If you’ve been following my journey on the Master Cleanse, then you know I’ve been fasting for 9 days so far. Today I decided to end my fast and eat something that didn’t taste like lemons.
Before I get into it, I wanted to share a little story about my “food relativity” theory.
It all Started with Climbing The Great Wall of China…
In October of 2008, my boyfriend and I visited China. My boyfriend being from China, happened to know the cure for jetlag.
No sleeping during daytime.
Hmm, works in theory, but if you’re trying to switch over your internal clock from 3am to 3pm, you’re going to want a nap.
No problem! My boyfriend decided to do one of the most exciting things that does not allow time for naps.
Climbing the great wall of China, of course!
So here we are, climbing this massive and might I add very steep wall… and getting hungrier by the minute.
We ate some fruits before we started the climb, but by the time we reached the top we were completely famished. (The top is also a relative concept. The Great Wall keeps going and going, much like a certain bunny.)
Luckily, this story ends well. With a little forethought and planning, we were armed with two ginormous peaches.
When I sat down to take a bite of that peach, it was pure heaven.
I’d wager it was one of the most delicious peaches I’ve ever had, if not one of the most satisfying meals.
Actually, the peach was so big and satisfying that I could only eat half.
The First Thing you eat after you Break a Fast
Today I experienced a very similar feeling when I ate some solid food for the first time in days.
I’m pretty sure it’s not that I picked the best cucumber, or the best banana in the world.
It’s that I hadn’t eaten, and I was really looking forward to these fruits and veggies. Coincidentally, I felt great chewing and eating that banana and those cucumber slices.
My Food Relativity Theory
After looking over these two experiences and many more similar ones, I’ve come up with a theory.
“The work out and anticipation before you eat determine how good your food tastes.”
If you’ve just swam 30 laps, that post workout smoothie is really going to hit the spot.
After a fast, those few bites of food are going to feel like the food of the heavens.
This can work both ways though. If you just ate a nice full meal, but really want something else… that extra snack might not be as satisfying, or tasty.
I’ve also had the experience of devouring food that I didn’t really like (read: health-nut food) because I was so famished. That was before learning about raw food, now all my “healthy food” tastes pretty darned good.
I truly believe that our body is great at sending us signals, and this whole “food taste/experience” relativity is just the tip of the iceberg lettuce!
Have You Ever Experienced This Before?
I’m curious to know if you’ve ever had a similar experience. Whether you were amazed at how satisfying something was, or you just didn’t like that 6th chocolate chip cookie, let me know!
{ 9 comments }
Ooh, ooh, yes! I've experienced this! When I'm really down and feeling sad, chocolate is the best thing ever. And when I'm really depleted, a fruit smoothie tastes like pure sunshine.
And when I'm overloaded on crap, pizza tastes super-foul even if it's my favorite kind in the world!
Neat!
Yeaaaah! It's one of the weirdest things. But it totally makes sense now that I've thought about a bit more. If you were starving out in the desert and you happened upon anything edible, your body would MAKE it taste good so you'd eat it and not starve. :)
I know exactly what you're talking about, Nathalie. I've juice fasted a LOT over the past few years and sometimes people think I'm crazy when I'm going bonkers over a piece of fruit, or a smoothie. LOL
I believe it's because our tastebuds are a lot more pure after we've cleaned and detoxed and we can REALLY taste the food. Our bodies – and out mouths – appreciate it way more than when we've just been gobbling up various foods to our heart's desire.
Great post, Nathalie. I especially enjoyed the snippet of your “Great Wall of China” experience. Very nice!!!
*smiles*
Michele
Nathalie,
I really love how you tied this fast back to your visit to China – what a great analogy! And as I was sitting here eating an apple, it made me think about how much was I really appreciating and savoring this? Probably not so much… And your last line here is so awesome: “…iceberg lettuce”!!!!
You're so right – it must be something to do with our tastebuds being really sensitive afterward.
Thanks for your support during my fast. :) You rock Michele!
I definitely know what you mean, I used to eat “just to get it out of the way so I could get back to more important things” and so never really tasted my food that much. But after fasting my stance has really changed. :)
I have experienced that before too. I'm not sure if its because when I fast (i.e skip meals) I get horrible migraines and I'm so glad to get rid of it by eating something – anything! Sometimes I just dont take good care of myself as I should.
Yeah I think it might be your body saying “oh thank goodness, it's food!” or something along those lines. ;) I do think we all have times where we're not taking that much care of ourselves, but at least you're conscious of it!
Yeah I think it might be your body saying “oh thank goodness, it's food!” or something along those lines. ;) I do think we all have times where we're not taking that much care of ourselves, but at least you're conscious of it!
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