If you’re reading this, I’m so grateful our journeys have crossed paths! You may see it everywhere, but what does Lettuce Bow and Say really mean? This is my story and my journey of how #Lettucebowandsay came to fruition.
Let us bow and say…
At the end of a yoga class, many teachers will offer some variation of this phrase as a way to close practice.
Together, let us honor each other’s light and bow towards it.”
Press your palms together and draw your hands up to third eye center. Together, we bow and say…”
The divine light within me honors and acknowledges the divine light within you.”
This is a special moment in my practice. It’s one last resonance of movement and breath, a recap before transitioning to the next movement of life. It’s the transition between practice and day-to-day life.
Transitions
Let’s take a step back. If we think about transitions in the bigger picture, they’re far more impactful than the actual destination. This is because there is always something else that lies ahead, somewhere further to go. We are not stationary beings. We never land and life is rather an ever-evolving transition.
How we shift between these events can be seamless, torturous, or a mix of both. I would never sit here and write that we should be striving for seamless, because that’s idealistic and just not reality. However, a warning sign that says, “bumpy road ahead” alerts you to proceed with caution. If we learn, anticipate and better prepare, we can shift from torturous to uncomfortable. And the uncomfortable IS something to strive for. It is the transition.
The In-between
When we relinquish preconceived notions of what “life” is intended to be, we embrace and actually become comfortable with the uncomfortable.
Ever wonder why, from afar, yogi’s seem so free? This is why. They flow through life, the peaks and valleys and everything in-between. They are detached from peaks and valleys and observe the in-between: every step of the journey that lead them there.
Notice how I use the word, “observe” rather than, “judge.” You’re never going to end up in the same place twice. There is no mastering the journey that leads you to greatness. We can’t judge our in-betweens or transitions. We observe to enlighten us, not judge to do better.
We Transition
We don’t rise and fall. We don’t climb a ladder. We don’t struggle.
We transition.
The transition out of my practice taught me this. It was one of my biggest “ah-ha” moments.
Lettuce bow and say…
Lettuce was the biggest precursor to shifting to a plant-based lifestyle.
Mainstream Salads
I think it’s safe to say we’ve all experienced that love/hate relationship with salads, or what I call “Lettuce.” We should eat them regularly because they’re the healthier option, but that doesn’t mean we always want to eat them. A salad is never the most appetizing thing on the menu, often times eating them is a chore to be “good”, and after…you’re still hungry.
Before I even stopped eating meat, I started eating salads as a chore. I wanted to be better. But it actually took a long, long time to get it right.
At least in the US, the “healthy” option always seems to have a negative connotation. A sour bite if you will. So, in order to make it more appealing, society showcases what tastes good under the guise of “healthy” with a label: Salad. Most salads are in fact less healthy than any other meal alternatives.
At that point, what is the point? Let me break it to you…there is none.
After years, I’ve learned there’s a lot of things wrong with mainstream salads, but simple solutions to making them right.
5 Layers to Making the Right Salad
1. Greens:
I call salads Lettuce because those greens are the most important part.
Wrong:
The most common lettuce used in mainstream salads are Iceberg and Romaine.
Fact: Iceberg has ZERO nutritional value and Romaine is only slightly better. As a chore, it absolutely reduces calorie intake for a healthy option, but lacks anything substantial to carry you through the day. Think of it like drinking a glass of water when you’re hungry. It will subside your appetite for maybe a few minutes at most.
Right:
The best lettuce options (in order): Spinach, Kale, Arugula & Mesclun Mix.
These greens are LOADED with nutritional value and for the few extra calories, becomes a wash with the energy required to process the nutrients. Also…they have FLAVOR. Which brings us to our next topic…
2. Toppings:
The fewer the better? NO the more the better. As long as they’re the right ones.
Wrong:
Most mainstream salads sprinkle toppings and rely on the dressing for flavor. Chopped nuts, cheese and a berry or two if lucky.
Right:
Toppings have plenty of flavor on their own & when combined with the lettuce and dressing, create a meal that is in fact appetizing.
The best salad toppings: VEGGIES (raw or cooked!), fruits, nuts, seeds, grains, legumes, fresh herbs (not just in the dressing) & spices.
3. Protein:
Wrong:
“Would you like to add protein?”
Mainstream protein lists consist of chicken, steak, and sometimes shrimp or salmon.
“No thank you.”
Animals are not the singular source of protein. Plants are protein! The protein we consume in animal products is secondary. Animals eat plants for protein…
Right:
The best salad proteins: everything listed above has protein in it.
4. Dressing:
Wrong:
The most common dressings available for mainstream salads are: ranch, blue cheese, Italian, Caesar, balsamic vinaigrette.
Fact: They’re all LOADED with sugar and extremely unhealthy, regardless if they’re low fat, zero sugar (aka sugar substitute), or if you’re only using 2 Tbsp.
Right:
The best flavorful, healthy salads dressings can be made with a few simple ingredients:
- Oil (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)
- Vinegar
- Agave or Maple Syrup (for vinaigrettes)
- Tahini, Cashews, or Hemp Seeds (for creamy versions)
Then, you play with your add ons to make it unique:
- Spices
- Mustard
- Garlic
- Fruit
- Citrus
- Salt & pepper
5. Portion Size:
Wrong:
Mainstream salad portions are TINY. A few springs of lettuce, a sprinkle of toppings and maybe some protein on the side.
Right:
When you eat plants, there are no rules. FILL the bowl up. Eat until you’re full. The limit of salad you can eat does not exist!!
Healthy is Not Bad
Let me go back to this thought – Why does mainstream turn healthy into bad?
When I went plant-based and took away all the rules, I learned the truth behind lettuce and how it is so badly misrepresented.
Healthy food can taste good and fuel us.
#Lettucebowandsay “…
Is what I offer you.
I have loved puns since puns were in style. They make me smile and my hope is that they also make you smile. Some I have to think about, but this one just came to me.
Quarantine 2020
I’m sure you remember it just as vividly as I do.
I had plenty to do managing safety regulations for a construction company during a global pandemic…but I had a lot of unused creative energy. I didn’t know I needed an outlet until this pun just came to me.
As I repeated it over and over to myself I thought, “Wow, this embodies everything that is…Shelby.” Me and my journey. A few hours later my roommate asked me what I was up to on that Sunday afternoon in March. I said, “starting my brand.”
The Light Bulb
I began my 200 hour teacher training earlier that February, but it was postponed for the initial 2-week stay at home advisory (2-weeks! HA!). When 2 turned into many weeks at home, I was converting my living room to a yoga a studio daily and cooking 3 meals a day. Since they were the only fun activities, I went all out. My favorite part of the week was the trip to the grocery store. Even if it meant waiting in line.
At that time in my life I had eager, infant yoga teacher thoughts swirling, was exploring my taste buds and cooking skills like a part-time job, and in a singular moment the light bulb went off. It all came together as my holistic health and wellness journey.
While I’ve learned to not regret things in life, I’ll catch myself from time to time wishing I had found yoga or plants sooner.
“What if…?” “How much better off would I be…?”
I can’t live in “what if” because “what is” is right in front of me and all around me. Rather than wishing, I had an urge to do.
I would offer my journey to others in hopes they, too, would find their light. Maybe even sooner than I did.”
I decided that IS something I can live in.
A Holistic Approach to Health and Wellness
I have accumulated many thoughts along this journey. I offer them to you, and you choose whether to acknowledge them with me.
Take it as a meal or a side salad. It is intentionally multidimensional. There isn’t one solution or method to health and wellness. It is rather many things that occur simultaneously and cohesively create a lifestyle.
To me, health and wellness is not a destination, it’s an ever evolving transition. It is also poorly represented within society. And I’d like to change that. Lettuce Bow and Say merges all of my passions, teachings and experiences into a holistic approach to health and wellness.
When you read #Lettucebowandsay, think…
together acknowledging thoughts into existence.”
Here’s to finding your light.
Lettuce | Together
Bow | Acknowledge
and Say | Thoughts into Existence