 can of chicken (we use the bigger, 12-ounce can), drained
1/2 bag of frozen peas
A few handfuls Planko or breadcrumbs

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Coat a casserole dish with cooking spray.
3. In a medium saucepan, combine flour, butter and salt. Stir until butter is melted and ingredients are combined evenly. Add milk, and whisk until the sauce thickens (no more than a few minutes). Add cheese to mixture, and whisk until cheese is melted and mixture is well-blended. Stir in tuna, peas and noodles. Spread evenly in prepared dish. Top with Planko or breadcrumbs.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes.

Book Reviews Coming Soon

Nearly every client I've worked with has asked me for book recommendations. Usually they have read Eat When You're Hungry, and many times they've read Intuitive Eating as well. But at a certain point in the coaching process, they want a new perspective on eating and body image. I totally get that.

I remember when I was going through my own process of recovery I felt exactly the same way. I wanted to read as many books as I could that reinforced the same messages: Love your body. You never have to diet ever again. Diets don't work. All bodies are beautiful. Learning how to eat mindfully is a journey and you will figure it out.

I think when we're taking on a new perspective we want to read as many books and articles about it as we can -- just to know that it "works," and to hear it from different people.

In support of you and your journey toward freedom in the food arena I am going to do my best to post book reviews of some of my favorite books on the topic, including the first one I ever read and the one that is sitting on my nightstand right now.

Some of my newest book recommendations didn't make it into the photo you see with this post, because they are loaned out from my personal library, so there will be more reviews than you see books in that pile. And yes, I had to include my own book, though I won't write a review of it. Those are on Amazon, and if I'm feeling it, maybe I'll ask someone to write a guest blog post that reviews it for me right here on my blog.

Have a great week everyone. Time for me to start writing book reviews!

Wholly Guacamole

I made a discovery in the produce aisle at the supermarket two weeks ago and I have to share it with you here.

The product is one you may already know about. It’s called Wholly Guacamole, and I think it’s getting a fair amount of buzz. I first discovered it at my friend Shelly’s house during book club a few months ago. As someone who regularly orders restaurant meals because they come with a dollop of guacamole, I can tell you I love the stuff, but it’s got to be good. I don’t like fancy spices or unexpected flavors in my guac, and as you know by now, I like mine homemade. Just about everything is better when you make it yourself.

However, when I first ate Wholly Guacamole at Shelly’s house, I a) assumed it was homemade, and b) wondered why on earth I’d ever make my own guac again (after discovering it was store-bought and not full of chemicals). This product was so perfect that it almost didn’t seem worth it to make my own anymore. And then I did. During Labor Day weekend, I made a batch for us to have one afternoon. It was pretty good, but honestly, not my best showing in the guac department.

A day later while we were grocery shopping, I had a full-on MOMENT in the middle of the produce section at the grocery store. I spotted what I thought was Wholly Guacamole single-serve packs, and froze immediately, as if zeroing in on a target. I did a double-take from afar and approached my target slowly. I then cautiously picked up what I thought couldn’t possibly be staring at me from the refrigerated supermarket shelf.

But it was!

“Oh my gosh!” I hollered. “Jeremy, come here!! You’ve got to see this,” I exclaimed. “Wholly Guacamole has single serve pouches now,” I told him. “Remember the guacamole I told you about from Shelly’s house!? It comes in single serve pouches,” I gloated. “I can take it to work for lunch and not worry about it getting brown.”

“Cool,” he said, happy to see me so excited about one of my favorite foods on the planet, now in a brilliant new (to me) package.

The next day I brought a sandwich to work for lunch (a rarity, as deli sandwiches don’t usually sound good to me), made on an English muffin. I proudly packed my Wholly Guacamole on the side with some chips in case I had extra guac that didn’t fit in my sandwich (which I did).

I felt like the skies opened up above my desk and gave me a big kiss when I ate that sandwich. All because of the guac.

And let me tell you – this is a bit of a confession, as I haven’t spoken about it on this site before – I don’t like lunch food all that much. My sister and I have a running joke that we hate lunch. For some reason, nothing sounds good to me at lunch, particularly if I’ve brought it from home. This has been going on for years, and of course I’ve found work-arounds so that I can enjoy my lunch.

But, oh my gosh, these single serve pouches of Wholly Guacamole may have just completely transformed my relationship with lunch. I’m excited to see my guac every time I open my lunch, and the options are endless. It will dress up just about any sandwich, and actually make it worth eating. I've even started buying extra vegetables just to dip into the guac that doesn't fit in my sandwich. I’ve always said that avocado is like a little bit of luxury in my mouth. Well, guacamole is a full-on party in my mouth.

Now, I get to enjoy it every day for lunch, thanks to the folks at Wholly Guacamole, who invented the single serve pouch.

Plus, the ingredients are simple: avocados, jalapeño puree, dehydrated onion, salt and granulated garlic.

Never a dull lunch again for this mamma. If you’re a fan of guac, I encourage you to find this stuff. Your lunchbox will thank you – and so will your taste buds!!

This is surely one of my most favorite products that I've reviewed to date. I only hope I’ve done justice to my newest discovery.