It's All Good: In Defence of Paltrow. And all the other people who are striving to improve.

One of the sweet joys of shopping is seeing a product you really want but really can't justify, reach a really great sale. Case in point? It's All Good. I want this $35 book. I can't spend $35 on a book. But $20? I can do that. Thanks, Target. It's all good.

It's All Good is Gwyneth Paltrow's second cookbook. The woman/goddess is a self-proclaimed foodie with the butt of a 22 year old (however not this 22 year old) and is recently committed to nearly-gluten-free, elimination-diet style eating. As a new convert into the world of health consciousness, and a fan of GP, I obviously have many reasons to read.

And I did, and the cookbook is awesome and inspiring. Thus far it has boosted my confidence in the kitchen (RE the 'whipping a meal together with a near empty pantry & a lush herb garden' story), and my confidence in living with a little less food on my plate ("there is elegance in restraint").

The recipes are simple and interesting and include a wealth of ingredients I'd never thought to try (miso paste, broccoli rabe, sesame oil, sesame seeds, and on and on). The instructions are fun and real-to-life (no "al dente" in here) and it's a style that I just seem to click with. And that's really hard to do with a full recipe book. Mkay? You know there's a rant coming, don't you?

So with my new love for It's All Good under my belt after a thorough read and a tryout of a few recipes, I was really displeased to find this article by The Guardian (and let's be real, there are probably dozens more like it but it's not nice to share those) which essentially seeks to "expose" Paltrow's "crackpot" elimination diet theories which focus on reducing food sensitivities by avoiding the foods which we are - wait for it - sensitive to. Eggs got you bloating? Find an alternative protein source. Is that really so ridiculous? The Guardian seems to think so.

In the Guardian article, Paltrow is characterized as having a "fear of food"and in being pursuant to a "laughable Hollywood neuroticism" which funds the bank-account of this "full time sprouter of nonsense". Well, without getting too defensive personally, I would like to step up to acknowledge some of the inconsistencies the Guardian (and The Atlantic Wire, and The Post) are shooting off because of convenience, popularity and the fact that it's just so easy to hate on someone or something that makes you uncomfortable.

Here's the thing.
Making a lifestyle decision to pursue healthy eating is a bold, difficult and courageous choice.

It is simple to live a life of apathy. It is much easier to purchase packaged food than whole food. It's easier to not exercise than it is to exercise. And it's more simple to criticize rather than to understand.

Making the conscious decision to wake up and say, "you know what I'm going to do today? I'm going to pursue health" takes serious effort. Not only does it mean purging the stuff that you want to engage in but shouldn't, it also means substituting with good, real things which are often more time consuming, difficult or farther out of reach. Gwyneth Paltrow's It's All Good isn't shouting out anything new or revolutionary (Elimination Dieting is OLD NEWS), and although it's not perfect (she suggests eating veganaise instead of mayonnaise, but I'd go for homemade mayo over a soy-based product any day) she isn't pushing a Don't Eat solution on anybody, she isn't malnourished, and for goodness sakes, there aren't enough recipes in one cookbook to simply live off of and you're supposed to find other sources for recipes, food ideas, and maybe think for yourself from time to time.

For someone like me who is prone to bloating, weight gain, and bingeing on chocolate / french fries / pizza / whipped cream / french fries / foamy lattes / french fries I need a fresh kick in the squishy tush now and again to try something new. That's why I'm doing 30 Meals in 30 Days. That's why I start running (currently I'm not!), and then start gardening, and then start buying organic, and then taking trips to the farmer's market, and drinking lemon water, staggering all of these solutions and taking advantage of them when possible and letting things slide when not.

It sounds like my approach is similar to Gwyneth's who seems to go through phases of learning and trying, and is excited to share with the world what she's doing. Life isn't static, and neither are her approaches to life. To some that's laughable. They prefer consistency,  a one-approach solution which is simpler to nail down and pursue. (Those people probably don't like blogs very much.)

But to me, it's inspiring, encouraging and helpful to read a series of recipes which promote a bold, difficult and courageous choice towards pursuing healthy living - the tough thing to do in a world where a meal at Burger King costs less than a meal at home.

What do you think? I say it's all good.