Welcome! I’m Christina and as you’ve likely guessed, I really enjoy food. Like, I’m kind of obsessed. I love to eat and I am passionate about health and wellness. I created this website to share my journey and inspire others by sharing meal ideas that focus on whole, minimally processed foods.
A little summary of my story:
I started my health journey back in 2012 when I learned about the primal/paleo lifestyle and ditched my standard American diet in favor of eating more meat and plants. Prior to this transition, the only times I ate vegetables were if they were in a sandwich or thrown in with pasta. I rarely ate salads and I don’t recall cooking vegetables at all when I lived alone in my early 20s. Once I made the switch, I was suddenly eating more vegetables than the vegetarians I knew! Unfortunately, I took my new lifestyle a little too far and became overly restrictive about what I ate– I stayed away from fruits high on the glycemic index, and from starchy vegetables like potatoes and winter squashes. I also stayed away from cheesy meals even though cheese is low-carb. I put the tiniest amount of honey in my tea and aimed to use just a tablespoon of maple syrup on my coconut flour pancakes. This was not a sustainable way of eating for me, and I slowly developed binge eating habits that still to this day I am prone to falling back into depending on my mental and emotional health (hello late ADHD diagnosis!!). Now that I don’t restrict entire food groups, it happens less often and I can recognize the emotion behind the urge to binge so that I can get out of it faster.
Where I’m at now– I eat what I want!! I eat all the meat, all the fruit, honey, maple syrup, rice, dairy, and whatever vegetables make me feel good. If I want mac & cheese, I’ll buy cassava elbow pasta and make it. If I want pizza, I’ll get a gluten free pie from a local spot, or buy an almond flour crust frozen pizza. I’ll eat conventional food at celebrations! Example– if my mom makes lumpia (Filipino spring rolls) or fried rice, I’m eating it. These are favorite childhood dishes and I’m not missing out on those. I no longer confine myself to one type of specific diet because that does not work for my overall well-being. What works for me is eating foods that make my body and mind feel good. The food I share will on this blog, for the most part, fit into the primal/keto/animal-based categories.