Definition of: Seeing is believing.
I have been thinking a lot about the things that we are subjected to day in and day out. In the context of nutrition and CFR, of course. Daily, we are bombarded with messages. Whether we are trying to pay attention to them or we are not, I bet that if you stopped to count the number of times you were subjected to information that was put out there for you to believe in one day, you would lose track. We just see and hear so damn much.
“Believing what one reads seems so easy and so natural that people must take pains to guard against it.¹”
That link there is to a pretty amazing journal article that hammered home some of my hypotheses about how what we see effects us. You Can’t Not Believe Everything You Read. Check it out.
This article explores the Spinozan idea that information (i.e. advertising) is automatically believed during comprehension…hence, seeing is believing.
Think, for example, about a simple trip to the grocery store. You have the radio on in the car (unless you are Raphe and you are riding your bike places in 15 degree weather. Bike as in cycle, not motor.) First, count the commercials you hear on the 10+ minute drive that are related to either the way you look or what you put in your pie hole. Ok, now at the grocery store, take note of the catchy phrases and posters about why something is GOOD or NOW BETTER (be it lettuce, BOTTLED WATER, starburst, or doritos!) Now the checkout line…dun-dun-duuuunnnn. There are 5700 magazine, tabloid, newspaper, and cookbook titles, bombarding you from every angle…toes to nose…even in the candy free line. Drive home (listening to more commercials. Probably literally the same commercials…) and lastly, decide to flip on the TV while putting the groceries away. MORE ‘information‘ flyin’ at ya!
“The Spinozan hypothesis suggests that if a bad idea is allowed to reach its destination, the
person whom it reaches may not have the logical capacity, correct information, or cognitive resources to reject it¹”
Check it...at LEAST five messages related to your 'health' on ONE cover.
Alright. Here come the take home points…summary, Clif Note version, hashtag, abstract, synopsis….whatever YOU call it. ( Don’t roll your eyes, you just experienced 5700 points in one grocery trip. Deal with my two, for craps’ sake!)
“People do have the power to assent, to reject, and to suspend their judgement, but only after they have believed the information to which they have been exposed .”¹
You are, and have been- since the time you could read the school lunch menu- bombarded with information that goes against many (most…all?) of the things you have been told since finding CrossFit Retribution and paleo (or primal or even gluten free). Time to realize two things:
1. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO CONTINUE TO BELIEVE WHAT YOU READ. Now you know that you should, in fact, question the things that you see and/or read. Your brain isn’t just going to do it for you.
2. YOU CAN BE YOUR OWN EXPERT. Explore, learn, question, experiment…EXPERIENCE RESULTS…then decide for yourself. (It’s not like we are talking about drugs here, people!)
“being skeptical meant taking a second step backward (unbelieving) to correct for the uncontrollable tendency to take a first step forward (believing).[..] achieving true beliefs required that one subvert the natural inclinations of one’s own mind”¹
Time to reconsider everything you thought you knew.
Like cupcakes for breakfast….
Read it and Believe it: Breakfast Cupcake Edition
1/3 sausage and 1/2 C chopped yellow onion, sautéed together until cooked
2C chopped baby spinach
1/3C Cilantro
8 Eggs
1tsp Adobo (mix of salt, garlic, oregano, pepper, and turmeric)
1. Preheat oven to 375. Brown onion and sausage until cooked. While browning, chop spinach and cilantro
2. Whisk eggs and adobo
3. Remove sausage and onions from heat. Add chopped spinach and mix.
4. Combine egg mixture with spinach mixture.
5. Add cilantro and mix well.
6. Pour into greased muffin pan.
7. Bake for 18-22 minutes
Believe.
It’s ok to believe what you are about to read…Breakfast has never been so awesome sauce. (Or easy!)
Enjoy!
Until next time…
Mallory
¹You Can’t NOT Believe What You Read (Worth the Read!!!)
WESTMINSTER STRENGTH & CONDITIONING
