Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon?

The Standard American Diet is terrible. Literally, it is SAD. My wife and I did an experiment with our children several years ago (without even really realizing it, really).

We noticed how terrible the school lunch was (sugar, carbs, and more sugar), so we stopped allowing our kids to eat it and we began packing them a lunch: pb&j, chicken nuggets, leftovers from dinner. Within one week we noticed our children had improved remarkably in their attitudes. The only thing we changed was one meal. We didn’t switch them to kale and quinoa and beet-juice. Honestly, it was just a simple improvement over the junk food they were being served. This showed us how terrible that food was and how much food can affect little minds and attitudes (and bodies).

Fast forward several years and several thousand miles, and we’re in Brazil now. We were told that living here we would notice a lot fewer fat people. This is true. But there are still more than I expected. When we go to the grocery store, we see why: America is coming. Oreos and Doritos are invading. This is not good.

Alarmingly, I do see many more fat kids than I expected as well. I expected to come across a small minority of adults who are overweight, but I did not think children would be overweight. Sadly, pun intended, there are quite a few.

But enough about them. Let’s talk about me. Personally, I am enjoying eating red meat whenever I want. South America is known for its quality of beef. It is quite inexpensive and readily accessible. It’s a dream come true for me. I have a favorite “espetinho” spot on a corner downtown. We’ve come to know each other well. The same is true for hamburgers. Got my spots and they know me.

So, what does this have to do with tigers (remember the title)?

Every now and then I want a taste of home. Usually after dinner. Ice cream? No, I know I should stay away from that, so we rarely buy it. But we do get down on some Frosted Flakes. Yep, Tony the Tiger conquered Brazilian bureaucracy and is down here marketing himself like a boss. But they are expensive. So, we switched to Tony’s cousin and started buying the Brazilian brand. Honestly, we like it better. It is a little less sweet and not as crunchy. Did I mention they make a great snack after an early dinner? Or a late dinner for that matter. They’re gr-r-r-r-r-eat in English and Portuguese!

However, once again, just like with our children, the thought of “How healthy is this, actually?” kept creeping in. So, I did something crazy: I stopped eating them. I thought, “What if I stopped having this sweet, comforting snack before bed? What would happen?” Assimilation is one thing, but abandoning this cultural icon and American staple is a little extreme. My wife would probably be on the phone in the morning telling my pastor I’ve lost it. Fully aware that I may go through withdrawals and possibly even have an identity crisis as I attempted to abandon my rich, sugary American roots, I took the risk anyway.

The next morning, I noticed how significantly better I felt. As they say: you never know what you got ‘til it’s gone. Well, I didn’t really know how I felt before until I did this. THE NEXT MORNING I felt thinner (and I’m already pretty skinny) and less swollen inside. My back even hurt less. “Wow,” I thought, “This is weird. I guess that wasn’t normal.” Or maybe even though it was normal, it didn’t have to be.

One simple change.

Insignificant as it may seem, one little change can make a big difference.

And based off the experience we had with our children; I know the significant benefits that one change like this can have. It is far more than simply feeling better.

Deion Sanders is known for saying, “When you look good, you feel good. When you feel good, you play good. And when you play good, they pay good.” Well, when you eat better, you feel better. When you feel better, you live better. And when you live better, apparently you write about it.

Make one little change and see how it affects your life. Eliminate one “innocent” indulgence that you have a nagging intuition about. Sure, it’s socially acceptable, but it is negatively affecting you in some way. Eliminate it and see what happens.