We must understand how men and women evolved throughout history in order to understand how we came to where we are today. Our early ancestors were hunter-gatherers. They moved from place to place and followed the food source. The men traditionally hunted enough game to feed the tribe. The women gathered berries and plants. There was no refrigeration – when they were hungry, they sought food. Today, the topic of weather is considered small talk, yet for early man, weather patterns were a matter of life and death. How we deal with environmental adaptations determines our health and success in the boardroom.

Later, farming was established, and the nomadic way of life became towns and villages. The community had to grow enough to support themselves, and our food sources changed.

Our modern food system is built upon volume and convenience. Processed foods are quick yet tend to lack essential vitamins and minerals. For example, farming and processing practices strip off the husks of rice and then replace those lost nutrients and fiber with chemicals and additives. They add flavors and dyes to make things palatable. Produce is shipped from all over the world and is often ripened artificially. Our bodies are not designed for this lifestyle, so making proper choices become challenging.

We can walk into the grocery store and pick out produce from halfway around the world. We can choose between frozen, packaged, boxed, or fresh fare. In the event cooking is not your thing (or passion), you can grab a frozen dinner and zap it in the microwave. When you find that too difficult, you can get food through the window of your vehicle.

The problem is that when you choose fast food options, you develop a fast-food body, mind, and spirit. Continuing on this path can cause you to miss the nutrients your body needs, and your body will eventually protest.

When COVID struck in March of 2020, I stopped going out to eat. I stopped shopping in crowds and began cooking all my meals at home. I treated myself with thoughtful plating. You never knew when COVID might strike, so I made each meal unique and elegant. By the twelfth month of COVID, I’d created a line of healthy nonalcoholic beverages and delightful meal options; I developed a variety of recipes that make for picturesque and nutritious meals. While you might not want to judge a book by its cover, meaning in this case – how food looks on a plate – yet, visuals are a significant component of healthy eating. It is its own art form. Much like we are inspired by art, you can inspire healthy eating through the senses, with sight representing over 50% of what attracts most people.

Why did I wait so long? I encourage you to try it if you are not on this path. Adopting a slow food lifestyle (and slowing down in general) will do wonders for your health and career. This doesn’t mean you must come home and cook a three-course meal every night. Meal prepping in advance makes it quick. 

Here are some ideas to get you started:

• Organize your kitchen to be efficient for all aspects of preparing and storing meals
• Choose one day to shop, plan, and prepare for large-scale cooking
• Choose a day to cook your meals or split with a prep day
• Portion food in small Ziplock bags and freeze/store
• Plan menus in advance so that stored portions are ready when you are
• Be sure to create a ritual around food preparation and mealtime. Honor the abundance of talent, knowledge, and grace you give yourself each time you invest in creating a meal for yourself. That is a beautiful gift to give oneself—the gift of a well-prepared and served meal that nourishes the mind, body, and soul.

When you walk into your house at the end of the day (or move from your home office to the kitchen) and are famished, having a plan will prevent you from dialing for delivery service. In which case, you bring the unknown and potentially harmful into your home and body.

Do you Still Need Help?

Eating right for your body or condition can be challenging. A nutrition coach or dietician can be the key. And here’s where we diverge into diversity and inclusion. Most of us tend to look for a professional with whom we can relate. Let’s say you grew up on a particular ethnicity of foods. When you search for someone to create a diet for you, you are more likely to find substitution suggestions from someone familiar with your heritage.

On the same note, let’s imagine you are a female in her 50s. You have completely different nutritional needs than a man aged 25. Ethnicity plays a role as well. Should your family hail from Asia, you have different health risks than a family heritage being African American.

The Role of Your Heritage

As a side note, heritage also plays a role in other aspects of life where nutrition is essential.

Diversity of a different nature was brought to my attention when figure skating coach icon Carlo Fassi asked me to research why he couldn’t get more African-American skaters interested in the sport. His premise was that our bodies are made for the sport, and he knew he could create champions out of our heritage. I didn’t need to research anything because I know, as an African American skater, that few families in my community would give a second thought to the idea of sending their children along with their hard-earned money to be spent on figure skating. They’d instead send them to an ivy league school – mainly a family with the means to do so – before most African-American families would invest in the sport. They’d rather see their children become doctors, lawyers, and executives. My family was similar. My dad was an attorney. My mother had her MSW and chose social work. My sister focused on business, and my parents reluctantly allowed me to follow my passion for figure skating. Carlo would be hard-pressed to get a flood of those within my community to figure skate back then. Since my day in skating, more African-Americans have found their way to the sport. Yet they still account for a small percentage of the skating population.

Here’s the challenge and what we must strive to correct – there is historically little diversity in nutrition health professionals. Over 90% are women and white. While a nutrition coach or dietician can do some research and provide you with suitable alternatives, more trust comes from someone like you. That means your search will be more challenging as a male looking for a nutritionist.

In addition, socio-economic status plays a huge role in nutrition. Those in food deserts or those on a fixed income have extra challenges when creating proper meals. A social program that serves these groups must take care to meet their needs as well.

We must remove biases that prevent all cultures from choosing to study nutrition and encourage those looking for help to seek out professionals to whom they can relate.

This is a phrase we can agree on. Nutrition affects every cell of our body. They define our structure and allow us to function. Nutrition affects our muscles, bones, digestion, and immune systems. Consume fruits, vegetables, grass-fed meats and dairy, nuts, seeds, whole grains, and good fats, and your body will reward you with good energy and mental clarity. Your body may not respond well to chips and beer.