So You Want To Go Organic?
Have you ever felt like your current lifestyle wasn’t working for you anymore? You feel tired all the time, unhealthy, and feel like you’re in a rut? Well maybe it is time for a change! It is a new year and a new decade. Now is your chance to finally do something good for yourself! One of the most common new year’s resolutions is to go on a diet. I don’t believe in the word diet, but I like to call it a lifestyle change.
So, you want to go organic? Organic eating is a return to tradition. It isn’t a new fad or something that is cool or prestigious. However, it is making a comeback into the mainstream and it is a huge buzzword in the media today. There are numerous benefits to having an organic diet. Those include supporting family farms, eating less pesticides, eating foods without added hormones and antibiotics, or eating foods that are not genetically modified. Eating organic is also better for the environment.
Most people want to start eating organic because they don’t want to eat foods with added chemicals or any other unnecessary additives. Also, because organic food is gaining popularity, people are starting to catch on and they are curious. Some may want to start eating this way because they think eating organic is cool (which don’t get me wrong, it totally is!), but really, it is just a return to the way our great grandparents used to eat. Since eating organic is considered “new”, many people don’t know where to begin, which is where organic Sara, me, comes in. So here are 4 ways to start eating organic.
- Start shopping for organic food
- Visit your local grocery store, co-op, organic farm, or natural market i.e Whole Foods Market or Trader Joe’s. Even if you aren’t close to a well known natural market, most grocery stores nowadays carry a wide variety of organic products.
- Simply buy your favorite products in their organic form. Either the brands you know have organic versions of the products you buy or find a new brand that sells your favorite product that is organically produced.
- Start small by first buying organic produce, meat, and dairy, and then later incorporate other organic products.
- Grow your own organic produce
- Create a garden in your yard using organic soil and organic seeds and follow the organic practices to keep your produce all organic.
- Research the organic lifestyle
- Read and research what it takes to start living an organic lifestyle and to learn what it is all about before you begin. Learn how to read labels, learn about the organic standards, and learn what “organic” actually means. The more research you do, the more confidant you will feel.
- Just do it!
- Instead of contemplating or finding the right time to change your lifestyle, just do it right now! There is no better time than right now! You don’t have to wait for New Year’s Day, or Monday, or next month. Start NOW!
Once you start eating organic you will be glad that you did. There is something about eating food that is transparent about its ingredients and standards that makes you feel better. And also, organic food does taste better! Trust me, you can totally taste the difference.
When starting a new diet, you will make a lot of mistakes and you will learn what works and what doesn’t. Challenging yourself with a new lifestyle is all about trial and error. It will take awhile to find the balance. Don’t get discouraged or give up too early. You will have good days and you will slip up other days, but it is more than okay! What matters the most is that you found the courage to try something new, even if it isn’t perfect. Trust the process! It took me 10 years to perfect my own organic lifestyle and everyday I am still learning.
I encourage you all to try something new this year. It isn’t just a new year, but it is also a new decade. I started eating organic food and living an organic lifestyle at the end of 2009. It was just right before the 2010 decade started and I have never looked back. I can’t believe I have been living this lifestyle for a whole decade! I stand behind it wholeheartedly and it has changed my life for the better.
We are all unique and have very specific dietary needs. Even though I love the organic lifestyle and I believe in it 100 percent, I will never be the person to say “this is the only way to eat” or put someone down because they aren’t eating this way. I despise when someone does that to me and I will never do that to anyone. But, I will lay out all the facts for you, share my story with you, and I will let you make that decision on your own. Whatever lifestyle you may choose, I hope it brings a positive change for your life!
Happy 2020 everyone!
Love,
Organic Sara, “S.O.Eats”
*Just a side note, you can make the organic lifestyle as healthy or unhealthy as you like. Remember that just because something contains the USDA Organic symbol on the package, it doesn’t mean that it is healthy. Organic does not equal healthy! Organic is the way in which a product is grown and produced. Organic ice cream, cakes, and cookies are still going to deter you from your health goals.