Food as Medicine, Lived: Final Week with Faith

In this final episode of the meal planning series, we check back in with Professor Faith Karas—and what she shares feels like a true turning point.

For the first time in six years, Faith has gone six weeks without getting sick. This includes hosting a sick house guest in her small Chicago apartment and flying internationally—two situations that would have almost guaranteed she’d catch something. For years, it was a pattern: the flu, pink eye, COVID, even pneumonia after travel. This time, something shifted.

We close out our check-in by naming what actually changed over six weeks—not just what we eat, but how we care for ourselves when life gets chaotic.

We talk about the real tests of any meal planning rhythm: hosting, travel, tight spaces, and packed schedules. Then we unpack what made the difference—batch cooking that stretches one meal into several, shopping your kitchen before buying more, and sitting down to meals that are worth tasting.

Faith reflects on the ripple effects: fewer delivery orders, less sugar, more stability, and a noticeable shift in her health. After years of getting sick almost monthly, going weeks without illness becomes a signal she cannot ignore.

From there, the conversation widens. We talk about ingredient quality, the hidden costs of cheap food, and how cooking at home supports both personal wellness and environmental values. We also share the simple systems that make this sustainable: scheduling grocery shopping, eating before you go so you stick to your list, building accountability, and choosing a weekly “begin again” day so it never has to be perfect.

There is also something deeper that returns—creativity, joy, and a sense of self-care, even when cooking for one. And over time, these small shifts ripple outward into community, connection, and shared support.

If you’ve been stuck in the cycle of last-minute meals and daily negotiations with delivery, this episode offers a steady, realistic path forward.

Download the meal plan template in the show notes to get started.

Press play. And if something resonates, share it with a friend and let me know the one shift you’re ready to try.

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Reach Florencia Ramirez at info@eatlesswater.com

Transcript

Welcome And Final Check In

SPEAKER_00 1:08

Welcome to the Kitchen Activist Podcast. I'm joined by Professor Faith Karis. This is our last meeting, and this is the last time we will meet in a podcast format, but not the last time we talk about meal planning in our life. Agree. This is the beginning of a new habit in your life, a new way of being, a new lifestyle, change in your life, I hope. And that's what we'll talk about today. And why don't you go ahead and start us off? What has been happening with you with meal planning? Because I think it's been about two weeks since we spoke last. And I want to hear how is it going? What have been the challenges? What have been your victories around meal planning? And what do you feel right now at this point in time is already embedded? Like what do you find is like it's yours? It's it's it doesn't feel clunky. It is yours, a part of as part of this meal planning.

SPEAKER_01 2:14

Yes. I also think we should do a check-in at like three to six months, by the way. Like three months and then six months, because I'm curious to see what other things stick more long term. I like um you know, we'll do it back. Yeah, because even though like we've had breaks, I know I'm gonna meet with you, right? So having that accountability piece is yeah. So what happens when we remove it in terms of sustainability and my being self-motivated and disciplined to do it for the next three months and six months, and which you're also speaking to the idea of an accountability buddy or an accountability group.

SPEAKER_00 2:55

Yeah, a vision that I have, especially and I do write about it briefly in as a suggestion in the Kitchen Activist book when that comes out in November, but just because there is so much power. Well, there's power in the collective in that when you're doing it with somebody who who's a friend or somebody who you know is working towards some of the same goals and just being there for each other, I know is important.

Real Life Disruptions And Wins

SPEAKER_01 3:23

Yes, absolutely, and I would be interested, I would love to have an accountability group comprising other women who are in a similar situation as I am. Florencia, if you want to organize this, I would totally jump on board, just saying having a group where it's other women who are really professionally driven and have a tendency putting themselves and their self-care practices on the back burner. I think that would be really incredible to have. Yeah, so in terms of challenges and victories, I'll just lead with the challenges have just been life, right? At one point, I had a couple of house guests with me for a week, and they're one of them or two, they were sick, and so I'm like juggling, taking care of them, and also just I have a very small apartment. So navigating what it means to host in tight quarters and your routine, either when you're hosting or traveling, and I've also been traveling, it goes out the window. And then I even as I say that, I want to actually curve that even because it doesn't entirely go out the window. Because then when I was thinking about my recent trip to Mexico, the kinds of decisions I made, even though I wasn't cooking for myself all the time, I'm also the decisions I made were very much informed by our conversations. So I want to talk about that in a moment. But so that would be just really broadly the challenges, right? Like when you are traveling or when you have guests or there's a deadline or things like that. And I still say, despite that, I'm really proud of my wins and my victories. And some of them are not at all like what I anticipated. So I think I told you like really briefly via texture that I lost a couple pounds, random, not randomly, but I think it is tied to a shift in how and what I am eating. I will say also that dynamic of preparing food more for myself, the portions are different. So I don't eat as much. I also take greater pleasure in what I'm eating. So usually when I'm eating to sale order something from DoorDash or Uber Eats during lunch, and I like eat through lunch. I'm eating the food and I'm like doing email or watching something. And so it's this mindless consumption. I'm not really tasting what it is. But I have this thing where when I'm preparing something more for myself, I want to taste it. And I'm like, it's sacred, it matters more to me. And so I've been using my kitchen table more, and I've got these placemats, which I very rarely use. And I'm just more mindful of not consuming mindlessly and in front of a screen, but really enjoying it. And I think it's because I know the effort I put into it when I know that it just feels more important to me. That has shifted the portions and the manner in which I eat. I've definitely become much more mindful. And what has really worked for me too is the I forgot the concept where you like it's meal prep at the beginning of the week, but batchmaking. Like I'll make a bunch of roasted herb chicken or something, and then I'll use it for a salad. But then I also used it for I guess it was like a Buddha bowl, what I came up with. That picture I had sent to you where it was, I just put together sweet potatoes, asparagus, feta. What else was in there? Onions. I don't even, I was like, what I don't even know the last time I've cooked with asparagus. Let's just talk about that. But I was, I feel like I need something green in here. And peppers. And that was nice where I could stretch something for three or four days, but for different meals. Oh, and then tacos with soft tacos. And I feel really proud about that. And obviously, like it makes a big difference for my pocketbook. So I feel really proud about that. The thing that I think is interesting is the piece around doing meal prep and being mindful about where I'm purchasing goods and how I'm preparing food. It has actually bled out into other parts of my life. That concept of shopping your kitchen. I came across this one woman on social media, and she was talking about shopping her closet. And rather than buying more clothes or consuming more in that way, coming up with new outfits with the same kinds of clothes, new combinations. I like that. And I think, and I've actually seen her before do this. So I'm not new to this concept of shopping your closet. And I've seen her do this, but it resonated more with me, I think, because of the shop your kitchen concept and practice, and that I really enjoy it. And it's translated into other parts of my life where I'm like, okay, what can I do differently with what I already have? And really that gratitude with what I already have and being creative. But I also want to add that there's a creativity and joy that wasn't there before in terms of eating, frankly. It would be consumption and eating. I'd be, oh, it's stressful, right? It's what am I gonna order? The fatigue of having to make a choice of what I'll order, and then the stress about how much money it'll cost, or it wasn't fun, or I have to do this, and my body's telling me I'm hungry. And now what's really fascinating is like I now make my own salad dressings, and it's so easy, and I'm just gonna put together this random stuff, mix things together. And I think that there is this part of me that was one part of me that was approaching cooking, I have to be a perfectionist, as I do in many other parts of my life. And my mom is also an incredible cook, and I compared myself to her. But I've allowed myself to be okay with the messiness and the imperfection, and it doesn't have to be the most incredible tasting thing ever invented, but it just has to satiate me, and then I can try again another time. So I think the piece around how this practice and this journey with you has shifted my relationship to food, both production and consumption and sourcing and all that, bringing up creativity. And then I also think there's something about resisting perfectionism.

Mindful Eating And Health Changes

SPEAKER_00 10:05

There's so much in there. There's so much wins that I heard, and so many things that reaffirm why I talk so much about meal planning, because I know it works. I know it works to save money, which you have time and time again talked about how it has saved you money because DoorDash and Uber Eats aren't at the tip of your fingers anymore, but rather going into your kitchen and shopping your kitchen first, and instead purchasing things at the grocery store and making your own food. The other thing I know it's good for our health, and you've lost some weight. You talked about energy, having more energy. I know when we first started this, you spoke about that you were getting sick. You kept getting sick. Oh, yeah. And I wonder over this last six weeks, I know you hosted someone at your house who was sick.

SPEAKER_01 11:02

Yes, I hosted two people, one of who who were sick actually, and really like good friends and very sweet young women as part of our program. And I did not get sick, and I was so paranoid because I always have just taken it for granted that my immune system is shot. Like it's just my immune system sucks, and I just have to be like hyper-aware and this and that. And I yeah, I did not get sick. And I'm and in addition to having people over Florencia, I traveled internally and somehow did not get sick when I arrived. And I'm I can't impress enough how frequently I get sick. And I get sick also every single time I travel. No question. It's pink eye, it's the flu, it's COVID, every single time. Pneumonia, without a doubt. And I traveled internationally, and it's so funny too, because I have all these spices in my cupboard. So I've also been experimenting with them. And like I made eggs this morning, for instance, and I've been like putting turmeric in my eggs because I know that turmeric is uh anti-inflammatory, and you don't really taste it, but you taste it, but I'm like, ah, I'm just gonna put this in here. Let me experiment. Oh, and then also I've been cutting down my sugar too, which probably helps with the less immune. Well, part of me too, cutting down the sugar, part of cutting down the sugar is the fact that when I would have sugar, I'm ordering it on DoorDash and Uber Eats. So if I'm cutting down on my DoorDash and Uber Eats orders, I'm also cutting down on my sugar intake anyway.

SPEAKER_00 12:36

Yeah, it's a domino effect, right? Because you're taking what you are eating, what's on that plate. And it was interesting to hear you talk about portions, because when you spoke about losing some weight, and I hadn't really thought about it before, when we give up cooking to somebody else, to another restaurant, when we're ordering out, we also are just allowing them to decide what is our portion size. And then when we're eating, like you were totally talking about like you're eating whatever was delivered to you mindlessly, like doing your work and you're eating, you're we're not even paying attention to, well, do I really need to eat this much food? Just because such and such person decided that I need this burger to be this big with all of these fries and the side dish, like that I need to eat it all.

SPEAKER_01 13:33

But we do Oh, I already spent all this money on this, so I gotta eat it. Yeah, that's such a great point.

Taking Back Control Through Cooking

SPEAKER_00 13:39

But when we cook, we take control of so many aspects. For me, it started about I'm gonna start cooking because I want to take back the aspect of my of how this, how does this impact the environment, right? How do I align my values and my desire to be part of the solution for what's happening on the planet and in water systems around the globe? That was what pushed me. And that may or may not be the reason for everybody, and that's okay, but you get rewarded in other things. So if you as a thing, your own personal health is your the goal that's pushing you forward to do this work. Well, also the reward is that you're helping the planet too. Yes, and so there's all of these things, and you're also the reward, the reward is that you're saving money. And the reward is also that you are bringing more creativity and joy into your daily rounds through cooking, right? And I love how you said you started to bring out the placemats. You started to make your placemats that probably you would only bring out for what for special occasions?

SPEAKER_01 14:53

Yeah, if that maybe like once every four months or something. I mean, I don't know, maybe twice a year. Let's be honest. I'll be honest.

SPEAKER_00 15:01

What's interesting when you said that, because you know, I have placemats every day, and we set the table with cloth napkins. And and when our kids were really small, that was their job was to set the table. And they would shop the house to find like little plants or things to decorate the table, because they would watch me do that, right? When I finished the kitchen activists, and it was time to write the conclusion, and I called it time to set the table. It's bringing it's a culmination of you've learned how to meal plan and to shop and to organize your kitchen, and you're doing more cooking, all of those things, like they're just wrapped into each other. And then now it is time to set the table, right? And to, and not just for when others come over, but we're setting the table for ourselves. Exactly. Exactly. That is just a natural outgrowth of all this other work, is that you would take out placemats and you would begin to set the table for a new lifestyle, one that is healthier and more delicious. And brings more joy into the daily realm because uh we can hate cooking and we can hate doing these things, uh, but life is too short to hate, such a big part of what our life is, like what our life entails, which is nourishing ourselves. We have to eat a single day. We have to eat every day. Why not be on board completely with it and not relegate it to others to as convenience, but rather just just take it on and love it and be about it and see how all the rewards that will show up in your own life as a result of it.

SPEAKER_01 17:00

Absolutely. And I love a couple of things that you named, which is what motivated you or initially inspired you to pursue this mindfulness, your mindfulness around food consumption and production and cooking and all how you're sourcing your food, where you're getting it from, was the environmental piece. And for me, it was the health piece. But to your point, we all end up at the same point, right? With all these different benefits. I think it was our first session together. We talked about part of one of the reasons why I hadn't been really into cooking. And I talked about when I've lived with someone with my partner, I did cook, right? We cook together. I did, but there's this idea kind of implicit that I'm not enough to cook for myself, right? It's not worth it that effort. And now with the placemats, too, previously I would have seen that as burdensome, taking out the placemat, because you gotta clean them. They're really pretty placemats that I got from the Philippines years ago, and I just don't use they're beautiful, but they're a piece of art. And, you know, I would see taking them out and having to clean them before and after is like a burden, just as preparing a food and a meal, especially if it's only me. That's a burden. And to reframe that and now see it as an active self-care. And also, I'm so glad you brought up your observation around my health and wellness and illness or lack thereof, because to not be sick for six to eight weeks is a really big deal. I'm pretty much sick every month, and I've been pretty much sick every month since the past five to six years. And when I was listening, this that is huge, faith. That shift is yeah, no, and it's it, I think it's like not an exaggeration. Like anyone, any of my friends were listening to they know this, right? My coworkers, previous former and current my friends, they all know this. And I just had always chucked it up to my immune system, which is funny because a couple months ago, when I did go for my annual, like physical or whatever, they were like, no, I was hoping they would be like, You've got a thyroid issue, right? Because they could tell me what the problem is. But there's no problem. I'm actually healthy. There's no problem. And listening to you talk, I just wrote in my notes, food is medicine. And food is both medicine as well as food can also be, of course, of great harm to us. And I think that for a really long time, I've been making myself sick, right? Like, or I've come been at the very least, like compromising my immune system and my body's ability to be as healthy as she could be. And I have forgotten that I haven't gotten sick in a while. And I that's actually a really big deal.

Better Ingredients Cost Less Later

SPEAKER_00 19:46

Yeah. And when we are taking control of our meal planning and shopping, we are we're just showing up for ourselves in a way that is the self-care around our health. Because we're either going to pay for it now in more nutritious foods, or we're gonna pay for it later with medication. For example, olive oil is one of those things that there's a study after study about how good olive oil is for us. Like that's the best oil to use. When we go to the grocery store, what kind of olive oil are we buying? Because we know because olive oil is expensive when you're buying oral and we could be cheap about it and reach for the cheapest oil we could find. And that's what we often do. And that's what restaurants are doing too. They're getting the cheapest oil that they can find. And it's diminishing our health, just like that one simple thing of what kind of oil will I buy? Here in Ventura, there's a store which I would call part of the farmer's market, but it's a brick and mortar farmer's market, and they sell olive oil from Italy and Spain and Greece. It's single source, it's in these wooden barrels, like beautiful experience. And you get to taste the olive oil and taste the spiciness. Oh my God. Because you are tasting the tarar, right? You're tasting that particular slice of land somewhere on the planet. You can taste it. So it was just a fun experience to go through that process and really just hone in on what kind of olive oil do I like and where is it coming from? So I I ended, I landed on one from Italy and it just in a small bottle. And then I'll go back because you can buy, you could take your bottle, your glass bottle, and get it refilled. Oh. And it's pricey. It's$20 for a small bottle of olive oil, of organic single origin. But guess what? If I don't do those things, if we don't do those things for ourselves, then it is way more expensive to buy, to go to the hospital, to miss work, to buy medication. And I would rather spend it up front on things that are enjoyed that we can enjoy. It's that mindset shift.

SPEAKER_01 22:16

Yeah, and it's values, like shifting your values. Yes.

SPEAKER_00 22:20

We have grown up in a society, the social norm is you spend the least amount as possible at the grocery store. I mean, I've even heard you talk about you've mentioned about Whole Foods, and I'm I have mixed feelings about Whole Foods because of what has happened to Whole Foods over the past or eight years. But through the years, what do we hear? We hear the whole paycheck piece, right? Because we are constantly fighting against this notion for ourselves that food should be as cheap as possible. And that is what we're getting. We're getting very cheap food. And as a result, we're getting very limited nutrition. And we're paying for it in the way that it has shaped our planet and with agriculture that's about high yield and downing forests and getting us a that cheap pound of beef. And guess what? We're paying for it too. We're paying for it by getting sick more often. We're getting sick. And I'm just sick and tired of the way that our food system is built upon this false notion that we need to have the cheapest food possible.

SPEAKER_01 23:40

So agreed a thousand percent.

SPEAKER_00 23:42

Yeah so we save money when we take on what we're eating what our meal planning we are saving money.

Family Story And Food Tradeoffs

Scheduling Groceries And Keeping Cadence

SPEAKER_01 23:49

And then with that money we can buy some better ingredients and we're then we're supporting a whole new way forward a new food system forward right totally and the more that we support it and as we increase the demand for it right then the does it so it's and I was it's just so funny because right before a little bit before I got on the call with you I was catching up with my mom and my mom is 77 and she developed like so many immigrants once they come to the US is type 2 diabetes. So she developed type 2 diabetes in her 40s actually around my age at 45. So she moved here at 35. I was talking to her and part of the reason why she hasn't, she's technically retired but part of the reason she hasn't retired in the Philippines is around access to her diabetes medication. So yes cost of living in the Philippines is much cheaper, but the medications and access to certain kinds of care, ironically given the Philippines has sourced the US for nursing but anyways it's quite more it's more expensive over in the Philippines. So she has to stay in the US and she was explaining to me with her type 2 diabetes and other health issues she has 12 different types of medication she takes daily and it just came up in conversation we were talking about something about my like addiction to sweets and she was like I want you to be careful because when I was your age that's when I developed type two diabetes and that's scary to me. That's scary now she's healthier and she eats fruits and veggies and things like that. But I do remember growing up it was just my mom with the three of us and I remember she always saved the best cut of meat and the best whatever for us and she would just eat whatever was available. And when she became a home health aid worker she would sit in her car between clients and eat. Usually it was bread because it was like the cheapest thing you know I remember that to your point about getting the cheapest stuff which we would go to supermarkets certainly it wasn't Whole Foods and there's like this rack that is kind of by like those doors where you go to the bathroom or whatever at a large grocery store and it was like bruised fruit and bruised vegetables and we would always get that like whatever was and and now like I do know that she purchases better food and takes better care of herself but when it was like when she was a single parent trying to raise the three of us it really she put everything on the back burner for us. Like we we didn't want for anything we ate really well and so I just was thinking about that and yeah I just I don't want to be like that and yeah I can see there's a lot of emotion there yeah yeah I think like I think it's powerful too because she didn't have a choice I mean she really freaking didn't but I do have a choice right like my income and my even working for a nonprofit like I still have so much more so many more resources than she ever had and so I want to make different decisions you know right yeah and we and we can all like we we all come at this from different budgets and we could all do a little bit more wherever we're at right because when we're reaching for food that's already been made for us or pre-packaged foods you know that we're relegating our health of our for ourselves and our planet to somebody else it's just taking some of that back and it does cost less even if you're even if you're just if you're purchasing all conventionally made or all conventionally grown fruits and vegetables let's just eat more fruits and vegetables and even like switching it up like being like okay I'm gonna get these like I know for instance berries there are so many pesticides so I'm like okay these I definitely am going to get organic but maybe I can afford to get not organic bananas or something. And so but the fact of the matter is that when I make those decisions, they're informed by my understanding of how that food is produced and who's producing it. And I know we're almost at time but I also wanted to name something that I think is incredibly important about something that I've learned in this process, which is we talk about food prep and coming up you have that list and first you shop your kitchen and then you like determine your meals and then what ingredients I still need to get that that are not in my kitchen. And another piece that has been really important for me is scheduling into my calendar when I'm going to a grocery store. And I do that because if I wing it, either I won't get to the grocery store and I'll end up doing like a day or two of DoorDash Uber East until I can get to the grocery store, right? It becomes sloppy. So I have to schedule when I'm going to go go to the grocery store. And also when I schedule when I'm going to the grocery store I know that I want to make sure to eat a snack or eat something beforehand. So it helps me stick to my list instead of shopping while of course I'm hungry, which is like the worst thing ever. But you know just as I schedule going to yoga or the gym or an important meeting, I'm scheduling going to purchase the food that's going to nourish me. And that has been also incredibly important. I never did that.

SPEAKER_00 29:49

That is that I do really recommend that you come up with what is your begin date, what is your start date that's why on the meal plan template I don't have like Sunday Monday Tuesday when it's open depending on what is your what's the rhythm of your weeks which tend to be similar even even though you have variants of things for most people you have there is like there is like a day each week that lends itself to be the day that you do your shopping so for us it's Sundays that we meal plan and then go shopping that's also because that's when our farmers market is happening. Yeah we go to when we're in Santa Fe the farmers market is on Saturday so we I we we just adjust it. So when our beginning date becomes Saturday so it just what is the day that makes sense but it has to be just like anything else there have there has to be a rhythm and you had mentioned earlier how you had you had guests and you also went on vacation and so you weren't meal planning because it takes you off a rhythm right um but you got to get back on a rhythm and part of that is to decide for yourself customize your own meal plan of what is the best day for me to begin because I do think if you say okay this week I'm gonna start on a Thursday and this week I'm gonna go shopping on a Saturday and then this week then then it's too all over the place. It has to have that cadence that you can rely upon and let me start again. This is my begin again because maybe I didn't do that well this past week or I had things came up or whatever. Okay but I here we are again on this X date for me Sunday and let me let's begin again and then move forward shop what I didn't use in my kitchen and then let's go let's go for it. So I love that piece about the with I love that for me too because I we're all human and things come up and things get tossed at us during the week that we're that are unexpected or what especially when you go travel for me too I find myself do travel I come back and it takes me at least a couple days if not a week to just like get back into a rhythm. But then on how far removed am I from my begin again date. And then when I hit that begin again date then it gets me back into the rhythm of it.

Begin Again Mindset And Kitchen Lessons

SPEAKER_01 32:27

So this also reminds me of mindfulness practice. So it's not about being the perfect meditator the perfect practitioner it's who can sit on the cushion the longest right it's and invariably right like the nature of the mind is the mind will wander but it's a matter of catching that wandering and then coming back. So it's not how many times did your mind wander it's did you come back each time? And so I think about that and for that too I feel like as someone who has grappled with perfectionism there's so much compassion in this process. It's totally imperfect. And so these are resources and systems or whatever that can hold you your my Sunday start date and I go away from it and then you come back and you begin again. I really love that.

SPEAKER_00 33:14

Yeah it also reminds at least for me it also helps me just the whole process of cooking and you mentioned it earlier too around it's okay for it to be messy. It doesn't have to be the best recipe ever and it's like what we do in the kitchen or when we cook it is an experiment. It is an experiment and so much of what we do because it's food which is essential it is the essential piece of just life of human existence and therefore there's so much teaching there's a richness in so in what we do in our kitchens and how we cook into all other aspects of our life our lives are an experiment. Nothing in our life is perfect. It is messy it is sloppy but when we have faith like I love love love when I make bread bread is such a teacher because when you have that dough and you're passing all these ingredients and it's messy it's sticky and you think you put it out on the counter and you start to meet it and you think how can this mess possibly turn into a loaf of bread that rises and you just keep working that dough and then it starts to smooth out and before you know it it does rise. And it is I mean this this is apropos to who who I'm speaking to but when you have faith in the process it does rise into something beautiful that and nourishing that you can savor for and and enjoy and also share. And that is so much of what this is about. It teaches us every single day if we want to pay attention to the lessons that are waiting for us.

SPEAKER_01 35:09

I also want to add how my relationship with my neighbor I've taught how we continue to share recipes and food with one another and that has been such a joy that has been such a joy in we both are single. So we also talk about shopping together so we can also save money in that way like getting a huge thing of lettuce or veggies or whatever. It really has had this incredible ripple effect and four to six weeks really is not a long time to change behavior and to have that behavior stick. And so I feel really good about what's to come and I'm really happy to be doing this also as like spring is coming and the summer and I will be traveling much more. So to be able to try to also find ways of how can I continue to be mindful and care for myself and what I'm putting into my body even when I'm not always cooking even when I don't always have access to my kitchen.

SPEAKER_00 36:06

The groundwork is already there you've laid the foundation for it.

SPEAKER_01 36:09

Exactly whiteboard again and put and begin again exactly it's so funny too because I told you this is the block of time that I have reserved to go to the grocery store too because I like ran out of some items and I'm going to the grocery store before my like next meeting which is in like 45 minutes but I booked it and and have been really it just it's just it's so different than how I've operated before. So yeah and acknowledge the fact that you are that you have been well that you've been healthy you have that you have Laurentia that is huge and I totally just forgot I think for me that's the biggest takeaway from this today.

SPEAKER_00 36:58

Yeah and coming back to that because that is that is a huge reason why you've you you're sticking with this and not for just the six weeks but from this point forward just deepening this information and making it your own so that you can just be healthy and showing up healthy and and forget the fact that I mean that was a long that was a long bout of sickness faith and it's enough of just getting sick once a month that's a lot of time and no more from this point forward you are of course we're gonna get sick our bodies get sick but for as much as that you can do which is to be on board with the food that you're eating you're on a great course and just keep with it you it it's to watch what has transpired with you in this past six weeks has just been really beautiful powerful for me to to witness from where we started the faith that I that first time that said I can't cook anything besides a frittata and that I'm that I call DoorDash so many times I forget how many times it was like four times at that point. And then from the faith that is in front of me today who I speak to today who is who is just confident who's making your own salad dressing now and who is shopping your kitchen shopping at the farmers market shop which we didn't talk about a too much but um I know that you are and just reclaiming that aspect of your life so that you can be healthier in the world showing up healthier and stronger and I'm just so proud.

SPEAKER_01 38:53

I'm so thank you and I also want and I'm thank you I want to say thank you to you and I'm also so proud about your book coming out soon. And I'm so proud for proud of you and so happy for you that with this recent PBS coverage that you are getting you and your work are getting the coverage that it deserves of you in terms of your work but also the very topics that we're talking about right around health and environmental justice and food security like all of those things. But I also wanted to name okay last thing I know how to roast sweet potatoes for instance right or like asparagus. Because the funny thing is is like I don't if I don't know I just go online and I'm like okay well just figure it out like I'm just teaching myself and that is incredibly humbling for someone where I'm I feel like I know all the things right like I know how to do the but then there's something incredibly humbling for me to be in the kitchen and just try to figure it out. And I also think it's incredibly beautiful and that's where the joy comes in that playfulness and that messiness where there are all these other aspects of my life that I'm expected to show up and know the answer and know the thing. And it's really nice to be in the kitchen and just be playful and also know that I'm doing something really good for my body.

Wrap Up And Meal Plan Template

SPEAKER_00 40:09

Yes. Yeah we'll end it there. Okay we will check back in three months I think that's a wonderful I think we should yeah we definitely will and I'm still gonna send you photos by the way please do yeah I love I love receiving your text messages we and I want to see the meal plan on your whiteboard and if you have not downloaded the meal plan template I encourage you to do that in the show notes right Faith get started absolutely yes it's a resource yep get started thank you so much you're welcome thank you