Food for thought…

Food is one of the things that people in first world countries take for granted.  How do we get it?  Where does it come from?  Next time you’re at the grocery store buying some produce, checkout where it came from.  If you live in Canada, chances are a lot of the fruits and vegetables you eat are coming from Mexico or Southern California.  Is this a big deal, well kind of.

Have you ever heard “You are what you eat”, well this is very true.  As an athlete I consume anywhere from 2500-5000 calories in a given day.  That’s a lot of food that my body needs just to maintain my weight.  Food is my fuel and choosing quality foods that will help rebuild the muscles are crucial in making gains.  Much of this “fuel” is made up of fruits and vegetables. 

If you choose to eat imported produce chances are it has sat on a truck for awhile.  Unless it was flown in, which is very unlikely, your “fresh produce” as the grocery stores like to say has sat on a truck for at least 2-3 days, more if its coming from Mexico.  This precious cargo was also probably sprayed with chemicals to help preserve the freshness or even partially frozen.  Doing this allows the produce to last longer but the integrity of the food actually goes down.

The problem is the window for opportunity for eating fresh produce is quite short.  As soon as they are picked they begin to lose their quality.  If you would like to preserve some of the freshness, freeze the produce right away and save it for a later time.  This is really common in Canada with blueberries as people buy huge boxes of them when their in season and then freeze them for pies or deserts in the winter. 

I’m not saying avoid imported produce from other countries, just be aware of how far it came to you.  Check the stickers that the grocery stores put on the produce.  Pick ones that are closer to your home.  Shopping for organics is always another option as these are typically locally grown and they don’t use pesticides to help preserve and grow their produce.  

Imported foods usually do cost less because of the cost of labour and the vast selection in these countries.  However, for someone like me who depends so much on what I eat, saving money is less important compared to fueling up with high grade selection.   

Take the time to see where your food has come from.  By no means should you choose something less healthy (bag of chips instead of an apple).  We are lucky that we do get a choice in what we eat.  Hopefully, we will always have the luxury of choosing what you put in your tank.

Happy (Good Eatin!) Trainin

Cliff