Practice over Perfection

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posted on

June 12, 2024

Have you ever heard the phrase "Practice makes perfect?" I can't be the only millennial who heard this growing up. It was meant to be an encouragement to keep trying; never give up; reach the top.

But let's face it. Perfection is intimidating. Couple that with a “never enough” mentality and we feel defeated before we start. In a social media-saturated world portraying others' lives as 'picture perfect', it's terrifying to even think about doing anything "perfect". As adults, we face thoughts and fears daily: not enough money, not enough time, not enough knowledge , not perfect enough. . . perfection is defeating.

Practice, on the other hand, is effective.

You crawled before you walked.

You gurgled and babbled before you talked.

You didn’t learn to read all at once.

You get the idea...

It's O.K. if things aren't perfect. Find joy in the journey.

You can be a 100 percent, all-in, hard-core, die-hard, only-eat-Polyface-EVER kind of person, or you can occasionally want a good dozen eggs or a pack of chicken breasts. Both are great. You're practicing eating better foods. You're taking positive practice steps in your health journey.

We don’t judge participation levels. We welcome and honor any and all decisions and efforts to practice getting better nutrition, eating safer food, and building a relationship with a transparent farmer.

Every time you replace questionable grocery store mRNA-injected chemical-laden industrial factory-farmed fare with something from Polyface, you give your microbiome a healthy dose of superior nutrition, your family some “I care” reassurance, and our ecological nest a caress of stewardship.

That’s a lot of return on your investment. That is moving you toward your goals, even if "perfection" isn't on the horizon.

We honor and respect where you are on your health journey. Thank you for letting us be your farmers as we, too, learn daily and move incrementally to build better soil, create better access to this food, and and become better stewards of creation.

Rather than focusing on "perfection", let's focus on practice. Let's rewrite that old saying. How about something like "Practice makes better practices." That's what we're going for, after all. We're all hoping to grow; learn; and improve (either ourselves or something around us). As you discover better food, you’ll discover taste, texture, and total satisfaction. Practice eating better and your eating practices will improve.

What better practices do you want to practice this summer?

Hannah

Why Choose Fermented Foods?

My grandparents on my father’s side used to make sauerkraut in wooden barrels in the basement. My mother’s side made cheese and salami. I could smell these concoctions throughout the entire house. Fermenting is part of your national heritage, no matter your family’s country of origin. Alongside nourishing grass-fed/grass-finished pastured meats like Polyface raises, every person should include real fermented foods into their diet. This method of food preservation goes back farther than most realize, reconnecting us with ancient traditions, long before the refrigerator-freezer was invented. Every culture consumed something fermented every day. Here are the reasons why I like fermented foods. Fermentation preserves food without using high pressure, high heat, or chemicals, so it both conserves and increases them. The nutritional value of fermented foods lies mostly in the pro-biotic bacteria that are present, and byproducts of their digestion. The bacteria’s digestive “waste” is a collection of vitamins, enzymes, and co-factors needed for every system of the body. These include: Vitamins B1, B6, B12, C, and K2 Superoxide dismutase (SOD, an antioxidant) GTF chromium (assists sugar metabolism) Glutathione (a potent detoxifier) Phospholipids (cell membrane building blocks) Digestive enzymes Beta 1,2 glucans (present in shiitake mushrooms; modulates immune system) Fermentation neutralizes or eliminates these: Phytic acid (present in seeds, nuts, beans, legumes) Enzyme inhibitors (also present in seeds, nuts, beans, legumes) Nitrites Prussic acid (hydrogen cyanide) Oxalic acid (binds minerals) Nitrosamines (known carcinogen) Glucosides Probiotics and enzymes in whey neutralize phytic acid and enzyme inhibitors, allowing your digestion to access the nutrients in the food. Enzymes are proteins. Proteins are delicate molecules with very complex structure and shape. The structure of the enzyme gives it its function. Without structure and form, the enzyme will not do its job of catalyzing biochemical reactions. Without enzymes, biochemical reactions would cease. Enzymes are denatured (unraveled or broken down) by high pressure, high heat, acidic conditions, toxic chemicals, and electrical disturbances. Once denatured, they lose their form and shape, therefore they lose their function. Unlike canning and commercial processing, fermenting occurs at atmospheric pressure and room temperature, encouraging beneficial bacteria to thrive. Temperatures above 117 degrees Fahrenheit denature enzymes and kill probiotic bacteria. If you wonder what 117 degrees feels like, it’s the temperature at which you cannot touch an object with your bare hands and hold it for a few seconds. If it’s hot, but you can still touch and hold it in your hand and not pull away, it’s under 117 degrees. This innate protection mechanism (i.e., reflex) prevents your own protein (i.e., skin on your finger) from being denatured. It’s also a good indicator of when your food is hot enough to kill probiotics and denature enzymes. For best results, fermented foods must be eaten raw, never hot or cooked. Fermented foods are safe and protective against pathogens. USDA scientist Roger McFeeters, who oversees a fermentation laboratory, says, “The lactobacilli can number a billion per gram of tissue at the height of fermentation. The bad bacteria can't compete." According to McFeeters, lacto-fermentation has caused no known food-borne illness. "As far as we know, it's been going on for thousands of years. It's perfectly safe.” The sauerkraut that my grandparents made had a layer of raw pork chops embedded in the salted cabbage. When the sauerkraut was done, you could safely eat the pork chops raw! They were pre-digested by the bacteria, and “cooked" by the organic acids in the kraut. Probiotics prevented pathogens from establishing. None of us ever got food poisoning. My grandmother lived to be 100. Fermented foods have anti-carcinogenic properties. They normalize blood pressure and heart rate, help to break down fat in the liver, and maintain healthy systemic pH. And they are quite tasty. In the supermarket, look for fermented foods in the refrigerated section, not on the shelf with canned foods. Shelf-stable canned foods were subjected to high temperatures. The probiotics and enzymes have been denatured. Look for “live cultures” or “live probiotics” on the label. Eat something lacto-fermented every day, like your ancestors did. Just a tablespoon or two of sauerkraut or an ounce or two of cheese is enough to have the desired effect. Choose a salad dressing made with raw apple cider vinegar, or a tablespoon of a fermented condiment such as ketchup, mustard, or mayonnaise. Try a fermented beverage, like kombucha, beet kvass, or ginger ale. (Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon has some great recipes for all of these.) The original condiments were digestive aids. They’re easy to make. Try it. May you be deeply nourished! Susan

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Practice over Perfection

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