The One Thing They DON'T Tell You About Eating Seasonally

You've heard it before.

We should all eat "seasonally."

Yeah...seasonal produce is generally grown closer to where you are so it doesn't have to use all the gas and pollutants to travel to you.

Yeah...it may be "fresher" and FOR SURE taste better...

It may even be cheaper!

But out of all the research you've done about what it means to eat "seasonally," I bet you haven't come across the BIGGEST thing about eating seasonally.

So let me let you in on the "secret."

What does "eating seasonally" REALLY mean??

It means eating the vegetables that grow during that type of weather and season that you are in where you live.

Tomatoes love the warm summer...

Does that mean they grown in winter??

NOOOOO!!!

If there is snow on the ground where you live...

Tomatoes are NOT growing! Don't eat them! They are not "in season!"

Now that you understand the definition...what is the BIGGEST thing about eating seasonally??

Vegetables, nuts, fruits, anything edible that grows from the ground is designed for your body at the time of the year you need it.

AND...vice versa!

In the Ancient Indian practice of Ayurveda, which according to the The Ayurvedic Institute, "places great emphasis on prevention and encourages the maintenance of health through close attention to balance in one’s life, right thinking, diet, lifestyle and the use of herbs," there is a term called ritucharya.

The US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health states that ritucharya is the term used to describe how lifestyle disorders, that are common for most of people these days, stem from the lack of eating seasonally and participating in other "seasonal" regimes!!

I mean think about it...

You work in an office all year round, you're not out gathering nuts and berries in the summer, you're eating tomatoes in the winter...

It's kind of all out of whack!

So you're body doesn't know what to do with its self because it's missing the things it needs at that time of the year!

Leafy greens grow in the fall and spring. In the winter, your body likes more heartier foods...heavy meats, stews...

Um...who loves themselves some Texas chili???

Those greens help cleanse your body of toxins to be able to support a heartier diet and less activity!

They come back in the spring to do the same thing for the summer crops that are full of sugar, ex. watermelon.

Cucumbers, which are 95% water, grow in the summer...

Guess why??

Yep...you got it...because you need more water in the summer!

Bees!!!

Even the bees know what's up!!!

Sarah from Great Oaks Farm, who provides the eggs for our CSA, is also a beekeeper.

Her honey is a light brown color in the spring and a dark, amber color in the fall...

Do you have the dreaded Texas allergies???

Ever been told to eat a tablespoon of honey a day to stave away the allergies??

Well guess what??

You NEED the seasonal honey that is in the season of your allergies!!!

You can't just go get some Teddy Bear honey and think that will work.

Your body needs something specific.

Farmer Pete and I are always jealous of farms up north...they get to produce all the goodies, all in one shot...

Talk about having your full cob salad! Tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, cucumbers, and lettuce greens! All at one time!!!

Texas is a whole other beast!

Up north, the veggies all grow at the same time of the year because that's when people are the most active.

Then they hunt during the winter...the meat lasts them through the winter, and the veggies get them through the summer.

Our climate is so mild here in Texas that we are active THROUGHOUT the year!

So veggies grow all year long!!!

And that can be kind of challenging for our 36 week long CSA because that means our veggies are around longer.

We've been eating salad for a while now...come on squash!!!

But that's what our bodies need...right now!

What's awesome about being a part of a CSA is that your farmer tells you "what's in season," by putting it in your box, so you don't have to do all sorts of research to figure all that out and then try to buy it at the store.

And because you've gotten the vegetables in your CSA, you will think to yourself "well now I got them, I have to eat them!"

It's like fool proof for "eating seasonally!"

Remember that for our bodies to be healthier, we just need to follow what God's design is for us and the earth and how they work together.

Share this with your friends because I bet they haven't heard it before either!