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Day 4: The Power of Food as Fuel

How often do you think about food during the day? Depending on where we are in our fitness journey our thoughts may be focused on what we can’t have. If we’re trying to cut fat we typically decrease our carbohydrates and increase our protein intake. But if we’re trying to build muscle we increase our carb intake to match our protein level. We must eat according to our needs. 

Society has moved away from need based eating and turned food into a source of entertainment. We have cable channels with 24/7 programming focused on delighting our senses with food. Food is associated with memories of comfort at Grandma’s house. It can represent love, or enhance our holiday celebrations, it can express our deepest condolences, or help us through that breakup. 

Our relationship with food is shaped in our childhood, nurtured in our teen years, and set in stone by the time we reach adulthood. We know our likes and our dislikes. We even have food schedules like Taco Tuesday, popcorn with a movie, or dessert after dinner. But food isn’t meant for entertainment. 

Food is meant to fuel our bodies for the work it’s preparing to do. 

How often do we want what we don’t need?  When we grasp the concept of food as the source of our needs and not our wants we change our mindset from “what am I missing out on” to “how will this meet my needs”. I heard that thought you just had! No, we don’t NEED that cookie, those cinnamon rolls, or whatever. We need real food. Fruit, vegetables, nuts, grains, and the protein of our choice. Those are the items that will fuel our bodies to help us reach our fullest potential. 

We need fuel to power our bodies for that long distance run or those muscle gains. Practicing this type of self discipline has other benefits as well. Remember Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego? They resolved not to defile their bodies by eating the royal food and were blessed spiritually, physically, and intellectually as they honored God with their choices. May we focus our daily prayers on our needs and trust Him for the results. 

Today’s Assignment: Ask yourself how difficult is it for me to separate my wants from my needs regarding food? What do I need to change about the way I eat in order to accomplish my goals?