“When someone shares something of value with you and you benefit from it, you have a moral obligation to share it with others.” –Chinese Proverb
What I’m about to share about fat and all that I feel is good and healthy about it is simply what I’ve learned and grew up in. It’s what I’ve researched and feel to be true. I am not a medical professional, a dietician, or nutritionist. I am a mother of 2 small children and a first generation American whose families were raised on whole animal fats including butter, lard, and beef tallow. My family has grown to be old, healthy, and full of life! My encouragement to you is to research pure animal fat from pastured animals and make up your decision on what has nourished our people for thousands of years versus what has been instilled upon us over the last hundred.
Over the next few weeks, I will be sharing the health benefits and pure joy of eating by using butter, pork lard, and beef tallow (beef fat). I’ll share recipes and really dive into the animal including cuts of meat, how to properly prepare them including tenderizing our grass fed beef, (Hello Pork Belly!!) Really, it’s in these fats that we have used for thousands of years that we can begin to enjoy food.
The book in the image above called fat, by Jennifer McLagan, is one that I would recommend to any American who has been raised on the Standard American Diet, (SAD). She begins her book by diving into the science of fat, how we lost the appreciation for it, and why fat is good for our health. She speaks passionately about the subject and writes in a way that one can understand and begin to see how we have a fear of eating and a fear of fat itself in this country. A very unhealthy way of thinking of food leading to many eating disorders.
In the United States, (I can only speak for the United States as it’s where I’ve been raised) we have an unhealthy view on fat especially when it’s on us. I don’t know about anyone out there, but in my life, I have not yet met one person, or I should say woman, who has been completely happy with their weight. Even my skinny friends are constantly weighing themselves and running off those extra few pounds. I’ve found that when we are unhappy with our weight that we begin to fear food and run to diets including low fat diets. The reality, and one that I constantly remind myself of, is we are not built to be the personified model or actress that we value so much in the United States. We are all genetically different and truthfully a few extra pounds is much healthier than being under weight.
So before I start writing about fat, this is me and I’m happy with me!
Sure, I’m currently hitting the gym trying to increase my activity level especially during these cold months. However, I’m not expecting to drop down to my high school years. That is an unhealthy way to look at weight loss.
So now, it’s your turn. Look at yourself and be happy with you. Knowing you are not like anyone else in this world and that is what makes you special and unique! You do not need to turn to diets made by man, filled with artificial preservatives, trans-fats, and hydrogenated oils, instead, let’s start eating REAL FOOD! That combined with a healthy amount of exercise can get us down to a healthy weight.
Now let’s start eating real fat again!!
People with serious health conditions can benefit from reducing the amount of fat they eat. However, for the rest of us, fat is a necessary and important part of our diet. Please note, I am not saying to go all out and load yourselves up on fat, instead, to be knowledgeable of the types of fat there are and how to use them appropriately.
If you haven’t signed up, Jenny at the Nourished Kitchen has started a 28 day Real Food Challenge! Go on over and check it out!
Tomorrow or Thursday, I will go into the history of fat, the science, and why it’s so important for our health!
If you’re an organic gardener please join me on Wednesday as we continue our gardening series. Zones and Planting Calendars!!
Until then, have a freshly baked piece of toast with some real butter!
You are beautiful me-lady.
Ok Gabe's comment is too cute.
This book is really interesting!
http://www.amazon.com/Queen-Fats-Omega-3s-Removed-California/dp/0520242823
I'm looking forward to these posts!
Thanks for sharing this precious information, Diana 🙂
Beautiful photo ! We can see happiness through your eyes !
Have a sweet and blessed February 😉
xoxoxo
Brilliant post, Diana. You know I agree with you about the SAD. Cheers!
Great post, and thank you for sharing the Chinese proverb!
I do think that the extreme, irrational fear of fat has done quite a bit of harm and let to a lot of weight gain over the years. Living a healthy life is about all things in moderation, and fat is certainly a part of it. I personally cannot tolerate a lot of fat in my diet, but I try to get real, natural fats whenever I eat it. I'm looking forward to your "fat series." Also, thank you for the reminder to be happy with ourselves. It's so important!!! 🙂
Hear hear! Although I'm kind of a newbie to the real food movement, I'm paying more attention to my food labels and when the prime ingredient is a chemical I cannot pronounce, I am happy to pass it on.
I'm excited by this new series! We seem to live in the land of extremes–lowfat/low salt/low carb/etc. diets…. Yet our population is becoming increasingly more obese as a whole. Hmmm…guess those diets aren't working! I think Julia Child had it right…bring on the butter!
Yay, Diana! I love fat and take any opportunity to celebrate it. It's one of the true joys of my eating life (and I love food, so it's easy for me to admit this freely). Health aside, without fat, our food would be so tasteless and dull, it's really unbelievable! I have been wanting to read this book, and this is a good reminder that it's got to be on my list this year. Thanks for this post! 🙂
Brava Diana! I think this is just what people need to read & to quote Rachael (& Julia) "bring on the butter" ; ) Baci!
Such a great post! I am really looking forward to reading the other posts in this series. A little bit of "real fat" goes a long way, and is so much better than overindulging in the fake stuff!
You look great Diana. I want to have that book. I saw that at the bookstore. In the Philippines, we also eat traditional fats until the invasion of American foods which are low-fat and low-calorie and people have been skipping meals to eat these bars so they could lose the excess weight. WE have local advertisements on low-fat fat and yoghurt for instance showing women's beautiful bodies which sends a wrong message to the younger one. Just joined the 28-day challenge too.Thanks for the series.
I am so lucky to know you IRL Diana! I was just slathering a venison roast with some pork lard and thinking about the Spring piglets.
Cheers!
This is a great series. I can only relate.. Growing up in France, we used butter,real cream, duck and goose fat, lard to bake and cook.
Interestingly, while the sales low-fat products has been increasing over the years, so have the average waste line of Americans! I know it's boring but what really matters in calories in – calories out when it comes to managing one's weight. I truly believe that everything can be eaten as long as it is in moderation… and cooking from scratch is always your best option.
Looking forward for more posts on real fat!
Love it!
I am a big fan of fat…the right ones in the diet are essential to good health.
When I was younger and limited my fat intake I was heavier and had all sorts of health problems…
I don't have that book, but I have "Bones" by the samr author and I love it.
You're beautiful by the way!
well written Diana
Diana – thanks for cluing me in on this book. I want to get it!! Yay for fat.
A lot of my recipes use butter and I love crisp animal fat; my friends challenge me on this but we are and remain a fit, healthy (bar this awful winter!)family who eat freshly prepared meals every day.
Love this post, I will forward it to my friends with a "nana nanana!". ;O)
Glad I found your blog.
Helen xx
Thanks for the comments everyone! I'm really excited to start this series!
Danelle – I'm so lucky to know you IRL as well!!
Winnie – Thanks for the heads up on her other book, Bones. I'm excited to check that out!!
Helen – Thanks for stopping by! Looking forward to hearing more from you 😀
Awesome post, Diana, and I love the gorgeous picture of you! Looking forward to reading more about this!
Looking forward to that!, I love using lard for my cooking 🙂
An excellent post! I can't wait to read that book. I've added it to my list. We are in the process of moving up the fat ladder, as I call it, adding natural fats back in. And you know what, it feels great. No, it feels awesome! I love not being so stressed about what I eat. Because I know where my food comes from and that it is natural, I feel so much more confident in my diet and my health. Beautiful picture of you, by the way! 🙂
Yay for real food and real fat!
Three cheers for fat! Honestly, though, it is crazy how fat-averse we are. I choose to cook with natural, good fats regularly. Combined with other nourishing, whole foods, they're essential!
Diana, you are beautiful!
I absolutely agree with you: in Italy we fear our fat too, and that's wrong!
We should re-consider our body and our eating habits, because we can eat extremely well without avoiding pleasures of life!
So, I totally support you!
You rock Diana!!
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I love it! Can't wait for the series. I totally agree with you – people are really freaked out about fat. And it pains me to see them choose processed low fat snacks over real food that has fat. Sigh.
Great post diana…. you look so beautiful and healthy … I love to read about people who are happy with them self … you are such an aspiration for all of us…
I think that the fear of fat is widespread around the world …. in my family we grow up eating animal fats moderately in our diet… my great grandmother live healthy until 105 years… I hope I can be healthy as she is :-O
I have to admit that I cut the butter from my diet for years until just recently I decide to return to the life style that I used to when I grow up …
Thank you for mention that book I hope I can find it here…. Looking forward to reading more posts about this 🙂
We use a lot of pork fat in Serbian cuisine, and I love it. It really gives everything special flavor.
As for the dieting… I've never done it 🙂 I am so blessed with my fast metabolism 🙂 Although, as approaching the 30s, I realize I should eat and live more healthy.