I thought I’d end the year by blogging about an unhealthy obsession. We live in a world enamored with among other things, food. We eat today like there is no tomorrow. People ask, “would you rather go without food or sex?” As if our lives were only about these 2 things. And since this is a public blog, it is food I’ll be blogging about today :)
We Malaysians, are so proud of the diversity in our culture, where we have access to the greatest variety of food available. The shops are open 24/7, alfresco dining is the norm, and food is plentiful, flavourful and cheap. We watch multiple episodes of road-shows, all recommending new places to eat, we trawl the internet and facebook for even more recommendations from friends and other celebrities. We drive more than an hour to have dinner at a newly-established seaside restaurant, just to dig into a morsel of chilly-crab some colleague or other says is to die for.
What is with us? Is there no other meaning to life? No better thing to do with our free time? We have forgotten the most important function of eating, which is to sustain our lives. We spend more time stuffing our faces than we do lifting weights. After an overdose of cholesterol-laden, artery-clogging gastronomic delights, we belch happily and start planning for the next meal. We take photos of our meals and post them onto our blogs for our friends to ogle over and get hungry about. Is this so enjoyable? So much excitement over a meal, something you can have 3-5 times a day! Yes, a delicious meal is something to be appreciated, but every meal can be delicious if you decide you want it to be that way. Even the simplest, humblest, egg-drop soup can be mouth-watering if you decide to enjoy it, if you savor every spoonful of it until the last drop is gone.
And at buffets, we eat until our stomaches ache, but we don’t stop until we’re ready to puke (which some of us might even do before we head off to the buffet table and start all over again). Even at office lunches, we eat like there’s no tomorrow. It’s as though since the food is free, we may as well make the most of it. How much can you really save by eating yourself sick anyway? Food, is among the cheapest of your living expenses. It beats clothing, rent, utilities anytime. That’s why a friend would probably take you out for a meal on your birthday rather than buying you a lavish present. The same reason we end up buying candies and other foodstuff as souvenirs for the office after an overseas trip.
Understand, I am not merely referring to over-eating, but also food obsession. I think it is often abused as a form of entertainment, of pleasure when one cannot much afford anything else. It is used also sometimes, to kill boredom, to fill time, to indulge in when one cannot afford more expensive pleasures like travelling or perhaps a Swiss massage. But as a hobby, like a local columnist recently proclaimed, eating is so passé. No one even talks about cooking the way they talk about dining out. What happened to good old-fashioned home-cooking, done in our own homes? We rail and rave over a new place that cooks food tasting like “authentic home-cooking”. Why not cook it ourselves then? Surely that would take more time (assuming, you are using food as a time-filler) than the drive around hunting for that elusive place mentioned in a blog, trying to make sense of the map hastily sketched out by the blog writer?
But cooking is such trouble, you say. All the washing and cleaning up you have to do, or even the shopping for ingredients and chopping and slicing. And I’m not even a good cook, you say. Understand, however, that there is no such thing as a bad cook. There are only lazy people who don’t cook well the first time they try, and then decide they will never try again. Following most recipes, is not difficult. It’s easier than say, putting on your make-up or unclogging your sink pipes. It’s just that the knack of it doesn’t come quite readily to some, and it takes some practice. But so does everything else, doesn’t it? Did you learn how to grip your pencil and write in a day? Did you know how to walk the second you stood up? Did you know how to poop in the loo the day you were born? So why should you expect cooking to be as easy as breathing, anyway?
And here’s why I think cooking will help you curb your food obsession. When you take the time to cook, and you are involved in the whole process of preparation from raw ingredients to dinner table, you realize that the greatest tasting food is all at your finger-tips anyway. And it’s as near as your household kitchen. Then you realize food is always there for you, and the next meal is just 3-4 hours away. And as you cook, you realize that the greater pleasure is in creating a nutritional wonder for your family or loved ones, not in the pure pleasure you have of just putting someone else’s cooking into your digestive tract, someone who’s paid to do the job and probably doesn’t even care how much preservatives, salt or oil you ingest anyway.
You probably think I’m some nutcase traditionalist who thinks no one should ever dine out. No, nothing can be further from the truth. What I’m advocating is greater food awareness, in place of food obsession. Don’t structure your life around food, how much you’re getting of it, how good it is, which place provides value-for-money meals etc. Know that food is always abundant, never scarce, and you can eat anytime you want. Respect your body and health by exercising and treating it with the reverence you treat your car. Put food that is nutritious into your mouth, not just great-tasting. Eat until you’re no longer hungry, not until you’re full. Instead of ordering that fried calamari just to taste one and then leave the rest on the plate, opt for the medium sized grilled chicken instead, and finish at least most of it. Watch your portions, eat on time. Eat when you’re hungry, regardless of your appetite.
And if you’re having trouble with an abominably good appetite, try some good old-fashioned exercise. That always curbs your appetite. You’ll find yourself hankering better quality food that actually fuels your workouts, and you’ll start to stay away from unhealthy foods that don’t digest well and make you feel sick when you’re exercising. (try running on the treadmill 2 hours after having a slice of lemon cheesecake or roti canai and you’ll know exactly what I mean) Even if your appetite doesn’t get under control, heck exercise gives you the leeway to ingest the same amount without turning all those calories into love handles and wobbly thighs.
Most important of all, don’t deprive yourself. If you have to have Peking duck, by all means go for it. Tom yam goong? Be my guest. (Don’t even try to cook those at home, they really are not worth the effort.) But make these gourmet meals a special occasion, a weekend treat, a birthday dinner, or as part of a monthly gathering with old friends. And that’s when you start to view eating with the respect it deserves, as fuel for our bodies, as a basis for a social occasion, but never as a main event in itself. If you love food so much, start cooking bucket-loads of the healthier versions of curries, pot roasts and distribute them to your friends and neighbours. Our relationship with food doesn’t have to be limited to just eating it. And even if we are eating out, remember we can make choices on the basis of health, not taste.
And when we do this, we find that dieting does not even need to be a word in our vocabulary. Being overweight is merely a symptom of food abuse and a sedentary lifestyle. Get your relationship with food right, and you need never worry about having to sign up as a contestant of “The Biggest Loser”. People who struggle with weight issues always think they have to go on a diet, never eat their favourite food again and all will be well. What they fail to see is that losing weight is a matter of changing your mindset about food, not just eating less or more of certain types of food. It’s not about discipline but about choices. Choices made every single day that over time, change the way you look and feel. And believe me, eating unhealthily is a habit that can be unlearnt. We really are what we eat. Think about that the next time you put something into your mouth.
Have a Happy and Healthy 2010!
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