Feeding the Fire: How to Fuel Your Body for Steady Energy
I’m currently watching Apple Cider Vinegar, a Netflix series about Australian wellness influencer Belle Gibson, who claimed to have cured her terminal brain cancer through healthy eating and positive thinking. She built a massive following and business through social media, a popular app, and a cookbook. However, it was revealed that she never had cancer, and her entire public persona and business were based on this major lie. The series is based on the book The Woman Who Fooled the World, written by Australian journalists Beau Donelly and Nick Toscano.
This story hits close to home for me because when my mom was battling cancer, she was approached by several well-meaning “healers” offering their own “natural” remedies to cure the disease. Sadly, my mom did try some of these remedies and chose to forgo certain medical treatments. Eventually, she passed away from the disease.
Food is medicine, and it impacts us deeply on a cellular level because everything we eat becomes the energy and building blocks for our cells. However, no matter how clean, potent, organic, or nutritious our food is, it will not cure cancer—or many other diseases. What saddens me is that the constant overpromising and exaggeration of certain foods’ benefits on social media often overshadow the real advantages of healthy eating. The food choices we make undoubtedly impact our health and wellness, but those benefits can get lost in the ongoing debate over “which food cures the most symptoms” or “my diet is better than yours.”
I like to think of food and the fuel we get from it as a wood stove in a ski cabin during the winter. You rely on that stove to heat the space and keep yourself warm. But how do you do it?
You start the fire and gradually feed it high-quality logs over time. There are three key factors to consider:
- How much fuel do you put in? (Too little won’t keep the fire going; too much will smother it.)
- What kind of fuel? (Low-quality fuel will create smoke and could extinguish the fire.)
- At what intervals do you add the fuel? (Feeding the fire unevenly will cause it to burn erratically, ranging from roaring to barely smoldering.)
Will your fire management keep you consistently warm and make the cabin smell pleasant? Or will the chalet become overstuffed, smoky, and inefficient?
It works the same with the food we put into our bodies to keep our inner furnace running steadily and efficiently. The three most important questions to consider are: How much? What kind of fuel? and At what intervals?
Just like managing a wood stove, fueling our bodies requires a balance. If we overdo it or neglect it, the fire—our energy—won’t burn steadily, and we might end up feeling sluggish or drained instead of fueled and energized. Let’s break it down:
- How much fuel do you put in?
Just as you wouldn’t throw too much wood on the stove at once (or too little), the amount of food we consume needs to be just right. If we eat too much, it overwhelms our digestive system, makes us gain weight, and affects our body’s ability to process glucose. In addition to long-term health consequences, we end up feeling sluggish and bloated. Too little fuel and the body starts running on fumes, leading to undernourishment, fatigue, and poor performance. Finding that balance is key to maintaining energy levels throughout the day.
- What kind of fuel?
The quality of the wood you feed your stove determines how efficiently it burns. If you use damp, low-quality wood, it smokes and wastes energy. Similarly, the quality of food we eat plays a huge role in how effectively our bodies can use that energy. Whole, nutrient-dense foods—like lean proteins, healthy fats, and complex carbs—provide a consistent, clean burn of energy. Processed or sugary foods might give you a quick burst of energy, but they often lead to an energy crash or even an unhealthy buildup in the body, just like poor-quality fuel leaves your stove inefficient and smoky.
- At what intervals do you add the fuel?
You can’t just toss logs in haphazardly; you need to feed the fire at the right intervals to keep it burning evenly. This is like how often and when we eat. Eating at regular intervals ensures that our energy stays consistent. Skipping meals or eating irregularly can cause spikes and crashes in energy.
Recently, a dietary approach called intermittent fasting (IF), where you cycle between periods of eating and fasting, has gained popularity. The idea behind IF is that by limiting the eating window, your body can better regulate energy use, potentially leading to health benefits like weight loss, improved metabolism, and better insulin sensitivity. This approach works well for some people but not for others. By restricting the time frame in which you eat, many people end up consuming fewer calories, which aligns with the first point on this list. Some people find it more beneficial to reduce the amount of food consumed during one meal (usually lunch or dinner) instead of skipping meals entirely. Additionally, there are benefits to avoiding eating too close to bedtime.
In the end, the key to sustaining your inner furnace is like managing that perfect fire. If you get the balance right—feeding your body the right amount, with quality fuel, and at the right intervals—you’ll feel warm, steady, and energized. But if you’re not careful, you might find yourself fighting with an inefficient, overstuffed, or smoky system. So, consider your body as the wood stove, and your food choices as the fuel—tend to them well, and you’ll keep yourself running smoothly all day long.
