It was 1826 when French physician Jean Anhelme Brillat-Savarin wrote, “Dis-moi ce que tu manges, je te dirai ce que tu es.”

“Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you what you are.”

From this tricky little saying, we have adapted the shorter version, “you are what you eat.” Certainly, a guideline for many to eat healthy and exercise, live according to strict diets and calorie intake. Simply put, you eat bad food you will feel bad; you eat good food, you will feel good.

Water. Air. Food. Those three things are the most basic of our needs to survive. Water is water, add lemon or not, it is still water. Air, you breathe, you exhale. Food, food is where it all goes awry.

Food is the one thing we all need to survive that we actually have a say in. It can be lavish and expensive, homemade, or via a drive-thru. Food is possibly one of our greatest downfalls: “If you want to look good in a swimsuit you shouldn’t eat that chocolate bar,” “You aren’t as skinny as her, so just eat salads the rest of the month,” “I am already fat; an extra burger isn’t going to hurt.” I don’t care who you are, struggles with food have crossed your path, because you are human.

It may seem strange to connect food to God because why would He care? It makes sense, I guess - our body, our choice - but we should remember that the Lord gave us our bodies and it is our duty to take care of them.

“Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20, New International Version)

I am not a nutritionist, or certified fitness guru, but I have sat back and watched my family, friends, co-workers, even random people in the grocery line struggle with how to be healthy. Unfortunately in today’s society, the word “healthy” has taken an ugly turn and is now associated with skinny. Because of that turn, most of us are interested in fast diet fads and change your body in 36-hour tummy wraps, instead of creating a healthy lifestyle that we live by. Fast and easy…we want it now and we don’t want to work for it.

This past weekend my mom and I went to the movies to see “I Feel Pretty.” Yes, it seems like a silly movie, but when I walked out of the theater I felt better about myself and better about women around me. When a movie has that power, it is worth seeing and I suggest seeing it as soon as possible!

The basis is a woman who is unhappy with her life. She isn’t as pretty as, or as thin as, or as anything as people she sees around her. Through a humorous and unfortunate event she is able to see herself in a new light of sheer beauty and she is no longer held back by what she thinks about herself. It made me wonder how many more things we as women would do if we didn’t think poorly about ourselves? We would be unstoppable.

If you are at a point in your life where you are unhealthy, then I encourage you to take a step forward and become healthier! Eat better, exercise, do what you have to do to get to a healthy stage in your life and once you get there, be happy! If you are healthy, but not perfectly toned to look like the supermodel on the screen, stop. Who says that size 2 and trim is perfect! That is so unrealistic!

The goals of our lives should not be to measure up to what we think perfect is. Our goals should be to get to our own individual healthy.

“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31, NIV)

My mom struggled for many years with being overweight and not being able to change. She got to a point where she realized there was no easy way out; she had to work hard, exercise, and create a healthy lifestyle that she could follow forever. Does that mean she doesn’t eat cheeseburgers or chocolate, of course not, but it means that she learned balance. It means she has learned and is still learning to look in the mirror and be genuinely joyful with who she is. It means her life is not a fad, so why should her eating and exercising be.

There is nothing more powerful than seeing women around you embracing who they are and becoming the healthiest versions of themselves! If each of us could be more concerned with creating healthy lifestyles that glorify the Lord and less concerned with the newest diet, we could all be well on our way to unstoppable.

You Are What You Eat