Nourishing the body

I wrote the following a few weeks ago during a discussion about diet and nutrition. I include it here as a premise to nourishing the body on the Camino

‘Each person in the world has a unique constitution for diet, health and lifestyle that supports them. And this does not remain static in their lives, it changes throughout just as the seasons change and everything else changes'.

We are familiar with the yin and yang symbol, this symbol implies perfect balance but there is movement within this. Sometimes more yang sometimes more yin, yet through the totality and interconnectivity in life we ultimately find this balance. So for example, in a world of war we need more peace to balance. 

So following a strict dietary plan cannot serve us fully, there needs to be a deeper understanding of ultimately ourselves and our own bodies needs in a constantly changing landscape. This is the beauty and magic of life.

What do you need to begin to understand? Firstly, it must be trust. In your own internal wisdom. 

And the more you become aligned with the universal needs the more you become sensitive to the subtleties of what your body needs. As women, we are forever more closely aligned to this wisdom.  Our bodies are not in isolation, they are influenced by all the sensorial inputs in our lives which of course includes the choices we make in our lives and the state of our minds. These all effect the quality and essence of the food we put into ourselves and importantly how we assimilate and extract the nutrients from our food.

We can look to the ancient wisdom of Ayurveda Medicine to understand this a little more. For they recognised that as unique human beings so thrive and function we must look at everything that it is to be human. Our bodies, fluids, senses, breathing, exposures to the external  phenomena and of courses what we put into our bodies, our food. 

So I would like to not refer to food as diet, or calories or nutrients for the body but what sustains and nurtures our heart, soul and minds.   

For several years I have had extremely ‘clean’ food. No refined sugar, processed foods, glcophosphate(wheat), or dairy. Lots of goodies like fermented foods and sprouted seeds etc. I knew traveling through Spain the food would be rich in oils, salads and seafood. What I hadn’t yet discovered was the different needs of my body when I am walking an average of 25kms a day. And for me one of the most wondrous aspects of my life is the continued and deeper understanding of my body, mind and self.

The early part of walking 825kms over 38 days

The Beginning:

I discovered after a few days if I was asking my body to work ie walk for an average of 6-7 hours a day it needed different requirements. It needed easily digested food to start the day, fruit was perfect. It didn’t like protein, it sat like lead in my stomach. My body also needed high energy foods to nibble on throughout the walking. It was a little like drip feeding my body, to the point of,  I would allow the nuts, seeds, dried fruit to sit in my mouth while the enzymes went to work breaking the food down. Plenty of water. 

My body liked me to walk the complete distance with only small breaks. Once I arrived at my destination, showered and rested I found within a few hours I would become hungry.

What I was effectively doing was putting my body into the state of ketosis and I found my energy levels really improved and I would finish the walk still full of energy.  When I did eat my nourishing meal I had that wonderful strong appetite and food never tasted so good.

The Middle:
My physical fitness was increasing. Now I found I needed a small high energy meal by around 9am. Still had supplementation of dried fruit, nuts, seeds and fruit on the walk but only needed it towards the end of the walk. Appetite was increasing to meet the physical demands. Began to introduce flour into my diet as in bread and the occasional chocolate croissant on occasion in the mornings as I knew my body would absorb this in a different manner to a more sedentary lifestyle. Was effectively eating two meals a day, the brunch and dinner yet a further supplementation of 'my goodies' each day. I had a cup of miso with dried seaweed daily. That handy electrical element was well used, while being aware the daily 'ensaladas' just couldn't cut my nutrient requirements I found this system served me well.

The End;
Towards the end of this walk I was at my peak physical fitness and found I could vary my diet while still keeping my body in peak form. This was interesting to witness. The connection between the physical fitness in aiding the bodies ability for absorption, assimilation and digestion. Not to mention being in nature in the meditative state of being completely present, otherwise you trip:)

My goodies: