A Kitchen Divided...by Coach Shannon Port
Sooooo, it’s late January and maybe you are still rocking your New Year’s Resolution or maybe you are a week into the January Nutrition Challenge. You’re doing all the right things: weekly grocery shopping, meal prep, kicking ass in the kitchen and whipping up some awesomely delicious and nutritious dinners. It’s going great. However, you also live with your sweet, sweet, ever so sexy significant other. And as much as you love them, and they love you, they are definitely not getting on board with any of your new found healthy lifestyle.Uh-oh. What do you do?You are super pumped about all the changes and how good you are feeling. It’s only natural that you want your partner to feel the same way, right? So, you try talking. You try explaining. You try sharing. Grrrrrrrrr….nothing. You feel like you are hitting your head against a brick wall. You both end up frustrated. It’s not going to happen (at least not right now).Now what???? Do you throw in the kitchen towel? Hell no!!!Here’s a few suggestions:1. You do you boo. I understand that your life would be a whole lot easier if magic would happen in the kitchen and you both agreed on what foods you are going to eat. However, if that isn’t happening right now, focus on what foods make you happy and feel the best.2. It takes a village. You’ve heard the old saying that it takes a village to raise a child, well the same goes for anytime you’re looking at personal growth…nutrition included! Find a group of like-minded people to surround yourself with (ummmm…the members of Live Active 563 would be an AWESOME choice here). Share your goals. Share your action steps. It can feel great to hear others succeed and to hear them cheer you on.3. Don’t forget to date. I might be showing my age here…or the fact that I have kids…don’t judge, but how about a lovely (kid free) trip to the grocery store? Pick out foods together, but keep in mind that your foods don’t have to look the same. Just use the time to bond. You want a sweet potato and they want white rice? Awesome. Get them both. I’m pretty sure that both those options would pair great with chicken breast and broccoli. Bonus: how about cooking that food together? Again, it doesn’t have to look the same, just take the pressure away and foster a good relationship with the cooking/eating process. Make it fun. Make it sexy. You may be pleasantly surprised how this may play out.4. Celebrate your wins. Did you reach a goal? Did you lose weight? Did you finally get that muscle up? Whatever it is you celebrate that. Celebrate it in a big way and include your significant other in the celebration! You will feel amazing both physically and emotionally. Crushing goals is the biggest confidence booster! Maybe, just maybe, this energy will rub off and they will want to start celebrating themselves too.5. Give it time. Change is hard. I know it will get frustrating and there will be times when you will wonder if the challenge is worth it. But look at it this way: exploring food issues together with curiosity can be a great way to build connection and understanding.Now go give your sweet, sweet, oh so sexy partner a squeeze. Don’t say anything, but just know that if your partner ever wants to start their own nutrition journey, you know exactly where to send them.
--Coach Shannon
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