Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution - A Law of Attraction perspective

I watched the preview of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution the other night and I was astounded at what those kids are eating in West Virginia!

Now, yes, I am a Law of Attraction Health Coach and I do believe that your thoughts and feelings play a major role in how healthy you are. Matter of fact, if you are a chronically negative person (whether you are a child or an adult), your overall health will suffer -- both emotionally and physically.

So, my reaction to the Food Revolution show might shock you. But let me explain further.

Now, a Law of Attraction purist would say that you could eat anything and be healthy, if you believed this and if you had thoughts and feeling that were totally aligned with wellness. I know a Law of Attraction Coach who preaches this and runs programs telling people that they can eat the cheesecake and the icecream and that those foods are not what is making them unhealthy. Now, to some degree there is some truth to this. Because our emotions and how we feel play a major role in how we eat and the action steps we take to manifest a healthy body.

However, when I saw the Food Revolution show with Jamie Oliver, I must admit that many of my own beliefs around food and what is healthy and what is not came to the surface. In my opinion, these kids are eating "junk" and it does show.

Now, are these kids all unhappy -- do they all have negative thoughts and feeling? I am sure not all of them do. Matter of fact, many of them are not even thinking about what foods they are being given to eat -- they haven't been conditioned to believe that these foods are bad for them. This is the norm for them -- when they were given a choice between the processed food (boxed pizza) and the more wholesome food (chicken and vegetables), they picked what they were familiar with -- the pizza!

There may be a negative correlation between the heaviest, unhealthiest kids and how happy those particular kids are (negative correlation meaning that maybe the kids that are the most unhealthy and heaviest are LESS happy than the ones that weigh less) -- but I don't know this for sure. I was a statistician in the corporate world and would love to run a statistical study to see if this theory may be true. But in the meanwhile, I personally believe that it is a combination of providing a happy home environment and ALSO giving these kids healthy and wholesome foods. It's also about teaching these kids how to be confident, believe in themselves, and not give a rip what other kids say about them (and YES, I am saying this especially to the kids that probably get picked on because they are overweight!).

As a Motivational Speaker and a Life Coach, I would teach these kids about their own personal power that they have within them right now to create a wonderful life for themselves. Yes, I would teach them about the Law of Attraction and that how what you think and feel creates your reality. And I would also tell them that the most important thing in life is that you FEEL GOOD and choose happiness, no matter what.

When you are feeling good and Lovin' Life, you will make healthier choices in your life. However, when you are a child, you are not the one who is cooking for yourself. You rely on your parents and the school system to provide you with the nutrition you need. If the parents are overwhelmed and in a negative place themselves, they are not going to make the wisest choices for their kids (they are going to opt for the quick dinners, what appears "easy"). So, thank you Jamie Oliver for teaching us that there can be quick and easy "healthy" options for parents to give their children.

As far as the school system and their "meal plan" -- oh my God -- something is seriously wrong with that! They made it sound like they had a system that was so nutritious "2 starches", balanced meals -- are you kidding me?! Something is seriously wrong with that system if these people believe that what they are offering our kids is healthy and balanced! That's all I will say about that.

Bottom line ... great health and well-being is achieved through a holistic approach. Yes, being happy and choosing thoughts and feelings that are more positive will definitely benefit your overall health and well-being. But I believe that what we teach our kids when they are young is so important to the quality of their life as they grow older.

Come on America -- get on board with Jamie Oliver and start feeding our kids REAL food that is nutritious and wholesome. As a Law of Attraction Health Coach, I do believe that we are more DRAWN to these types of foods when we are feeling good and Lovin' Life! But kids take their cue from their parents and the adults that they are surrounded by. Let's be a positive influence on them and help them to pave the way to a healthy, rich and fulfilling life!

And Jamie Oliver, let me know if you need some help to motivate and inspire these kids and build their confidence to the point where at this age they believe that ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE ... they could achieve anything they want in life!

For more information about my Law of Attraction Coaching and Motivational Speaking, Click Here.

13 comments:

Anonymous,  1:42 PM  

Is Jamie's approach (or any like it) able to be effective, Maria, when it's filled with so much resistance?

Anonymous,  2:29 PM  

Whoops - I meant to add my name before posting that! This is Jeannette wondering if there's resistance in Jamie's approach to how kids eat, and how that plays out in the results he'll get.

Maria Lesetz 3:36 PM  

I know you are really big on that Jeannette -- where if someone is getting resistance then they he or she must have some resistance. However, I believe that Jamie Oliver's desire and vision is so much more powerful than the resistance he is getting and that he will succeed with this school and his overall mission of making a positive impact on the way kids eat in America.

When the passion behind the dream is that big, nothing can stop you!

You go, Jamie!

P.S. And since this show is being televised, I am sure that there will be results that are worth reporting and makes a good story! ;-)

Maria Lesetz 5:55 PM  

It may be possible that Jamie Oliver expected the resistance that he is getting from the American school systems and that plays "a part" in why he is getting the resistance. But to be honest with you, I would have probably expected the same type of resistance as well from the system.

However, like I said in the previous post, his passion, determination and big vision will yield him positive results!

AffirmingSpirit 6:14 PM  

I don't watch TV, Maria, but here's what I can say...

1. School district food depends on the school district. My son's district had very healthy meal plans but were so regimented about making kids eat them, that kids chose to WALK ten minutes OFF campus and PAY MONEY for comforting junk food. So much for forcing resistance on kids. ;)

2. Even when you address the food intake and exercise, without addressing the underlying elements of vibration/emotion, they still may not lose weight. Vibration underlies everything, and *producer-induced drama* aside, until they address the root, the cause will keep returning.

Think of "The Big Loser" ~nearly EVERY winner was able to CONFRONT & ADDRESS emotional issues FIRST, then felt better, raised their vibrations and LOST THE WEIGHT. Those who weren't thorough in addressing their vibration lost short-term and gained the weight back.

Many blessings,
Nancy

Maria Lesetz 4:26 PM  

Yes, Nancy ... you always have to address the underlying emotions and vibrations in order to make a permanent shift in one's overall state of health.

That's why I constantly state that Being Happy makes you Healthy and not the other way around!

Once you learn how to consciously and deliberately reach for a better feeling during those times where you have the potential to spiral down in a "not so good place", that's when the positive and permanent shifts will happen!

Maria Lesetz 6:44 PM  

Change starts with the home.

Kids learn from their parents and the adults around them (including their teachers).

In the second show, I was shocked to see that after
these kids saw what chicken nuggets were made of
and saw how disgusting it looked, they still wanted
to eat them. Fascinating!

Just goes to show you that what you are used to, no matter what it is, can become the norm. Doesn't mean it is good for you -- it's just what you are used to.

I am very interested to see the outcome of Jamie Oliver's efforts, especially given the fact that he is going to be challenged to be "on budget" with the school system's rules.

And what baffles me in this society is that the healthy food items cost more than the unhealthy items. Just think, if the whole system was turned around and chicken fingers or nuggets were expensive and healthy salads were cheap? You guessed it -- more people would be purchasing the "cheaper" food items and the society would be healthier!

Melissa Wells 8:04 PM  

Admittedly I'm a bit behind on what Jamie's doing.
I just returned from 6 weeks on a remote island where dinner went something like this, "pet it, kill it, eat it".
I've got to say that we're in such a different place as a nation about food because of our distance from it. When food choices are limited and the distance between the living (animal or vegetable) source you are consuming is minimal, there is not this constant dialogue and noise about "healthy, unhealthy".
Our abundance doesn't necessarily equate to ease or health when compared to pastoralist societies.

Melissa Wells 8:04 PM  

check out www.gastropoda.com for a former New York Times food writer's dish...

Unknown 1:17 AM  

Jamie Oliver knows there is resistance - and he will understand and work with the most resistant to allay their fears of change - if he does it how he did in the UK. He has so much vision and energy that he can help raise people's vibrational level, so that they are able to see that the vibrational level of the food - and the thinking behind those choices - is not optimal for the children, or the adults!
I know that with the Law of Attraction, we should be able to eat anything - but I know that when my vibrational level is zinging at a higher level - I am drawn to eat foods that are live and full of energy - and when I am a state of depressed feelings or resentment - I choose heavier, more dense foods - and my body responds to them in that way.
It seems to me that a system - school, family, society - who feeds their children such low vibrational foods, is depressed or angry or fearful in some way. Maybe questioning some of those choices, very gently, will allow people to raise their vibrational level and make different choices for themselves and their children.

Jamie will definitely have a good go at it - his passion is infectious, if challenging!

Patty Lennon 4:13 AM  

I am so glad I found this post Maria! Jeannette mentioned it a while ago and I thought it was in GVU so sorry for the late response. I absolutely loved the first episode but somehow missed the second.

Jeannette and Nancy - You are so wise. I always love to hear what you have to say.

My thoughts are that although I do think Jamie is flowing resistance with the adults he is so clearly flowing love for the children - pure and simple. And as we all know love trumps resistance. The adults and children are co-creators so they are all going to have to come on board and he would most definitely move more quickly and easily if he'd flow some love the adult's way but that wouldn't make for good tv would it?:) And if the show didn't have drama people wouldn't watch...and if people didn't watch they wouldn't be getting the information they are getting with the drama so... I think the Big U is actually working the Big U's magic in this case.

Jamie was flowing love to that mama in the first episode and she just started crying when she realized what she was feeding the kids. I think she was also crying because of Nancy's point that she was feeling the emotion - the overwhelm of her life at that point. She was open to change and Jamie was flowing no resistance.

One thing I'm sad to see is missing is maybe some in-between steps for parents. Perhaps it will come. Not every parent is going to be willing to bury their deep fryer but if you show them "fry this" but look how easy it is to give them fresh fruit and veggies ... look what you can make it 5 mins, 10 mins ... you may give them a way to get to "healthy" without going cold turkey. That may be the way to get them to the emotional discoveries they are destined to make - baby steps. Not everyone is built for giant steps. -Patty Lennon

Maria Lesetz 12:29 PM  

I agree with you, Christine when you said the following:

"I know that with the Law of Attraction, we should be able to eat anything - but I know that when my vibrational level is zinging at a higher level - I am drawn to eat foods that are live and full of energy - and when I am a state of depressed feelings or resentment - I choose heavier, more dense foods - and my body responds to them in that way."

I feel the same way. I think many people reach for the unhealthy foods when they are in a "funk" or feeling "off". Many of these "unhealthy" foods have been labeled as "comfort foods". Isn't that interesting. But they really don't address the underlying issues of why we are going to them in the first place!

I also do agree that Jamie Oliver is aware of the resistance he will continue to get, but despite that he is passionate about what he is doing and coming from a loving place. And when you come from that space and place, you just can't go wrong. And YES, I do believe he will raise the vibration of many in that town of West Virginia and in other cities across the country.

Even if he has just made a few families re-think how they eat, what they feed their kids and what type of lifestyle they embrace from here on in ... then, he has done good!

Maria Lesetz 12:32 PM  

Oh ... and one more thing in response to your comments Patty.

You said it beautifully when you said "Love trumps Resistance" -- YES!

Also, I agree that "baby steps" are important. Those in-between steps for the parents is critical for their success. Sometimes when many of us make too big of a leap, we are just not ready for it and can't sustain that change. But, when we take the baby steps and celebrate them one by one -- look out! Success is inevitable! :)

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