Joy McCarthy - Joyous Health

JOYOUS HEALTH

To my favorite lovebirds: my mom, Susan McCarthy, and my dad, Michael McCarthy.

Momyour sparkly eyes, passion for organic gardening, baking talents and joyful spirit have inspired me not only in the kitchen but in life.

Dadyour gentle soul and ability to look at the sunny side of every single situation in life has given me the strength, optimism and confidence to achieve my dreams.

INTRODUCTION

In my early twenties I struggled with body-image issues, hormonal imbalance and digestive problems. For three years I visited countless doctors and specialists who performed every possible test you could imagine, searching for the cure for my hormonal imbalancea cure I assumed would fix everything else. But after an exhausting three years, I was only getting worse. My skin was dry, my hair was thinning, I had not menstruated in over six months and I had no sex driveugh. I described myself as feeling like an it. Hopeless was the perfect word to summarize everything I was feeling.

One night as I lay in bed with tears streaming down my face, trying to decide whether I should try yet another hormone-balancing pill to fix me, something inside was driving me to address the root cause. This yearning wasnt new, but this night it was stronger than it had ever been.

I said no to another medication and decided it was time for change.

Then it happenedsome kind of magical and incredibly powerful paradigm shift occurred inside me. Whether it came from complete exasperation or a visit from my fairy godmother Ill never know, but I chose to take responsibility for my health.

Over the next six months I focused on healing my body from the inside out. I changed my diet, by adding, not deleting. I changed my thoughts, which turned into positive actions. And I followed the guidance of a holistic nutritionist and a naturopathic doctorguidance Im going to share with you in this book. It was a truly holistic approach.

Guess what happened? My hair began to grow back thicker and shinier, my skin was glowing again, and I actually got my period! I was jumping for joy. Slowly but surely all the symptoms Id been struggling with for years became a fading memory.

I share this story with you to give you hope.

You always have the power of choice and the power to heal your body. You have choice over your thoughts, actions, words and every morsel you eat.

A few years later, I left my full-time marketing job and enrolled myself at the Institute of Holistic Nutrition, in Toronto, where I became a certified nutritionist and where I now teach. My certification enabled me to register with the International Organization of Nutritional Consultants and start practicing holistic nutrition, teaching others the healing power of food and healthy lifestyle habits.

Eat Well Feel Well was born in 2010, founded by Michelle Uy and myself as a six-week integrated holistic nutrition and yoga program in Toronto. Im so proud of this program because it guides, empowers and inspires our students to learn a new way of eating and living without dieting or deprivation. This is the joyous health (aka ANTI-diet) way to live. In Eat Well Feel Well, you learn how to develop a new relationship with your body through yoga and, in doing so, with the food you eat.

I decided to write this book because I receive hundreds of emails, tweets and Facebook posts every month from people asking me for advice, or from out-of-towners who wish they could take the Eat Well Feel Well class or from those who found my Joyous Health blog and want to learn more but cant come and see me in person. I listened, and I have created this beautiful book for you so that no matter where you live in the world, you will have the information you need to heal your body and mind and experience joyous health.

This book comprises the entire holistic nutrition program that I teach in our Eat Well Feel Well class. It also has much more information to guide you and inspire you to eat well, and absolutely delicious (and nutritious) recipes that I am certain will inspire you and fill your belly with joy. And I have some very joyous news: You will notice as you work your way through my book that I never mention calorie counting. Free yourself from this forever!

Let the journey begin!

Joy

Its no wonder we are obsessed with diets when dozens of products with so-called health claims such as low-fat and low-calorie fill grocery store shelves. We are bombarded again while waiting in the checkout line by magazine covers promising the latest weight loss solution. And you cant turn on the television or listen to the radio without hearing about the latest diet fad or supplement that promises to melt fat off your belly, hips and thighs.

The madness stops here, with the truth.

There is no one-size-fits-all approach to health. What your friends thrive on or what melts pounds off the latest celebrity may be healthy and good for them but not necessarily for you. There are nearly seven billion people on this earth, and that means there are nearly seven billion ways to eat that can make each person thrive with joyous health. Diets are time-limited programs that promote deprivation. Basically, they make you feel guilty if you indulge in anything that isnt prescribed for that diet. Diets are not sustainable, period.

Getting Started

Ditch the Diet Mentality

A particular food can be one persons medicine while being anothers poison. You are your own best nutritionist. But with that being said, you should consider taking a break from foods that you simply eat too much of too often. (Well discuss these in .) Keep in mind that its not just about food. Lifestyle choices are equally important.

Stop Counting

Most people believe that counting calories and obsessing over a number on a scale will somehow make us reach an ideal weight and make us happier. But counting actually doesnt help, and in fact makes us feel worse about ourselves. Instead of focusing on a number, whether its the number of calories, the number of fat grams or the number on your scale, focus on health and you will naturally choose the best foods for you.

Essentially, I want you to stop nutritionalizing your food. This means you should stop rationalizing your food choices with numbers. Its incredibly freeing when you realize you dont have to live your life from meal to meal, calorie to calorie. So instead of obsessing over numbers on nutrition labels, read the actual ingredients. Instead of obsessing over how much you weigh, focus on how you feel.

Eat Real Food

We live in a society that has, sadly, lost its connection with real, whole food. Weve turned food into the enemy and become very disconnected from it by thinking of it as merely calories in and calories out. Lets fall in love with food again!

Choose foods that still resemble their original form. Michael Pollan shares a similar philosophy in