By Shelly Sandhu —
Have you ever heard the saying, “it takes a village”? That usually pertains to raising children but it applies to many situations. I like to call my girlfriends, “My Tribe”. We are a little village that supports each other and makes life a little bit easier. Eating with someone can lead to new levels of enjoyment. Nourishing our bodies with great nutrition is important but couple that with nourishing our soul, and our mind then we are winning!
When we take the time to eat with friends we tend to pay a little bit more attention to what we are eating. If we all are of like mind when it comes to nutrition and eating for health then it makes our goals so much more fun to achieve. Sometimes we can even get new ideas or develop more of a pallet from our friend’s food choices. For example, I have a friend that loves beets. I have tried them several times and don’t care for them. The last meal we shared she picked a beet dish that looked amazing but I would never order it due to my dislike of beets. She offered a small bite for me to try; I ended up loving it and we split our meals.
When we eat with friends we also tend to relax. We have a sense of community and togetherness that helps us feel supported and loved. Creating social circles that support healthy behaviors can change your mindset on life and really help you to live your best life. Studies show that smoking, drinking, obesity, happiness, depression, and healthy behaviors are all contagious. Therefore, the social networks that you make within your life can favorably shape how you are going to live your life.