I go to this super sweet cafe here in Costa Rica at least once a week for breakfast.
I love rolling out of bed, not meditating, and not doing kundalini or anything else first thing. If you’re a pretty regimented person like me it feels sooo good and is sooo healthy to turn your normal routine on it’s head once in a while.
And it’s good for your brain. It feels novel and exciting.
I love going to this place, getting a big cup of coffee with coconut milk, and usually an omelette.
The staff might think I’m a little weird though. Why?
Sometimes I get the toast that comes with the omelette, sometimes I get a side of potatoes and veggies, and sometimes I get no side at all. Just the gloriously cheesy and veggie-filled (tomato and onion) omelette.
This is how I do gluten. I follow my intuition and eat it sometimes.
If I eat it at every other meal, I start feeling…
- Heavy
- Bloated
- Exhausted
- Foggy-brained
- IBS-y (that’s a word right?)
Navigating intuitive eating has NOT always been easy for me. I have an addictive personality type. That doesn’t mean I’m addicted to any one thing, per say, but it means I’m much more prone to addiction. I go down the rabbit hole fast.
To avoid slipping into compulsive eating, I had to do a ton of work around my self-worth and go deep to understand my custom nutrition needs.
Food deficiencies and mismatches – unknowingly eating food that doesn’t work for your body – can lead to cravings and compulsive eating. The thing that helped me most was working with a health coach for a couple YEARS… yes.
The two primary reasons we sabotage ourselves through food, alcohol, or coffee is because…
A) We’re chemically hooked on these substances and relying on them for energy. We need to reset our systems. Once you detox you can have these things in moderation, in most cases. True addiction and diseases like celiac are the exception.
B) We’re SCARED to feel AMAZING. We’re scared of success. What would our lives be like if we were completely in our power, at our best weight, and super successful? Fear of responsibility, financial management, fear of jealousy, extra attention from men and/or women, and fear of “losing it all” can come up.
Just getting by and feeling “ok” feels a lot safer for most people.
If you have nothing, what can you lose?
Fear of success has been huge for me.
I was homeschooled until I was 10, and when I entered the public school system in 5th grade I was really bubbly and excited. I was always raising my hand, answering questions correctly, and getting showered with praise from my teachers.
My friends hated it, and they started making fun of me for being the teacher’s pet. So I stopped raising my hand so much. I still did well in school, but I stifled myself and tried to be “cooler” and more “aloof.”
What does this all have to do with gluten and how I approach it today?
I used to sabotage myself with gluten… and dairy, overeating, alcohol, and caffeine… all the time. And it still happens once in a while! No one is perfect with this stuff.
Eating foods that make us feel bad is an easy way to avoid success and stay average.
If we feel heavy, foggy, and tired we can’t show up for the workout, the meal prep session, or the big client pitch. So we never have to navigate the gilded sh*t that often comes along with success. Easy out.
I did not want to cut out any food or drink FOREVER, so I chose to commit to truly listening to my body in every moment, and honoring what she’s asking for… and then asking again and digging deep beneath the surface to find out what’s really there.
It’s all about mastering your awareness around food and how it affects you, knowing how to come back into your body and your power when you slip out, and knowing when you need support.
No one can do this alone. And people at the highest level still deal with this sh*t. Everyone needs support.
What works with my ACTIVATE health coaching clients is…
A) Custom detox plan to reset the body and reconnect you with your intuitive eating voice.
B) Coaching to rewire patterns that keep you stuck, small, overwhelmed, and exhausted.
C) Personalized nutrition to ensure deficiencies don’t lead you back to your old symptoms.
D) Daily practices to reinforce self-worth, maintain boundaries, and keep your momentum up.
If you feel like food, alcohol, or coffee is holding you back from feeling your best and reaching your highest level of success, I want you to know that you’re not stuck.
I was where you are, and working with a health coach changed everything for me.
I never thought coaching would have such an impact on me, but in retrospect it was my biggest game-changer, and how I recovered from bulimia, restrictive eating, constant self-sabotage, and compulsive behavior.
What’s your relationship with gluten? Is it feeling way more emotionally-charged than it should? Is self-sabotage sneaking in?
And do you have the tools and support you need to shift your relationship with gluten, or anything else in your life that isn’t working?
Post a quick comment below, I’d love to hear from you.
Hugs,
Lula